Ron Cooper
Ralph Dehne's Z11 63 Impala
If you’ve ever wanted to inspect a prime example of 1960s factory muscle car, look no farther than Ralph Dehne’s 1963 Chevrolet Impala Z-11. Although it’s a regular in SCSS competition, the Red Bud, Illinois-based classic is also displayed at major car shows throughout the Midwest. Created by General Motors as a drag racing-only vehicle, the infamous Z-11 was produced with more than two dozen lightweight aluminum parts and body panels, (as evidenced by the “Do Not Lean On Fenders” lettering on Ralph’s version), to chop its 3,800 pound shipping weight by four hundred pounds. It utilized a twin four-barrel carbureted, 13.5:1 compression 409 “W-Head” engine stroked to 427 cubic inches, (which is in no way related to the 427 “Rat Motor”). Although Chevy rated the engine at 400 horsepower for insurance purposes, the Z-11 actually produced 555 hp as delivered. Dehne’s four-speed version has no trouble yanking the front wheels while on street tires and has run as quick as 12.14/111 matching, to the tenth of a second, the performances clocked by “Dyno Don” Nicholson, Ronnie Sox and the handful of other drag racing stars who were lucky enough to receive one.
Error factory horsepower was 430 HP