General Motors’ Central Office Production Order system was the perfect tool to abuse in the late 1960s. Essentially it was a fleet ordering program that allowed dealerships to plug in special requests for the cars they wanted…if, say, you wanted to get five Impala convertibles with air-conditioning, the top-level sound system and Rally wheels as a showroom draw, all you had to do as a dealer was to plug in an order form and there you go, five expensive Impalas. Naturally, once certain dealers (Dana, Nickey, Baldwin-Motion and most memorable, Yenko) figured out that the engine options list was broader through COPO than it was normally, the fun cars started to appear. The production figures for COPO cars are small, but the cars themselves begged belief.
While most people associate COPO and Yenko with hot first-generation Camaros, Don Yenko pushed several models through his dealership, including Novas, Vegas, Corvairs, and ninety-nine 1969 Chevelles. The COPO Chevelles were monsters: the L72 427ci big-block backed by either a TH400 automatic or a Muncie four-gear manual went under the hood, a 12-bolt rear axle packing 4.10s got shoved underneath, and the grille and tail pan got the Super Sport blackout treatment. After that, it was standard Chevelle fair: a bow-tie emblem on the grille, Malibu interior, and either the bow-tie or Super Sport steering wheel. The NC8 chambered exhaust could be optioned on, as well.
If it wasn’t for the Ansen mags and Yenko details, this Butternut Yellow Chevelle looks passable as a clean Malibu. But the “427” badge just before the front marker light tells anyone the whole story: there is a lump under the hood that is rated at a poker-faced 450 horsepower and is good for a factory-stock low-13 that would push over 105 miles an hour in the quarter. This Chevy is a four-speed example, and is going up for auction at Mecum’s Kissimmee 2017 auction as one of the many main attractions, along with the likes of an unrestored Hemi Superbird and Buick GNX #547 (the last production car.) To be fair, we could walk into this auction multi-millionaires and walk out broke with loaded trucks’ worth of cars, but this Yenko speaks to us…mainly, because not only are you getting the car itself, but you’re getting a spare aluminum-headed 427 that was prepared by first and long-time owner Nick Morocco built for the car. A former race car put back on the street, no less tame than when it was on the track…yeah, we dig it.
Auction Link: 1969 Chevrolet-Yenko Chevelle 427
I have no money, but I would trade vital organs and body to parts to spend just 1 year with this car.
No thank you.
If I had that kind of dough, I’d do something a little more meaningful with it. Like sheltering homeless veterans, or hiring a plane with a banner to fly over Hillary’s house repeatedly to remind her she lost the election because she is the cornerstone of government corruption, not because she’s a woman.
This is about cars, not your political bullshit , so if you don’t have a car comment to make , keep it to yourself.
Oh this is the way to end the week, Lotto Max draw tonight and the perfect car to spend the wad on.
Oh yum……….
Geord, it’s a Chevy…hint, hint. Don’t start being noble now.
Interesting to see what it sells for the high point of the market was the mid to late 90’s.
How things worked: Yenko had a Dealer Network. The Buyer would go Order the car. Yenko got all the 1969’s with the L-72s in them from Chevrolet. So he would go grab a unit from his storage lot. Do the Mods as ordered by the Customer, stripe the body add the decals, then ship it from his Shop in PA to the dealer.
Most of the Buyers Bought these to Race them. Finding one that was never raced and left 100% stock is like a hens tooth in a bucket of needles in a haystack.. in a barn full of hey.
Yet I might wonder if the speed-0-meter drive cable was not left unhooked.
Assuming 1/4 mile and 1/4 mile return road it’s only showing 150 passes. Even in-tow on the return road the odometer turns.
The effects of Sinus meds with my back pain meds. Divided mileage by 4 instead of multiplying. 2400….would be the number of 1/4 mile trips given a 1/4 mile return.