Long before they were mere tools for selling or servicing cars, American dealerships were places where the big nameplates of the industry got pumped up, with or without official support from carmakers, to become extraordinary racing machines for both road and track.
Back in the 1960s, when the terms muscle or pony car were just beginning to take hold, car dealers came up with racing versions for the Ford Mustang, Plymouth Barracuda or Chevrolet Camaro. Some of these cars survive to this day.
So is the case with a 1969 Chevrolet COPO Camaro ZL1, the brainchild of a Chevrolet dealer by the name of Fred Gibb. Meant to take on its sworn enemies on the dragstrip, this car is part of a very limited series of just 69 of its breed ever made.
At the same time, the Camaro, fitted with an all-aluminum big-block 427ci ZL1 engine designed for racing in the Can-Am series, is unique in its series, as it is the only one to use the NC8 chambered exhaust – most of the other 68 lacked the exhaust entirely, and most of the time came with open headers made specifically for racing.
This particular Camaro, painted in Hugger Orange, develops in excess of 500 hp and comes equipped with the ZL2 cold-air cowl-induction hood and Z21 trim option.
It will sell with no reserve during the Barrett-Jackson 2020 Scottsdale Auction, complete with extensive documentation, the original window sticker, and owner’s history.
„Whether an icon or a legend, the ZL1 is amongst the rarest of top-of-the-line Camaros and appears infrequently on the secondary market. Expect a battle over this No Reserve Hugger Orange example,” the auctioneers said in a statement.
Full details on how the COPO Camaro ZL1 came to be, as well as more details on this particular car itself, can be found at this link.
So is the case with a 1969 Chevrolet COPO Camaro ZL1, the brainchild of a Chevrolet dealer by the name of Fred Gibb. Meant to take on its sworn enemies on the dragstrip, this car is part of a very limited series of just 69 of its breed ever made.
At the same time, the Camaro, fitted with an all-aluminum big-block 427ci ZL1 engine designed for racing in the Can-Am series, is unique in its series, as it is the only one to use the NC8 chambered exhaust – most of the other 68 lacked the exhaust entirely, and most of the time came with open headers made specifically for racing.
This particular Camaro, painted in Hugger Orange, develops in excess of 500 hp and comes equipped with the ZL2 cold-air cowl-induction hood and Z21 trim option.
It will sell with no reserve during the Barrett-Jackson 2020 Scottsdale Auction, complete with extensive documentation, the original window sticker, and owner’s history.
„Whether an icon or a legend, the ZL1 is amongst the rarest of top-of-the-line Camaros and appears infrequently on the secondary market. Expect a battle over this No Reserve Hugger Orange example,” the auctioneers said in a statement.
Full details on how the COPO Camaro ZL1 came to be, as well as more details on this particular car itself, can be found at this link.