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Warehouse Find: 1980 Chevrolet Camaro

The second generation of the Chevy Camaro would see 12 years of production that resulted in more than two million units leaving GM factories. By 1980, sales were on the decline and a new Camaro would be coming for 1982.The car wasn’t as much the muscle car as it had been the decade before, with a 350 V-8 now being the top powerplant offered. This 1980 Camaro now resides in Lugoff, South Carolina and may have been someone’s vision of a future drag car. It’s available here on eBay where bidding is at just $510 with the reserve still out there to be met. Thanks, Andrew Sheppard, for the tip!

First generation Camaro’s racked up sales of more than 800,000 units between 1967 and 1969, with changes coming for 1970. Delays in production caused the second gen cars to hit the market several months later than intended, but they sold well none-the-less. The car would see two more design changes before Camaro production ended in 2002. Seeing there was still a market for pony cars in the 21st Century, Chevy revived the nameplate and car in 2009 and it’s still going strong more than a decade later. As a testament to the car, more than five million Camaro’s have been sold in the past 53 years. In 1980, Chevy still managed to sell 152,000 Camaro’s, with nearly half of them being standard models like we believe the seller’s car to be.

The seller of this 1980 Camaro says it had been sitting in a warehouse for the past couple of years when he found it. He rescued it, got it running but found that the radiator leaks and the alternator is not charging. So, it will need more mechanical work to be roadworthy again. We’re told the car moves and the automatic transmission shifty properly. The aftermarket wheels may be one of the best attributes of the car. They look great and may have decent rubber left.

This Camaro is currently wearing a black paint job, but we doubt it’s the original paint and may not even be the car’s original color. There is evidence of purple under the hood and where the trim may not have been masked correctly. There is a minimum of rust of the bottoms of both doors, but we’re told the rest of the car is mostly rust-free. Photos of the trunk and the undercarriage would help substantiate that. The roof appears to have had red primer added to it, so could there have been a vinyl roof there at some point. New tail light lens will need to be sourced as well as the trap door for the gas cap. The interior isn’t screaming for much other than a thorough cleaning, which may or may not reveal more ills to deal with. There is more red primer on the metal behind the dash pad.

Under the hood, the seller says there is a 350 cubic inch V-8, but that is likely a transplanted motor because the K code on the VIN says the car left the factory with the rather anemic 229 V-6 that was good for only 115 hp. The V-6 wouldn’t have come with a big hood bulge, so the hood has been replaced or modified at some point. While the car is said to have only 10,000 miles on it, 110,000 miles is more likely, and we don’t know how used the motor is. The seller says if you open the trunk, you’ll find a Z28 front chin spoiler should you want to use it for a Z28 tribute.

This generation of the Chevy Camaro isn’t considered a bank breaker. $12,000 is probably top dollar with the Berlinetta or SS adding a few more dollars and the Z28 a bit more on top of that. I’d want a little more intelligence on this car before bidding it up.

Comments

  1. Avatar Jay

    Motor looks like a prop

    Loose fan belt etc.

    Might be a parts car……

    Like 5
  2. Avatar Al_Bundy Member

    Heater hose crimped/folded at the level of the hood on the passenger side. Would be a stretch to trust who ever had their hands on this car last. May be a decent score if the underside/frame is good and modifications are correct from I-6 to V8 conversion. I’ve been a Ford guy mostly…As time passes, I really appreciate all cars. If the price is right, go for it ! Ohio guy too. A lot of pride in the Norwood plant from years back…

    Like 2
  3. Avatar DON

    Its not red primer behind the dash pad, I’m pretty sure this car was red with a red interior .

    Like 1

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