Tag Archives: 1969

ZL1 Camaro

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1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

Offered by Mecum | Indianapolis, Indiana | May 18, 2013

1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

You’re looking at a very rare, very desirable car. In fact, this is about as desirable as Chevy Camaros come. The lot description here even describes it as having the “most exotic American-built production powerplant of the 1960s.”

What sets the ZL1 apart from any other Camaro – and any other COPO Camaro – is its all-aluminium 427 (7.0-liter) V8 rated at 430 horsepower, but in fact delivering far, far more (some estimates push that number to about 550). Let’s back up a little: COPO is GM-speak for Central Office Production Order. At the time, GM was not allowing themselves to use engines larger than 6.6 liters. To get around that, customers could use a special order process – usually reserved for fleet sales – to spec out their cars with options not available to the general public.

The ZL1 engine was developed in part with the Chaparral Can-Am race team. It was developed for drag racing but ended up being a terror on the streets. The engine reportedly cost $4,000 alone – about twice the cost of a base V8 Camaro.

Only 69 ZL1 Camaros were built (this is #23), making it exceedingly rare. Prices have come down from their ridiculous levels back in the 2006/2007 era where these were pushing a million bucks. A more realistic estimate would be about $400,000. Click here for more info and here for the rest of Mecum’s Indianapolis lineup.

Update: Failed to sell.

Yarborough Special Cyclone

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1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Yarborough Special

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 4-6, 2013

1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler Yarborough Special

Photo – Mecum

Ford – make that, Mercury – was involved in NASCAR racing in the late 1960s. For 1969, their NASCAR model was the Cyclone. And NASCAR demanded that any car a manufacturer raced needed to be produced for the street – or homologated. So Mercury took their Cyclone and made it more aerodynamic to make it more competitive on the circuit.

So they built a few road models – “few” being the operative word. NASCAR mandated that about 500 be built. Mercury was feeling generous in 1969 and built 503. They built them all in the first few weeks of 1969 only. It was essentially the same car as the Ford Torino Talladega.

The body was a Cyclone fastback (or “Sportsroof”) with a nose extension. The engine was  a 5.8-liter Ford V-8 (the race car got a 7.0-liter). Horsepower was about 290. Two models were offered, this one being a “Yarborough Special” named for NASCAR superstar and legend Cale Yarborough. Only 285 of this version was built and the red trim sets it apart from its sister car (you can read more here).

Update: Sold $26,000.

Cyclone Spoiler: Gurney Special

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1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Gurney Special

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 4-6, 2013

1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Gurney Special
Photo – Mecum

This is the other version of the Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II (if you’re linking here from somewhere on the site, you can read more about these cars above). It’s interesting that Ford would name a car after Dan Gurney – he wasn’t a NASCAR regular (even though he has one of the highest winning percentages in NASCAR history at 31.25% – the highest among drivers who started more than 3 races). He ran races between 1962 and 1968 – just 16 races. And he won 5 of them (and he did drive Mercurys for owner Bud Moore). Pretty incredible.

Dan Gurney is, hands down, one of the best race car drivers that America has ever produced. Mercury built 218 Gurney Specials for 1969 in honor of him. The blue trim on this one sets it apart from the Yarborough Special. Both of these cars look incredible and are likely coming from the same home. You can read more about this one here and see what else Mecum has to offer here.

Update: Sold $22,000.

A Pair of Mercury Cyclone Spoiler IIs

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1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Yarborough Special

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 4-6, 2013

1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler Yarborough Special

Ford – make that, Mercury – was involved in NASCAR racing in the late 1960s. For 1969, their NASCAR model was the Cyclone. And NASCAR demanded that any car a manufacturer raced needed to be produced for the street – or homologated. So Mercury took their Cyclone and made it more aerodynamic to make it more competitive on the circuit.

So they built a few road models – “few” being the operative word. NASCAR mandated that about 500 be built. Mercury was feeling generous in 1969 and built 503. They built them all in the first few weeks of 1969 only. It was essentially the same car as the Ford Torino Talladega.

The body was a Cyclone fastback (or “Sportsroof”) with a nose extension. The engine was  a 5.8-liter Ford V-8 (the race car got a 7.0-liter). Horsepower was about 290. Two models were offered, this one being a “Yarborough Special” named for NASCAR superstar and legend Cale Yarborough. Only 285 of this version was built and the red trim sets it apart from its sister car (you can read more here).

