As the doldrums of the late '70s gave way to the performance revolution of the '80s, the devil was no longer OPEC or the EPA. Gas stations were stocked with cheap and abundant fuel once again. Through vehicles like the 5.0L Mustang, Buick Grand National, and TPI Camaros and Corvettes, car manufacturers proved that high-compression, hydrocarbon-spewing big-blocks weren't the only way to make power. However, not all was as good as it seemed, as a new imp called electronic fuel injection arrived on the scene. It promised to clean up the air, increase gas mileage, and improve drivability. While EFI made good on those promises, like the anti-Christ, it managed to scare the hell out of hot rodders in the process. Fortunately, a new savior named John Meaney surfaced to teach the way of fighting technology with technology.
The eldest of eight children, John was born on the south side of Chicago. While attending high school, he began working as a carpenter for his future father-in-law, developing skills he would later utilize to build two of his own homes. Heavily influenced by the rich Midwestern hot rodding scene, John and his brother bought a vapid 307-powered '72 Chevelle from his parents during his sophomore year. He soon dropped in a 327ci Corvette motor, and after thoroughly pounding on the Chevelle, it was replaced by a '69 Camaro that would become his future EFI test bed.
Interestingly, perfecting the art of balancing a carburetor served as the foundation for mastering electronic fuel injection. John's mentor during his formative years was Dub Austell, who campaigned a Hemi Dart during the Sox & Martin era of drag racing. John was a particularly inquisitive pupil, and Dub was more than happy to bestow his race-honed expertise on the principles of fuel and spark delivery. Consequently, John quickly earned a reputation as one of the best carb tuners around. Racers from all over town sought out his services to dial-in their cars.
Despite having acquired plenty of street savvy, John further fortified his education by attending Elmhurst College (Elmhurst, Ill.) and earning a degree in mathematics and physics. He backed that up with a mechanical engineering degree from Valparaiso University (Valparaiso, Ind.). It was at Valparaiso that John began fiddling with EFI by fitting a prototype electronic fuel controller onto his '69 Camaro for his senior project. That endeavor led to discovering the limitations of analog systems and the importance of digital control.
After graduation, John moved to the logical destination of any aspiring automotive engineer: Detroit, Mich. He soon landed a job with OE-supplier United Technology Automotive developing fuel injectors. With the help of one of his siblings, John built a house in rural Hartland, Mich., that included an engine shop and dynamometer in the back yard. Two years later, he switched camps and went to work for Bosch as a design and applications engineer. Not only was his tenure there a great learning experience, but he also made many valuable contacts within the industry that would come into play later on down the road.
Indeed, this time period was a significant turning point in John's career. During his stint at Bosch, John's skills developing electronic control units and writing computer code really came into their own. Factory EFI systems did a fine job of accommodating simple bolt-on upgrades, but threw fits when bigger camshafts, forced induction, and aftermarket fuel injectors were added to the mix. While the rest of the world was baffled by EFI-burning chips in vain-John came up with the revolutionary idea of isolating the components that controlled fuel and spark delivery and then operating them with a dedicated stand-alone computer. Digital Fuel Injection was born, and John's invention was the talk of the streets.
Then came the big time. With the help of a local investor, John continued to develop and refine his DFI system. ACCEL stepped into the picture and partnered with John to bring DFI to the mass market in 1991. John headed the ACCEL/DFI program until 1996, when he left to develop the SEFIF8LO stand-alone system for Fel-Pro now FAST. John moved on to his next project in 1999, working as a consultant for several different companies, his most notable project being the Commander 950 EFI system he developed for Holley. Growing tired of working for people, John and his brothers Joe and Leo founded BigStuff3 in 2003, marketing John's most advanced fuel injection system yet.
At home, John has never allowed his vast success to interfere with his family life. He married his high school sweetheart, Liz, in 1987 and the two are intimately involved in the lives of their three sons: Ryan (14), Jon (12) and Matt (7). Teaching the importance of family values, the boys are home-schooled by their mother. John is never far away, working in his backyard shop and making sure to take time out of his day to toss the football around with his boys. Although at times a bit curt to strangers, John's close friends say he's the most loyal and conscientious person they know.
John Meaney's countless contributions to our hobby are difficult to quantify. He developed affordable, user-friendly aftermarket fuel injection as we know it, and without his genius, it's quite possible that turbos and centrifugal superchargers would have never caught on. As the man who single-handedly developed all the major stand-alone systems (or their precursors) on the market today, John Meaney is the undisputed godfather of aftermarket fuel injection.