The Chevy Camaro had a banner sakes year in 1978, handily beating the Ford (still) Mustang II by 38%. That may have been helped by the addition of new body-colored urethane bumpers front and rear. The seller describes this long-forgotten ’78 Camaro as both a Z28 and a Rally Sport, but supposedly those packages weren’t combinable. And since this car wears RS badging, we’ll assume that’s what it is, one of nearly 12,000 built in 1978. Located in a dark and dirty garage in Indianapolis, Indiana, this Chevy is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $5,000. Thanks for the tip, Barn Finder “ccrvtt”.
Camaros had been without an open-air model since 1969, but T-Tops arrived in 1978 and were included in nearly 10,000 units sold that year. The Rally Sport, like the seller’s car, was a specific model, rather than an option or RPO. Most of the cars were sold with either a 305 or 350 cubic-inch V8 with a 2-barrel carburetor, while the 4-barrel was reserved for the Z28. Chevrolet produced 68,000 more Camaros in 1978 than Ford did Mustangs, the rare occasion where the Ford wasn’t on top. The subcompact Mustang II would be replaced by the Foxbody version in 1979.
We don’t know much about the seller’s car other than we’re told “All it needs is a little repair”. That may be the understatement of the year. It looks as though someone bought a piece of distressed property, opened the garage door for the first time in ages, and found a car sitting inside. The Chevy is covered in dirt and grime (and playing cards) indicating that it hasn’t moved from its current position in a long, long time. It has 88,000 miles, which could be accurate, but there’s no telling what it will take to get it running again.
This Camaro wears the two-tone paint that the Rally Sport came with. It has an automatic transmission, but we don’t know which engine is under the hood. When you ordered an RS in ’78, besides the special paint you also got sport mirrors, a rear spoiler, and Rally Wheels which seem to have been replaced on this car with aftermarket rims. It would be interesting to see what this Camaro would look like after it’s removed from the garage and given good detailing.
I thought in this case “Garbage” find should spelled with a “B” in the middle…
Don’t walk, RUN.
pick a part candidate, nothing more. I say this because everything that was tired on these when they hit the pile years back looks the part on this overpriced pile.
God is great Beer is good people are Crazy
” All it needs is little repair” by the seller.. That’s the joke of the year!!! 😂 This is a bloody mess!!! Yeah the body looks alright on the left side.. I didn’t see anything on the right. The mold in that interior must be 🤢 disgusting smell!! If I was the seller. Get the Camaro working then detail the snot out out it!!! Then the price can be justified! 🐻🇺🇸
I’d throw a gball tops at it if if it’s solid throughout .Hard to tell with these poor pics.Too much work to be done for 5k.Was a sharp car in the day.Nice color combo.glwts.
Watch out for the floor pans on these. They can rust even if in a garage, and the interior shows signs of possible moisture exposure. You would want to get underneath this one. That aside, nice ones are available in the 20k range, or less. You’d be way underwater on this once completed.
Ugh…don’t think so..smog dog…the bank where I did my wheel deals in the 70s’ called early in 1979 and said they had taken back a 1978 black Z28 ,if I wanted it sign some papers and drive it away, no money down,think around 4K was still on the note.350,4 barrel, auto,dark red interior, rather garish looking,had some red pin striping on the black paint.Didnt have it all that long,only thing that stands out is a late night hi-speed duel down a long straight stretch of US 36 in the flatland.My buddy had a new 1978 red Trans Am,400, automatic with the bird on the hood.I don’t recall who won or if anybody did.I know my ’78 smogger with its fake duel exhaust, 2 manifold pipes going into one cat and splitting into 2 tail pipes managed to hit 125 before it asphyxiated itself .
Wow I’m not sure if all the negative comments above are because they don’t want you to look so they can snatch this up or what. If it wasn’t the 1900+ miles away I would grab it because I know I can flip it for more for me it would be a nice winter project then sell it in late spring early summer I would even be able to keep the rusty wheels. Just hot tank them then powder coat
I’ve owned and semi-restored a 1969 Camaro SS350 and a 1979 Z28. I’ve also owned a 1978 Z28. A good friend is restoring a ’78 Z28 now that’d been sitting in his garage for years.
Respectfully, there is no way in h-ll you could restore this for less than it’d sell for in restored condition. People drastically underestimate restoration costs, I’ve noted. This needs a complete interior, engine rebuild, transmission rebuild, bushings, fuel system rebuild, brake system rebuild, and most likely paint and some body work. It’s too filthy and the pics are too poor to tell. Given the signs of moisture on the interior, I’d not be surprised if the floor pans rotted from underneath also.
