![]() The engine is the standard 305-cube L69 ‘High Output’ small-block found in Camaro IROCs in the mid-eighties, and the rear is the 3.73 Positive Traction found on any regular 1986 Monte Carlo SS. Still, the clock's 60,904 miles (98,000 kilometers) are original (and everything else under the hood). The history of this iconic automobile – almost surely one of the first five-speed conversions ever performed – is unclear. Instead of dropping a crate motor and hot-rodding it into oblivion, Phillip restored the car to its present condition. However, being a discerning gearhead, he ran a background check of the car and found it the only Schenk Monte Carlo SS five-speed with a front bench seat. The intention was clear – LS3-swap it and plant a six-speed in it. The current owner, Phillip Madden, bought it in 2021 through the Facebook marketplace, and he was unaware of what the car was at the time. Other than the prototype and one other example, seen in the video below at last November's Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals, all the others were built in Pennsylvania. Since the dealership's mechanical department was too busy to refit the car, the project was outsourced to a speed shop in Pennsylvania.īut before putting out the package for customers, the ugly side of this transmission-swap job emerged: it was too costly for the dealership, so Schenk Chevrolet of New Jersey didn’t build customer cars. Charlie Graf had a trade-in SS with some 1,500 miles on the clock in the showroom (the former owner bought it new, then decided a Corvette was a better option). The car was chosen out of coincidence rather than meticulous calculation. Incidentally, the older car had a four-speed manual transmission, and the dimples in the transmission tunnel (intended as guides for the stick shifter) made the conversion all the more convenient. The build was easier than expected since the mid-eighties Monte Carlos utilized the same floor pan as the 1978 model. The Schenk Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS used a Borg-Warner T5, had a cowl induction hood, 44 other parts sourced from General Motors, and a floor-mounted Hurst Shifter. That’s how the elusive five-speed manual Monte Carlo SS of 1986 emerged. (Not better, since he wasn’t thinking that high of the stock automobile). In the eighties, Charlie Graf was one of the two owners of Schenk Chevrolet in New Jersey he wasn’t particularly fond of the SS and decided to make a good one. While the former was built in a limited series of 200 cars, the latter is a mystery with an enticing story. That year also brought two rarest Chevrolet Monte Carlo Super Sport versions: the Aero Coupe and the dealer-made, GM-backed Schenk T-5. Despite the desperation, the SS sales grew each year, from 4,714 units in 1983 to the high water mark of 41,364 in 1986. Still, fun-wise, it was as miserable as the depleted 305-cubic-inch (5.0 liters) V8 upfront. The four-speed automatic overdrive gearbox might have been good for cruising.
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