1965 CHEVROLET CORVETTE 396/425 CUTAWAY ENGINE DISPLAY

The General Motors Futurama Pavilion was the largest exhibit at the 1964-65 New York World?s Fair with three unique elements in 1965: the new Mako Shark II (later transformed into the Manta Ray that?s now part of the GM Heritage Center collection) a very special cutaway ?65 Sting Ray fuel-injected coupe and a cutaway Mark IV 396 engine. It was a banner year in technology for the Corvette. This unique Cutaway Engine from the World?s Fair display has been restored to its 1965 glory powered by a starter motor with careful and well-thought-out incisions made into all the major components to illustrate its build quality and overall operation. As part of the Futurama exhibit at the World?s Fair presenting the world?s most advanced technology GM engineers were eager to showcase this new engine they were introducing in mid-1965 which produced 425hp with 396ci ? more horsepower than any of the other 396 engines manufactured from mid-1965 until production ended in 1969. Ultimately this engine spelled the end for the Rochester fuel-injection system as the carbureted 396/425 option cost much less than the fuel-injected 327/375. However by the time the Cutaway Corvette and Cutaway Engine displays were complete they were both obsolete. The Fuelie Corvette was not produced after 1965 and the 396 was immediately replaced by the 427 to keep up with the competition: Ford Chrysler and other GM models all had 420-plus cubic-inch engines by late 1965. A 396 just wasn?t enough. This one-of-a-kind Cutaway Engine represents not only a unique piece of General Motors and Corvette history but an opportunity to look inside an incredible example of automotive engineering.

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