The Chevrolet 400 was a
compact car
Compact car is a vehicle size class — predominantly used in North America — that sits between subcompact cars and mid-size cars. "Small family car" is a British term and a part of the C-segment in the European car classification. However, p ...
made by
General Motors de Argentina
General Motors de Argentina S.R.L. is the Argentine subsidiary of the US-based company General Motors. The company is currently headquartered in Vicente López, Buenos Aires, with its factory located in Alvear, Santa Fe Province. from 1962 to 1974. The "400" was
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
's reply to
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
and
Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...
after those companies introduced the first
compact car
Compact car is a vehicle size class — predominantly used in North America — that sits between subcompact cars and mid-size cars. "Small family car" is a British term and a part of the C-segment in the European car classification. However, p ...
s to Argentina, the
Ford Falcon
Ford Falcon is an automobile nameplate applied to several vehicles worldwide.
* Ford Falcon (North America), an automobile produced by Ford from 1960 to 1970.
* Ford Falcon (Argentina), a car built by Ford Argentina from 1962 until 1991.
* Fo ...
and
Valiant II respectively.
The "400" was based on the Chevrolet model known in
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
as
Chevy II
The Chevrolet Chevy II/Nova is a small automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, and produced in five generations for the 1962 through 1979, and 1985 through 1988 model years. Nova was the top model in the Chevy II lineup through 1968. The Chevy II ...
(and later "Chevrolet Nova"). Only the 4-door sedan version was manufactured in the country, although U.S. versions included a complete line of body styles, including a
hardtop coupe
A hardtop is a rigid form of automobile roof, which for modern cars is typically constructed from metal. A hardtop roof can be either fixed (i.e. not removable), detachable for separate storing or retractable within the vehicle itself.
The ...
, convertible coupe,
2-door sedan, and
station wagon
A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...
.
History
The Beginning
![Chevrolet 400 Super 230 1967 (8100643878)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Chevrolet_400_Super_230_1967_%288100643878%29.jpg)
In the 1960s, the auto industry was revolutionized with the emergence of a new concept vehicle: the
compact car
Compact car is a vehicle size class — predominantly used in North America — that sits between subcompact cars and mid-size cars. "Small family car" is a British term and a part of the C-segment in the European car classification. However, p ...
. In Argentina, a radical change occurred in the structures of large factories, such that Chrysler began to manufacture the "Valiant II" while
Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
produced the "Falcon".
General Motors
The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
's response was a car derived from the U.S. market, the
Chevy II
The Chevrolet Chevy II/Nova is a small automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, and produced in five generations for the 1962 through 1979, and 1985 through 1988 model years. Nova was the top model in the Chevy II lineup through 1968. The Chevy II ...
, traded as "Chevrolet 400" in Argentina. The first version of the 400 included round headlights on its front grille and was equipped with Chevrolet's ubiquitous overhead-valve, six-cylinder engine of 194 cubic inches or 3179 cc.
Chevrolet 400 Argentina
The first Chevrolet 400 was manufactured on March 21, 1962. As cited above the car was equipped with an engine named "194" which had a displacement of 194 cubic inches (or 3179 cc). The 400 was offered in two models: the "Special" which was a luxury sedan and the "Base", most of which were used as
taxi
A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice ...
. Its engine came equipped with a single-barrel Rochester BC carburetor, while the Special had a
Holley. Both engines had 106 HP. The models came with a 3-speed manual transmission.
In 1964, GM released the "Super", which showed a slight touch up on its front portion showing a whole new grill. The Super premiered the new inline "230" six-cylinder engine (3769 cc), 127 HP and a Holley R2751 carburetor, and equipped with 3-speed manual transmission as usual.
In 1967 Chevrolet launched the 400 "Super Sport", the most aggressive version of the line that featured a more powerful engine and an innovative gearbox. These had the 250 cubic-inch OHV Six, and ZF 4-speed selector with trigger shifter, released just this year. The Super Sport, equipped with this engine-box duo, produced 155 HP. It also came equipped with a 2-barrel Holley RX 7214-A carburetor. It also brought updated front-end styling with quad round headlights.
That same year, racer Carlos Alberto Pairetti was crowned champion of
Turismo Carretera
Turismo Carretera (Road racing, lit., ''Road Touring'') is a popular stock car racing series in Argentina, and the oldest auto racing series still active in the world. The series is organized by Asociación Corredores de Turismo Carretera.
