ColleCtor CarinsiderColleCtor CarVolume 6 / Issue 2

Corvette — The Perfect CollectibleFind a good example for the right price and write the checkby Keith Martin

I f you were going to have just one collectible sports car, why not make it a Corvette?There’s no better place to

see and learn about Corvettes than at Bloomington Gold, a celebration of America’s sports car. Held for the fi rst time this year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Bloomington Gold brings together Corvette enthusiasts from around the world.

At Bloomington, you’ll see hundreds of Corvettes, from showroom-perfect to disheveled projects. You’ll fi nd cars for sale in every price range, from a few thousand dollars to well over $100,000.

Corvettes, fi rst built in 1953 as a stylish — but hopelessly slow — boulevardier, have developed over the years into a world-class sports car. Properly equipped, the latest-generation C7s can take on Ferraris and Porsches and hold their own.

There are several factors that make a Corvette the near-perfect collector car. First, they are instantly recognizable. No matter what year or model you have, everyone knows what a Corvette is.

Second, you can work on them yourself if you wish. With nearly 1,500,000 Corvettes built since 1953, parts are plenti-ful and easily sourced. Keeping your Corvette running, especially the pre-smog, pre-electronics cars built before 1968, is about as simple as working on a taxicab. In fact, a taxicab from that era probably had a similar small-block Chevy engine under the hood.

I’ve owned several Corvettes. My favorite was a 1963 Split-Window coupe with a 327-ci engine and a 4-speed. I also owned a 1992 C4 with a 350-ci engine and a 6-speed. I drove that car 2,400 miles up the ALCAN Highway from Portland, OR, to Anchorage, AK.

Both cars were easy to drive, and they had more than enough power to reach triple-digit speeds. Further, they attracted attention wherever we stopped.

At Bloomington Gold, you’ll see examples of nearly every Corvette year and model. Let your budget be your guide, fi nd a good example at a price that makes sense to you, and write the check. You’ll start on a journey you will never regret.

Bloomington Gold is heaven for Corvette lovers

1963 Split-Window Corvette — a personal favorite

Perfect Partnership

Global collectors know that one of the world’s fi nest automotive events — Salon

Privé — takes place each year in the U.K. This year marks the 10th anniver-sary of this now-iconic supercar show and concours d’elegance, which takes place September 3–5. This is the seventh consecutive year that Chubb Insurance has been a major sponsor. Because of our unique dedication to Salon Privé, this year the two lead events are titled the Chubb Insurance Tour d’Elegance and the Chubb Insurance Concours d’Elegance. What a tremendous honor.

Salon Privé is one of the most exclusive occasions on the motoring calendar, and it is held on the grounds of a magnifi cent British landmark each year. This year it will be held at Blenheim Palace, the famed birth-place of Winston Churchill. Blenheim remains the principal residence of the Duke of Marlborough and is the only non-royal stately home in England to hold the title of “Palace.” One of England’s largest houses, it was built between 1705 and 1722, and is surrounded by over 2,000 acres of landscaped parkland and stunning formal gardens. Imagine the Chubb Concours d’Elegance on these grounds. As is always the case with Salon Privé, it will simply be stunning.

I could not be more proud to work for a company so dedicated to help-ing protect some of human history’s fi nest creative achievements, whether irreplaceable historic homes or some of the fi nest examples of automotive art in existence. Salon Privé is a unique celebration of the automobile, and it’s a celebration for Chubb as well.

We’re also the title sponsor of Bloomington Gold again this year, June 25–27 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway — an iconic event at a truly iconic venue. I can’t wait to see my Corvette collector friends, some of the most knowledgeable and passionate in the hobby. If you plan to attend, stop by the two Chubb areas and say hello.

