Turn and face the strange ch-ch-changes,
Oooh look out, you Rock and Rollers...
-Bowie
HISTORY
My '69 Camaro X11 Convertible was built in September of 1969 at the Norwood Assembly Plant and was then shipped to Lattof Chevrolet in Arlington Heights, IL. On November 6, 1969 it was purchased by Otto Ernst who drove it for a number of years and subsequently sold it to Josephine Petralia. In the fall of 1982, I purchased it from Josephine for \$500, fortunately, the Protect-O-Plate was still with the car, although no build sheet could be found. It was what is classically known as a "beater", the fenders were dented and rusted through in numerous places, the convertible top was mostly duct tape and the rear window was a clear plastic shower curtain duct taped in place. Maintainence mainly consisted of periodically replacing the duct tape. I drove it as my daily driver until the fall of 1983 when I parked it in the garage and the Camaro sat waiting patiently for the day that would begin its resurrection.
PHASE I
We transported it with us from Illinois to Connecticut and in 1992 I rebuilt the venerable 307 incorporating a mild cam, 2.02 heads, and a QuadraJunk four barrel carb. The body was still shot, but at least the engine was now fresh. Work on the Camaro came to a standstill while we relocated yet again, this time to the Cincinnati area.
PHASE II
Once relocated and settled in, I began the restification in earnest. All front sheet metal was removed, the front suspension was disassembled, all pieces to be re-used were sandblasted and painted, and all parts to be replaced were (All bushings, ball joints, tierod ends, link bar, springs, etc.) Then on to new body mount bushings and finally new rear springs. At this point, I had done all that I could for the car. It was in severe need of massive amounts of body work that I had neither the facilities, tools, time, or inclination to attempt. I knew what I wanted the Camaro to look like, and I also knew that if I did it, it wouldn't look that way! Time to call in the Professionals!
PHASE III
In September of 1995, the Camaro went to Terry Thomas Custom Auto-body where it received new floor pans, a new trunk pan, NOS rear quarters, NOS front fenders, and a new tail pan. The hood, trunk lid, and doors went for an acid dip and came back looking like new. The work went slowly, but the reults were spectacular. During the one and a half years that it was in the body shop, I set to work getting the interior pieces ready for the day they would be re-installed. All rubber pieces were replaced, all plastic pieces were reconditioned, the seats were carefully cleaned (the upholstery is all original). New Astro Ventilation vents were purchased and the front kick panels were replaced (the originals having fallen victim to stereo speaker butchery at some point in their existence).
PHASE IV
In April of 1997, the Camaro came home sporting its original Daytona Yellow color (as shown on the Body Tag) with newly added DX-1 stripes in black and a rear spoiler. It had no interior or any emblems, bumpers, chrome accent pieces, etc. Time for final reassembly! I wanted to show at one of the first Cincy area shows of the season in Sharonville, but only had 5 days to get it together. Midnight oil was burning in the garage, late nights and early mornings had me putting the finishing touches on the day before the show. When I went to bed that Saturday night, all was ready for the show on Sunday.
I awoke Sunday morning to the sound of rain. It rained all day. The debut of the Yellow Camaro would have to wait. The following weekend was beautiful and the Camaro entered its first show, and won its first trophy.
EPILOG
After nine years of cruise-ins and car shows, The Camaro has quite a collection of trophies and awards. Refinements and modifications have taken place (Edelbrock four barrel carb and manifold, Chevy aluminum valve covers, B&M dual snorkel aluminum air cleaner, restored AM/FM 8 Track Stereo, Power disc brakes, 3.55 Eaton Posi, console gauges, Tachometer etc.). All in all restoring the Camaro and associating with others in the hobby has been a most enjoyable endeavor.
Check out the before and after pictures.
