rickb@tekig1.UUCP (Rick Bensene) (04/11/84)
There were 69 1969 Camaros that were built that had the "legendary"
(in Chevy lovers' minds) ZL-1 Aluminum 427. There were 2 1969
Corvettes built which also had this engine. Today a documented
original ZL-1 Camaro can sell for $40,000 or more, that is, IF you
can find someone who has one and wants to sell it. All of the
ZL-1 Camaros to leave the factory had NO external identification
of the monster under the hood. For the few that were sold to
the general public, the dealer usually added brag-tags as a
"show off" item. The ZL-1 Vettes (as well as the L-88 versions)
did not come with radios or heaters, simply to deter the "average"
driver from purchasing one and terrorizing with it. The ZL-1 was
factory rated at somewhere around 465 Horsepower, but that was
a big lie, mostly for insurance reasons. 510 or more horsepower
is more likely what a stock engine generated. Many of the original
ZL-1 Camaros sold to drag racers for the purpose of racing. Surprizingly,
they were not very successful in drag racing. Their rather exotic
design (aluminum everything) made them somewhat unreliable. The
cast iron 427s had a much better record. Speaking of cast iron 427s,
there were a few Camaros built in 1969 with FACTORY cast iron 427s.
These too are very rare, and demand high prices. Many high-performance
oriented Chevrolet dealers immediatly offered big-block swaps for
the Camaro as soon as it was introduced. Dana Chevrolet, Baldwin Chevrolet,
and Yenko sold Camaros with big blocks in them ranging from stock
390 HP 427s to 500+ horsepower 427s. A few even offered the L-88 427,
which was Chevrolet's crowning acheivement in terms of brute horsepower.
The cast iron 427s did VERY well in drag racing against the Ford 428s and
429s and the Chrysler 440 and 426 Wedge motors. They even faired quite
well against the killer Chrysler Hemis, until Chevrolet decided to get
out of racing, at which point, Chrysler took total control.
On another subject - I too think that a net.auto.sport would be a good
idea. I could read it and not have to tolerate seeing stuff about
squeaky brakes, bad electrical systems, tire wear, and stuttering engines.
Rick Bensene
Beaverton, Oregon
..tektronix!tekig1!rickb