[mike70ss]

Jimmy Owens lived in Hartsville Tennessee, I met him about 25 years ago. At the time, I was restoring cars in Hendersonville for Cliff Ernst. Cliff had quite a collection of N.O.S GM sheetmetal and Jimmy inquired about buying a pair of full quarters for his 1969 Camaro, which he claimed to be a Yenko. I was able to sell him the quarters and offered to deliver them, as I was enthusiastic about seeing the body. So, I went to Hartsville and saw a very rough body and was not convinced of what was there. He had an assembled subframe with an engine built, but am unsure of what engine was there. He showed me his collection of parts he had acquired to build the car and we talked at length about the old car hobby. Jimmy and I spoke a few times after, but lost touch after a while. Fast forward a few years, Jimmy leverged most of his car parts and the reported Yenko to get a significant bank loan, so that he could buy in to and try to save a struggling local circle track. It was not a good deal. Jimmy, unfortunately fell ill and died. The bank held an auction on the property and sold everything trying to settle the loan default. I was at the auction and got so mad at how it was handled. The items were in lots and I bid and won several lots. Then the auction company dropped the bomb on us all. We hadn't bought anything. We just priced the items and the grand total was announced and all items were joined into one lot with the opening starting bid being the grand total. A brawl nearly erupted. I called a very good friend a G.M. parts expert, Yenko collector. and historian of Yenko info in Illinois about the body and was informed not to touch it as it was too early to be a Yenko. Two guys out of Florida bought everything and I spoke to one of them after the sale. He said I didn't know what I was looking at. He said it was a pilot car for the Yenko production. I just shrugged it off. (I have seen a lemans blue Yenko that was noted as the number one car anyways).This car has had many stories attached to it over the years by the people that bought and restored it. It's been a prototype C.O.P.O., it's been a pilot car/mule for Don Yenko to drive, it's been the first Yenko. Lots of hype. Who knows?