It seems that almost all of us have our prejudices over seventies cars. However, you would be hard-pressed to find a better car from that decade than a Camaro Z-28. From the gorgeous split bumper early models to the later seventies Camaros that were the standouts of your high school parking lot, it is hard not to love what the Camaro brought to the table. Take for example this 1878 Chevrolet Camaro Z-28 for sale on Craigslist just outside of Phoenix, Arizona. This black Z-28 with a black interior looks at once handsome and menacing despite the low horsepower Small Block Chevrolet V-8 under the hood. Needing a bit of bodywork but otherwise complete and roadworthy, is this Camaro worth the $13,500 asking price? Are Camaro Z-28s the best America had to offer in the decade of malaise? Thanks go to Tony P. for the tip!
As car enthusiasts, it is sometimes fashionable to be less than complimentary about seventies automobiles. Other than the custom van craze, there were few noticeable “movements” during that tumultuous decade. Sandwiched between the muscle car era of the sixties and the rebirth of car culture in the eighties, the seventies seem to many of us who survived it a period of stagnation. Any technological advancements came in the areas of emissions control and safety. These advancements were needed. However, fins and big blocks are a hard act to follow.
Looking back to the seventies, things weren’t that bad automobile-wise. Most of the cars that were purchased during that era provided us with good, basic transportation. Rising insurance rates and 55 MPH speed limits helped squelch the days of tire-melting acceleration and barely adequate single-pot brake systems. If you were a speed enthusiast, there were few real options on the domestic side. It was GM that managed to find a way to give us most of what we wanted. One could argue that the Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac Firebird were the best domestic cars of the 1970s for those of us who liked to go (somewhat) fast and look good.
Think about this for a minute. Restyled in 1970, the Camaro and Firebird emerged from the design studio ready to be adapted to most of the mandates that the government would burden the automakers over that decade with, as most of those regulations were announced well in advance. With those burdens in mind, GM designers did a much better job integrating them into the basic structure. In comparison, existing cars had to be adapted to add such design encumbrances as 5 MPH bumpers. GM can also be commended for its excellent (for the time) engine, transmission, and HVAC systems. Say what you will, a car with a Small Block V-8, a Turbo Hydra-Matic, and a Posi-Traction rear end was a pretty reliable and easy-to-work-on piece of transportation. If it had a GM air conditioner installed, all the better. At least you’d be cool as you rolled down the interstate looking for Kojaks with Kodaks.
Roll the clock forward to the current decade. Seventies cars are starting to catch on with collectors. With few exceptions, the biggest money ends up going towards Camaro Z-28s and Trans Ams of that decade. Why? The answer is simple and multi-fold. First off, their good looks. Second, they managed to stay sporty when other cars went the fuel economy and sticker package route. The biggest reason is that was what many of us wanted as teenagers. The large production numbers bear testament to their popularity among those who had the means to pick one up. Now it is hard to find a good example at a reasonable price. Rust and high demand have cleared the market of perfect examples.
Thankfully, Tony P. has found us a very nice 1979 Z-28 at a reasonable price. This one sports the desirable black exterior and black interior and appears to be quite complete. Another amazing detail mentioned by the seller is that it has an unmodified drivetrain. Many of these Camaros ended up as a rolling Summit Speed Parts catalog. Not so with this one, other than what appears to be the usual enhanced sound system and amplifier in the trunk. Power is provided by a 350 cubic inch V-8 as you would expect. It is an automatic transmission equipped car and comes with a 3.73 Posi-Traction rear end. The seller has done some work on the brakes, replaced the radiator, and slapped on a new set of shocks. It is a running and driving car that shows 70,000 on the odometer.
There are some issues. Beyond the usual dings, scrapes, and maladies of a car this age, patch panels have been welded in at the bottom of the rear quarter panels. The black primer finish over the top leaves a bit to be desired as far as looks. Another issue for some may be that this was a car that wasn’t equipped from the factory with air conditioning. Many of our younger readers have never lived in a world where air conditioning was an option on a vehicle. Rest assured that this was once something that you had to pay extra for. If it means that much, there are numerous aftermarket kits out there to get the interior colder than it ever was from the factory.
