Unreal at Any Speed: John Black's 1966 Chevy Corvair Monza

“Three questions I get: ‘Is it hot? Is it loud? Is it fast?’ Yeah.”

John Black is a retired aviation maintenance instructor who, with his ingenuity and dedication to speed, has created an autocross weapon that manages to address one of the safety issues that dogged early Corvairs: it handles—really handles. And with a stroked, 427-inch small block Chevy occupying the space where the backseat used to be, it performs more like a rowdy muscle car than GM’s thrifty, air-cooled compact!

A mid-engined Corvair that’s durable and well-sorted enough to stand up to autocross abuse, the HOT ROD Power Tour, and a couple thousand street miles a year doesn’t just happen, though. Surprisingly, it started as a senior project for John’s son, Cory, who was already a Corvair fan, having daily driven a Yenko Stinger clone for a couple of years in high school. “In Pittsburgh, the seniors have to do a project, and it can be anything from painting a dugout, to doing community service, to building a car,” John explained. “He came to me and said, ‘What about a V8 Corvair?’ and I immediately remembered an article I read when I was around 16 years old, about the Crown conversion cars,” he said, referring to Crown Engineering, the California company that built kits to V8 swap Corvairs.

This car was found in Ohio in 2003, partially finished and powered by a mild 350. A nine-month build got it on the road in 2004, in time for Cory’s graduation. But that was only the beginning. What followed was years of improvement and refinement, and a testament to John’s skill, creativity, and aerospace background.

Check out OnAllCylinders.com for more on the cone-carving CorVin8er and the story behind it.

Photography by: Todd Biss Productions
Art direction by: Lance Nemes
Story by: Aaron Dolezal

FAST SPECS

ENGINE
Dart SHP 427 small block Chevy (4.125" bore)
SCAT 4340 forged crankshaft (4.000" stroke)
Eagle H-beam rods
Mahle forged pistons
Clevite rod and main bearings
TCI Rattler harmonic balancer
Melling oil pump
Canton Racing Products oil pan
Patriot Performance aluminum cylinder heads
Howards hydraulic roller camshaft, lifters, and pushrods
Summit Racing™ 1.5 ratio aluminum roller rocker arms
COMP Cams® dual valve springs
Holley valve covers
ARP hardware
Machine work by CNC-Motorsports, Brookings, SD

INDUCTION & FUEL
Holley Sniper EFI
Edelbrock Performer RPM intake manifold
Holley Blue electric fuel pump
FiTech surge tank

IGNITION & ELECTRICAL
MSD Pro-Billet distributor
MSD 6AL ignition box
MSD Blaster High-Vibration ignition coil
ACCEL 8mm ignition wires
Summit Racing™ 100 amp alternator

EXHAUST
Schoenfeld 1 3/4" circle track headers
Cherry Bomb mufflers
2 1/2" tubing, X-pipe

DRIVELINE
GM Powerglide by Abruzzi Racing Transmissions, Warren, OH
Boss Hog 2,800 rpm stall torque converter
Hurst Quarter Stick shifter
C5 Corvette Z06 rear end with Quaife limited-slip differential, 3.42:1 ratio

COOLING
1997 Ford F-250 diesel radiator, 14" electric fans

SUSPENSION & STEERING
Independent front with Mercury Bobcat wagon springs, Chrysler LH steering rack, and 1 1/4" stock car sway bar
Trailing arm rear with lateral links and C4 Corvette sway bar
Koni shock absorbers

BRAKES
Wilwood Dynalite 4-piston calipers (front/rear)
12.9" C6 Corvette rear rotors (front), 10.5" Cadillac front rotors (rear)
Wilwood master cylinder with GM truck Hydroboost

WHEELS & TIRES
E-T Mags LT-III 18" x 12"
Hoosier A7 315/30ZR18 (front), 335/30ZR18 (rear)

BODY & PAINT
Custom fender flares, front valence, and roof scoop; fiberglass hood, doors, and decklid; LEXAN™ rear window
Metalwork and modifications by John Black
Arctic White paint by Gnu’s Body Works, Freedom, PA

INTERIOR
Custom roll cage with swing-out door bars
Simpson harnesses
Carbon fiber door cards by John Black

Special thanks to: My wife Claudia, for putting up with this crazy hobby for the last 45 years; my son Cory; Gary and Collin Snair at Gnu’s Body Works; Bob Rippey for TIG welding the cage; Ken Collins for parts and the CorVin8er name