Rarity claims are sometimes challenging to confirm, and such is the case with the 1967 Chevrolet Camaro RS/SS Convertible Indy 500 Pace Car Replica. Various sources suggest that the production tally could be anywhere between 100 and 300 vehicles, but after extensive research, I have been unable to determine an exact figure. However, the relative rarity might be reflected by the fact that this is only the second example we have seen at Barn Finds. It requires a total restoration, and there are a few further mysteries to unravel. The seller has listed the Camaro here on eBay in Newington, Connecticut, with a BIN of $27,500.
The 1967 model year not only marked the release of the First Generation Camaro, but the first of nine occasions that the badge was selected as the Indianapolis 500 Pace Car. The company released replicas to celebrate the occasion, based on the Camaro RS/SS Convertible variant. Each featured Ermine White paint, Blue stripes, and a White soft-top. The seller claims that our featured classic is one of those cars, but it requires a total restoration. It is missing the stripes and top, and rolls on the wrong wheels. The front bumper is AWOL, but most of the remaining trim and the grille are intact. The biggest concern will always be rust, and this Camaro hasn’t escaped scot-free. There is a visible hole near the dash, making me wonder whether there might be further problems hiding in the cowl. The remaining images aren’t definitive, but it appears that while the usual prone areas carry heavy surface corrosion, there might be little to no steel penetration.
My information indicates that every Pace Car Replica featured Blue Deluxe interior trim, and this Camaro ticks that box. It also scores a console, a factory tachometer, and a pushbutton radio. The interior is complete, but requires a complete retrim to recapture its former good looks. Kits are readily available, so a factory-fresh state is a realistic goal. This image also provides a decent look at the floors, revealing the corrosion mentioned earlier. However, the gaping hole in the console brings us to our final mystery.
The seller confirms that this Camaro left the factory with a four-speed manual transmission, a 12-bolt 3.31 Posi rear end, and power disc brakes. I believe the car originally featured the 350ci V8, although with nothing visible in the listing images, I suspect that this SS might be a roller missing the motor and transmission. If so, that will undermine its potential future value, because it can never be numbers-matching. Potential buyers must hope that the seller is approachable and can clarify the question, because sourcing replacement mechanical components will also add significantly to the restoration costs.
I have been a classic car enthusiast for longer than I would care to admit, and I try to absorb as much information as possible. However, I am not a walking encyclopedia and freely acknowledge that there are gaps to be filled. The story of the 1967 Camaro RS/SS Convertible Indy 500 Pace Car Replica is one area that requires work, because I would love to find a definitive answer to the question of its production numbers. This is where I rely on you, because our readers are an almost infinite source of knowledge. So, it’s over to you for comments and, hopefully, clarification. Thank you in advance.
Where’s the engine!???
Thought it had one the last time it was listed on Barn Finds.
4P on the cowl tag is 350 engine
Though the body looks fairly straight this thing needs everything! This price is in the stratosphere, drop the 2 off the front and we have something to talk about.
This site will give you the exact numbers and how to tell if this is a genuine 1967 Pace Car
https://camaropacecarforums.com/eve/forums
Thanks for posting the link.
Steve R
So basically it’s a piece of garbage that was once a factory pace car replica. Okay. Maybe 3000 to 5000. Just for the basic body. Then a new owner can just replace literally everything. So you’ll be 30 large into it just to make it look good again.
The 1967 Indianapolis Pace Car had an estimated of production of just over 100, this car might not pull a price in the mid-20,000’s but $3,000-$5,000 is unrealistically low.
Steve R
They built about 100 and there are only 5,000 or so left now. 😅 I saw 2 at a car show on the weekend with no supporting documentation.
Jay, on the 1967 the “documentation” in in the trim tag.
Steve R
How could their be 5000 left, if there were only 100 made?
What do you get when you mix an elephant with a rino?
Hell if i know….
Those ford hubcaps never looked better
Those Chevrolet hubcaps were available options on first gen Camaros.
Good catch!
These are the Chevrolet version. You can see the bitter in the center if you look close enough.
Steve R
Those are Chevrolet issued units
I had a I6 with a 3 speed manual. Loved that thing. Sold it and my 72 c10 truck waaaaaay too cheap.
Pace cars are so over-rated, IMO.
Most are nothing more than quickie decal/trim/fabric jobs. A slick way to sell another 300 cars. If they are preserved like porcelain dolls (and many have been, under the guise of being “investments”), then maybe there is some value to the next person that wants to pamper a pace car.
Now, if they were an ACTUAL pace car, and driven by a big-name retired driver or other celebrity on the track during the race, then add $500.
If they are junk like this, then they are even more challenging to restore, as you have to find all of that customized, one-off trim stuff. Sure, some of it is available to service the clone market, but for a car like this, a donor car is about your best bet, and good luck with that. You might as well restore the donor car in this case.