Update: Sold $26,000.

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1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Gurney Special

Offered by Mecum | Houston, Texas | April 4-6, 2013

1969 Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Gurney Special

This is the other version of the Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II (if you’re linking here from somewhere on the site, you can read more about these cars above). It’s interesting that Ford would name a car after Dan Gurney – he wasn’t a NASCAR regular (even though he has one of the highest winning percentages in NASCAR history at 31.25% – the highest among drivers who started more than 3 races). He ran races between 1962 and 1968 – just 16 races. And he won 5 of them (and he did drive Mercurys for owner Bud Moore). Pretty incredible.

Dan Gurney is, hands down, one of the best race car drivers that America has ever produced. Mercury built 218 Gurney Specials for 1969 in honor of him. The blue trim on this one sets it apart from the Yarborough Special. Both of these cars look incredible and are likely coming from the same home. You can read more about this one here and see what else Mecum has to offer here.

Update: Sold $22,000

Baldwin Motion Phase III Corvette

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1969 Chevrolet Corvette Baldwin Motion Phase III Coupe

Offered by Auctions America | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | March 22-24, 2013

1969 Chevrolet Corvette Baldwin Motion Phase III Coupe

Baldwin, Long Island-located Baldwin Chevrolet and Motion Performance joined forces in 1967 to build serious street machines. Baldwin Chevrolet sold the cars that they, and their partners, modified. All kind of Chevrolets could be had: Novas, Camaros, Chevelles and Corvettes.

They called their Phase III cars “supercars” and the term is apt. They guaranteed both an 11.5 second quarter mile time and a cruising speed of 120 mph. That’s some gearing! But then again, such gearing is made easy when the engine makes 600 horsepower. This car has a 7.9-liter (482-cid) V-8 “Elephant” motor making just such a number. It is the only engine like it known to exist.

This car is a 15,000 mile car from new and is well optioned. It is all original and is the only one like it. Rare, period one-off muscle cars like this used to bring ridiculous money about 10 years ago. The market has softened but this is still a very valuable car. Click here to read more and here for more from Auctions America in Ft. Lauderdale.

Update: Sold $136,400.

’69 Yenko Camaro

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1969 Chevrolet Camaro Yenko

Offered by Russo & Steele | Scottsdale, Arizona | January 16-20, 2013

1969 Chevrolet Camaro Yenko Coupe

First of all, Merry Christmas. Secondly, I picked a green car today on purpose, of course. Russo & Steele are the muscle car experts in Scottsdale – they really dig up some rare pieces of American brawn-on-wheels every year. And this Yenko Camaro is no exception.

Yenko Chevrolet in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania began selling hotted-up Corvairs in 1965 under the supervision of Don Yenko, the son of the dealership’s founder. When the Camaro came out in 1967, it was a natural fit for what Yenko was doing. Chevrolet’s policy with the Camaro limited engine size to 6.6-liters. Yenko would order Camaros and swap their engine for those out of a 7.0-liter (427) Corvette. This car does not have the original engine, but a period correct 435 horsepower, 7.0-liter V8 out of a Corvette.

By 1969, Chevrolet was more open to engagement in the Pony Car Wars. Using a special order (COPO), the big engines were installed on the assembly line. Yenko added other bits, like putting his name on the fenders. This is an actual 1969 Yenko Camaro – only 201 were built and only 30 with the automatic transmission featured in this car. Painted in Fathom Green, it was subject to a no-expense spared restoration and should probably sell for between $250,000-$300,000. Click here for more info and here to check out more from Russo & Steele.

Update: Did not sell.

Cobra Killer?

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1969 De Tomaso Mangusta

Offered by Auctions America | Auburn, Indiana | June 1-3, 2012

That it is called a “Mangusta” – which is Italian for mongoose, renown killer of cobras – is, perhaps, a bit optimistic. This car was certainly not going to take on the Shelby Cobra in any competitive way, shape or form (apparently Alejandro De Tomaso and Caroll Shelby were friends, so it wasn’t named out of spite. Perhaps just arrogance or a friendly rivalry?). But none of this is to say it isn’t great, because it is.