Keep ’em running!Jim FiskeSenior Vice PresidentChubb Personal Insurancejfi ske@chubb.com

in This issueFinding Gold at Bloomington .......... 1Gooding on the Market .................. 2Ten Signifi cant Corvette Sales ..... 2–3The Classics ....................................... 3Iconic Corvette Surrogates ............. 4Client Profi le ...................................... 51954 Pontiac Bonneville Concept . 61967 Yenko Super Camaro ............. 7Upcoming Events ............................. 8

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The Goodsby David Gooding

The Classics

11962 Chevrolet Corvette “Gulf Oil” race car

RM Sotheby’s, Fort Worth, TX 327-ci 360+hp V8, 4-speed, 37-gallon fuel tank, RPO 687 heavy-duty brakes. The 1962 SCCA A/Production champion. Driven by Dr. Dick Thompson, “The Flying Dentist.” From the Andrews Collection.Sold at $1,650,000

(Images are courtesy of the respective auction houses, unless noted otherwise)

As car lovers round the turn from spring into summer, Gooding & Company is gearing up for the

Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. We are now in the second decade of hosting the official car auction at this classic event, and we’re readying a wonderful variety of distinguished cars for our 2015 Pebble Beach Auctions on Saturday, August 15 and Sunday, August 16.

Our consignments include rare entries from the earliest days of motoring and vehicles from the finest eras of automotive engineering. Among the offerings you won’t want to miss is a 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera 2.7 RS Lightweight, documented and restored by the Porsche factory. Also among the lots will be a fascinating 1964 Shelby 289 Cobra, a 1976 Ferrari 308 GTB — the first 308 built for the U.S. market, a 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort and a 2003 Ferrari 575M that has less than 1,400 total miles recorded.

Fans of the early classics will get a kick out of a replica 1886 Benz, once driven by Sir Stirling Moss and later photographed on the 18th green at the Pebble Beach Golf Links. We’ll also present a 1927 Bentley 6½ Litre Le Mans Sports, a 1928 Auburn 8-88 Boattail Speedster and a 1933 Delage DS 8 cabriolet with coachwork by Pourtout, as well as a wide selection of post-war muscle cars. As many of our lots are presented without reserve, discerning collectors will have the opportunity to bid on a variety of special cars across a wide range of prices.

Our auctions generate record-breaking results and introduce vehicles rarely seen to the public. The experi-enced staff at Gooding & Company not only hand selects the cars for auc-tion but also delivers award-winning marketing and presentation for the vehicles and exceptional hospitality at the auction sites.

Pebble Beach is one of the finest venues in the world for car lovers and bidders. We look forward to catching up with old acquaintances and meet-ing new friends, so please join us for an unforgettable week of events featuring these magnificent pieces of rolling art.

Big Changes in the Classic Car Club of America

by David Schultz, CCCA President and CCCA Museum Trustee

Big news came out of the recent annual meeting of the Classic Car Club of America in Savannah, GA. The club will

now accept motorcars built as early as 1915 that fulfill CCCA criteria for Classic status.

Previously, the club’s parameters had been 1925 to 1948, although cars built prior to 1925 that were “virtually identical” to their 1925 counterparts were accepted. That has changed.

Fine luxury automobiles — such as Lafayette, Daniels and Templar — that suffered the misfortune of having their production cease before 1924 have been denied consideration as Classics. They are now eligible and likely to be designated as Full Classics.

Other already-approved Classics, such as Mercer, Kissel, Marmon and DuPont, changed models prior to 1925; thus, their pre-1924 versions did not qualify under the “virtually identical” rule. An example: the Series 6 Mercer was built from 1923 to ’25, but the equally deserving Series 5, which differed from the Series 6 and was built from 1920 to ’23, did not qualify under the old rule.

Moving forward, the CCCA’s classifica-tion committee will also review specific models produced by a marque prior to 1924, such as the 1921–24 Paige 6-66 and 6-70 and the larger series cars produced by Haynes between 1919 and 1924.

As a past CCCA board member and president, I’m proud to have been person-ally involved in facilitating this change. The addition of these 1915–24 motorcars is a long overdue correction to the roster of ap-proved CCCA Full Classics. I commend all club members who supported this change.