The ...
driving a prototype Chevrolet nicknamed "The Orange Thunder" ('El trueno naranja' in Spanish), the name adopted due to the color of the unit, equipped with a 250 engine with a transmission similar to the
Chevrolet Corvette
The Chevrolet Corvette is a two-door, two-passenger luxury sports car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet since 1953. With eight design generations, noted sequentially from C1 to C8, the Corvette is noted for its performance and distinctive ...
.
The end of the Chevrolet 400
However, in 1969, the "Chevy" (based on the 1968 Chevy II Nova), a sports car that became the most famous in the history of the brand. The idea was to offer a luxury car with sports features on one side (Chevy 400), and sport on the other (Chevy). What was not taken into account is that sales of the Chevy increased at the expense of its predecessor, the 400, causing a competition between both models. While the 400 was produced alongside the Chevy, the 400's North American counterpart ceased production after the 1967 model year.
It was then that to avoid more of a problem, in 1972, "Rally Sport" was launched, which was cheaper than the Chevrolet 400. The same came with three engine options: the "194", the "230" and "250", which came equipped with a carburetor Holey R 2751, and coupled to the 4-speed box. These versions came with different shades of color characteristic of this series: White, Red with black side stripes, light blue with white side stripes or orange with the best known black sidebands. It also highlighted the logo "RS" in the rear of the car and a new grille with 2 headlights instead of 4.
In 1974, Chevrolet Argentina ended production of the "400" with 93,000 units manufactured until then. It was replaced by the Argentine "Chevy Malibu" (based on the 1968–72 American Chevrolet Nova 4-door sedan, with no relation to the North American market
Chevrolet Malibu
The Chevrolet Malibu is a mid-size car manufactured and marketed by Chevrolet from 1964 to 1983 and again since 1997. The Malibu began as a trim-level of the Chevrolet Chevelle, becoming its own model line in 1978. Originally a rear-wheel-drive ...
) based on the Chevelle series. However, the same year, the engine "194" would be used for what would be the first General Motors'
Mid-size car
Mid-size—also known as intermediate—is a vehicle size class which originated in the United States and is used for cars larger than compact cars and smaller than full-size cars. "Large family car" is a UK term and a part of the D-segment in t ...
in Argentina, the
Opel K-180
The Opel K 180 is an automobile which was manufactured by GM Argentina S.A. from 1974 to 1978. It was a variation of General Motors' T-car platform, also used in the Opel Kadett, Chevrolet Chevette and Isuzu Gemini. The K 180 differed f ...
.
Engines
3 different sizes of
Chevrolet Straight-6 engines were offered.
'' 'Chevrolet 400 STD
* Motor "194" - 194 inches. cub. 3185 cc - 106 hp.
'' 'Chevrolet 400 Special
* Motor "194" - 194 inches. cub. 3185 cc - 106 hp.
* Motor "230" - 230 inches. cub. 3769 cc - 127 hp.
'' 'Chevrolet 400 Super
* Motor "230" - 230 inches. cub. 3769 cc - 127 hp.
'' 'Chevrolet 400 Super Sport
* Motor "250" - 250 inches. cub. 4097 cc - 155 hp.
'' 'Rally Sport Chevrolet 400
* Motor "194" - 194 inches. cub. 3185 cc - 106 hp.
* Motor "230" - 230 inches. cub. 3769 cc - 127 hp.
* Motor "250" - 250 inches. cub. 4097 cc - 155 hp.
Sports
The Chevrolet 400 made its debut in the TC in the 1960s, at the same time they began to appear as the first national compact in motorsport. The prototype Chevitú coupé driven by the famous pilot
Froilán González Fruela or Froila is a masculine given name of Gothic origin used in Spain in the Middle Ages. The form "Froila" is that which appears in Latin inscriptions and documents, while "Fruela" is the Old Spanish form. For historical persons, the forms are ...
(derived from the US Chevrolet Chevy II Nova coupé), was the pioneer in this activity receiving praise and denials alike. The '400' was piloted at
TC for several pamphlets, among which stood out Jorge Cupeiro, Carlos Marincovich,
Jorge Martínez Boero and Charles Giay, among others.
Chevrolet Prototype
The'' 'Chevrolet Prototype, were a litter of vehicles submitted by various coaches that their machines with motorized
Chevrolet
Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ous ...
engines .
External links
various Chevrolet 400
{{Chevrolet vehicles
400
__NOTOC__
Year 400 ( CD) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Stilicho and Aurelianus (or, less frequently, year 11 ...
Cars introduced in 1962
1970s cars
Sedans
Cars of Argentina