A History of the Chevrolet Camaro

Way back in 1964 the Ford motor company released a car known as the Mustang. The Mustang was released to to battle with the Chevrolet Corvette, but the Ford motor company quickly discovered that the Mustang was not in the same class as the Chevrolet Corvette.

In 1967 Chevrolet introduced the Camaro. This car was in the same class as the Mustang and to this very day the battle between these two cars rages on. I will stick to the first generation of the Chevrolet Camaro for this article.

The 1967 Camaro was available with a wide variety of options. From the numerous engine options, to flashy paint, and interior options. This car was destined to become one of the mainstays of the Chevrolet motor company. Yes the Camaro made quite a reputation for itself.

When it was first released in 1967 sales of this car exploded. The Camaro created life long fans; fans who still love it to this day. Over the years I have done a lot of studying on the Camaro; because I am one of the life long fans of this great car.

The Camaro was offered in two body styles: the style first was a coupe, and the second a convertible. Both of these body styles were loved by the fans of the Camaro. The base Camaro came with a 3.8 liter straight back six. Most defiantly not the cream of the Camaro crop.

This engine was rated at 140 HP, and backed by a saginaw three speed transmission. There was also a Muncy 4 speed transmission available for this car, and a two speed Powerglide automatic transmission.

The two speed Powerglide was a popular option; until the turbo-hydromatic 350 transmission was released in 1969. There were four other engine options for the Camaro. They were the 307 CID small block Chevrolet, the 327 CID small block, the 350 CID small block, and the 396 big block for the SS model.

There were of course other engine options available; such as the 302 for the Z/28 Camaro. The special Camaros like the Yenko Camaro, the ZL1 Camaro, and the Baldwin-Motion Camaro. These were not your average Camaros though; they were high dollar, and very high performance cars.

These cars were modified by the dealerships, and ordered from the factory with special engines options. The Zl1 Camaro had an all aluminum 427 big block, that weighed the same as a small block engine. I guess you can imagine the advantage it had.

The Yenko Camaro, and the Baldwin-Motion Camaro both has a cast iron 427 CID engine, that was rated at 425 HP. If you know anything about the old days; these engines were way under rated in horsepower for insurance reasons.

By the time the 1969 Camaro hit the market; there were so many options available, that it became one of the most popular muscle cars ever built. The Camaro has had a long, and wonderful life as a muscle car. I truly hope that the new Camaro can keep the tradition alive.

Sources: Edmunds