Big-Block Barn Find: 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS/RS
We all dream of that moment when we open the door of a shed or barn to locate automotive gold. For some people, that never happens. For the owner of this 1967 Chevrolet Camaro SS/RS, they struck paydirt. They were confronted with a solid classic with a fire-breathing big-block under the hood. They have worked through reviving this classic, and the transformation is remarkable. The time has come for it to head to a new home and to another owner who will appreciate everything this car offers. If you feel that you could be that person, you will find the Camaro located in Islip, New York, and listed for sale here on Facebook. The owner has set the sale price at $35,000.
The Camaro looks a bit different now, doesn’t it? The vehicle had been hidden away for forty years when the seller stumbled upon it. When he dragged it out of hiding, he washed the SS and assessed its overall condition. He applied a clearcoat to the top, but the remaining panels were wet sanded, and polished. The result is that its Deepwater Blue paint shines beautifully. He emphasizes that it isn’t perfect, but it does present well for a survivor. The panels look remarkably straight, while there appear to be no issues with rust. The external trim, including the distinctive RS grill, is in good condition, with no significant flaws or defects. The glass is in excellent order, and the aftermarket wheels that the owner has fitted suit the character of this classic perfectly. Even though this car isn’t pristine, this SS would still turn heads wherever it goes.
The story behind this Camaro’s drivetrain is as interesting as the rest of the vehicle. It seems that it rolled off the line with a 396ci big-block V8, but the numbers-matching engine is now gone. The previous owner had a 1969 Chevelle, and following an accident, its drivetrain found its way into this SS. The “JD” engine suffix code indicates that it is a genuine L78 version of the 396 that should be churning out 375hp. With a four-speed Muncie M22 transmission and a Posi rear end, this Camaro should storm the ¼ mile in 14.1 seconds. The owner left no stone unturned in his bid to return this Camaro to a roadworthy state. He says that he has spent thousands of dollars on it, and it is now in sound mechanical health. He says it runs and drives well and is fun to drive. With all of that power available under the right foot, I find that easy to believe. It may not be numbers-matching, but it promises plenty of entertainment for its new owner.
The interior of this Camaro continues the car’s theme of being tidy but not perfect. The upholstered surfaces look pretty decent, with no glaring signs of wear or physical damage. We can’t see the state of items like the headliner, but it would take little to have this interior presenting nicely. If the buyer spent $200 on a carpet set and $240 on a replacement dash pad, that would enormously transform the inside of this car. Items like the factory radio remain intact, but the owner has installed several aftermarket gauges to monitor the health of that monster under the hood. The buyer may choose to remove these, but I see them as a sensible addition in a case like this. I would rather find myself warned in advance of any problems than find out that the engine was suffering from some catastrophic failure when it was all too late.
There will be purists who will decry the changes that have been made to this 1967 Camaro SS/RS, but it is a reality that these cannot be undone. The changes have occurred over decades, and the original parts will have disappeared. However, the modifications are in keeping with the period, and this Camaro promises an entertaining driving experience. It has only been on the market for a few days, and I suspect that a buyer will turn up pretty quickly. I hope that it will be one of our Barn Finds readers because I would love to know whether this car drives as well as its specifications suggest. Do we have any potential takers on that one?
Auctions Ending Soon
1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1Bid Now6 hours$7,100
2003 Porsche Boxster SBid Now7 hours$6,250
1966 Lincoln ContinentalBid Now9 hours$500
2000 Jaguar XJ8LBid Now4 days$1,250
1977 Datsun 280ZBid Now5 days$275
Comments
I’m a first gen Firebird guy but a first gen Camaro with the SS and especially the RS package is really easy on the eyes. There is always going to be a market for the matching numbers as close to original crowd. But there is also a strong following for make it yours, make it nice, and make it something you want to drive. I fall in the latter. Nice car to enjoy as is on the strip or modify to your hearts content. Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet! God bless our country!
Football, lobster, blueberry pie & Ford!
Purists can cry all day, but when I was in high school 50 years ago, 90 percent of hot cars looked like this. How soon people forget the cars then got Cragar SS wheels, traction bars, air shocks and L60 15 tires. Oh yeah, headers and Cherry Bombs like on my 70 Road Runner with Air Grabber for which I paid $1,200 from the orig owner. Today, that hood is worth more than what I paid for the car. This seller did a great job wet sanding that paint. Very fair asking price and 1,000 times better looking than that butt ugly thing they call Camaro today.
Wow. Nice car at a fair price.
Not an expert on these but looking at this a little closer I think this is an SS350, trim tag says 4P, which should mean born with a 350. A 396 would be 4N. And that radiator looks suspiciously small for a factory BB…
Seems early build L78’s were also coded 4P…confusing
The 350 was a better handling package. Plus, I have never understood the lure of those crazy shift knobs when a nice little ball knob fits in your hand so well.
these work really well on a super fast 2 to3 shift. No better than a round knob a”round” town but on the strip or in a speed shift the t handle is better to most.
My mom had a’67 Chevelle in Deepwater Blue”, and I have been drawn to this color ever since. Nice looking driver!
Given what 80s Porsches sell for, this is a great deal imo. This car is as fast as any sub-$150K Ferrari out there. A Magnum 308 costs twice as much as this and it’s no better performance. Great color.
Yep, and if the 14.1 second quarter mile time is accurate, it’s exactly as fast as my stock 2018 2 liter Honda Accord–but it probably doesn’t get 40+ mpg like the Accord does. I almost bought a ’67 SS396 Camaro in 1970–for $700.
Probably the only reason the ET is only 14.1 is because unless you have slicks on it, it will not hook up at all in 1st and 2nd! With 500 plus lbs of torque those cars were serious tire roasters even with huge rear tires.
