Slideshow: Can We Interest You in a Nice Monza?

Everything You Always Wanted in a Car, and Less

When GM introduced the Chevy Monza—and its second-generation H-body brethren, the Pontiac Sunbird, Buick Skyhawk, and Oldsmobile Starfire—their small size and slippery shape instantly appealed to drag racers. But the new cars also appealed to the public, with Ferrari-inspired styling touches, particularly that marque's 365 GTC/4 B-pillars and side windows. At the time, Car and Driver went so far as to call the styling of the Monza fastback, arguably the best-looking model of the new group,"stunning." Racing veteran Bill Crawford is one man who liked the Monza's looks and their strip potential. As he told Super Chevy, "In 1974, my friend Bob Gardner and I built a Mustang II drag car for NHRA Pro Stock, which we ran from 1975 to 1979," Crawford said, adding: "Both of us were really Chevy guys. We thought that the Monzas that Bob Ingles, Frank Iaconio, and Grumpy Jenkins had were really neat looking cars. Now, some 30-plus years later, you don’t see many of them around."

FrankenMonza

Even though Crawford's first impressions came well over 30 years ago, his admiration of the Monza platform never lessened, and his desire only grew. "Since I love building cars you don’t often see, I thought the Monza would be a great fit as a project car," he explained. After keeping his eyes peeled for a suitable candidate, he found a few parts cars he'd eventually assemble into a single car: one in Connecticut that "had some good parts". Another in North Carolina, an original Spyder model, that was "in decent shape with a few dents, rusted quarters, front fenders, and doors". And a third in Chicago that had the doors, quarters and fenders he needed, but no floor. "If I were to do this over again, I’d probably try to find a better car to start with because it took three and a half cars to build this one. It’s unbelievable how much rust is in these vehicles," Crawford admits.

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Car of the Year

Motor Trend magazine's 1975 Car of the Year, the Monza was based on the Vega platform, sharing that car's 97-inch wheelbase, unibody construction, and rear-wheel drive layout, but receiving improvements like a torque-arm rear suspension design. Over the course of their lifespan, Monza and co. were offered as hatchbacks, notchbacks, wagons, and custom-style sedan delivery wagons. They were fitted with 4, 6, and 8-cylinder power. Monza 2+2 models could be had with either a 2.3 liter inline four, a 4.3 liter V8, or (for high-altitude or California markets only) an anemic 125 hp 5.7 liter V8. The Monza Spyder debuted in 1976, and most '77-'79 Spyders consisted of the Z01 (console, sport wheel, sport suspension, and BR70-13 radial tire) package, combined with the Z02 (decal and blacked-out trim appearance) package.

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Out With the Old, Etc.

From the very beginning, Crawford knew he'd be putting a load of power to the ground, so the first thing he did was to remove the Monza's original suspension and mounting points. In its place, he installed a frame he'd built from 4x2-inch square tubing—attaching a Heidts Superide II with tubular upper and lower A-arms, QA1 adjustable coilover, and Mustang II spindles, and lowering the front end by four inches. J&M Rod Works in Glenwood, Maryland installed wheel tubs and modified the engine bay to allow the firewall to be moved back four inches. The GM front brakes were replaced with four-piston caliper/12-inch rotor Wilwood units.

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More New

Out back, J&M Rod Works also modified the rear wheel arches, stretching them 6 inches and lowering them 1.5. Crawford then tubbed the fender wells and installed a four-link rear suspension, a panhard rod, and anti-roll bar. In went a 17-gallon stainless steel fuel tank, providing more time between top-offs, and more weight over the rear wheels. All the new interior fender and floor metalwork were formed from eighteen-gauge steel—not that this Monza will ever see salt again in its lifetime. Before being sprayed Lamborghini California Orange by Miller Fabrication, out of Wardensville, West Virginia, the Monza's emblems and door handles were shaved. Miller and Crawford together took care of applying the Spyder hood graphics, retaining just the right amount of late-1970s charm.

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More Go

Any trace of a sub-200 hp V8 has been removed from under the Monza's hood. Instead, a 364-cubic-inch Corvette LS2 V8 resides just below the hood's Spyder graphic. The LS2 is equipped with the '243' head castings, with 10.9:1-compression, and is fitted with a header from Street & Performance. RaceKrafters Automotive did the tuning on the engine, which produces a dyno-tested 450 rwhp at 5,800 rpm, and 438 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm. A Tremec T-56 six-speed manual is mated to the LS2 and from there power is transmitted through a custom aluminum driveshaft back to a 9-inch limited-slip differential, fitted with 3.70 gears. And finally, there are two steamroller-grade fifteen-inch Billet Specialties Vintec wheels wearing M/T Street radial meats.

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Orange Crush

Crawford assigned Manassas, Virginia outfit Craftsman Upholstery to upholster the factory GM bucket seats, and custom console, in a gray and orange leather that ties in nicely with the car's exterior paint job. A weight-saving custom fiberglass dashboard was installed, fitted with Nordskog digital instruments that plug-and-play with the LS's ECM. In '70s car mag parlance, the Billet Specialties steering wheel and a Tremec shifter fall readily to the touch,' as do custom switches for the power windows, hood, and trunk. 

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Revival Time

As Crawford mentioned, Monzas were no strangers to motorsport. Quarter-mile legend Grumpy Jenkins won AHRA and NHRA Pro Stock championships in Monza-bodied cars, while Al Holbert took IMSA Camel GT titles in 1976 and 1977 in a Dekon Monza, beating out the likes of Corvette and Porsche. And, though they had a short production run, GM also did alright with Monza variants in showrooms across America. From 1975-1978 the General moved close to 750,000 Monzas, 524,000 Pontiac Sunbirds, 144,000 Buick Skyhawks, and 125,000 Oldsmobile Starfires—though you wouldn't know it judging by the number still seen running around. Kudos to Bill Crawford for resurrecting an old favorite and putting it on the track. In a world full of Camaros and Firebirds, we have a question for you: can we interest you in a nice Monza?

>>Join the conversation about this resto-modded Chevy Monza right here on LS1Tech.

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