Copo Camaros

[Paul Ceasrine]

Motion Performance out on Long Island did the same thing with the
396 to 427 conversions, to go along with the proper #9561 factory COPO cars.
Does anybody know when they were eligible for A/S and A/SA..
I'm guessing 1970 or 1971???
Some beautiful cars at Barrett-Jackson. Much deserved KUDO's to the people that put out those wonderful cars together...But GEEZ, do those guys at B-J massage the truth or what????
Some misinformation out there on the first ZL-1 car..but I do believe that
Herb Fox drove the first one at the 69' AHRA Winternationals for
Fred Gibbs in the Dickie Harrell prepared car..1/20/69..
Paul C

[63corvette]

One thing to remember about the 69 model Camaro's is they ran for a year and one half and into the 1970 year models. GM was on strike for 67 days during the model year also. All of that affected how many of the COPO's were built and when they were built. I was 20 years old in 1969 and all the buzz in the Car Mag's was about the COPO cars along with the Yenco's and Baldwin cars. I wanted one really bad but could not afford the add on costs so I ended up buying a 375 HP 396 with a turbo 400 Chevelle. The reason I remember the strike of 67 days so well is the Chevelle was held up by the strike for well over the 67 days due to the backups caused by the strike. Another thing I remember well was not every dealership would even order a solid lifter engine option. I had to dealer shop for the dealer to order the 375 HP option. When I asked about the COPO option the dealer had to check about doing that. He came back days later with it could be done but the cost put it out of my reach. I can not remember exactly what I was quoted for the COPO option but it was well over my budget.
I just wish I had kept that car and a few others I had over the years.
Living through the muscle car era did have its advantages.
Just not to sure it was the "Good Ole Days"
My 2 Cents

[Dana Fitzpatrick]

Nobody has come up an exact number of 9561 COPO Camaros that were made in 1969. But since the engine plant only produced 1015 L-72 Camaro coded 427/425hp engines for the 69 model year, it is generally assumed this was the most 9561 COPOs that could have been produced. If you consider some of these L-72's were made for warranty replacements, the number of COPO Camaros would then be less. CRG puts the number at 700-1015 COPO 9561 1969 Camaros.

[Paul Ceasrine]

It wasn't the cost of the L-72 COPO 9561 option that hurt so much,,,,it was the INSURANCE!!.....I think I remember that the cost between a
SS396 Camaro with the 396/375HP L-89 aluminum head option and
COPO 9561 were pretty close in price..Wasn't the alumimun head option around the $750.00 range for the L78 396/375.??
Paul

[Chuck Norton]

Coincidentally, the blue '69 SS/DA pictured on page 22 of Tom Sheehan's post titled "stock and SS Camaros" on this Forum belonged to Jay Payne of Alcohol FC fame. It was an original COPO 9561 that Jay ran in SS/DA for several years. He has described to me the trip to Ohio to pick it up when it was new. He and, I believe, Mike Walker flew to somewhere around Cincinnati, picked up the car, and drove it back to California. When Jay moved on to another class he sold it to Paul Gobbera who continued to race it in Division 7 for a few more years. The last time I heard of the car it was for sale somewhere in Division 2.

[63corvette]

As far as the alum head option I do not recall but the 375 HP option was less than a $200 option on the SS Chevelle.
My 69 SS 396 375 HP Chevelle with the turbo 400 had a sticker price less than $3000 on the window. I remember that very well as that was a ton of money for me at that time when I was making $2 to $3 dollars an hour. I thought even when I got married in 1971 if I could make $10,000 a year I would be rich.
Rick

[Dana Fitzpatrick]

A friend of mine purchased a 9561 COPO Camaro from Berger in Dec. 1969. Paid $3900 for it. Not an RS, I think the RS option COPO's would have been around $4200. He said his car payment was $87 a month, and he brought home $120 a month. The Berger COPO's were nicely optioned and may have been more expensive than the more stripped down COPO's. I paid $2200 for mine in 1977, had the chance to buy his for $4500 in the early 80's, but thought the price was nuts. He repurchased the car in the 90's for a whole lot more!
I have an old Car Craft mag. with a write up on the Payne and Walker Camaro, one of them was quoted as saying the best investment they ever made was" narrowing the rear frame rails". LOL! Who knew what they would be worth someday!

[Todd Bailey]

www.yenko.net

These people live and breathe this stuff. Also a lot of cool pictures as well as other stuff.

[Paul Ceasrine]

I will post the actual dealer price sheet for the COPO 9561, as soon as it is e-mailed to me from my friend. He has one from an original car.
He bought a 69' SS396/375 HP with the RS-option. He said the cost of his car, with the options was approximiately the same price as a
COPO 9561. If he ordered his car with the L-89 aluminum head option, his car would have cost more than the COPO car, which was on the lot, at Byrne Brothers Chevrolet, White Plains, NY.
PC

[Kenny Wigington]

Really neat topic. I've enjoyed reading this.