[MYSTERYCHEVELLE]

I will chime in with MY OPINION...

Fist of all, you have to realize that Jeff was one of or the head Judges for the now Defunct NCOA ( National Chevelle Owners Association ) one of it's original memebers, and an Extremely knowledgable perosn on all Chevelles! The NCOA in it's hey day was very well respected for it's judging of Chevelles done to the Nth degree. It was a time when there was actually an incentive to restore a car to that very level ( no longer )... you could finish a car and bring it to the NCOA Convention and get it judged on a 1000 point system, and it was a great system IMO. More than one judge looking at the car and they Knew what they were looking at. The Diamond Cert. program came from the NCOA days... why was this car one of the first or the first?... maybe as simple as the owner was the first to step up to the plate and ask/pay to have it certified.. Nobody chooses the car to certify... I know several guys that had their 66 and 67's Diamond Certified, most had this done some time ago when the NCOA was going strong! Had my current 66 been done at the time, I would have it done also... Do I believe Jeff knows more about what is right/correct about 66's than me?? Honestly No, I don't, but would let him inspect it and Certify it? Sure, (but not now) b/c that is the Only place/guy that does it... I don't know any group or judging panel that will always KNOW everything there is to know.. it's impossible to gather such a group of EXPERTS in one place to judge a car... be nice, just not practical. You have to play the hand you are given, and at this point Jeff and Chris are the Hand us Chevelle guys have. Personally, I won't have my car certified now that the NCOA is no longer.. just doesn't make sense to me.... My point is that we all have to realize, Nobody SELECTED any particular car for Diamond status.. the owner decides if He/She wants to have it done, wants to pay the fee... wants the Bragging Rights to say, " I scored 995" or whatever.. does it turn over to make the car worth more money at resale? To some it might.. we all put certain status/value on a certification... but right now, without a National Level Chevelle Organization that Judges Cars like NCOA did.. I see no benefit or Value in the cert., other than personal benefit. I tried to make my car as factory correct as I could, but most of it was for ME..

I don't think the Prior Inspection is for any other reason than trying to allow any possible mistakes to be fixed .... plain and simple.. I do the same with many many 66's that I know are being restored to factory original.. guys will ask me to look at a car or send pics of their Now Completed restoration and ask.. "what's wrong?, I want it right before I bring it to my first Show" I could just say, it looks fine, and not point out the mistakes I see, wait until they bring it to the Mid-Atlantci Chevelle Regional ( where it will at least get judged on a 300 point basis ) and then take all the points off when I judge... but why do that? Us true Hobbyist want everyone to make their car the best it can be.. I know I do.

This LS-6 is a fine example of TRUE MUSCLE, lets not get our panties in a bunch over terms used to describe it.

Sorry for the long wind.

Mike Crown