These pre-1924 motorcars embody all of the qualities of what CCCA defines as a Classic — “Fine design, high engineering standards and superior workmanship.” In fact, the heyday of the coach-built era extended from 1915 or so through the early 1930s, when many of the top coachbuild-ing companies closed.

And contrary to what I’ve heard on occasion, most of these cars are enjoyable to drive. No, they won’t be confused with a 1941 Cadillac, but when driving these mo-torcars from the early days of the Classic Era, I feel much more engaged with the motoring experience. I feel that I’m driving a car, not just aiming it.

Hopefully, we’ll be seeing some of these “new” Classics at concours d’elegance and car shows — and on tour — in the months ahead.

21969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 coupe

Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale, AZ427-ci 430-hp V8, 4-speed, RPO F41 suspension, J56 brakes. Body-off restoration by the famed “Naber Brothers.” Extensive documentation includes tank sticker and ownership history.Sold at $495,000

31963 Chevrolet Corvette coupe

Gooding & Co., Scottsdale, AZ327-ci 340-hp V8, 4-speed. Iconic one-year-only “Split-Window” coupe. Highly original example, complete with copy of original owner’s card and certificate of title.Sold at $242,000

41953 Chevrolet Corvette roadster

Mecum Auctions, Las Vegas, NV235-ci 150-hp I6, automatic transmission. One of only 300 first-year Corvettes produced. From the Jim Rogers Collection.Sold at $216,000

51965 Chevrolet Corvette demonstration stand

RM Sotheby’s, Fort Worth, TX327-ci V8, 4-speed. Fully functional display piece, built from a 1965 coupe and used on the 1965 show circuit to demonstrate features of the new Corvette. From the Andrews Collection.Sold at $715,000

61958 Chevrolet Corvette convertible

Mecum, Indianapolis, IN283-ci 290-hp fuel-injected V8, 4-speed. One of just 193 1958 Corvettes produced in Inca Silver, and one of just 157 with matching Inca Silver coves. NCRS Top Flight winner in 2015 with 99.9 points.Sold at $174,960

71961 Chevrolet Corvette convertible

Gooding & Co., Scottsdale, AZ283-ci 270-hp V8, 2x4-bbl, 4-speed. Desirable late C1 dual-quad roadster. Well maintained and minimally used since 1990s restoration.Sold at $99,000

81971 Chevrolet Corvette LS6 convertible

Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale, AZ454-ci 425-hp V8, 4-speed. One of just 188 LS6 Corvettes built for 1971. NCRS Top Flight Award-winner in 2014, scoring 97.6 points.Sold at $203,500

91996 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport coupe

Mecum, Kissimmee, FL350-ci 330-hp V8, 6-speed, RPO Z51 Performance Handling Package. 2,100 original miles with documented ownership since new. Signed by Zora Duntov.Sold at $77,760

101964 Chevrolet Corvette convertible

Leake, Oklahoma City, OK327-ci 365-hp V8, 4-speed, with Teakwood steering wheel, sidepipes, power disc brakes, knockoff wheels, factory a/c, and numbers-matching engine. Body-off restoration.Sold at $70,400

Here are 10 of the world’s elite collector cars that just might make history this spring:

SiGnifiCAnT CorveTTe SAleS of 2015Ten The year got off to a strong start, and the market is

vibrant. Here are 10 notable sales from across the Corvette spectrum — and we’re just getting started

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Indianapolis later this month. In addition to serving as a huge festival for Corvette fans, Bloomington Gold certifies the originality of cars with a level of scrutiny that is the ultimate test for a Corvette and its owner.

Cohen has been coming to Bloomington Gold for several years, and al-ways looks forward to spending time with fellow Corvette fans. “I love it,” says Cohen. “You get to meet the most passionate people, and I always learn something new. The journey of being a Corvette collector wouldn’t be the same without the people I’ve interacted with at Bloomington Gold.”

