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Futureliners are huge
Barrett-Jackson
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I agree. My problem is that I used run with a couple guys that had CJ Machs. I was still a Chevy big block guy but I did love those CJ Machs. Whatever I come up with it will be a big block. Would love to have one of my Funny car engihes back. The 427 with steel rods would turn 9600 rpm and the one with aluminum rods would go 10500rpm. They were wicked in a street car.
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You would have loved my 68 Camaro if youre a Chevy BB guy..It was one of those Nickey Camaros...427..425 HP...488 gear..That baby could haul ass for a street car
Monster
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My Dads cousin Connie got a lot of shit in 1969 for paying over 6 grand for his car. My Dad still talks about the jokes they made for over spending... the old man says Connie laughs about it now and still has the car... in storage of course and under 50K miles... still has the original sticker in the glove box. 69 427 (435 HP Option Heads) Yenko Camero.... got a call once from a spokes person for Jay Leno that wanted to know if it had factory air which it doesn't... guess that would have made it even more rare. I've never seen it as it's in some special storage place I'm told... Connie is like 70 now... Dad always said he would never sell it... Don't know the value but imagine single owner with the performance upgrades it must be worth a bit... more than the 6K or so he paid for it... Orange and black if I remember right
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Yenko's can go for as high at 300-400K if in the right shape..1 owner is awesome and adds to the value...Meacham sold a Nickey for 250K a while back.
Back then no one bought a hot rod with air. Mine didnt even have power steering or power windows etc..It was bare bones triple black Cost me $4600.00
Yenko was west coast...Nickey was midwest, and Baldwin Motion was east coast
Those were the big 3 of those types of cars
Back then no one bought a hot rod with air. Mine didnt even have power steering or power windows etc..It was bare bones triple black Cost me $4600.00
Yenko was west coast...Nickey was midwest, and Baldwin Motion was east coast
Those were the big 3 of those types of cars
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BestBearsFan
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All of these cars were built by Dick Harrell for those dealers I believe. I know the Nicky and Yenko cars were. Yenko Chevrolet was in PA and of course Nicky in Chicago. Harrell built 427 COPO Nova's for Fred Gibbs Chevrolet in Laharpe IL as well. I have a friend who is restoring a Gibbs Nova now. Former race car which had wheel tubs and full cage so a major resto.
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Shows what I know..I always thought Yenko was in Cali..hahaha
Anyway..I have a friend that was a mechanic at Nickey in the late 60's..He says that a few of the better Nickey mechanics were building those cars..Maybe Harrell over saw the operation?..I cant say yes or no. The COPO cars were factory built, werent thery?
I can say this...That car scared me..It was just amazing
All I wanted was a street car that was faster than most of the 396 cars that were being driven by most guys..I wound up with a monster
I had just got home from Vietnam and was on leave..I had like 7 months yet to serve at FT Jackson. I went to Nickey cause I had heard about those cars...I still remember the salesmans name..He was an old timer Leon Grzwana. He said.." youre in luck, we have on here that we built for a kid, and his insurance company told him they wouldnt insure it".. I had no intention of buying at that time, but I fell in love with the car and bought it..I stored it at my parents house till I got discharged from the Army.
The tires at that time were disgraceful...It had Firestone wide ovals (red stripe)..They had bad traction..I could smoke em till they fell off it I wanted to.
I traded it in to Nickey after a year cause it was just too much race car for my purposes..I bought an Impala 307..lol
Anyway..I have a friend that was a mechanic at Nickey in the late 60's..He says that a few of the better Nickey mechanics were building those cars..Maybe Harrell over saw the operation?..I cant say yes or no. The COPO cars were factory built, werent thery?
I can say this...That car scared me..It was just amazing
All I wanted was a street car that was faster than most of the 396 cars that were being driven by most guys..I wound up with a monster
I had just got home from Vietnam and was on leave..I had like 7 months yet to serve at FT Jackson. I went to Nickey cause I had heard about those cars...I still remember the salesmans name..He was an old timer Leon Grzwana. He said.." youre in luck, we have on here that we built for a kid, and his insurance company told him they wouldnt insure it".. I had no intention of buying at that time, but I fell in love with the car and bought it..I stored it at my parents house till I got discharged from the Army.
The tires at that time were disgraceful...It had Firestone wide ovals (red stripe)..They had bad traction..I could smoke em till they fell off it I wanted to.
I traded it in to Nickey after a year cause it was just too much race car for my purposes..I bought an Impala 307..lol
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BestBearsFan
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As far as I know Harrell built all of them but who knows. And yes COPO cars were factory built. Not sure why I typed that lol. About the 10 years ago there was a reunion in Laharpe with all of the known Gibb cars that are still around. There were a lot of old drag racers there that say the true number of cars built for Gibb and the like and by whom is pretty sketchy. My buddy with the Gibb Nova has all kinds of documentation and really knows his stuff when it comes to all of these cars. I will have to ask him.
Monster
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Didn't know they were worth that much... I imagine Connie does though... according to my Dad it is absolutely Mint... would like to see it... but I rarely get up that way anymore...
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If ya ever see it, take pics and post em
http://www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=927520
Lot 261
1967 Chevrolet Nickey Camaro SS
To be auctioned on Friday, January 20, 2012
Sold for $385,000
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I know of only 1 Nickey car still around from the 60's..Its a 67 blue one..The guy shows it at car shows etc
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https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail.cfm?LOT_ID=CH1008-72203
Bill Thomas Engineering would convert the cars to be sold in the west and the famous drag racer, Dickie Harrell was brought in to kick off the building of the cars and sales program in Chicago. The publicity that this unique strategic alliance received was historic. The fact that Nickey was the first to bring this conversion concept to reality for the Camaro is widely accepted.
Monster
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I will... I'll ask my Pop if he has pictures... but it's not like they had cell phones... lol
I have only seen one pic of his 64 Galaxy 500 390 PI he loved so much...
Sad I remember seeing all these types of cars cheap in auto trader back in the late 70s... 71 RT1 primer grey all original 800 bucks... wished I would have bought a dozen of them back in the day... would be loaded now... HA