One Owner Original
Tom Henry has Driven this '72 LT1 for His Entire Adult Life
by Hib Halverson
photography courtesy of Tom Henry Chevrolet
(this article was based on a longer story in Corvette Ethusiast Magazine

Judged as high-performance GTs, the benchmarks for the 1963-'82 or "C3" Corvetes were the 1970-'72 Coupes with LT1 engines, close-ratio four-speeds and 3.70 gears.

The LT1 combined the 350 cubic inch displacement with Chevy's lessons from racing 302s in the late-'60s SCCA Trans-Am and existing hi-po SBV8 technology. Introduced for 1970, it made 370hp@6000 rpm which, by today's standard, would be 290-310-hp (SAE net).

The '70 LT1 marked the end of an era. It was the last solid lifter V8 produced by GM. Its power rating and specific output were not exceeded by a domestic production V8 for another 20 years. Even as Corvette descended into the dark age that was the early emissions controls period, the low compression, '71/'72, 255-hp (SAE net) LT1s were milestones. It would be two decades before Chevrolet put a more powerful Small-Block V8 in the Vette and when it finally did in 1992; ironically, it reused the LT1 RPO.

Small-Block C3s had 50/50 weight bias which made them handle better and brake shorter. Ok–they'd never e.t. like a Big-Block, but unless you're a drag race jihadist, your world is a better place with LT1's ideal mix of acceleration and handling.

The LT1 captured the imagination of many Corvetters in the early '70s including Bakerstown, Pennsylvania teenager, Tom Henry, who ordered a Targa Blue 1972 Coupe. A 17-year-old with an LT1 seemingly smacks of spoiled children but, with the Henries, Vettes were a lifestyle. Bow-Tie Red blood ran in their veins because Dad, Tom B. Henry, was the Chevrolet dealer in town.

"We sold an L89 (aluminum head, 427/435 Corvette) Coupe in '69 and that guy lived near me," Henry said. "He had a buddy with a red, '70 LT1 Coupe. I had that red '64. The three of us would go knockin' around. Of course, I was always way last with those guys.

"I just loved the sound of the LT1 and its solid lifters. The guy put his red '70 up for sale and I went to see it but somebody bought it right before I got there. I started buggin' my Dad, 'Can we order an LT1?' I told him I'd pay him back when I got out of college.

"He said, 'You can't go over 6500 dollars.' I wanted the close-ratio, 3.70 gears, power steering and leather seats. To keep it under 6500, I had to knockoff power brakes. I still have the window sticker–$6479.40.

"Originally, I wanted Ontario Orange, but in '72 they made the interior darker–like a dark tan–and I thought it was really ugly. I decided on a black interior, so I went with the dark (Targa) Blue. Not one of my favorites, but I wanted something dark that would wax-up and look good."

In the fall of '71, Tom was a high school senior. His Dad ordered a Coupe with Black Custom Interior Trim, LT1, M21, N40 (pwr. steer.), PU9 (white letter tires), T60 (HD Battery) and U69 (AM/FM radio) but the teenaged Corvetter had a problem.

"They (Chevrolet) weren't building the LT1," Tom continued. "It wasn't passing (Federal) emissions (testing), so we couldn't place the order. I could get a 454, but not the LT1. I was adamant on that engine 'cause I liked the Small-Block. Based on what Chevy told us, I decided to chance it and wait. Sure enough, in January of 1972, they released the LT1. The car arrived in February."
 
That fall, Tom was off to South Carolina's Furman University in the Blue LT1. What better enhances college life than a Corvette? Girls and keg parties, maybe? Ok. The Vette was a close second–or third.

"I remember Lee Yeckel, a high school buddy, coming down to Furman to visit," Tom told us. "We drove down in the Corvette and he flew home, later. We got to Breezewood, where (Interstate) 70 splits-off the (Pennsylvania) Turnpike. I had just switched the shift linkage from long-throw—there's that adjustment (on early C3 4-spds.) you can make—to short-throw. We must not have tightened it or something. At Breezewood, it jammed in fourth gear.
"It was a Sunday–nobody around. I called my Dad. He sent our tow truck with car. We turned around and met them on the 'pike, so I slipped the clutch at, like–five grand to get going. They gave me a car and took the LT1 home. My Dad was furious that we screwed around with that brand new car. That's the only time it ever broke down on the road."

After a year at Furman, Henry transferred to Northwood University in Midland, Michigan majoring in automotive marketing and business management. Of course, the Targa Blue LT1 went with him.

"I used to run between Midland and home in the Corvette a lot. Late one night, we raced a Pantera on the Interstate and won. In third gear at, like–110, the guy didn't know what hit him. I used to turn that motor sixty-eight hundred.
 
