1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

[G B.]

In the March, 1962 issue of Hot Rod is an interesting article about Bill Thomas in southern CA. This article describes his installation of a 360hp Corvette fuel injected crate engine in a new Chevy II using a GM over-the-counter V-8 parts "kit". The article predicts that Chevrolet dealers across the U.S. will be doing such V-8 installations very soon.

One of the pre-installation photos shows a new Corvette engine on a rolling stand. It has a bellhousing, front motor mount, water pump, FI unit w/distributor, spark plugs, and exhaust manifolds on it. However, it is missing the plug wires, starter, and fuel pump. A paper i.d. tag is wired to one of the motor mount holes.

The July, 1963 issue of Hot Rod has a similar article. In this one Thomas has built a new Chevy II called "Bad Bascom" for GT road racing. It has a new '63 Corvette injection unit on a custom 380" long block. He's also stripped the Chevy II interior and substituted fiberglass / plexiglass body components to get the car weight down to 2,200 pounds. There is a photo showing a complete '63 Corvette IRS set-up installed under the Chevy II body. The article says this Chevy II is for sale since Thomas doesn't "have the time" to race it. (He couldn't see that becoming an issue while he was building it?)

My question is this: what happened to these two cars and any other Chevy II's that Thomas built with new '62 and '63 Corvette injection units/engines? I never heard another word about them in any magazine after those two articles.

[Michael H.]

Re: 1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

Jerry,

I have those pages scaned and in my mail folder. Very interesting how they notched the oil pan for clearance instead of using the later released front sump pan. Also interesting is the stencil painted part number on the end of the cyl head. Sure was a complete package. No idea what happened to that car.

[Duke W.]

Re: 1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

One thing for sure, those cars would not have qualified for productin classes. Like the Cheetahs, they would have had to run C-modified and there were a lot faster purpose built race cars in that class.

I think Thomas was trying to do the same thing as Shelby with Chevrolet based cars, but he just didn't have the resources and support to pull it off and the fire at the plant was the last straw.

Duke

[Robert Willis]

Re: 1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

In that same time frame Dyno Don had a Chevy 2 Wagon with FI that he ran at the drags.

Bob

[Mike McKown]

Re: 1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

According to information I've seen, Bill Thomas built TWO "Bad Bascom's". One of them was sold to an individual who road raced it in Europe. It was some kind of touring class as I recall. I remember Him saying he raced against Jags. Maybe won a race, or disqualified after he won. Had some other top finishes. Crashed the car last race of the season and took a slow boat home. Left the car in Europe as he had no funds to ship it back. He also said when he bought the car from Thomas, he was in such a hurry to get it to the port of New York he didn't take time to put mufflers on it. Drove from Ca. to New York that way.

I have done "some" research into the whereabouts of BB but have come up empty handed.

The Factory kits were released. I have knowledge of three running cars.

A mechanic at VV Cooke Chevrolet who used to drag race had a Chevy II wagon set up this way. It's red/red and was a tow car for his red Corvette drag car. The Chevy II wagon is still sitting in his garage, like brand new. In January, '65 I bought a set of the weld on underbody brackets and link rods for traction bars from a dealer to put on my Chevy II which also had/has a 327/375 in it. The axle brackets were by this time discontinued. Many of the rest of the parts evolved into production pieces When they factory installed the 283's in the car in '64 and the 327/300's in '65.

I have the phone number of a fellow in Florida who has allegedly cloned "Bad Bascom". I haven't spoken with him yet. I'm looking forward to seeing the car one day.

[Dale S.]

Re: 1962 - 63 FI engines in Chevy II bodies.

I dont know if you knew Don Nickleson passed away recently. D/

[Loren L.]

Jerry, just ran across an old folder in

the file cabinet labelled "'62 Nova - Thomas Racer". Folder started out with an ad in a Nov '62 offering the car for sale. I contacted the 40 years later and he was still at the same address!!
He informed me that there were TWO cars, one by Thomas and the other by Rathman/Smokey Yunick. The one being offered for sale was the R/M one. Both cars went to the UK in 1962, to be driven by two amateurs, up against Graham Hill/Roy Salvadori/Mike Parkes/Jack Sears in semi-factory 3.8 liter Jag sedans.
The Thomas car was owned by a Charles Kelsey, who is now deceased.
They managed to win 2 of the races in the UK.
The owner of the Rathman car returned it to the USA and used if as his SCCA tow car during 1963. He sold it to a friend in Boston, who resold it
a year later and the car was later destroyed in a garage fire on Cape Cod.

[G B.]

Absolutely fascinating

Hot damn, I love this kind of trivia. I sure wish the history channel would have a "Where Are They Now?" automotive series.

Thank you all for contributing and not poo-pooing my post because of the non-Corvette subject.

Come to think of it, I do remember reading an article about a fuel injected Chevy II station wagon that competed in some Euro-trash road racing series during the early sixties. I wonder if that was the R/M entry?