1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 - $1.4m

COPO 9560 aluminum 427 CI V-8, car no. 2 of 69 ZL1 produced for 1969. 1 of 2 Camaro ZL1s delivered to Fred Gibb Chevrolet in LaHarpe, Illinois, on New Year's Eve in 1968. The copy of the shipping invoice states "Ship 1230 Estes Red Hot Pilot 427 Engine 9560BA".

The car was sent to Dick Harrell's Performance Center in Kansas City, Missouri, with the no. 1 car prepped for the Winternationals in Phoenix, Arizona. At the Winternationals, the brand new Camaro ZL1 made an impressive debut, defeating, among others, the Sox and Martin Hemi Barracuda and launching the ZL1 into the public eye. The no. 2 car is purportedly the first Camaro ZL1 sold to the public, as the no. 1 car was initially kept by Gibb and campaigned in AHRA Super Stock. Copies of the chassis and body broadcast sheets. Copies of the shipping and sales invoices. Restored by Corvette Specialists of Beaumont, Texas. Correct replacement Winters ZL1 aluminum 427 CI V-8 engine.

Factory-rated at 430 HP, the ZL1 powerplant well exceeded 500 hp and debuted as the most powerful engine Chevrolet ever offered to the public. Derived from Can-Am racing and known internally as COPO 9560, the engine featured all-aluminum block and heads, which kept the weight down to about 500 lbs. The racing engine wasn't cheap.

The ZL1 engine option cost $4,160.15 on top of the base car price, and required over $500 in mandated options. This brought the total cost of a 1969 ZL1 Camaro to over $7,200, which was more than double the price of a standard V8 Camaro. Muscle car royalty, this example made $1.4m at Mecum.

See ----->1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 - $825k

1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 - $825k

Behold the mighty 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, appearing at Mecum Kissimmee in 2021. The 1969 Camaro with the uber rare, all-aluminum, 427-cubic-inch ZL-1 big-block was designed for racing. Chevrolet rated the ZL1 at 430 hp @ 5200 rpm and 450 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm. Dyno tests of factory ZL1s revealed their output was more in the 550hp range. 69 ZL-1 Camaros were built.

First. Most powerful. Quickest. One Chevy combines them all: the 1969 Chevrolet ZL1 Camaro. It went a step beyond the 427 Yenko and even the mighty L88 Corvette. A batch of '69 Camaros came with a version of the 427-cid V-8 used by the all-conquering Can-Am Chaparral. This was another very special Central Office Production Order. COPO 9560. These are the rarest of all 1969 Camaros.

The 427 was called the ZL1. It was similar to the most-potent iteration of the aluminum-head L88, but it was the first production Chevy engine to also have an aluminum block. It had a 430-bhp factory rating, but was well over 500 bhp. All this came at a price: $4,160 for the ZL1 engine alone, pushing the car's sticker to a ridiculous $7,200.

Two 1969 ZL1 Camaros were offered as a matched pair in 2018. Numbers 18 and 30 of the 69 Chevy built. The pair made $1.2m.

This 1969 ZL-1 sold for $1,094,500 at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale in 2020. In 2017 the car changed hands for $770k.

The only Camaro to sell at auction for seven figures has it's original engine. The ZL-1 featured rectangular-port, open-chamber aluminum heads, and a forged crank, connecting rods, and pistons. It featured a solid-lifter camshaft.

1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

First. Most powerful. Quickest. One Chevy combines them all: the 1969 Chevrolet ZL1 Camaro. It went a step beyond the 427 Yenko and even the mighty L88 Corvette. A batch of '69 Camaros came with a version of the 427-cid V-8 used by the all-conquering Can-Am Chaparral. This was another very special Central Office Production Order. COPO 9560. These are the rarest of all 1969 Camaros.

The 427 was called the ZL1. It was similar to the most-potent iteration of the aluminum-head L88, but it was the first production Chevy engine to also have an aluminum block. It had a 430-bhp factory rating, but was well over 500 bhp. All this came at a price: $4,160 for the ZL1 engine alone, pushing the car's sticker to a ridiculous $7,200.

Two 1969 ZL1 Camaros were offered as a matched pair in 2018. Numbers 18 and 30 of the 69 Chevy built. The pair made $1.2m.

This 1969 ZL-1 sold for $1,094,500, in January at Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale sale.  Its the only Camaro to sell at auction for seven figures. The ZL-1 engine featured rectangular-port, open-chamber aluminum heads, and a forged crank, connecting rods, and pistons. The 427-cubic-inch ZL-1 big-block V-8 used a solid-lifter camshaft.