"U.S 10 runs from Bay City to Midland–25-miles or something like that–and we used to see how fast we could make it. One time, I remember hittin' 130 on 10 with my cousin (Scott Settlemier, Chevrolet's last Camaro Brand Manager and, now, head of Chevy's Shows and Exhibits operation) in the car. Some guy pulled out in the left lane in front of me and boy, I had to get on the brakes. I scared the hell out of my cousin that day."

In November of '75, fresh out of Northwood, Tom went to work for his Dad, full-time, as a Service Writer. In 1976, he moved to Sales, by '78 was Truck Manager and in '80, General Manager. Finally, in May 1982, with Tom B. wanting a less-busy schedule, young Tom G. took over Tom Henry Chevrolet as Dealer/Operator. Oh yeah...by then he'd paid his Dad that $6479.40. The founding Tom Henry retired in early '91.

As Tom became more involved in running a Chevrolet dealer and he and his wife began raising children, the Covette was retired from daily driving duties, however, it remained an important part of Tom's budding collection of high-performance Chevys.

Nearly two decades after buying his '72 LT1, Tom began showing at NCRS meets. "I repainted it in 1977," Tom recalls. "Other than that, the car is original. It still has crayon markings on the block.


"Twenty years ago, the first thing I did was plug the (exhaust) manifolds, remove the AIR pump and stuff and put it in a box. The first Pittsburgh NCRS show I did, they docked me points for not having the smog stuff, so I went over to my Dad's and poked around his garage. Under the work bench there was my smog stuff. I put it all back on and the next time, the car was Top Flight which is 94% or better on their scale.

"The NCRS guys went nuts over the car. I was asked about documentation and said, 'I'm the original owner.' and the guy about flipped-out. I've got the '72 warranty book and Protect-O-Plate not filled-out 'cause it was on MSO (manufacturer's statement of origin or "pre-title") for so long. Since the car wasn't titled, it was never put in warranty. While my Dad held it until I could pay him, I had a dealer plate on it.

"I did the Pittsburgh NCRS and some local cruise nights but that's about it. I've never had it to Corvettes at Carlisle. That'd be a lot of fun but I do so many events selling the Camaros and the trucks that I'm burned out on big shows."

Tom Henry owns other Vettes–another Midyear, which he still has, and a Torch Red '95 ZR-1, which he sold early in '05, but the LT1 is his favorite. He keeps it as original as possible. Other than wear and tear, normal maintenance, the '77 repainting and modern radial tires; the car is as it was when it rolled off the line at St. Louis in late January, 1972.

The day we shot the car, at lunchtime, Tom let me drive the 33-year-old LT1 with only two limits: get to the restaurant in reasonable time (In running a car dealership, today, there are no two-martini, two hour lunches) and a 5500 rpm rev limit.

While I've owned a C3 for 25 years, since I never had the opportunity to drive an LT1, this was a high honor. On Route 8, right in front of the dealership, I jumped on it at about 2000 rpm in first. That Holley 780's secondaries popped open and went "Whaaaaa". With 3.70s, Tom's car was at 5500 rpm in a few heartbeats. I threw a shift to second–got that characteristic AIR "pop!" out the exhaust and barked the tires–then was hard on it, again. I took it to 5500-rpm a second time then shifted to third. The motor was pulling through four grand at well over the speed limit when I reality-checked. I was on a major highway frequented by the Pennsylvania State Police. I slowed, caught fourth and cruised.

Over lunch, Tom told me of a recent outing in the car. "Lee Yeckel and I–we're still friends–went out Memorial Day this year. There was light rain but we really didn't care. We laughed about us drivin' this car in high school. We went' out to breakfast, so we took a scenic tour north of here. I let him drive it back. The memories of us doing the same stuff 30 years ago really hit me. Those were great times in a great car."

On the way back to Tom Henry Chevrolet, we took a few twisty roads. In spite of its age, this LT1 still handled reasonably well. I could feel the lighter front end as the car was pretty neutral through medium speed turns. There was no shortage of spring rate or roll stiffness though, damping was soft–it's probably time to put the original shocks in a box and stick-on some Bilsteins. As the car has stock-sized, modern radials, the steering was pretty good for a C3.

I whipped around a corner that dropped us onto a straight. I exited in second, ran it to 5500, shifted, then floored it again. I felt that LT1 really wanting to rpm and glanced at the tach. Five grand and change. I thought about blowing the rpm restriction just once. I thought about Tom twisting this motor to 6800 on one of those Bay City to Midland runs. Whoa–the stuff we all did in our younger years. Fortunately, honor prevailed. At 5500 I backed-off.

"Cool car, Tom!" I shouted over the wind noise and the exhaust. "For a stocker, that motor runs pretty hard!"

"Yeah it does!" he answered. "That's part of why I've kept it all this time. I've always just loved LT1s."

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