The Chevrolet Camaro thundered onto American roads in late 1966, as 1967-badged models sitting on the new GM F-body platform. The Camaro was a direct response to the Ford Mustang, and like the Mustang it was offered with both mild-mannered inline-6s and thundering V8s.
The most budget-friendly of the new Camaros was the 230 cubic inch (3.8 litre) L26 inline-6 with 140 hp, and the least tire-friendly was the 427 cubic inch (7.0 litre) – capable of 435 hp. Although interestingly, General Motors had originally issued an edict forbidding Chevrolet from using any engines over 400 cubic inches in cars other than the Corvette to avoid sales cannibalisation.
Former racing driver and Chevrolet dealer Don Yenko wasn’t bound by the edict, so he began custom fitting 427 V8s at his dealership – and they proved very popular. So much so that Chevrolet decided to set up a backdoor method for factory-fitting the 427 V8. It was done under the COPO (Central Office Production Orders) usually used for used on fleet orders – taxis, trucks, vans, etc etc.
These much sought after Camaros began customer deliveries in 1969 – the final year of the first generation Chevrolet pony car. Collectors today clamour over the surviving 427 first-generation Camaros, and all-original rotisserie restored examples like this one are much sought after.
During its restoration it was repainted in its original Garnet Red, with factory-spec black interior, and original factory-steel wheels with chrome hubcaps. It also retains its original M21 4-speed transmission, a must-have for any seriously spirited driving. It’s also wearing very rare L88 Winters GM original aluminum heads, and it’s fitted with a solid lifter camshaft, a 12 bolt 4.10 Positraction rear end, power disc brakes, front and rear spoiler, F70x14 Goodyear polyglas tires, and it’s one of very few known Camaros with the cowl tag anomoly – NBR vs NOR.
If you’d like to read more about this Camaro or register to bid, you can click here to visit Mecum Auctions.
Articles that Ben has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