Cohen points out that the all-original L88 being exhibited at Bloomington Gold is actually not the most untouchable car in his collection. “I have one of the last 4-speed C3 models, a black 1981 car, and I’ll never part with it.”

What makes this car so special to Cohen? Does the ’81 Corvette take him back to his days on Coney Island Avenue, when Styx and The Police would blast from his cassette deck? Perhaps it’s the regional and national recogni-tion the car has earned.

“Maybe so,” says Cohen, “but the car was built on my birthday. It was meant to be mine back when I couldn’t afford one.”

Howard Cohen is just one of the thousands of Corvette collectors that you can meet at Bloomington Gold every June. He is a credit to the hobby, and spends an enormous amount of time preserving the history of his Corvettes. The team at Chubb is proud to call Howard a friend and a client.

When you think back of teenagers cruising down a boulevard in their muscle cars on a summer night, you might think about Santa Monica, Hollywood or South Beach. Howard Cohen, a Corvette

collector who grew up in Brooklyn, is quick to point out that the streets of his borough thrived with a similar car culture a few decades ago.

“Coney Island Avenue in 1980 could have been a scene out of ‘American Graffiti,’” recalls Cohen, “though you would be more likely to see a Camaro or an RX-7 than a ’57 Thunderbird.”

Cohen grew up obsessed with motorcycles and cars just a few blocks away from the world-famous beach at Coney Island. He remembers wander-ing through the Kinney Chevrolet parking lot after school, dreaming that he would find a way to buy a Corvette when he became a licensed driver.

“I even tried to convince my dad to choose a Corvette as his company car,” said Cohen. “I figured he could just buy something else to drive every day, while I used the company Corvette.”

While that clever plan didn’t work out, his dad did help Howard and his brother acquire a 1979 Camaro RS that they could share. While the Camaro gave the teenagers credibility on the weekend cruising circuit, it didn’t quench Howard’s thirst for a more powerful Chevy. After a lucrative summer running a concession business on the Coney Island Boardwalk, he fulfilled his dream by purchasing a red 1982 Corvette, just a few months before Prince would release his huge hit single about America’s most iconic sports car.

The ’82 model would become the first of over 20 Corvettes that Cohen would acquire over the next three decades. The crown jewel of his collec-tion is a 1969 black L88 coupe with the original engine and paint. The L88 designation represents a limited-production factory option that made the car unbeatable on the race track. Two-hundred-sixteen were produced from 1967 to ’69. Cohen’s L88 is one of six black coupes built for 1969, and its original-ity makes it even more unique given the amount of track time that most L88s experienced.

“Now that I’m focused on collecting important Corvettes, provenance has become very important to me,” says Cohen. “I was able to track down the original owner of my L88, and I’ve enjoyed hearing his experiences with the car. Learning about the history of this very special L88 has been fascinating.”

Cohen’s L88 could achieve even greater fame at Bloomington Gold in

Client Profile A Birthdate With DestinyA Corvette lover since his Brooklyn childhood brings his 1969 L88 to Bloomington Gold this yearby Paul Morrissette

Corvette Market Don’t Get Sad — Get evenAs values advance, our chances of owning a truly iconic Corvette become more fleeting. So find a surrogateby John L. Stein

It’s kind of fun watching seven-figure numbers flash onto the monitors for a rare Corvette at a car auction. They validate our love of these cars,

provide reassurance that the hobby is healthy, and sometimes — if we’ve chosen our stable wisely and well — promise future profits.

On the other hand, for many of us, those same numbers can be sobering, as they represent the cruise ship steaming away from us while we’re standing onshore. Not only are we not on board today, we ain’t going to be on board in this lifetime. The ship on the really unique Corvettes, compadre, has truly sailed.

And so with every thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, or million-dollar advance in values, the chances of ever owning the dream cars we’ve held in our heads since childhood increas-ingly become just that — a dream. See you later, 1963 Grand Sport. Goodbye, 1967 L88. It was good meeting you, SR-2.

