69 z-28 camaro ?

[Troy Henderson]

Were there any 1968 model year camaros built with the cowl hood? I always assumed it wasn't until the 69 model year but was curious.

[Dwight Southerland]

Originally Posted by bob gonier

ACTUALLY GUYS............ It was a production date issue. The early production cars had the flat hoods and the cowl induction hood came out later into the model year. SO....... ALL early production cars came from the factory with a flat hood and ALL cars built after a certain date got the cowl hood. It was standard equipment on all the later built Z/28's and ALL the Pace Cars and COPO Camaro's. Those the facts.......
bob

Wrongo, Bob. I worked at a Chevrolet dealership in 1969 and was best friends with the owners. The cowl hood was an option on all 4-bbl equipped Camaros after 10-1-68, including Z28s. It was spec'ed as a required option with the Pace Car package and the COPO 427 cars, but never a "standard equipment" piece on anything. It's like a four-speed transmission. The Z28 option required ordering a four-speed and front disc brakes, but they were not part of the Z28 option. The Z28 code option only included the special engine, special suspension pieces, HD rear axle, HD cooling and the badging. The cowl hood option was not required on the Z28. Its option code was ZL2.

In the period between 1969 and 1973, I owned a '69 SS 396-325 with a cowl hood and the spoiler package, a standard '69 Camaro 350-255hp with the cowl hood option (Wierd car. It had a four-speed, disc brakes, 12-bolt w/posi, then a single exhaust. The original owner special ordered the car but didn't realize that the regular gas engines all came with a single exhuast system.), a '69 coupe with the Pace Car package, 350-300 hp which required the cowl hood option, a couple of cowl hood optioned Z28s, and a '69 SS 396-375 with the cowl hood package. I also owned a late-July 1969 built Z28 with a flat hood, a December '68 built 1969 Z28 with a flat hood and no positraction (dumb!), a '69 SS 396-350 hp with the standard SS hood and a '69 307 PG standard car with a flat hood. All were original production equipped cars.

The cowl hood was a 1969 year option only.

The short '68 style spoiler was never factory installed. There was a supplier problem shortly after the '69s were introduced because the spoiler package was so popular and the demand exceeded the supply. Many dealers responded by installing the '67-'68 spoilers, which were available, to satisfy the buyers.

The cowl hood has always been such a popular item and so many have been installed on early Camaros that the production availability facts have been blurred in time.

Those are the facts.

Dwight Southerland

[CrateCamaro]

Originally Posted by Dwight Southerland

Wrongo, Bob. I worked at a Chevrolet dealership in 1969 and was best friends with the owners. The cowl hood was an option on all 4-bbl equipped Camaros after 10-1-68, including Z28s. It was spec'ed as a required option with the Pace Car package and the COPO 427 cars, but never a "standard equipment" piece on anything. It's like a four-speed transmission. The Z28 option required ordering a four-speed and front disc brakes, but they were not part of the Z28 option. The Z28 code option only included the special engine, special suspension pieces, HD rear axle, HD cooling and the badging. The cowl hood option was not required on the Z28. Its option code was ZL2.

In the period between 1969 and 1973, I owned a '69 SS 396-325 with a cowl hood and the spoiler package, a standard '69 Camaro 350-255hp with the cowl hood option (Wierd car. It had a four-speed, disc brakes, 12-bolt w/posi, then a single exhaust. The original owner special ordered the car but didn't realize that the regular gas engines all came with a single exhuast system.), a '69 coupe with the Pace Car package, 350-300 hp which required the cowl hood option, a couple of cowl hood optioned Z28s, and a '69 SS 396-375 with the cowl hood package. I also owned a late-July 1969 built Z28 with a flat hood, a December '68 built 1969 Z28 with a flat hood and no positraction (dumb!), a '69 SS 396-350 hp with the standard SS hood and a '69 307 PG standard car with a flat hood. All were original production equipped cars.

The cowl hood was a 1969 year option only.

The short '68 style spoiler was never factory installed. There was a supplier problem shortly after the '69s were introduced because the spoiler package was so popular and the demand exceeded the supply. Many dealers responded by installing the '67-'68 spoilers, which were available, to satisfy the buyers.

The cowl hood has always been such a popular item and so many have been installed on early Camaros that the production availability facts have been blurred in time.

Those are the facts.

Dwight Southerland

a late 68 Z28 could have had a cowl hood. Thats right out of a resto book.

[stefan callender]

Wheres Jerry McNeish for this conversation????

