Don Yenko

Donald ( "Don" ) Yenko (* May 27, 1927, † March 5, 1987 in Charleston (West Virginia)) was an American race car driver who was known by the construction of the Yenko Camaro, a tuned version of the Chevrolet Camaro, .

Biography

1957 Yenko built a tuning shop for Chevrolet cars on. The customer could either buy tuning parts or can convert their cars from Yenkos mechanics. 1967, when Chevrolet brought out the Camaro, Yenko built the Camaro SS for Yenko Camaro to by with 6,489 cc displacement against the V8 engine L- 72 of Chevrolet Corvette with 6,997 cm exchanged ³ capacity the original V8 engine L -78 and rear axle and chassis adapting. He tunte the Chevrolet Chevelle and Nova models by incorporating the L -72 engine.

In the 1970s, the business with the muscle cars went back there for them higher insurance premiums were paid and the exhaust emission regulations were tightened. Yenko responded astutely and gave the Nova 1970 his unique style: Rather than install the 7.0 -liter V8 engine in its special version, he convinced GM, the very powerful V8 engine with 5735 cc from the new Camaro Z -28 and the Corvette LT1 installed with 360 bhp (265 kW). In addition, had the new Yenko Deuce, as the car was now called, a better chassis, another gear and an improved rear axle, as well as eye-catching racing stripes and emblems. End of the 1970s tunte the Yenko Vega with a spoiler, a turbocharger and a special paint job. Because of difficulties with the approval by the Environmental Protection Agency, he sold the converted Vega only without turbochargers. Instead, you could buy the turbocharger separately in Yenkos workshop. In 1972, Yenko one selling custom car and only offered parts made by cosmetic modifications to the engine tuning to. The most notable product was the ZL- 1 engine, the Yenko produced with the permission of Chevrolet. In 1981, Yenko his last tuning set out the Turbo Z Camaro. It was a turbocharger for the 5.7 -liter V8 engine. In 1982 he sold his company Yenko Sportscars, which had belonged since 1934 the family.

Yenko died in March 1987 along with three passengers in the crash of his Cessna 210M near Charleston (West Virginia). He wanted to land the machine; but she sat up too hard and was again thrown into the air, thereby Yenko lost control of the aircraft. It touched an embankment and crashed into a ravine.