1969 Chevrolet Camaro "Z/28 2 Door Coupe"
Specifications
Configuration: Longitudinal front engine
Engine: V8
Displacement: 302cid/4.95L
Horsepower: 290hp at 5,800RPM
Torque: 290 ft-lbs at 4,200RPM
Transmission: 4-speed manual.
A Little History
The Chevrolet Camaro, code-named internally by the company as “Panther,” was conceived as direct competition with the Ford Mustang, as the Mustang had so thoroughly beaten the competition in the 1966 season.
The Z/28 Camaro was first released in 1966 as the homologated street-legal version of their Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) racing effort.
Vince Piggins, an assistant Chevrolet staff engineer at the time, promised the SCCA officials that Chevrolet would come up with an entry for the 1967 SCCA Trans-Am race series.
In August of 1966, the executives approved Piggins’ plan to build an SCCA-legal factory racer based on the Camaro.
The car was given the regular production number, or RPO, of Z28, which is how the model wound up with its name.
The SCCA homologation standards required that the car have a back seat, have a wheelbase no longer than 116 inches, have an engine no larger than 305cid, and that no less than 1000 street-legal models could be sold.
Only 602 models ended up being sold that year through a loophole involving the regular Camaro, and the Z28 absolutely dominated on the SCCA tracks.
Chevrolet sold 7,199 Z/28 Camaros in 1968, followed by an astounding 19,000 in 1969. The legacy continued all the way until a two year hiatus from 1975-1976, but returned in 1977 and has been produced annually since.
Vince Piggins originally wanted to name this car the Camaro Cheetah, but the Z/28 moniker had already stuck.
Only 5%, or roughly 950 Z/28s were painted in this Rallye Green color in 1969. The most popular color was Hugger Orange (12%), followed by LeMans Blue (11.5%), and Fathom Green (10%).
