Vehicle Description
1962 Big Brake Tanker
• 1 of 246 Heavy Duty Brake and Heavy Duty Suspension examples
• Big Tank (Special order for racing option)
• 327/360 Fuel Injected Engine
• 4 Speed T-10 Transmission
• Special 24 gallon fuel tank
• Special Wheels for the HD Brakes
• Tons of race history in Southern California and on the rest of
the West Coast
• Featured in Many Corvette Publications
• Part of the 50th anniversary with the National Corvette
Museum
• Complete Owner History
• This car was the predecessor to the 1963 "ZO6" Option
• Part of several NCRS Displays
This 1962 Corvette Racer has a ton of history.When young
Californian Tom Mazzola purchased this 1962 Chevrolet Corvette from
a local dealership in 1966, he had no idea of its true nature as
one of the hottest Corvettes to leave the assembly line in 1962.
However, it didn't take long for the 29-year-old SCCA racer to
discover that it was, in the parlance of the day, a "Sebring" car,
one endowed at the factory with a cohesive assemblage of
race-proven components developed by Corvette Engineer Zora
Arkus-Duntov during years of testing in competition. Offered since
1957 under various names and configurations, the optional Heavy
Duty Brakes and Special Steering package included special shock
absorbers, finned brake drums, internal cooling fans fed by air
scoops and deflectors on the front brakes and air scoops on the
rear, metallic linings, and a quick-steering adaptor.
One of only 246 equipped with the "Big Brake" option in 1962,
Mazzola's Corvette features the Rochester fuel-injected version of
the new 327 CI small-block V-8 with the requisite 4-speed manual
transmission and Positraction rear end. With the combination of
fuel injection, 11.25:1 compression and the solid-lifter "Duntov"
cam, the 327's extra displacement raised peak output from 1961's
315 HP at 6,000 RPM to an exhilarating 360 HP. The car also
features the extremely rare 24-gallon fuel tank, necessitating the
auxiliary hardtop in place of the standard soft top because of the
tank's intrusion into the storage area.
When fellow racer Gene Layne purchased the Corvette from Mazzola in
1976, he commenced a careful restoration, emulating the original
paint scheme of Roman Red with black scallops in quality Ditzler
paint after stripping the car down to the original fiberglass.
Presented exactly as Mazzola raced it, this prominent SoCal Big
Brake Fuelie Tanker was featured on the cover of "Vette
Magazine."
This special 62' Corvette has been a prominent marque at many NCRS
events and was part of the 50th anniversary celebration in
Nashville, TN.
This is truly a part of Corvette history and SoCal race history.
This car could be invited to many concours events and to many
vintage race events.
