t was a combination chevrolet teased,
but never actually released—the fuel-injected Corvette small-block in the lightweight Chevy II compact. The basic
concept of a small-block-powered compact predated the Chevy II by a couple years—it was a natural extension of
repowering lightweight prewar cars with late-model engines. In one of the earliest examples, legendary hot-rodder
Wally Parks shoehorned a small-block Chevy in his 1960 Comet (upscale sibling of the Ford Falcon), which was
aboutthe same size and weight as the Chevrolet Chevy II that came out for 1962.
Itmade sense. The SBC was the hot-rodder’s powerplant of choice at the time, thanks to its compact, lightweight design
andincredible power potential. Chevrolet itself didn’t have a suitable small car, however—the Corvair was simply too
unconventional to host a V-8 without considerable re-engineering.
A couple of things conspired to stop a wave of Chevy-to-Ford engine swaps following Parks’ Comet, however: The 1962
Fairlane V-8 (i.e., “the small-block Ford”) and the Chevy II. The former gave Ford purists an engine even better suited
to Falcons and Comets (Ford itself would offer the combination starting in the 1963 model year) and the latter gave the
Chevy guys a virtual bolt-in host for 283s, 327s, and their progeny.
i
september 2019 http://www.HmN.com 17