The Chevrolet Camaro is truly one of the greatest cars ever made. The legendary pony car codenamed Panther was first unveiled on September 26, 1966. The car was built as a direct rival for the Ford Mustang which at the time was highly successful. Almost 50 years after it was first introduced and the Chevrolet Camaro is still one of the most coveted cars in the market.
The golden age of pony cars gave the world some pretty iconic cars and without it, we would not have the Camaro nor the Mustang. When Ford first released the Mustang in 1964 they caught General Motors off guard. GM did not have an affordable sports car to go toe-to-toe with the Mustang so Chevrolet had to scramble to finish the Camaro in order to meet the challenge.
The first Chevrolet Camaro went on sale in 1966 and was available for just $2,466. In its first year, Chevrolet sold 220,000 Camaros. The first-generation Camaros that were built in that era are among some of the greatest American muscle cars to ever come out of the United States. The 1968 Z/28 was part of that legendary first-generation, a Camaro born to run. The 1968 Camaro Z/28 is one of the rarest Camaros ever built, it is truly a special American Muscle car.
The Only 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 Convertible
The 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 is the rarest Camaro ever built, only one was ever made and without it, we would not have the '68 Chevy Camaro Z/28.
The 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 was meant to be a track-only car but Vince Piggins wanted more for Camaro, he wanted to sell the Z/28 to the public. His biggest problem? Convincing Chevrolet General Manager Pete Estes, but Pete Estes only drove convertibles. So they built a convertible version of the 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 just for Pete, The Chevy General Manager loved it so much that he drove it every day.
Pete Estes approved the 1968 Chevy Camaro Z/28 for mass production and the rest, as they say, is history.
The 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 Engine
The 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 was built for the drag strip. The car has a rich heritage on the drag racing scene as well as a collection of pink slips a mile-long. The '68 Camaro owes some of its success at the quarter-mile to its powerful engine.
The '68 Chevy Camaro Z/28 was powered by a 302 cubic inch V8 engine that could produce 400 horsepower. The car was advertised as being able to produce only 290 horsepower but that figure was found to be drastically understated.
The Camaro could go from 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds and could complete a quarter-mile in 14.8 seconds, although Old Reliable was able to do it in just under 11 seconds. The 1968 Chevy Camaro Z/28 also had a top speed of 135 mph.
1968 Chevy Camaro Z28's racing heritage
The 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28's drag racing heritage was built on the Super Stock NHRA race track. In the sixties, Super Stock NHRA racing was the pinnacle of motorsports.
In the 1960s The 1968 Chevy Camaro Z/28 was one of the most dominant cars on the Super Stock drag racing scene. Dave Stickler was at the helm of the Camaro and the car was affectionately named "Old Reliable".
Old Reliable
Old Reliable was the most famous Camaro is racing history. The car was featured in many automotive magazines in the sixties. Old Reliable is the reason why many petrolheads became fans of the Camaro.
Exterior
Old reliable was not just famous because she was first, she was also beautiful. The former scrap car was fully restored. The team to cook extra care in ensuring that the '68 Camaro Z/28 looked good as new. Old Reliable still had the original 2 coat bronze paint, the factory hidden headlight system ana set of 9-inch slicks on the back. Old reliable's racing stripes were stuck on and not embedded in its clear coat like the other Camaros.
Engine
Old Reliable was equipped with the same 302 cubic-inch V8 engine that you found on a standard '68 Camaro Z28 with only a few slight modifications. Old Reliable was able to consistently clock quarter-mile times of under 12 seconds.
Suspension
Dave Stickler didn't dramatically modify Old Reliable. The car had the same standard suspension that came with the Z/28, with only the addition of traction bars on the rear suspension to keep wheel hop under control.
Old Reliable was sold for $253,000 at auction in 2014. Almost 50 years after Dave Stickler tormented his opponents on the quarter-mile and the 1968 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 is still one of the most beloved cars in the automotive industry.