People who love Vegas do not need fancy engines.
The recent story about the Chevy Vega stowed away in the World’s Largest Time Capsule for 50 years indicated the car was one of a small number of Vegas that featured a flashy Cosworth Engine under the corporate leadership of John DeLorean.
But that is not the case. This is a correction.
The Time Capsule Vega, as Jack Hovick calls it, has a 140-cubic inch single overhead cam with a one-barrel carburetor. It was the standard issue for Vegas from 1971 to 1977.
Hovick knows a thing or two about Vegas. He is a member and president of the Cosworth Vega Association, whose 275 members are interested in the Vegas and Monzas, a car Chevrolet based on the Vega “H-body” design and produced in the latter 1970s.
He reached out to Trish Johnson, offering assistance and information last year as she prepared to have the vehicle removed from the time capsule.
“We wanted to be as involved as we could with it because of having the knowledge of the cars,” Hovick said.
Johnson was receptive to his suggestions on how to lift the car out, he said. He remembers making a quick trip to Seward when she called to say the crane would soon be lifting the car out of the vault.
After the World’s Largest Time Capsule’s July 4th hullabaloo, he took the Vega to his garage in Elmwood to get that standard engine running.
(In the interest of journalistic integrity and full disclosure, this reporter’s first car was a used, pre-1976 Vega and it was a lemon. So, if this Vega does not have the fancy new engine, what is the fuss about?)
“The reason it is so interesting is just because of the story,” Hovick said.
“Having something survive to this point and as it is,” he said, “is pretty amazing.”
Vegas were known to rust before they made it to car lots. Hovick had two Vegas back in the day and the first one required frequent installments of oil, which had to be checked with every tank of gas.
“There was a lot of them that had problems,” Hovick said.
When he bought his second Vega, the 1976 model had none of the previous bugs and came with a 60,000-mile or 5-year warranty.
“It was pretty flawless,” Hovick said.
The Time Capsule Vega has a 1975 engine.
This one rolled off the Rolfsmeier car dealership lot and into the hermetically sealed vault Harold “Budd” Davisson had built for the time capsule.
But after working on the engine to get it running, Hovick said he does not see any big issues.
He said the car needs a new water pump, but any 50-year-old part like that would have to be replaced.
Hovick still owns two Vegas, one of which he has restored and exhibits in car shows. He also owns a 1983 Chevy S-10 pickup, a 1987 GMC Caballero and a 50th anniversary Chevy Corvette.
Hovick was drawn to collecting Vegas because his first car was a Vega.
“It was an innovative, U.S. made, economy car,” he said.
Chevrolet was competing with the newer foreign imports at the time and the early 1970s oil crisis spurred an interest in gas efficiency. They were also popular for mini stock car races.
“They were fun to drive. It was like a mini Camaro,” Hovick said.
Hovick, who is retired after a career in the Army, National Guard and Homeland Security, became aware of the Time Capsule Vega in the 1990s and started tracking the time capsule.
In 2016, he showed his restored 76 Vega in the Seward Fourth of July car show, after which he and his brother made the pilgrimage to the pyramid to take photos of their Vegas in front of it.
Then he started posting information about the time capsule online so other collectors would be aware of it.
Has the car lived up to the hype?
“Yes. It’s essentially in astounding condition considering,” Hovick said.
There may have been things he would recommend doing differently in storing it, but any damage from 50 years underground is minimal. His focus is on the engine – he is not restoring the vehicle.
Association members hope to see the car at a few car shows this summer, and Johnson has been invited to speak at the four-day Cosworth “Twin Cam” Vega 50th Anniversary Roundup 47 in Des Moines in September.
Hovick hopes the Time Capsule Vega will be driven in the 2026 Fourth of July parade – powered by that plain old Chevy engine.
