When it was revived in 1995, Chevrolet's Monte Carlo was billed as a send to the business's roots as vitality a manufacturer of comfortable, sporty midsized cars that nearly anyone could afford. While some may commit 1995 to 1999 Montes as imperceptible exceeding than a remix on Chevrolet's tiny and dubiously general four door, the axiom is in truth somewhere in between.
History
The first off Monte Carlos were produced in 1970, and belied their land yacht looks with a relatively svelte 3,460-pound curb weight and a choice of four V8 engines. The 1973 to 1977 ballooned to nearly full-sized machine bigness with a 3,800-pound curb weight. Monte Carlos returned to their intermediate-sized roots in 1978 when it ran as Chevrolet's flagship model on the A/G platform. The sporty and rear drive Monte went out of production in 1988, and came back as a two-door variant on Chevy's Lumina sedan in 1995.
Of interesting note is that the M76 version of 1997-and-later 4T65-Es will bolt right up to the '96 Z32's engine, offering both increased strength and all wheel drive capability.
Styling
Although few modern enthusiasts are likely to accuse 1996-generation Montes of being a high point in styling for the car, the fact is that (by mid-90s standards) they were once widely considered fairly slick and handsome automobiles.Engine
The primary difference between the base LS model Monte and the performance-oriented Z34 is under the hood. The Z34 came with a 215 horsepower, dual overhead came 3.4L V6 based largely upon Oldsmobile's wildly successful and powerful Quad 4 inline four cylinder. The Z34's engine carried with more than the Quad 4's rotating assembly design and overhead cams; it also had the quad 4's true hemispherical ("hemi") combustion chambers for max power output at high RPM.
Transmission
Based loosely on GM's evergreen Turbo-Hydramatic 125, the Monte's 4T6-E was an electronically controlled four-speed automatic trans-axle. The 4T60-E was used in practically every other V6 front wheel drive car GM made in 1996, but 3800 V6-equipped cars used a stronger "HD" version. The 4T60-E was phased out in favor of the much stronger 4T65-E in 1997.
Platform
Introduced in 1988, the Monte's W-body platform was GM's Hail Mary play for unibody (frameless), front wheel drive superiority in the United States. The W-Body was originally used for 1988 Buick Regals, Pontiac Grand Prix and Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme coupes. The platform has since gone on to underpin the Chevrolet Impala, which remains a W-Body to this day.The Z34 version was visually distinguishable from its lesser LS counterpart by the red Z34 badges on its fenders and 16-inch alloy wheels (LS models on came with 15 inch wheels).
