Home page
SPONSOR AD SPONSOR AD

Topic: Skunk Works

in Forum: C3 General Discussion


Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 8:18am Message 1 of 9
Profile Pic
Lifetime MemberLifetime Member
Send PM
Joined: 7/2/2006
Posts: 8205
Doe's anyone know much about GM's or Chevrolet's "Skunk Works"? Where is it? Evidently some highly sophisticated machinery was produced "under cover" there.


corvette440hp
SPONSOR AD:: (Our Sponsors help support C3VR)

Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 8:46am Message 2 of 9
Lifetime MemberLifetime Member
Send PM
Joined: 3/9/2006
Posts: 2168
All I could find so far was that it was located in Atlanta, GA and was the Southern Engineering Development Company for Chevrolet. That was in the '50s and '60s. Don't know if it's still there.


Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 10:23am Message 3 of 9
Former Member
Send PM
Horse Cave, KY - USA
Joined: 10/22/2007
Posts: 488
Vette(s): 1968 convertible; 1980 L-82
I think it's housed in the Tech Center at Warren, Michigan, but it's one of those things GM usually doesn't mention much about in public.
 
Smile



Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 11:01am Message 4 of 9
Profile Pic
Lifetime MemberLifetime Member
Moderator
Send PM
Duncanville, TX - USA
Joined: 11/8/2003
Posts: 20229
Vette(s): #1-1974 L-48 4spd Cp Med Red Metallic/Black deluxe int w/AC/tilt/tele./p/w-p/b/ Am-Fm/map light National/Regional/Chapter NCRS "Top Flight" #2-1985 Bright Red/Carmine Cp.L-98/auto Member: NCRS, NCRS Texas, Corvette Legends of Texas
The term "Skunk Werks" was coined, I believe, by John Cafaro, while designing the C5. The cars were built/designed sorta on the sly, since GM was bleeding so bad at the time. They had to hide a lot of the development costs, etc.
The "Werks" was, and prolly still is in the tech center. It is NOT an office GM term for anything...just a term used by some of the "insiders" when working on "secret" projects that they don't want every Tom Dick and Harry to find out about.
Thass my story, an I'm stickin to it...

The term is also used to describe the south end of a north-bound skunk...
Adams' Apple2008-03-06 11:01:44


Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    

My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)
             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 11:20am Message 5 of 9
Profile Pic
Lifetime MemberLifetime Member
Send PM
Joined: 7/2/2006
Posts: 8205
The south bound end of a skunk heading north is a real "gas"..........I like that! I found out that Lockheed Martin owns the name. I guess that things kind got done without all the brass getting their drawers all bunched up. What they (GM) didn't know, (what was going on at the "WERKS") didn't get them in trouble. That has to be cool, working under the radar! This is interesting. corvette440hp2008-03-06 11:26:05


corvette440hp

Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 12:29pm Message 6 of 9
Profile Pic
Former Member
Send PM
Tucson, AZ - USA
Joined: 10/7/2007
Posts: 341
Vette(s): 1970 White L-46 Air Roadster, 1971 White LT1 Coupe, 1971 Red Auto Air Coupe, 383 stroker, 430 HP, 2002 Millennium Yellow Auto Coupe
It is mentioned a lot in the book "All Corvettes are Red", and Joel is pretty close to the mark. GM didn't want to fund C5 development, so the money was "acquired" from Chevrolet in the beginning to pay the engineering and development staff.



Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 6:26pm Message 7 of 9
Profile Pic
Standard Member
Send PM
Victor, NY - USA
Joined: 7/12/2004
Posts: 6842
Vette(s): 2004 Commemorative Edition Coupe, Auto w/HUD. 13K miles in 2015. Sold 1982 Red Coupe
Not sure where GM's is located, but here is a little history of the term.
 

Skunk Works is used in engineering and technical fields to describe a group within an organization given a high degree of autonomy and unhampered by bureaucracy, tasked with working on advanced or secret projects. This term was made popular by a division of the same name within the Lockheed Martin corporation, because of their several successes at managing time-sensitive, complex projects. The term is also used analogously in other fields, especially business, to describe any self-contained, semi-autonomous work-group or committee that directly manages its own projects.




 
Save the Wave!
Support the National Corvette Museum   

Skunk Works

Posted: 3/6/08 8:07pm Message 8 of 9
Profile Pic
Lifetime MemberLifetime Member
Moderator
Send PM
Duncanville, TX - USA
Joined: 11/8/2003
Posts: 20229
Vette(s): #1-1974 L-48 4spd Cp Med Red Metallic/Black deluxe int w/AC/tilt/tele./p/w-p/b/ Am-Fm/map light National/Regional/Chapter NCRS "Top Flight" #2-1985 Bright Red/Carmine Cp.L-98/auto Member: NCRS, NCRS Texas, Corvette Legends of Texas
Cafaro actually spelled his version of the term "Skunk Werks".
I think that is also what he is calling his personal design business.
I remember now hearing the term being used by Lockheed ...but I think as far as the GM usage, it was used to describe the C5 team.


Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    

My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)
             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

Skunk Works

Posted: 3/7/08 6:42am Message 9 of 9
Former Member
Send PM
Horse Cave, KY - USA
Joined: 10/22/2007
Posts: 488
Vette(s): 1968 convertible; 1980 L-82
[QUOTE=dwright]...Lockheed Martin...[/QUOTE]
 
Correct; the term originated at Lockheed Martin when they began  developing aircraft for the CIA.  Loosely translated it means super secret stuff.  These days it's a generic term, although Lockheed now openly admits they have a secret operations section and even have a Skunk Works logo.
 
Smile



in Forum: C3 General Discussion


SPONSOR AD: (Our Sponsors help support C3VR)