The Manta Ray was actually the 1965 Mako Shark II (XP-830) with a few upgrades, so it featured many of the Mako II's outward features, such as side exhaust and a lower-body (along the rocker panels) silver paint job. The front end had a pointed chin spoiler and the headlights used 2 banks of 3 quartz-hallogen lights. The covers for the side pipes eventually showed up as an option on the ‘69 Corvette Most dramatic was the all-new roof line. The Stingray-like pointed roof with its louvers was replaced with a long, pointed, scooped out design that was very cool. The Manta Ray also packed the new, lightweight, all-aluminum ZL-1 427ci engine which produced 430 horsepower. Even though the shark-inspired ‘68 production Corvette was in showrooms, the Manta Ray was just too cool to retire just yet.
A gunslit vertical window replaced the louvered fastback rear window. Hard braking caused flaps on the rear deck to rise, reflecting light from upward facing stop-lamps (a feature first shown on the original Shark). Chevy made several classic muscle cars but their Corvette muscle cars are the most recognizable. The 1969 Manta Ray is a classic model in Corvette history.
