Horst Kwech talks to
DeKon partner Lee Dykstra (right) between sessions. They began DeKon Engineering LTD in
Libertyville, IL. The shop closed its doors long ago.
Both gentlemen
remained engaged in autosports.
Radiator ducting and fuel injected Chevy 350 V8
Empty
side pipe brackets below door
GM
Technical Center in Warren, MI - btw. 1974-75
Typical Dekon Monza
graphics on door scoop
Rear view of first
DeKon
Monza during suspension test
GM
Technical Center in Warren, MI - btw. 1974-75
Originally built for Tony De Lorenzo, name is on door, but
sale didn't go forward. Horst changed car number from 1
to 2, when he decided to debut the first DeKon at Road
Atlanta.
Kwech started 5th, and is shown here overtaking
pole sitter
Carl Shafer on first lap of 100 mile race, only
to be shunted by lap 13.
Program cover for 1975 Mid-America Falstaff 350
(Courtesy of Gary Nichols)
DeKon Engineering's First Monza Chassis
1001
Kwech
and Dykstra developed a superb race car. Dekon is part
acronym, "D" for Design and "K" for construction, also the last
names of DeKon Engineering's partners Lee Dykstra and Horst
Kwech. These specially prepared Monzas are nothing like the
production models that were available at Chevrolet dealerships.
These are full blooded race machines with tube frame chassis,
roll cage, specially engineered suspension, brakes, wheels, a
fuel injected V8 and more. About the only original GM
parts from a Chevrolet Monza are its roof panels, rear hatch,
rear bumper and doors. However, GM also developed and fabricated
the first generation of custom fiberglass wide flared body
panels, air dams and spoilers for this new silhouette Monza
racecar.
There are plenty of trick parts beneath the skin. Power
typically came from a Chevrolet 5.7 L (350 ci) V8 engine with
fuel injection with some 570 hp blatting through monstrous
side-mounted pipes. A robust tube-frame chassis and roll cage
was coupled to the suspension. The fiberglass bodywork could be
easily removed for quick tuning or repairs to the racecar. The
suspension, one of the first computer-designed race concepts
with fabricated A-arms in front, a 4-link track bar in the rear
with a Ford 9-inch axle. The front and rear disc brakes were
equally if not more impressive. Wheels were 15 inch in diameter
and were wide enough to accommodate the 11.40” wide front and
25” wide rear, racing tires. The car weighed less than 2,400
lbs. and could reach top speeds in excess of 200 mph.
It was barely out of the box on April 20, 1975, when Horst Kwech
showed up at Road Atlanta's IMSA Camel GT Challenge with chassis
number 1001, the first of 14 race of DeKon's purpose built Monza
creations. Horst's brand new, untried, gleaming white
Monza qualified fifth for the starting lineup of the 100 mile
race. Fairly impressive.
During the race, Kwech's Monza was already leading by the second
lap and opening that lead more and more. It looked like racing
history in the making, until the driver of a slower car
inadvertently forced the Monza into a guardrail before the end
of the first race. The car was wrecked after some 13 laps, along with the
opportunity to make history. Horst's new Monza never made the grid for that
weekend's second race. Fortunately, Kwech was not
physically injured but some words were surely exchanged with the other
driver.
The car was rebuilt after the crash and purchased by Maurice
"Mo" Carter of Canada. He ran it at
the WSCC/SCCA
Trans-Am 6 Hours of Watkins Glen endurance race. He
finished 25th after losing a wheel, which seemed to spell the
end for ownership of this DeKon Monza.
Ownership then went to Australian racer Red
Dawson who ran it in the Australian Sports Sedan Championship (ASSC)
series. Unfortunately, he had a bad wreck that ended his racing
career. According to eye witnesses Dawson's Monza violently
barrel rolled into pieces. The car was rebuilt again and
purchased by John Roberts for John Briggs to drive.
Ownership is believed to have been passed onto Mike Griffon and
then on to Jeff Barnes. In the late 1980s, DeKon's first
chassis (c/n 1001) was said to have undergone another major
rebuild. The story is the same for many other Monza
chassis built, they are often reincarnated.
Results Horst Kwech
Date
Race
No.
Car
Drivers
Entrant
Result
Apr 20, 1975
IMSA Road Atlanta 100 mi 1
2
Monza DeKon 1001
Horst Kwech
DeKon Engineering LTD
33rd
Apr 20, 1975
IMSA Road Atlanta 100 mi 1
2
Monza DeKon 1001
Horst Kwech
DeKon Engineering LTD
DNS*
Jul 12, 1975
Trans-Am Watkins Glen 6 hr
88
Monza DeKon 1001
Maurice Carter
Carter Racing Services
25th
* Kwech's car was wrecked while attempting
to pass a back marker on lap 13 at Road Atlanta during IMSA
GT round 1 race.
Maurice Carter Monza DeKon c/n 1001
Maurice "Mo" Carter acquired the car from DeKon
Engineering LTD after
Horst Kwech rebuilt the car following his crash
at Road Atlanta earlier in the year.
Second
owner, Maurice Carter #88 (DeKon c/n 1001)
IMSA
Camel GT - Watkins Glen 6 Hour
Watkins Glen, NY - July 12, 1975
Maurice Carter #88 (DeKon c/n 1001)
IMSA
Camel GT - Watkins Glen 6 Hour
Watkins Glen, NY - July 12, 1975
Co-driven by Tony de Lorenzo
Maurice Carter #88 (DeKon c/n 1001)
IMSA
Camel GT - Watkins Glen 6 Hour
Watkins Glen, NY - July 12, 1975
Results Maurice Carter
Date
Race
No.
Car
Drivers
Entrant
Result
Jul 12, 1975
SCCA Trans-Am Watkins Glen 6 hr
88
Monza DeKon 1001
Maurice Carter
Carter Racing Services
25th
Red Dawson Monza DeKon c/n 1001
Irvine
William "Red" Dawson is a legendary driver from New Zealand, and third owner of
the original DeKon c/n
1001. Red's racing career spanned 1965-1977. He
campaigned
his Marlboro sponsored Monza (DeKon c/n 1001) for two
seasons in the New Zealand Saloon Car
Championship Unlimited Class during the 1975-76 and 1976-77
seasons. He also ran in the Shellsport Championship.
An eyewitness account of the
Dawson accident. Toad said, "I was at Manfield when Red
Dawson had his huge crash in his Chevy Monza. He lost it
on the long sweeper coming on to the front straight,
when infield and flew quite some distance thru the air
then went end over end when in landed. I think he broke
his back. He certainly never got in a car again as far
as I am aware."
Kwech
and Dykstra developed a superb race car. Dekon is part
acronym, "D" for Design and "K" for construction, also the last
names of DeKon Engineering's partners Lee Dykstra and Horst
Kwech. These specially prepared Monzas are nothing like the
production models that were available at Chevrolet dealerships.
These are full blooded race machines with tube frame chassis,
roll cage, specially engineered suspension, brakes, wheels, a
fuel injected V8 and more. About the only original GM
parts from a Chevrolet Monza are its roof panels, rear hatch,
rear bumper and doors. However, GM also developed and fabricated
the first generation of custom fiberglass wide flared body
panels, air dams and spoilers for this new silhouette Monza
racecar.