The common traits of Italian supercars include (but are not limited to): an engine mounted in the middle or rear of the car and some sort of ridiculous styling feature. It must also be hideously expensive. This car marks two and a half of those boxes. The engine, in this case the American-only 5.0-liter Ford V8 making a somewhat sad 220 horsepower, is mounted behind the driver (Europeans got a 306 horsepower 5.7-liter Ford V8). And the over-the-top styling feature? How about twin doors to access the engine that fold upward – gullwing-style.

With regard to expense, the car was very expensive to build – almost prohibitively so. Only 401 were made before it was replaced by the less costly Pantera. Of those 401, only about 250 still exist. This is a 36,000-mile car with power windows, air conditioning and four-wheel disc brakes. These are definitely cool – cooler than a Pantera anyway. And it can be yours for $75,000-$100,000. For the complete lot description click here and for the complete lot list, click here.

Update: Sold $75,900.

Alfa Romeo 33/3

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1969 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/3

Offered by RM Auctions | Monaco | May 12, 2012

Unfortunately, this is the final car we can feature prior to the great sales taking place this weekend in Monaco. There were at least 10 other cars from RM Auctions’ sale alone that I wanted to feature, but just didn’t have the time. Oh, well. There’s always the chance that they’ll come up for sale again.

One reason I chose this car is that I don’t recall ever seeing one for sale and therefore do not expect to see one for sale again anytime soon. Thus, its being feature today. The first car from this sale that we showcased was the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/2 Daytona from 1968. Well, this was the next iteration of the Tipo 33. The 1960s were a very competitive period in sports car racing and cars were not necessarily competitive from year to year. Autodelta (Alfa’s works racing team) realized they needed to step it up for 1969. New, sleeker bodywork was wrapped around the also-new 3.0-liter V8 making 440 horsepower at a screaming 9800 rpm.

The 33/3 had a handful of podium finishes but no wins of note, placing third in the 1969 championship even though it didn’t take part in the 24 Hours of Le Mans after factory driver Lucien Bianchi was killed in a testing crash. Competition history for this car, chassis no. 23, is unknown – as, apparently, no one at Autodelta ever wrote anything down.

It was restored in 2006 – at the same time as “being left as original as possible.” So I guess that means it was restored where needed. Since 2006 it has not been raced and has accrued only test miles. The pre-sale estimate is $950,000-$1,100,000. For the complete catalog description click here. And to see the entire lot list for RM Auctions’ Monaco sale click here. Motorcycle fans should take a look as there is a giant Ducati collection going under the hammer.

Update: sold $1,595,440.

International Travelall

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1969 International Travelall 1000D

Offered by Auctions America | Carlisle, Pennsylvania | April, 26-27, 2012

Produced for 22 years, the International Travelall introduced a few things to America that became really popular about 20-30 years later. It was the first six-passenger four-door truck (the Suburban didn’t get four doors until 1973). The Chevrolet Suburban was the prime competition for the Travelall, which was first introduced in 1953.

The model you see here was the freshened body style available from 1969 until the model’s demise in 1975. It features a 145 horsepower 302cid International V-8 engine and 58,000 original miles. It’s an original California car that looks fantastic.

International Harvester has been around since 1902. Passenger-car (or light truck) production ended in 1980 and the company exists today as Navistar International, a leading maker of heavy trucks that still carry the International name.

While I don’t have the production figures for the Travelall sitting in front of me, I can assure you that they are far less than that of the Suburban – and survival rates are even lower. The estimate on this truck/wagon is $22,000-$28,000. It would definitely be a different way to travel, and must have been in 1969 as well. For those that loathed the faux-wood paneled station wagons of the day, this must have been a breath of fresh air, faux-wood paneling or no.

For the complete catalog description, click here. And to see the rest of Auctions America’s Carlisle lineup, click here.

Update: Did not sell.

Mecum Kansas City Highlights

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The Mecum muscle car show recently traveled through Kansas City, Missouri. The top sale of the auction was this 1969 Shelby GT500 Convertible.

The restoration on this car was completed in 1997, meaning it isn’t Concours-fresh so it can definitely be driven. It sold for $165,000. Other interesting cars include a 1953 Buick Skylark Convertible seen here:

Finished in its original, attractive color, Ridge Green, this fully-optioned, 188 horsepower Skylark sold for $120,000. The other big sale was an awesome, white 1970 Plymouth Superbird with a 440 Six Pack which brought $122,500. More info on the sale and results can be found at Mecum’s website, here.