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1st Generation History
When introduced in September of 1966, the Camaro was more
than merely an answer to the Mustang, it was an instant icon that captured the attention
of the youth-oriented pony car market. Derived from a French word meaning
"comrade" or "pal", Camaro was quickly recognized as a friendly word
for sport-car buyers looking for value. The Camera's all-new, semi-unitized chassis became
the basis for a variety of performance suspensions and powerplants. Wrapped around the
chassis was a body shell destined to become a classic. The timeless long, short deck
design epitomized the pony car concept, and was perhaps the most fluid and undisturbed
variation of the theme. Pages of options, as well as upgrade packages like RS and SS,
allowed buyers to literally custom build their car from dealers' option lists.
Right out of the gate, the Camaro could be powered with anything from a six cylinder to a
big-block 396, but the buying public took a while to warm up to the notion that a pony car
could also be fast. A majority of F-bodies were oredered with a small-block 327 or the new
350, both of which easily out-performed Ford's 289, and made excellent foundations for
street performance. The mid-year introduction of the 302-powered Z/28 achieved an almost
ideal combonation of horsepower and weight for all-around performance, and immediately
began tearing up the SCCA Trans Am circuit.
For die-hard horsepower enthusiasts, word traveled quickly that the Camaro made an
outstanding straight-line terror. Big-block Camaros immediately began propelling legends
like Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins to Super Stock victories at drag strips across the
country, and weekend racers followed their lead. Recognizing an untapped performance
market, Chevrolet dealers like Dana, Nickey and Yenko soon created some legends of their
own, sliding 427 Rat engines under Camaro hoods before sending them out the door.
After pacing the Indianapolis 500 in May of 1967, Chevrolet made minor appearance changes
to the Camaro for 1968. Buyers had a lot to look forward to the following year, however,
with a major facelift making 1969 a one-year model, sharing only the roof, hood and deck
lid sheet metl with other first generation F-bodies. Once again, the Camaro was selected
to pace the Indy 500, with Chevrolet prepared to capitolize this time, producing 3675 '69
Pace Car replicas. The Z/28 secret was out, with production of the high-revving
small-block car nearly tripling '68 figures. And as a crowning touch, '69 saw the debut of
the ever-popular cowl-induction hood, which has become a much-copied classic.
But one of the most important options for '69 failed to appear on dealer option lists.
Sheer acceleration was spelled COPO that year, and those willing to place a Central Office
Production Order with Chevrolet could get an aluminum-block ZL-1 or iron-block L-72 427 in
their Camaro. Produced mostly as a foundation for drag racers, only a few hundred COPOs
were built (exact figures are unknown), making them desirable collectibles today.
With the muscle car market and pony car wars in full swing, 1969 turned out to be a bnner
year for the Camaro. Sales topped 243,000, a figure that went unmatched for nine years.
Written by Damon Lee of Super Chevy