"Grumpy's Toy IV"

I built this dedication to Da Grump a few years back and rickyracer1962 heard about it and asked me to post some pics of it. I bought a 68 RS Camaro at Pomona Swap Meet some years ago and told a buddy of mine i was gonna paint it white and put Cragars on it kinda like Bill Jenkins 68 #IV car. He said, why don't you go all out and letter it too. Well, $25K later................. It was in a shitload of magazines, ESPN interviewed me at the first Super Chevy show at Pomona Drag Strip that aired a couple times, Childs & Albert used it in a connecting rod Ad for over a year, and Southside Machine put it in their traction bar catologue. Plus a crowd 10 deep in the staging lanes every time i raced it. My 15 minutes of fame. It ran 10.60's at 130MPH(!!!), through the muffs, on M&H street tires, w/full interior, and WORKING hideaway headlights (2-bolt main, single 850 Holley, iron headed 454). I wasn't shooting for an exact clone, just close.

 

Very damn cool! What magazine are the photos from? They look very familar, I might have that issue.

Sean

Doh! I just saw the Car Craft plate on the rear, what month & year?

 

Oct 95

 

I told you white was a good color for ya. hahaa

 

I really don’t really want to kill this thread but I have several pix that I think if you’re a real drag fan, you’ll like these.

Below are some pix of a real survivor. This is a ’69 that was bought by William Jenkins, (according to the title) in ’69 with the factory 427/4 speed. It had all the deletes, i.e. radio, heater and so on. These pix were taken at a friend of my brother’s in Solon, IA This friend is a Camaro restorer and was contracted to restore the under carriage to the ’69 specs, like it would have been back in the day. The car had less than 4000 miles on it and you can imagine that it was all at a ¼ mile at a time. The current owner is from NE Iowa and was planning on showcasing the car in a museum and maybe doing some exhibition racing with it. When these pix were taken, it was still a matching numbers car even though you can clearly see that some changes in the engine compartment have been made. Can you imagine the value of this thing? The owner even had the COPO sales paperwork with Jenkin’s name and signature on it.





Vance

 

Very, very cool.

In my other life I love musclecars - and own one too. Too bad its not a COPO!

 

Cool. I touched the real IV. Still have the finger, too.

 

I met Da Grump at the York US 30 Dragway reunion a couple of years ago. Same old Grump, just seems shorter and balder now. Still has his hand in the racing game. I thought it was funny as some guys actually brought that old (Hot Rod magazine?) "Grump on a bearskin" centerfold for him to sign. I don't know if I could have that thing hanging in my garage!!

 

thats so bad ass.

 

there was an article in 69 showing how grumpy turned his 68 camaro into a 69 too save money.....so maybe the 69 is a clone

 

good to see a muscle thread. I've been building a 67 Chevelle SS L-88 head/ 4-speed complete with vintage Motion Performance parts. I'm copying the 67 427 that was built at Baldwin Motion for Charlie Mason that ran at New York National Speedway in late 67-68 in B/HR.

 

Is there a dealership listed on the title where the car was sold?? It doesn't appear the car has the "fish gill" type louvers in the quarter panel directly in front of the rear wheels. Does it?

 

Troublemaker427, If you look REAL close, you can see where the quarters were stamped with the louvers, it's just that the chrome pieces were not on the car when these pix were taken.

And as far as this one being a clone, don't think so. The title said 1969 and did have a dealer name on it. I don't know what dealer though. These pix were taken almost two years ago.

Vance

 

I never said it was a clone. I'm looking for Jenkins clues....The dealers name will help.

 

TM427, a guy above you suggested it might be a clone.

My brother took these pix in Iowa a couple years ago and his memory regarding the details of things like dealer names on the title have faded. This car was campained thur the '69 and halfway into the '70 season. We don't know any more about the history. Sorry.

Vance

 

No problem!! Thanks for the information...

 

Groucho, the RS is spot on. I've wondered why a nostalgia pro stock class has never caught on, since the nostalgia SS guys don't allow Camaros. 69-70 model cars, must run a stick, no clutchless trans. Grump lump style scoop, 12 " tire. No tube chassis, just like the first year or so of pro stock.

 

I don't think so. His 68 Camaro Super Stock car survived past the 69 Camaro and 69 Nova he raced. And in 70 when Pro Stock was formed, he modified his 68 Camaro to run Pro Stock instead of the 69 Nova and Camaro. He also ran a 70 Camaro, but i think by the time the 70 body style came out, he was already killin em with the 68 Super Stock Camaro turned Pro Stock. I think the 70 had some succes in some 1/8 mile racing. I researched some of this stuff when i built my clone 11 or so years agao, so i forgot more than i remembered probably. I talked (nervously) to Jenkins several times on the phone back then. ME, talking to the guy i'd looked up to for almost 30 years by then. He sounded EXACTLY how i imagined he would. Cool dude. I'll never forget it.

 

I actually raced the original car in time trials at Cecil County in early 68. Grump was in SS/C and I was in my brand new 327 Camaro. As I recall, we were dead even till the light turned green.

 

Groucho, That car looks awesome! thanks for sharing the pics. you did a very nice job on the car.

 

IHRA does have a class very similar. Big block mid size and musclecars. They run low 10s high mid 9s, big wheelstands, very kool class. The cars are un-tubbed, all real glass vs lexan, full interiors, very close to the real deal. I need to look it up. I'll edit it in when I find it.

__________________________

Ok, the class is Top Stock. There's a page about it on ihra's website. Groucho...what the fuck, over!! That's awesome. I have seen it before but obviously didn't know who's it was. Well shit, I still don't really! Grumpy is a drag racing icon of little to no equal. I have his old small block race engine book and used some of his theory on my Merlin heads in my BBC bracket racer. He's a sharp and savvy racer and you've no doubt honored the man with the car. Raisin pie man!!

 

Man you did an awesome job on that. My mom has a poloroid of me standing next to the real one in West Virginia..I was 2.

Pretty cool, thanks

 

Thanks everyone for the good words.

 

Interesting, surely the same car....

http://www.russoandsteele.com/collector_car/1969_chevrolet_camaro_copo_l72/6862.html

 

GT VI - The 69 car ran SS/C at the 69 Nats.

L72s ran SS/EA....so what do you think Grumps 69 car had as an engine?

Look at the hood - it was a COPO ZL1 car - the mph alone puts its way ahead of the L72 and 396/375hp car. (10.72 @ 129.12 ZL1 - B Jenkins 69 US Nats. vs 11.50 @ 123.80 L72 SS/EA - A Olster 69 Indy Nats)

I WILL accept it MIGHT have been an L88....,but not aware of any L88 Camaros.

GTIV - is much more of a problem - one story says 67 Z28 converted to L72 68, converted to Can Am block for Pro Stock.

The other story says 396/375hp car from 68 - converted to ‘a big block’ then sold to Brooklyn Heavy in the 70s then lost to history.

Either way...DO NOT confuse the 68 cars complicated history with the 69s straightforward pedigree.

 

I used to love when they would all come out to PID Pittsburgh International Dragway and race. They all used to jag around with each other having a good time. Things weren't so serious back then..

 

Not allowed to talk about Camaros in the HAMB

 

Not so HAMB friendly thread, but a great car! To bad about the pics. I would think any of the Grump cars came from this place :