Another major thread bump but.......
I now own a Cosworth! A 1975 Chevrolet Cosworth Vega, more specifically. The brainchild of John Delorean, the "Cosworth Twin Cam" was going to accomplish several things. It was going to spice up the slumping (and wildly unpopular) Vega line, it was going to be America's answer to the new wave of European hot hatches eating into GM's market share, it was going to introduce the US to the future of automobiles, with its 16v DOHC all-aluminum I4 engine with EFI, and with a planned run of just 5000 individually numbered units a year, it was going to give Chevy a true halo car.
Of course, it accomplished literally none of those things. Many people did not understand the (for the time) insanely radical engine, and many garages and even dealerships couldn't work on them. They didn't understand why this option package could only be had in black and gold, owing to some funny little English "grand prix" team they had never heard of but that apparently was really good. But most importantly, aside from the engine and a beefier brake and suspension set-up, this car was just a Vega with all the Vegas (many) flaws, and so people didn't understand why after taxes and tags it was well over $6000 in 1975, (for a car that A/C, power steering, power brakes, and an automatic transmission were all unavailable for) when a "normal" Vega was barely $2100 fully loaded with all those options and more.
So instead of selling 5000 per year, GM quit after barely two model years ('75/'76) and an abysmal 3508 total Cosworths built. Note I say built. Some took years to sell, a few even hanging around dealerships until the early 1980s! But it's certainly cool as hell. The engine is a 2.0L inline-four. A four-valve per cylinder, DOHC semi-hemispherical combusted chambered head (designed by Keith Duckworth himself) sits atop a strengthened version of the Vega aluminum/silicon alloy block. The crank, rods, and valves are all forged stainless steel, with forged aluminum pistons and a higher compression ratio. A bespoke Bendix EFI system and ECU (making this the first GM production car ever with
electronic fuel injection) and a racing header exhaust complete the package.
The numbers were.....ok. 112bhp at a staggering 5800rpm (with an 8k redline!) which sounds pretty blah, but remember, a 5.7L V8 Corvette only produced 148bhp in 1975. The car can do 0-60 in around 8 seconds with a decent driver. Top Speed of 122mph. The Cosworth, with its "Pulse Air" system and catalytic converter, was also meeting the tougher 1977/1978 US Emissions standards on the test bench back in 1974. The Cosworth Vega was the first GM car to be 50 state emissions certified in fact.
My cossie is #926 of 3508 (which due to a numbering error with cars 501-601 means it's actually #826 ever built) and has barely 40k miles on the odometer. Admittedly, 23+ years of sitting and neglect have pretty much ruined the paint, and it's missing several trim pieces and factory stickers, but it runs, it's a Cosworth, and it's mine.
https://imgur.com/a/kbVSfBC