So what to do? All Corvettes were built to drive, and so I figure the healthiest therapy is to hook up with an alternative that offers the same basic driv-ing experience. Please note I’m emphatically not promoting building clones here, but rather suggest-ing that much of the same driving experience of the Greatest Generation of Corvettes can be had at a price most can afford. So herewith, hereupon, whereof and wherefore, here’s my mad-hatter sur-rogate list for some of the greatest Corvettes in history that most of us, sniff, won’t ever have.

1953 Motorama prototypeSpinning slowly on the turntable at the Waldorf-

Astoria hotel in New York on January 17, 1953, the Corvette EX 122 prototype ushered in a new era for American sports cars. And the 300 1953 models that fol-lowed, hand-built in Flint, MI, are worth upwards of $300,000 each today.

If that car’s not in the cards, a great solution is to find a bone-stock, Polo White 1954. More than 12 times more of them were made — 3,640 in all — and in general it’s visually and essentially the same car. For about $70,000 to $120,000, you can enjoy the fledgling Corvette all over again. And if you find that your mojo ever disagrees with 1953, the prices on ’54 cars are stable, so you can always resell and then transport yourself to 1963 or 1973 later on.

1956 Sr-2 roadsterAn exercise in styling as well as performance, with its toothsome grille

and Buck Rogers tailfin, the SR-2 immediately became an iconic member of the growing Corvette lineage. Underneath were various technical upgrades of the period, including a racing-brake package. With history as both a styling exercise and a road racer, today the three SR-2s built are well and truly seven-figure cars.

The easy answer: any 1956–57 Corvette, because all used the same under-pinnings as the SR-2. Short of Sharknado-ing the nose and glassing on a tailfin (please don’t), adding the same high-performance tweaks the SR-2 received will create much the same driving flavor as this hallowed hall-of-famer.

1967 l88 coupeWith only 20 built, you could hardly touch an

L88 in 1967, and most of us sure can’t touch one now, with prices in the millions. Of course, RPO L88 was a production race car option that came down the St. Louis assembly line ready for a fight. Its big-block 427 engine was competition-spec, as evidenced by special heads, high-compression pistons, camshaft and carb.

The L88 option lived in the midyear body for one year only, making it extraordinarily rare. But with the plethora of big-inch crate motors available today, any midyear car can be turned into something just about as hairy as an L88. There were over 22,000 big-block midyears built, so somewhere out there is an engineless donor ready for you to enjoy pumping up for less than five cents on the L88 dollar.

1990 Zr-1 convertibleYes, Chevrolet made one of these engineering

mules — an iridescent ZR-1 convertible called the DR-1 (for Chevy chief engineer Don Runkle) made for the ultimate gentleman’s express at the time. I saw it at Riverside in 1988, and it appeared at auc-tion, along with a bunch of other GM prototypes, at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale in 2009. It sold there for $286,000 (ACC# 119171).

To obtain similar performance to this elusive unicorn Corvette of the Late Big Hair Epoch, just waltz yourself into a 1996 Grand Sport convert-ible. With 330 hp, it is nearly as powerful and po-tent as that one-off Skunkworks prototype from the late ’80s. An easy $30,000–$50,000 should get you one today.

C5-r, C6.r, C7.r racerEven if you could buy a modern-era factory Corvette racer, you might not

want to. That’s because they were so specialized, they’d take a fully operational race shop just to enjoy, not to mention special fuel, computers, racing slicks, etc.

However, having been allowed a few track laps in the original C5-R a few years back, I can tell you that the dynamics are simply unbelievable. With such downforce and grip, that car took me to a land of g-forces I had never visited before.

