Chevrolet Camaro 1969 Indianapolis Pace Car
The Chevrolet Camaro and its twin, the Pontiac Firebird, were GMs hasty response to the early success of the Ford Mustang. The two rival products were conceptually the same: take a relatively simple and cheap 'Compact' US model, fit a light, 2-door body type with an emphasis on 'sporty', fit mildly upgraded powertrains from the 'Intermediate' series above, and market them to the well-to-do middleclass 20-somethings.
Ford had hit the nail straight on the head, and it was a recipe that GM was keen to repeat with Camaro.
Things didn't stay sweet and simple for long though. Parallel to the 'Pony Cars' (as the Mustang and Camaro were known), were the 'Muscle Cars', compact, intermediate and full-size. Thus the 200 bhp or so that should have been a fairly sensible ceiling for a pony car, fitted with a moderate V8, soon provided access to 300 bhp, and then 400 bhp. Alas, over time, the spread of middle-age ballooned also the weight, but while these cars were young, in their first iteration, the theme sounded the sweetest, and these are now some of the most collectable of period US automobiles.
Some are sweeter, truer and more collectable than others. The Camaro model shown here more than most. As part of the heavy campaigning for the hearts and minds of America's young, and young at heart, was the beat of performance. A tie-in with the Indianapolis 500, saw 1969 as the year of the Chevrolet Camaro Pace Car. Chevrolet had similarly provided the Pace Car for 1967, upon the release of the Camaro in its first year of production.
White paint. Orange stripes (and interior), and most importantly 375 bhp of 396 ci big block.
You can't eat just one though, and Chevrolet produced a small batch of replicas. The cars looked much the same as the real Pace Car, but were now fitted with the 300 bhp, 350 ci engine. The cars were based on a Camaro SS, though the Z11 (Pace Car package) also had featured Z28 hardware and the RS hidden-light grille.
For an automotive genre that was born, and in many ways defined the the 1960's, the 1969 Pace Car is a testament to how 'right' the formula could be.
The 1970's would be like the sad decline of middle age, more weight, less power, bigger around the middle, and a fading good looks that could not be hidden with too-much make up.
The pony cars would live on, but would have to wait for a second 'golden-age' in the early 2000's, to get their mojo back, to roar the last roar of rear-wheel-drive American V8 power, and to drive their baby-boomer original customer into his or her retirement.
This Lego 1960 Chevrolet Camaro Indianapolis 'Pace Car' has been modelled for Flickr LUGNuts 69th build challenge - 'Summer of '69' - celebrating automotive products from the 1960's.
Chevrolet Camaro 1969 Indianapolis Pace Car
The Chevrolet Camaro and its twin, the Pontiac Firebird, were GMs hasty response to the early success of the Ford Mustang. The two rival products were conceptually the same: take a relatively simple and cheap 'Compact' US model, fit a light, 2-door body type with an emphasis on 'sporty', fit mildly upgraded powertrains from the 'Intermediate' series above, and market them to the well-to-do middleclass 20-somethings.
Ford had hit the nail straight on the head, and it was a recipe that GM was keen to repeat with Camaro.
Things didn't stay sweet and simple for long though. Parallel to the 'Pony Cars' (as the Mustang and Camaro were known), were the 'Muscle Cars', compact, intermediate and full-size. Thus the 200 bhp or so that should have been a fairly sensible ceiling for a pony car, fitted with a moderate V8, soon provided access to 300 bhp, and then 400 bhp. Alas, over time, the spread of middle-age ballooned also the weight, but while these cars were young, in their first iteration, the theme sounded the sweetest, and these are now some of the most collectable of period US automobiles.
Some are sweeter, truer and more collectable than others. The Camaro model shown here more than most. As part of the heavy campaigning for the hearts and minds of America's young, and young at heart, was the beat of performance. A tie-in with the Indianapolis 500, saw 1969 as the year of the Chevrolet Camaro Pace Car. Chevrolet had similarly provided the Pace Car for 1967, upon the release of the Camaro in its first year of production.
White paint. Orange stripes (and interior), and most importantly 375 bhp of 396 ci big block.
You can't eat just one though, and Chevrolet produced a small batch of replicas. The cars looked much the same as the real Pace Car, but were now fitted with the 300 bhp, 350 ci engine. The cars were based on a Camaro SS, though the Z11 (Pace Car package) also had featured Z28 hardware and the RS hidden-light grille.
For an automotive genre that was born, and in many ways defined the the 1960's, the 1969 Pace Car is a testament to how 'right' the formula could be.
The 1970's would be like the sad decline of middle age, more weight, less power, bigger around the middle, and a fading good looks that could not be hidden with too-much make up.
The pony cars would live on, but would have to wait for a second 'golden-age' in the early 2000's, to get their mojo back, to roar the last roar of rear-wheel-drive American V8 power, and to drive their baby-boomer original customer into his or her retirement.
This Lego 1960 Chevrolet Camaro Indianapolis 'Pace Car' has been modelled for Flickr LUGNuts 69th build challenge - 'Summer of '69' - celebrating automotive products from the 1960's.