This one is a total piece of junk and without the original engine. You’d be underwater even if they gave it away, and even then, you’d still have a non-original version, which is in some kind of limbo-land between a clone and an original.
I see no end game here that makes any sense.
Look up the 1967, they were all used for official race related activities. Yes, they largely became a joke by 1969, but these actually gave merit.
Steve R
Thanks. An interesting point about track usage, but if they were all driven at the track, then even that status is kind of washed out. They are all the same at that point.
To me, the fact that it ran a few laps at Indy is about the same value as celebrity provenance. Other people may see that differently.
Pace cars do have their fan base, but that base seems to be only interested in pristine, original examples. Hence, the pampering.
Once you start “restoring” one, then what is it?
When I resided in Daytona back in the 90’s, the speedway visitor’s center had the 67 Firebird pace car on display just past the front doors. It has driver’s signatures all over it. These were at the Indy race that same year and you’re correct, they used most of the ones built that year transporting executives, owners and stars around the grounds during that week.
Says the guy who will never own one. Not because he doesn’t want to, but because he can’t.
Not sure I get all the negativity. Not only is it a first gen f-body, which is hard to beat, it’s a very rare version with all the best options. I don’t see anything here that’s particularly bad for the age. The numbers may never match, but a well built, good performing replacement driveline won’t cost a fortune since its just SBC/muncie. Heck I’ve seen cars at shows that, once you grind off the paint, strip out the rugs, and scrape off the gallon of undercoating, would need about as much work as this will to get to top, albeit non-matching, condition. They’re always worse than you think they’re going to be. You just have to do the work.
for sitting 38yrs it’s not that bad. it is what it is. somebody will buy it. i think the ask is way too high for a roller that needs 50k+ worth of repairs. it’s a pace car replica from a special time in history it just needs a ton of money.
I dunno, hairy. From what I see in the photos, every single piece of this car would need to be thoroughly repaired, reconditioned, reworked, blasted and painted, or re-plated.
Most of it won’t even stand up to that and look presentable, and simply needs to be replaced with NOS or re-pop parts.
Virtually every piece of rubber (grommet, seal, hose) or soft part (upholstery, door panels, boot cover) is looking useless, and the entire wiring is suspect. There is apparently no top, and it would likely be useless if there was one.
And there is no engine. At least you can start with something decent there, but you have to find one.
The amount of labor work involved here to make a presentable pace car would be monumental and the cost of parts alone would likely be well into the $100k range.
Not to be argumentative, but I’m just finishing up a complete re-do on my trusty 69 rs/ss, and I don’t have anywhere near 100K in it, not counting the cost of my own labor. More like 22-25K, including about half of the sheetmetal, big 4 wheel disks, new steering/sector. Hotchkiss/koni suspension, engine refresh, sniper conversion, full interior, chemicals (paint, etc), all of it. Add in another 3-6k for a 350 core/machining and a muncie/clutch/shifter, and 1.5-2K for any convertible stuff on this car, I guess…but that’s nowhere near 100k. I guess it depends on who buys this car, a hobbyist or a driver, as to its value/end cost.
Melton, I’ll defer to your experience with your own ride, but every single item on this car is currently total junk. This particular car needs to be disassembled down to the nut and bolt level and refurbished to be anywhere near presentable.
I was kind of including everything needed in that $100k, and I may have been a bit over-the-top, but there is a lot required here.
Again, I am going on the premise that this is a real pace car, so anything short of a complete and total restoration here is a waste of time. Nobody wants a half-baked pace car.
The entire body needs to be blasted and repaired, then painted, buffed, decaled, etc. That is a huge cost, and you’d need facilities and tools to do it. Sure, some guys have that, but do they have the will to do it?
It looks like nearly every piece of chrome and trim needs repaired and re-plated. Even the emblems likely need to be re-enameled or replaced.
In addition, a standard reproduction black interior kit will not suffice here. Everything has to be “pace car”. Where do those parts come from? The dash alone is a faded nightmare. Where does a decent one come from? The console, the dash, on and on.
All of the engine accessories look like they need to be replaced. Refurbishing master cylinders and water pumps and all the rest is not going not cut it here.
This is not a “get it back to some kind of running condition” project. It has to be done right or there is no chance of this having anywhere near the value of a pace car. That’s the problem here. It’s a pace car, not just another Camaro.
Buyer beware! It seems that this car has been sitting in a large puddle up to its floorboards for some time!
Why have the “Cocktail Shakers” been removed along with other parts? Considering there is another complete convertible camaro sitting next to this one in one of the photos gives me the idea this was just a parts car that was used.
The engine callouts on the front fenders are hard to read in the photos, but it does look like maybe this car or the fender has a 327 callout.
A lot of questions should be asked, like where is the motor and transmission, etc.?
Yea …..Get yourself all worked up on the bottom photo of the nice car. And buy your rusty dream car at the top photo. Too much$$$ for a hopeful one day dream car.
Run it through the scrap chopper and get it over with.