Make it easy on yourself: For $78,000-plus, go order a new C7 Z06 instead. The early drive reports say that this car is pure race-car spec, right off the dealer’s floor. Just to be sure, though, I called former C5-R and C6.R driver and current Cadillac factory shoe Andy Pilgrim, who recently tested the C7 Z06 at Road Atlanta. “First, the screaming race-car noise is truly amazing — it’s just a ripping exhaust note,” Pilgrim says. “Then you’ve got the acceleration, which is equally tremendous. And the way the car corners with the Z07 Performance Package is on another level; I have never experienced a street car that delivers the lateral g’s of this car. And finally, the braking points are the same as I’d be looking at in a race car. At Road Atlanta, right out of the box this car would take the pole in the IMSA Continental series.”

Works for me.

If you can’t finance a birth-year 1953 model, you can find near-identical looks in the more affordable 1954 units

The new C7 Z06 gives you top-level performance and more comfort than a race-spec C5-R, C6.R or C7.R

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SOLD! This car, Lot 146, sold for $357,500, including buyer’s premium, at the Gooding & Company auction in Scottsdale, AZ, on January 17,

2015.Don Yenko was truly a Renaissance man. He possessed a 140 IQ, was an

accomplished sculptor and jazz pianist, and learned to fl y at age 16. He also served in the Air Force as a meteorologist, then earned a degree in Business Administration from Penn State University, where he was president of the school’s debate club. But it wasn’t until he was 30 years old that Don Yenko returned to his father’s business, Yenko Chevrolet in Canonsburg, PA, and began to make history.

First came SCCA A-Production national championships in 1961 and 1962 racing Corvettes. Then, after he “got tired of looking at the rear bumper of Mark Donohue’s Mustang,” he developed the “Yenko Stinger” Corvair.

In an interview that took place just weeks before he was killed in a crash while landing in his Cessna 210, Yenko told Muscle Car Review magazine, “I was racing when Carroll Shelby came out with his cars. I was pretty much a GM devotee as well as a Chevrolet dealer, so I got to thinking I’d like to be Shelby’s counterpart in Chevrolet.” During 1966 and 1967, Yenko built about 185 of the modifi ed Corvairs, which dominated D-Production racing for many years. But with the introduction of Chevy’s Mustang fi ghter, the 1967 Camaro, Don Yenko could now battle his friend Carroll Shelby on his own turf.

The Yenko treatmentMore than 220,000 Camaros were produced that fi rst year, but just 54 re-

ceived the Yenko treatment. When introduced, the Camaro’s top powerplant was the 295-hp 350 V8, while the 325-hp 396 big-block V8 was available after November ’66. Working with famed drag racer Dick Harrell, Yenko developed a 427 conversion package for the Camaro.

Whether a 350 or 396 car, Yenko replaced the original engine with a 427-ci L72 crate engine — the same fabled powerplant optional on the 1966 Corvette. The L72 was originally rated at a staggering 450 hp and is considered by some to be the most pow-erful Corvette engine from the ’60s, although by October 1966 the engine was downgraded to 425 hp, probably to placate the insurance companies. Dyno tests reveal the 450-hp number was probably correct. With this much power on tap, Yenko also upgraded the suspension and brakes to match, and added his own styling touches, such as

DetailsYear produced: 1967Number produced: 54Original list price: $4,115.20Current ACC Valuation: $300,000–$350,000Tune-up/major service: $250Distributor cap: $22.58VIN location: Driver’s side door pillarEngine # location: Pad on the right side of the

block to the rear of the engine mountClub: The Supercar RegistryMore: www.yenko.netAlternatives: 1967 Shelby GT 500, 1967 Nickey 427

Camaro, 1968 Baldwin-Motion Phase III CamaroACC Investment Grade: A

The Cumberford Perspective1954 Pontiac Bonneville Special Motorama Concept CarBy Robert Cumberford

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I remember seeing this car at the GM Tech Center in 1955. It was an impressively futuristic shape covering a side-valve engine

from the dark ages. It was so outra-geously inappropriate that it made the coterie of very young Southern California hot-rod-inspired stylists working there laugh out loud.

