Al Bartz and Gary Knutson and Bruce McLaren. This picture was taken at the Champion spark plugs engine Dyno in Long Beach, California. (Photo by Tyler Alexander)

Al Bartz started as an apprentice at Hilborn Injection, learning how to make engines go faster. From 1964 to 1966, Bartz worked at Traco Engineering Shop. For those that aren’t familiar with the name Traco, it has become known as “the little shop of horsepower.”

During those times, if you weren’t running a Traco engine, you didn’t have the best. Traco engines powered Indy cars, Sprint cars, Can-Am cars, and SCCA sports cars. You either had one or you were running for second place. This is where Al Bartz learned how to make chevy engines go fast reliably.

In 1966 Al Bartz Engines was born and his first project was the Chevrolet motor for the Team McLaren M6B Can-Am car. McLaren had success with the Bartz engine and learned all they could about the “power tricks” from Bartz’s design. In 1968-1969, McLaren took their engine building “in-house.”

Bartz continued to build engines for different racing series and street use and his engines were wildly successful.

So why don’t more people know about Al Bartz Engines? Unfortunately, Bartz was one of the race teams best kept secrets. A former sprint car racer and antique car collector, Bartz spent more time making other people famous than he did making his own product famous. A heavy smoker all of his adult life, he developed lung cancer and died in 1980 at forty-two years old.

One of the most interesting engine/chassis combinations that came about in the Trans-Am Racing circuit involved Al Bartz’s 304 Chevy engine. In the late 60’s Chevrolet had a strange deal with Canada where the Canadian Pontiacs were sold with Chevy engines in many models. This didn’t pose a problem for most people and no one thought anything about it until Trans-Am racer Terry Godsall wanted to go racing.

Al Bartz's Chevy engine in the Canadian Firebird was an interesting combination in Trans-Am racing. (Photo from Hemmings Motor news)

Chevy had issued a bulletin to their dealers not to sell their cross-ram manifolds to Firebird owners. Terry Godsall bought a Canadian Firebird that was equipped with Chevy’s Z-28 engine, complete with cross-ram manifold. Godsall then imported a 304 cubic inch Al Bartz Chevy engine and had the cross-ram manifold installed. He hired driver Craig Fisher and took the car racing.

The first Trans-Am start with this combination scored them a fourth. Four races later a second place finish behind the powerful Sonoco Camaro. These results prompted more new blood to get involved in the circuit with the feeling that they could beat the stronger factory teams.

Competition is good, and Al Bartz Engines made teams competitive.