Belgian engineer transformed sluggish Corvettes into rockets

There are numerous automobile founders, inventors and racing drivers who have earned a place in the Pantheon of motoring. But Zora Arkus-Duntov is one of the few automobile engineers who is revered by anyone even vaguely familiar with the history of the Chevrolet Corvette.

Although Arkus-Duntov didn't actually invent Chevrolet's fiberglass two-seat sports car, he was certainly responsible for turning it into the high-performance, highly desirable car it is today.

Born in Belgium on Christmas Day 1909 Arkus-Duntov spent his early years in Russia and Germany where he graduated with a degree in engineering in 1934. At the onset of World War II, both he and his brother Yura joined the French Air Force to fight advancing German forces.

However, after the Nazi occupation of France, Arkus-Duntov, along with his wife, brother and remaining family members, emigrated to America in 1941.

Arkus-Duntov's early success as an engineer was with the Ardun Co. that he and brother Yura established in New York City. They began by supplying parts for the U.S. military, but also developed an overhead-valve, aluminum-head conversion for the Flathead Ford V-8 that became a popular item with the racing crowd. Unfortunately, the company, which at one time employed 300 workers, eventually failed.

In the early 1950s, Arkus-Duntov moved to England where he worked on and raced numerous sports cars. He co-piloted a Cadillac-powered Allard at the French Le Mans 24-hour endurance race in 1952 and 1953, and won his class driving a Porsche Spyder in the 1954 and 1955 contests.

By this time, Arkus-Duntov had a new career as an engineer with General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet division. He became smitten with the just-introduced Corvette, but realized that, with only 150 horsepower on tap from its aged six-cylinder powerplant, it would never perform as a true sports car. His envisioned the Corvette as a high-performance youth-market machine that could compete with -- and beat -- the best from Europe.

After some intensive lobbying, Arkus-Duntov received the green light from Chevrolet management, and the 1955 Corvette was blessed with a 265 cubic-inch V-8 that boosted power to 195 from 150. Sales of the then poorly selling 'Vette began to slowly turn around as word of the car's performance spread.

A racer at heart, Arkus-Duntov ran the V-8 in a preproduction 1956 Chevy up Colorado's Pikes Peak Hill Climb in 1955, establishing a new record. He also took a specially tuned V-8-equipped Corvette to Daytona Beach, Fla., that year, reaching 150 mph on the sand.

Under his watchful hand and eye, Arkus-Duntov developed special performance engine parts for the Corvette and was involved with the creation of the Rochester fuel-injection system that was introduced as an option on the Corvette and a few other GM vehicles in 1957. He also introduced four-wheel disc brakes on the Corvette in 1965.

Arkus-Duntov became part of Corvette folklore with the development of the Grand Sport, a lightweight (1,800 pounds) endurance racer that was based on the Sting Ray that was first produced in 1963. Only five of these 550-horsepower 377-cubic-inch brutes were built before General Motors pulled out of all direct racing involvement after the 1963 Daytona 500.

Nevertheless, a number of these cars found their way into private hands, including aerodynamicist Jim Hall, who went on to develop the Chaparral Can-Am race-series cars, and current Indycar series car owner Roger Penske, who raced and won with the Grand Sport during the 1964 Nassau Speed Weeks held in the Bahamas. To this day, the mere mention of the Grand Sport causes heart palpitations among the Corvette faithful.

Arkus-Duntov remained with Chevrolet for 22 years, rising to the position of chief engineer with Corvette before his retirement in 1975. However, he remained involved as an engineering consultant to Chevrolet for many years after.

He died in April 1996 at age 86. He is survived by legions of adoring Corvette fans, as well as the cars that were his passion and his life's work.

Malcolm Gunn is a feature writer with Wheelbase Communications. He can be reached on the Web at www.wheelbase.ws/mailbag.html. Wheelbase Communications supplies automotive news and features to newspapers across North America.