But we all really admired the clever twin application of Pontiac’s trademark “silver streak” that Frank Hershey had fi rst applied in 1935. The Alfa Romeo and Miller racer-like “surface radiators,” or “blower housings” (take your pick, as they were strictly non-functional), on the front fender sides impressed us as well.

The jet fi ghter canopy was strictly modern then and would actually look good on a new sports car today. Seriously outdated exposed spare wheels were at that time powerfully popular indicators of sportiness. In this application, the perpendicular placement also suggested a rocket or jet exhaust outlet. The rear fender tips were a bit fi n-like, but they also recalled the “suitcase” fenders GM had espoused in the late 1930s. To my eye, educated during 60 years of subsequent automotive evolution, the fenders’ rounded bumps over the wheels evoke recent Le Mans cars, although in this case the driver can see over them, as Audi, Toyota and Porsche drivers cannot.

After spending more than $3 million, the new owner will want to preserve his car, and not yield to our cry in 1955: “Put a Chevy in it!”

FRONT 3/4 VIEW 1 These form-following bumper-

ettes are surprisingly subtle for mid-century GM and fi t nicely with six smaller ones on the lower inlet lip.

2 In this application, the silver streaks evoke memories of Schneider Trophy racing seaplanes in the 1930s.

3 These understated little scoops swallow the streaks and presumably ventilate the no-doubt sweltering cockpit.

4 The canopy is utterly timeless, simple, clean and a worthy place for a wraparound windshield.

5 The term “suitcase fender” be-comes abundantly clear in this view.

6 Who doesn’t like the look of these panels, even if they’re only decoration?

REAR 3/4 VIEW

7 These elements also make one think of rocket exhausts. The whole graphic composition of the rear is very straight-forward — not very “Motorama.”

8 The plain brutality of this big tire cover with the jet-engine detailing of the wheel is surprisingly apposite for this car, which represents great styling. Not design — styling.

9 The four fender bumps, derived di-rectly from the round wheel openings, are very simple. And very effective.

10 As is the pure-radius fender profi le,

no doubt inspired by Bonneville record cars of the time.

11 The sill is dead-straight, with a single curve rolling under. It would never happen today, unfortunately. Sometimes severe simplicity is the single best solution.

12 The pitiful little exhaust outlets give us a perception of the power that could be extracted from that hulking iron L-head straight eight and its fi ve carburetors — as many as would fi t in the length of the engine, I guess.

INTERIOR VIEW “Jazzy but essentially useless”

just about perfectly describes the Bonneville’s “sports car” cockpit. The speedometer is front and center, and everything else scattered across the panel is hard to read. If there is a tiny tach, it doesn’t matter, because you don’t need one with an old Hydramatic transmission. Harley Earl loved thin-rim steering wheels, so this must have really appealed to him, as did the “aircraft” gauges.

Market Analysis1967 Chevrolet Yenko Super CamaroConsidering that a factory 396 Camaro was over 1.5 seconds and 9 mph slower, the Yenko Super Camaro made sense for anyone with the need for extreme speedby Tom Glatch

Yenko graphics and the unique fi berglass “stinger” hood.So how fast was Yenko’s missile? We have a pretty good idea. A Chevrolet

engineer, Doug Roe, invited Car Life magazine to take his 427 Camaro develop-ment car for a blast. “That’s my pet,” Roe said. Why would a Chevy engineer build such a beast when corporate edicts prevented them from ever manufactur-ing one? “We want to keep abreast of what some of our customers are doing,” he told the magazine. Those customers with reputations for performance included Dana Chevrolet in Los Angeles, Nickey Chevrolet in Chicago, Berger Chevrolet in Michigan, and of course, Yenko Chevrolet. With 4.88:1 gears, headers, open exhaust, and Goodyear slicks, Roe was able to crack a 13.5 second quarter at around 100 mph, and thought he could get in the 12s with a little work.

ringing the bellSo what price glory? Yenko documents show our feature Camaro cost

$4,115.20 — over $1,330 more than a basic SS 350. To put it in perspective, a new VW Beetle cost $1,758 in 1967. Also, since this was a dealer conversion, the factory warranty was null and void. “In 1967 and 1968, I had to cover the cars with my own warranty, with no backing from the factory at all,” Yenko told Muscle Car Review. Considering that a factory 396 Camaro was over 1.5 seconds and 9 mph slower, the Yenko Super Camaro made sense for anyone with the need for extreme speed.

