Zora Arkus-Duntov

  In 1953 after attending the Motorama in New York City, Zora Arkus-Duntov not only wanted, but in fact, did join General Motors due to seeing the Corvette. Arkus-Duntov found the Corvette to be a beautiful car, but lacking under the hood. Zora had a method for calculating a cars top speed, and included it in a letter he wrote to Ed Cole the chief engineer, telling him it would be an honor to work on the Corvette. May 1, 1953 was Arkus-Duntov's first day as an assistant staff engineer at Chevrolet.

As a man not inclined to put things off, Arkus-Duntov very shortly composed a memo "Thoughts Pertaining to Youth, Hot Rodders, and Chevrolet." This memo historically set the tone, and laid the foundation for Chevrolet's very, and the most successful parts program, that the industry has seen. Under Zora's leadership, Chevrolet was transformed from conservative, to exciting, and one of the best known and most successful manufacturers in motor racing history.

  Porsche,Ferrari,Maserati, and Mercedes were caught off guard by the Corvette that Zora created. His Corvette was a full blown sports car both on and off the track. In 1955 Arkus-Duntov introduced the small block V-8 to the world in the Corvette. In 1956 Zora took a Corvette to Pikes Peak and Daytona. The Corvette set a record at Pike Peak for a stock car, as well as 150 mph top speed , for the flying mile at Daytona. In 1957 Zora introduced the high lift cam and fuel injection for the Corvette.