Were there ever any Yenko or motion cars built that had A/C ?

[Chevy454]

I was reading an old Super Stock & Drag Illustrated magazine today, and I ran across something interesting. It was the August '69 issue, where the Yenko Chevelle was tested. In the article, it states that the car they tested was not the car they originally planned to test. They said the car they were supposed to get had an L-72 with AIR CONDITIONING! Here is what the article says:

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>"Originally, we had planned to bring out a Chevelle equipped with air conditioning and the Turbohydramatic box. Our premise, and Yenko's, was to show that comfort and speed can go hand in hand. That particular unit we had in mind was inadvertently sold, however, so we opted for the straight L-72 with 2.20 first gear four-speed and standard 4.10 rear."<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I am assuming the a/c car was a demonstrator car that had a/c dealer installed, but...? Did they normally sell there demonstrator cars?

[JoeC]

That could be a simple misunderstanding or it can be that Yenko built up an AC 396 car. Unless one turns up with documentation, it is difficult to believe. I don't think Chevy would build a solid lifter AC car in 1969. That article is great and has great original pictures. Notice there are no 427 decals on the air filter lid.

[bkhpah]

The 69 road test's from SS&DI July and August are great articles, but have mistakes. They also mention that the cars have duel point distributors. This is not correct. As for A/C in a 69 Yenko, I have never seen that.
BKH

[Unreal]

Another issue, which I had to deal with on my tribute car, which will be an air car, since my car was originally SB with air. The 840 heads do not have the three bosses for the lower A/C bracket. It has the upper forward one, but not the upper rear one, or the lower one. I modified an original big block bracket, to pick up two manifold bolts. It works, and looks stock from the top of the engine, but if you look close, you can see the fabrication. I don't know if all Yenkos used 840's or if the last batch used the 291's. Did the 291's have the bosses?

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

I believe it was a trick that Don pulled on the magazine to get more coverage! After the 7/69 article, why not bribe them with a 'comfort and speed' car? When they come to do the test, just give them whatever is available. Just a thought!!
M

[sixtiesmuscle]

Unreal: Could you define a "tribute car"? I'm wondering how that might differ from the oft written and talked about "clones" and "fakes". I personally don't see anything wrong with someone mocking up a supercar for their own pleasure. We have to realize that this will go on, and in fact, it makes allot of sense, in my opinion, to drive a 20,000 car instead of a fresh 70,000+ car on a regular basis. I do think that those of us involved in legitimate cars need to find a way to identify these cars to avoid future misidentification by unscrupulous sellers to unsuspecting buyers. Anyone have any ideas?

[COPO]

I suppose publising the VIN's is likely the most foolproof way to stop the flow of fakes. The ZL-1's are pretty well covered as the entire VIN's are out there, though there is at least one car that was a complete rebody. On the COPO Connection website, many of the other Supercar VIN's are shown. I'd like to see that information incorporated into some pages on this site as the COPO site is rarely updated. The COPO 9561's are more problematic because no one even knows the number built let alone the VIN's. The Motion VIN's, we've discussed those a number of times and everyone knows the issue there.

I don't see a problem with a "tribute car" ie: replica, clone. I would add, to do one right, will often cost close to the same $$'s as a real one for certain models. Case in point a really nice '70 Yenko Duece replica was available for $14,000, yet the owner spent over $30K to build it. The flip side is because these cars are rare and expensive they aren't often seen in public which sometimes adds to the mystique and the wow factor when they are on display at events like the Supercar Reunion.