Perhaps the most positive aspect of the ad is the seller telling us how much fun they had with the car. It is just rough enough that it can be driven and enjoyed without the usual parking it where I can see it at all times nonsense that some owners foist on themselves. This Camaro is undoubtedly a special car with a good bit of value in it. It is just that sometimes we as enthusiasts cannot let ourselves have any fun with the objects we so covet. This one is just right for everything from cruising with the windows down on a fall night to doing donuts in a parking lot at three in the morning just because you want to. There is something to be said for that kind of fun.
Are the Camaro Z-28 and the Pontiac Trans Am the best domestic vehicles of the seventies? Why or why not? What would you do with this one? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Bought a 76 Camaro new in 76. Was looking for a Trans Am, but couldn’t find one so I settled for a black Camaro. 350, 4barrel, front and rear spoilers, automatic. Replaced the ugly factory wheels, ditched the catalytic convertor, tinted the windows black (before it was illegal), blacked out the chrome window trim, de-badged it, lowered it with Monroe load levelers at all four corners. Wound up with a unique looking car that handled great. Drove it for about three years till the rust set in on the rear wheel arches. My understanding was that during the mid 70’s GM was purchasing foreign steel and it didn’t hold up. Sold it and bought a 1979 twinstick Plymouth Champ. Autocrossed it it with some success. Many cars have come and gone since then, but the Camaro stills holds a special place in my heart. Have owned so many different kinds and styles. Gawd I love cars. Sad to see so many of the same appearing suvs on the road today. No personality, feel sorry for the kids today, they’re missing out on so much. But glad I didn’t!
All the same Grey crossovers… same same and homogenous cars
On my bus to work, we pass a house that has two cars in it. A Honda accord from 2016-2018 ish and a dodge charger. They both face the front and both look the same!
The new Prius and “Prelude” have very similar styling too.
I know corporate rebadging was very common in the 70s and 80s. Even if some old cars are “boring” (I defend luxo-barges from this era so I have heard all the ridiculed) all old cars have character. Can’t say that today.
Thanks for enduring my rant,
Those twin-sticks were cool 😎
Nice body..
160+ ponies is sad….
1964 Malibu 230 sixes had 150 ponies…
Part of the difference is due to emission controls, but a large part is due to net vs. gross ratings.
And it’s gone….good deal.
I’m confused as usual?
I thought I read that this vehicle was a 1978, then a 1878, then a 1979??
I like it, whatever it is.
I love the seventies cars.
Just my oponion!
I always liked the 77 through 81 year Z28’s. The 80 & 81 models were my favorite with the functioning air induction hoods. You could really wake one up with lower gears and a shift kit. And with some internal engine modifications you could get them going as strong as they were 10 years back. It’s just what we had back then with the regulations, not the car’s fault. I agree GM did the best of all with the Camaro’s Malibu’s, Trans Ams and Vettes. Just good looking, good sounding cool cars to drive back then. This one’s a beauty.
‘fins and big blocks are a hard act to follow.’
‘Fins’? What am I missing here Jeff… ‘Fins’?!?
Neat looking cars. But don’t hold a candle🕯 to the the late 70s Pontiacs w the 400/4 sp. setup. They were the best of the malaise era 🏆 😎
I agree Stan as I had a silver over red 77 T/A 6.6 with the 400. Always outran these stock and also the Olds powered Trans Ams and everyone eventually knew it, some learned the hard way. But I knew a couple of guys who set these Z cars with low gearing, some carb and intake work and one of them with a .456 rear which was extremely quick outta the hole but about wound tight just past 1/8th mile. Fun days we will never replicate.