It’s believed that just 10 of the 54 Yenko Camaros built in 1967 still exist. That makes them exceedingly rare, yet there have been a few sales in recent years. In March of 2013, Gooding & Co. sold one for $350,000 (ACC# 215565), and Mecum sold another for $344,500 in May of 2012 (ACC# 210882).

Before the Great Recession, ’67 Yenkos were selling for about the same price — I think their rarity and performance potential has helped keep them stable in the market. But a few Nickey Chevrolet 427 conversions built in 1967 have sold for as much as $90k more, which seems odd as I would think the Yenko name and reputation should at least be on a par with Nickey’s. Still, the sale of this Yenko Super Camaro is right on the money in today’s market compared with the previous sales we’ve seen, and both the seller and buyer should be very happy with the result.

the Yenko Super Camaro made sense for anyone with the need for extreme speedby Tom Glatch

Chip Riegel, courtesy of Gooding & Company

Courtesy of Barrett-Jackson Auction Company

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ColleCtor CarinsiderForm 01-01-0293 (Ed. 03/15)

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15 San Marino Motor Classic Pasadena, CA19–22 Le Belle Macchine d’Italia Pocono, PA

25–27 Bloomington Gold Indianapolis, IN25–28 Goodwood Festival of Speed Chichester, U.K.26–28 Carlisle GM Nationals Carlisle, PA

JUlY10–12 Carlisle Chrysler Nationals Carlisle, PA16–19 Keeneland Concours d’Elegance Lexington, KY18–19 Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance Forest Grove, OR24–26 Concours of America at St. John’s Plymouth, MI

AUGUST3–12 Pebble Beach Motoring Classic Kirkland, WA4–9 Hot August Nights Reno, NV6–8 Barrett-Jackson Reno, NV

11 Carmel-by-the-Sea Conc. on the Ave. Carmel, CA11–12 Automobilia Monterey Seaside, CA

13 Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance Pebble Beach, CA13–14 Bonhams Auction Carmel, CA

13–15 Mecum Auction Monterey, CA13–15 Russo and Steele Auction Monterey, CA13–15 Pebble Beach RetroAuto Pebble Beach, CA

14 Porsche Werks Reunion Carmel, CA 14 The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering Carmel, CA

14 Legends of the Autobahn Monterey, CA14 Pacifi c Grove Auto Rally Pacifi c Grove, CA

14–15 RM Sotheby’s Auction Monterey, CA 15 14th SCM Monterey Insider’s Seminar Pebble Beach, CA

15 Concorso Italiano Monterey, CA 15–16 Gooding & Co. Auction Pebble Beach, CA

15–16 Automotive Fine Arts Society Exhibition Pebble Beach, CA

16 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Pebble Beach, CA22–23 Milwaukee Masterpiece Concours Milwaukee, WI

23 Geneva Concours d’Elegance Geneva, IL28–30 Corvettes at Carlisle Carlisle, PA

30–Sept 7 Auburn Cord Duesenberg Festival Auburn, IN

SePTeMBer 3–5 Salon Privé Woodstock, UK. 7–12 Going to the Sun Rally Bozeman, MT 12 Saratoga Wine & Food Festival Concours Saratoga Springs, NY

25–27 Porsche Rennsport Reunion V Monterey, CA 26–27 Hemmings Motor News Concours Saratoga Springs, NY

Don’t Miss Bloomington GoldJune 25–27www.bloomingtongold.com

www.chubbcollectorcar.com