Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Is it just me or are there alot of COPO cars come from the Ohio area. What's evryone's thoughts on this? Is because

1. The Norwood plant was their?
2. Regional Manager at the time spread info about these cars.

Lets here what you think

Thanks

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

I think it is an impression gained from what is known. There is a lot we do not know about COPO Camaros. If there were truly 900-1,000 built about half are unknown. MI was a big customer also between Berger, Emmert and Funston.

There were a lot of Chevy dealers in those days.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Great answer William.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

That very subject has been booted around here before. We may never know who was the top state in COPO sales.
Ohio would be way up there for sure.
12 double COPO Camaros were ordered by Bob Schafer in 69 @ Ewing Chevy in Canton alone. I know most of the other dealers sold a few too. Also there were 3 ZL1's from this general area of NEO.
However Columbus, I think, was way out there in COPO sales. Lots down there.
Maybe someone can find the old threads, I looked with no luck. Will search again later.
Gotta go help Mamma now.....Gobble Gobble.... [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

Mike

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Thats what it seems to me also. I think alot were sold in the Columbus, South Central Ohio, Cincinatti,area. I think West Virgina area had a few also.
thanks

Happy Thanksgiving to All.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

-----While in college in 69 I used to pass right by Bob McDormans all the time. His lot (at the then new dealership) was always stuffed full of high-perf Chevys. Does anyone know if any COPOs were delivered there???......Bill S

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

One of the main reasons IMO was that NHRA DIV-3 is part of Ohio and that midwest area. Many stock and superstock drag racers lived out that way, and still do. A haven for fast cars. Most of those guys were buying short blocks over the counter and installing them to run A or B/Stock or even SS. I bet when the COPO came out with the 427's already installed the smart racers just gobbled them up like we do on Thanksgiving! Remember they were for drag racing, not the lawn ornaments they are today!

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

There were thousands of Chevrolet Dealerships in 1968-1969. The COPO Camaro program/ 9560 and 9561 was not advertised or well known at many levels.

Those who were directly involved did use the system/spread the word.

Vince Piggens
Don Yenko
The Central Office/ Jim Mattison
Fred Gibb
Other racers and tunners
etc.......

Also, many of the GM employees working at the plants, involved with building these special Camaros learned about the process first hand.

Tonowanda built the engines and Norwood as well as Van Nuys installed the power plants into the vehicles.

The word about these special built cars spreaed about the plants and many of the GM friends and family walked into undiscript dealerships trying to place an order with their GM discount.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

It also helped that Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio were awash in money from all the manufacturing in the area in the 60's. I know from my travels around the country that farm areas bought mostly trucks, manufacturing areas bought mostly cars..... and fast cars at that. There were lots of drag strips in Michigan Indiana Illinois and Ohio so lots of hot cars were bought here to race, whether on the street or strip.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: olredalert</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
-----While in college in 69 I used to pass right by Bob McDormans all the time. His lot (at the then new dealership) was always stuffed full of high-perf Chevys. Does anyone know if any COPOs were delivered there???......Bill S </div></div>


Here's a COPO Chevelle Bought New at McDormans

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNJhx...eature=related

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

-----Thanks Mike. Chris tracked it down, huh! I wonder if the car is done as I didnt see a date on the video......Bill S

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Video was posted on Youtube April 22 2009.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Well, I don't know about the farmers not buying hot rods. In Marshall County Kansas, I know of more than a dozen Hemi cars that exist currently or did exist at one time. I know of 3 Judges that came out of Bergren Chevrolet/Pontiac/Cadillac in Marysville, the county seat. The Ford dealer, Boss Motors, sold numerous Boss Mustangs, including 5 or 6 Boss 351s. I've seen pics of two LS6 Chevelles and a 69 L78 Camaro that came out of Whiteway Chevrolet in Frankfort, KS, a town of about 1,000 people just down the road from Marysville. I know of at least half a dozen 428 Mach 1s, 69 and 70 models, from restored cars to junk shells that have been in the area their whole lives. I've also heard realiable stories about 3 different Shelbys and a 67 or 8 Nickey Camaro that existed around there years ago.

I don't think the problem was nobody was buying them, I just don't think many of them survived. I don't know what the salvage yard situation in Ohio is like, but eastern Kansas and Southeast Nebraska were overrun with little mom n' pop yards at one time. I can think of 15 or 20 within 40 miles of Marysville just off the top of my head, and I'm sure there were more that I've never heard of.

Many of those went out of business within the last 20 years or so and crushed out. I'm sure that didn't help the local musclecar population any. Again, I don't know about Ohio, but that stuff just didn't sit around in fields for decades back here. Add in the fact that despite the amount of hot rod iron sold around there, few people in that particular area care much about old cars, and there's damn little of that stuff left. Just pictures and stories.

As far as COPOs, a friend's dad worked for Bergren as a mechanic for 30 years, and he's mentioned a couple of Camaros with 427s running around town. Whether they were COPOs, and where they may have come from new, I couldn't say. I can say that Mac's in Crete and Van-T in Topeka were both a fairly short drive from Marysville.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Check out the latest issue of Muscle Car Review. The COPO Chevelle was on display at MCACN, as well as SCR XIII.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Stefano</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Check out the latest issue of Muscle Car Review. The COPO Chevelle was on display at MCACN, as well as SCR XIII.

</div></div>

Is this it Stefano?

http://i267.photobucket.com/albums/i...2/IMG_4350.jpg

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

That looks like the Bob McDorman, Original owner, double COPO Chevelle.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

McDorman Double COPO Chevelle.


<object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/3csO2uLL32Y"></param> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param> <embed src="https://www.youtube.com/v/3csO2uLL32Y" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"> </embed></object>

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

My COPO Camaro and the white and blue x44 copo from tiny little Hairston Chevrolet in Chesapeake on the Ohio River . The 2000 Census has the population at 842 . Who knows what it was in 1969.

Both cars were bought in Ohio but immediately when across the river to West Virginia to live

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ChevyThunder</div><div class="ubbcode-body">My COPO Camaro and the white and blue x44 copo from tiny little Hairston Chevrolet in Chesapeake on the Ohio River . The 2000 Census has the population at 842 . Who knows what it was in 1969.

Both cars were bought in Ohio but immediately when across the river to West Virginia to live </div></div>

Isn't that right across the river from Huntington WV?

Mike

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Yep, right across the river...pretty big area when you take Huntington WV, Ashland Ky., and all the towns on the Ohio side of the Ohio river.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: copo69</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Yep, right across the river...pretty big area when you take Huntington WV, Ashland Ky., and all the towns on the Ohio side of the Ohio river. </div></div>

I have a friend who bought and 66 Chevy II Nova L-79 that came from Glockner Chevrolet. I think thats in Portsmouth OH. though.

Mike

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

I know a retired mechanic from Ed Stinn's dealership in Fairview Park, Ohio (Cleveland Suburb) who told me that he remembered approximately 5-6 brand new 69 COPO Camaros lined up on the dealership lot.

He said part of his job was to check the cars over after they were delivered. He said test driving these cars was a real treat... He said they were fast as hell right from the factory...

Unfortunately he has no pictures and wishes now that he had taken some...

Rich

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

Curious if he remembers my car or has any anecdotes about the cars in general.

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

I once was told that Ohio had by far numbers the most subscribers of HotRod Magazine in the USA. I guess the interest was high for cool cars in Ohio.


Jan

Re: Why so many COPO's from Ohio area?
 

In the late 90's I sold autobody parts east of the Mississippi... it seems like there was an abandoned drag strip around every turn you went around throughout the middle of Ohio.