[Jeff Niceswanger]

According to the Camaro White Book,there were 243,085 Camaros buit in 69. Only 10,029 were built with the option "ZL2 Hood,Special Ducted" . I had two 69 Z-28s back then.One was a gold and black Rally Sport with a flat hood. The other was silver and black with the cowl induction hood.

[Travis Miller]

Speaking strictly of 1967-69 Camaros, 1969 was the only year the factory installed a cowl induction hood. I have an original dealer's Chevrolet Parts Catalog dated Feburary 1973. The catalog was given to me by a friend who worked a Chevy parts counter. I happened to be at the dealership the day they received the newer parts catalog. He asked if I wanted the old parts catalog and I said yes. It covers 1965-72 Full size Chevrolets, 1964-72 Chevelles, 1962-72 Novas, and 1967-72 Camaros.

The following is taken from my original Chevy parts catalog:

8.000 PANEL, Hood Top

CAMARO
67-69 Camaro (exc. 350, 396, spec. duct hood)...............3938617 75.10

67 Camaro (350, 396)
68-69 Camaro (350, 396) (exc. spec. duct hood)..............3938619 78.40

69 Camaro w/ spec. ducted hood.....................................3949708 98.90


Travis

(Disclaimer: Now you guys know my secret for researching older Chevies)

[Bob Rice]

Dwight,
Weren't the deluxe rear bumper guards part of the Z/28 package? I remember a well known stock eliminator racer telling me that he wasn?t allowed to race his 68 Z/28 at a Div 1 race in the early 70s because the deluxe rear bumper guards had been removed and replaced by the standard guards by the previous owner. I know I?ve never seen a 69 Z/28 without the deluxe rear bumper guards.
Bob Rice

[Dave Cook]

In 1973 a guy showed me his new pride and joy that he was going to mothball because even then he knew it was probably one of one built....
69 R/S, SS, Z-28, Black with Gold stripes, Black vinyl top, Houndstooth seats, cowl hood, and a 375 HP 396 w/Turbo 400, 4.10 rear......

Thinking back, the Z package was trim, 12-bolt, and suspension mostly, the SS package was required to get the big block, the R/S package for the hidden headlamps, vinyl top and houndstooth interior ?????

I wonder where that car is now?
Only Black/Gold combination I ever saw.

[Chevy454]

In 1973 a guy showed me his new pride and joy that he was going to mothball because even then he knew it was probably one of one built....
69 R/S, SS, Z-28, Black with Gold stripes, Black vinyl top, Houndstooth seats, cowl hood, and a 375 HP 396 w/Turbo 400, 4.10 rear......

Thinking back, the Z package was trim, 12-bolt, and suspension mostly, the SS package was required to get the big block, the R/S package for the hidden headlamps, vinyl top and houndstooth interior ?????

Someone built that car (either your buddy or the dealer): you couldn't combine the Z/28 package with the SS package, so you couldn't have a Z/28 option on an L78 car...Z/28 was more than trim, as it included 15" rally wheels and special Z suspension...and the only big block cars to get Z wheels/suspension were the COPO 9737 Camaros (had to have the COPO 9561 427 to be able to get COPO 9737). Also, no gold stripes from factory...only white/black/red, unless it was a pace car which got orange).

[Dwight Southerland]

Originally Posted by Bob Rice

Dwight,
Weren't the deluxe rear bumper guards part of the Z/28 package? I remember a well known stock eliminator racer telling me that he wasn?t allowed to race his 68 Z/28 at a Div 1 race in the early 70s because the deluxe rear bumper guards had been removed and replaced by the standard guards by the previous owner. I know I?ve never seen a 69 Z/28 without the deluxe rear bumper guards.
Bob Rice

I don't think so, Bob. I would have to drag out all that dealer/sales documentation I have to verify, but the special trim stuff like that was left off the Z28 package. It was performance only. In 1982, I restored a 14K mile original '67 car that was bought to be a Trans-Am racer and it had the Z28 package, the cowl fresh air package, service package rear end, HD four speed (M22), no radio, and heater delete ('67 only). There was not even a chrome drip rail on that car. Also, The Chevy dealer I worked at in 1969 had a left over '68 Z28 on the used car lot that had been ordered as a demostrator (the owner's son was the accountant and he drove it). We took that car and smoked over a few things and raced it in Pure Stock for a few weekends. I have pictures of that car and it shows no bumper guards, and it was pretty loaded (PS, console, gauge package, custom interior, etc.). I also have a '68 dealer brochure that shows a Z28 without bumper guards.

Dave, the standard engine in the SS package was a 350, not a big block.