Not sure what your point is. Performance numbers generated 50+ years ago on a stock vehicle has little it nothing to do with how a modified version will perform. Neither does a comparison of a late model production car, it’s almost always been the case that newer cars will outperform in nearly every metric cars that are several decades old, bringing that up serves no purpose but to make the person pointing it out seem out of touch.
Steve R
Obviously your Honda is a better car in almost every way, but people buy these cars for their own reasons, not yours.
Yet another reply to the Accord vs Camaro, I think it just highlights why many of us enjoy BarnFinds, we’re looking for cars that inspire us, that make our soul feel good. If such a car can be practical as well then that’s a score!
One better, in ’76 I should have bought my cuz ’69 Z-28 w/ 302DZ/M-22 for $900. But pops pointed out it had a quarter size ding in front fender forward of wheel well & of course, the CT cracked windshield. Dark green w/ white stripes. Ex cond no less.
It looks like me comment was interpreted as a criticism of the Camaro, or the implication that a contemporary Honda is a better car. I was just adding another angle on the Ferrari comparison; all three cars have totally different personalities, and obviously modern technology has given us cars that would have been considered “high performance” in the ’60s. I drove many of those cars back then, and never would have dreamed when the “smog control era” arrived that we would have cars with the engine management systems and resultant performance levels we have today. The Honda has a 10-speed transmission that, combined with the flat torque curve of the turbo four, results in phenomenal “real-world” available power from idle all the way to the 103 mph quarter-mile trap speed. As a 40+-year Honda mechanic and racer told me when he recommended that I take one for a test drive, “feels like a V-8!” Even with today’s tires, the front-wheel drive Honda has similar traction limitations to the Camaro; traction is nowhere to be found until third gear. I never encountered a streetable Chevy 396 that came anywhere near 500 ft-lb of torque. I wasn’t implying that anyone should prefer a Honda over a Camaro, and yes, I have various cars for various reasons. My ’65 Barracuda is totally illogical from a cost/performance perspective, with a 700 hp aluminum 433 c.i. 3rd gen hemi, Hilborn injection, dry sump system, Tremec 6-speed with PPG sequential shift conversion, full frame with Detroit Speed front suspension, independent rear suspension, active shock control, etc. It will eat Ferraris on a road course, but costs more than most of them. Replying to Al, I feel your pain; I should have bought my buddy’s ’68 Z/28 with the factory cross-ram package when he sold it for $2,000 in ’78. The intake manifold alone is going for $25k these days.
This is why you can’t compare this car to a Honda Accord
https://youtu.be/W3Mib2pMzaM?t=190
Mono leaf springs and non power drum brakes. Is that how a big block car would be equipped? Asking because I have no idea.
My point for Steve R. is simple. With tires from the day, and all that power, the Camaro would sit and spin for a while, and of course the Honda would not Duh! With proper tires… no contest. As far as the mono leaf springs and non- power drum brake on a SS big block, it should have multi leaf and front power disc I believe from factory. I know all the later z28s and other high po factory cars did.
Not in 1967, multi leafs weren’t available until 1968, drum brakes were standard on all but the Z28.
Steve R
I hope we can all agree that this was, is and always will be a bitchen’ car.
Could this be a missing Black Widow?
Straight line acceleration isn’t the only measure of “performance” … any Ferarri will beat the lap time of this Camaro on a twisty track.
I would be all over that three window
67 mono leaf
If it were a numbers matching i could understand 35,000.00 but more like 28,000.00 without.
True facts on the 1967 SS Camaro — If a 396 was ordered it was either a 4K code (4th group – K= 396 /375 horse ) if it was 4N code (4th group – N =369/325 horse ) If it was 4E code (4th group – E =396/350 horse ) If a 350 was ordered it would be 4P ( 4th group – P =350/295 horse ) These are Camaro facts . Correct period year or wrong non-correct motor will always lose 1/3 to half it’s value compared to a Numbers matching Camaro, plus you must factor in other options to get more money . Deluxe interior , A/C , 4 Speed , PS,PDB, (pdb- standard on SS&Z/28 ) 12 bolt with great ratio , Console , Gauges , Tach ,PW , RS option , all these options make it worth more . 1967 cowl/trim tags are easy to tell the truth what the car left the factory with . All 1967 Camaro’s were single leaf springs until 1968 5 leaf added , also side vent windows were gone , ignition switch on dash , rs lights now vacuum ran ( 67 only year electric ) some other changes also you can find in 1967-1969 Camaro’s Books .
Early ’67 396’s were also coded under 4P. As for the price, #’s matching in this condition should be around $75k. So $35k is more than half off. Definitely a better deal than buying a rusty shell for $10k. It’s not like you have a generic 350 truck engine in it, you have the 396. You can add a console, gauges, Rallyes easily and it will look a lot like a $50k car.
My sister had one of these, I think a ’69. I was white with two black bands running from the hood back to the trunk. I had a ’69 Eldorado at the time. It was white and I had two black bands running from hood to trunk. It had the hidden headlights like her SS/RS. She bought it before getting married. Once married, her hubby made her sell it. She sold it to the neighbor’s son who lived across the street from where she lived for $200. He parked it on the side of his house to turn into a pile of rust while she watched from her front porch .:( She loved that car and vows to buy another one day. She warns her husband that she will sell him this time before she sells another car that she owns.
What A LOT of people seem to be missing is that at the beginning of the article he states that his friend wrecked his 69 Chevelle and they took the motor out of it and put it in this Camaro so no this is not original, Just A LOT OF FUN and yes the 3 window would be AWSOME.