Even if they’re not, I’d bet you’d have 30k into this at least. Probably more. And if you’re that much of a magician with dilapidated cars, why put the effort into a late ’70s Camaro? That ’70 Judge would seem a more appropriate canvas for someone what that magic of a touch!
I didn’t say restore it I said flip it I believe that paint would come back with proper care then a good interior detail and new tiers
I had two of these a couple years ago. Solid Montana cars with cosmetic issues. They were a hard sell. I think I sold them in the $3000 range. Being from Indiana I would be surprised if it had a floor in it.
I agree to much money for to little info. I would recommend you go inspect it or have someone do it for you. Now who cares what engine it has by 79 they all were very low hp. I would either rebuild the engine it has or get a earlier year and rebuild it with all hp parts. Then do a good interior cleaning. Then drive and enjoy it while doing every thing else it needs. These were cool cars and ment to be enjoyed not locked up. GLWTS
Agree. Either do a thorough inspection yourself or have it done. Only way to be sure the car wont end up a money pit.
I would like to see better pictures, may have overlooked it’s location but don’t know where it is. Would have to look it over to see if I could restore it, I do like the body style. Only had to give 600 each for the last two I bought, in 2221 I brought a 1977 and a 1980 ( 600.00 ea ) and in 2020 I bought a 1981 for 450.00 . Was running and bought a 1985 700.00 , run and drive. In 2023 prices have went way up
Now THAT’S what I call a real barnfind!
Amazing, they’re trying to get $5000 for this thing without putting in even the smallest effort to present it better. Get it out of that horrid mess of a garage and clean it up little at least. And if I was really worth anything they would show us a picture of the undercarriage. This presentation is a joke. Take off one of those 0’s and make it $500 as a parts car and scrap.
Buddy of mine had one in high school, yellow and black with a 231 buick V6. And my best friend had one that was black and silver with the 305 2bbl with a super t-10. I always liked the paint schemes on these. I had a 1980 Z-28 later on in life. My Z was nice looking but all the bushings were like melted marshmallows. Kinda wish I had kept my Z and just fixed it up… but, meh… car bucket list just keeps getting checked off. That’s just one of a hundred cars I’ve had in my life.
$500 sounds more so reasonable!
Hey send it to my shop along with a blank check and I’ll get back to you in about ten years or so it’s a shame because it was a nice car but it’s not worth 5 dollars now not with the mold in it people are just crazy today
If the rims are that rusty I am sure this is a basket case underneath. Probably needs a frame. Pretty sure I see rust bubbles on drivers fender. If this was something special might be worth the effort. Not for this run of mill car.
Man, what a waste of machinery
Only Toad looked much better than this even while he was puking sick, haha!
A neighbor had a light , dark blue two tone one of these. First car I ever rode in at 100mph.
This was nice at one time. Sad.
YouTube special. You can see the thumbnail and see the title. “Will it run and drive XXX miles home?”
If it’s an 8 and the floors, rails and trunk aren’t gone I’d roll the dice at $2k.
It’s looks like that “garage” has seen a foot or so of water. Also a possible water line on right side wall?
You remember that girl from high school? Kinda cute and you might have asked her out if you weren’t already dating someone else. Thirty years later you’re running into Wal Mart for some cheap oil and you notice a familiar face, at least you think it’s familiar. She’s put on a little weight, suffered through a divorce or two, and acquired a few wrinkles, but damn, she still looks pretty good for her age. (And you have aged, too, don’t forget.)
But just like you, there’s that teenager hidden not too deep below the surface, still yearning for a fling, wanting to dance to some rock ‘n’ roll, and drink beers out in a cornfield with a guy in jeans and a t-shirt. We never really grow up, we only grow older.
Sure it’s overpriced. I knew that the moment I saw the FB ad, but like all of us of a certain age we tend to see the past with rose-tinted glasses – not what is but what could be. I’m surprised at the amount of comments this story generated, but Russ has a way with words and I guess deep down a lot of us love this version of the Camaro. I’m tempted to go visit the seller and see for myself what’s up with this car.
Gee, if that car got that messy sitting inside a garage be glad that the owner didn’t store it outside. Why did people stop cleaning up these cars that they want so much money for?