I kept getting beat by 5.0 Mustangs on the highway in my 1978 Camaro Z28 4 speed with 3:73 gears. I did the opposite and put in 3:08 gears. The Camaro used to max out around 75 mph, with the 3:08’s I could cruise at 80 mph all day long.
to say it’s better than a 1978 WS6 Trans Am 400 4sp 220hp 300ftlbs compared to Chevy’s weak 350 of the time…come on
I did like Cooter said,owered first and second gears .That woke my 77 RS up. Played with the carb and dist. It did wonders for it.I ordered with a 350 4 speed posi ,still have it with 40 thousand miles on it.
We worked alot of overtime @ Van Nuys in
Oh yes that was a good year 1878.
Just kidding.
Best part of the late 70’s was you could buy a 71 cuda or challenger for about $900.00 and 70-71 nova’s & dusters were around $500.00.
Patrick, exactly right. The true muscle cars from the late 60’s and early 70s sat on dealers back lots, nobody wanted them. Of course many of them were all rodded out and had seen better days. Most people (including me) wanted the shiny new TAs, Z28s and Vettes. If we would have known then what we know now…
Cool car But 78 – 79 WS6 W72 400 4 spd T/A’s Best of that era – Handling – Performance etc. back in the day a Stock 78 WS6 W72 400 4 spd T/A was running 14.7’s in the 1/4 mile at our local track – A Hot Rod Magazine Test got a 14.6 @ 96 mph out of a Stock 79 WS6 W72 400 4 spd T/A – nothing new wasn’t even close – Z-28 -Vette – Lil Express truck etc. which ran 15’s in the 1/4 mile
I have to agree with you. I had a new 79 Z28. It would run low 15s. Later I put a different cam, Edelbrock RPM intake, Hooker headers, and a holly 650. Car had the stock t10 and stock 370 rear end , limited slip. Car would run in the mid to low 14s.
I changed my 4 speed for lower gears in first and second still has the 308 i the rear ,advanced timing and Goodyears all around. my best time was high 13;s.at Summit track in Norwalk ,Ohio.And still have the Camaro with 40 thousand on it.
Best 70s car? Eh… naw.
Every kid wanted one? I guess I wasn’t every kid.
Not a kid, but I was 27 before I bought my first nre one.
The Best Seventies Car? Strange question when there was a 1970 1/2 Camaro that was actually a performance car.
Delivering newspapers in LA in 1976, one of my customers had a 66′ GTO Convertible 4 speed for sale in his driveway for $750, had some miles on it, some faded paint, but not in horrible shape either, nobody wanted it.
Okayyyyyyy….
I had a “81 Z. Switched its suspension from Z28 to Trans Am (sway bars and steering box). Car drove and handled so much better.
We didn’t really care for them. They were too common, and the most uncomfortable backseat in the world. I’ve worn a Camaro belt buckle since I was 14 and never owned a Camaro. I did miss a good 68 shell lately for 500 bucks.
Had a 1979 z-28. Bought it brand new. Similar to this one but with power windows, locks & A/C with red interior. For the asking price had a new one right off the show room floor. Brings back a lot of great memories. Sold mine after 125,000 miles on the odometer. Only problems were replacing the A/C compressor and a starter. The lack of factory installed A/C makes this one a no go for me. Wish I had kept mine.
“Second, they managed to stay sporty when other cars went the fuel economy and sticker package route.” I did not think there where many other cars that had as much sticker package than a late 70S Trans Am, with Z28 right behind. Did the others not follow their lead? Horsepower on a 77 and up was awful. I 65-67 289 2brl Mustang had more than this car. That is one of the reasons that through the late 70s all the way through the 90s I was driving a Gen 1 Mustang.
I had several of these and T/A’s thru out the years and always loved them. Currently I just got a 79 4-speed car that had been sitt
ing since the late 90’s. It’s a survivor 95% rust free. I’m doing all new suspension and body/frame bushings. The a very healthy LS motor.
It’s going to be sweet!
Good for you Mike. Enjoy! They are becoming scarce. The ones available in the southeast people want way too much for any one of them even those with rust & rot in known areas & in need of a full restoration.