Can someone please tell me the difference between a 70 1/2 split bumper rs and an rs/ss

I would appreciate any help

thanks

Rally Sport (RS) is RPO Z22 and includes a black painted grill the eye brow split bumpers parking lights mounted on grill panel, hide-a-way wipers, bright body sill moldings and other trim items.

Super Sport (SS) is RPO Z27 and is a 300HP 350CI engine, power brakes, Hood Insulation and other trim items, some the same as the RS.

You could get a Camaro with either independently or together...

Thanks. Did the SS have a 12 bolt or a 10 bolt rear?

Is there any way to id an rs or rs/ss from the build plate or vin?

Thanks

The SS would have a 12 Bolt if it had the BBC 402 engine. I believe the only SBC model to have the 12 Bolt was the Z28. I'm sure all models with the 12 bolt automatically got the F41 suspension package and that would be the BB SS and Z28. The RS option was available for all models which included the SS and Z28. Such that you could have a SS/RS or a Z28/RS but NEVER a SS/Z28. I can't say if I ever saw a 6 cylinder RS optioned 70 Carmaro but they do exist. I imagine that you could specifically order the F41 suspension package for the 10 bolt rear end whether the car was an 8 or 6 cylinder and that the F41 suspension may have been included in the RS package such that the SB SS/RS got the F41 package but would have to be specifically ordered for the SB SS models. In other words, all RS models may have got the F41 suspension package.

I could be away out to lunch with this but I can't see the purpose of the F41 handling package if it was not available for the 10 bolt and specifically for the Rally Sport as the "RS" label implies handling not just a face lift and ornamentation. Of course I'm referring to 1970 models because the F41 suspension was certainly available for the 71 Z28 which came with a 10 bolt. The general opinion that the 70 Z28 chassis may be identified by the F41 suspension is unreliable as there were many other 70 Camaro models with this feature. About the only 2 distinguishing features of the 70 Z28 chassis that I know of, aside from the Cowl Tag, are the floor mounted gas pedal and aluminum stops on the lower front suspension arms. I'm not forgetting the 70 Z's 8G faced tach with the 6500rpm reline as I am attempting to be specific about the chassis and suspension component issues when trying to decipher the model of a 40 year old shell which obviously has been stripped. The Cowl Plate for a Z28 would have 28 on it. A SS BB would have 34 or 78 on the Cowl Plate. I suspect a SB SS 70 Camaro would have 27 on the Cowl Plate. The RS Z22 RPO option was not incorporated into the VIN or the Cowl Plate; in other words, you require the build sheet. You can find some info about reading 70 Camaro Cowl Tags here at NastyZ28 site: http://www.nastyz28.com/decode.php#trimtag I'm referring to 70 Camaro Norwood build Trim Tags in this example of my scenario. I think it would be interesting if you found a 70 trim tag that read 27:22 as it would identify a SS with a 6 cyl and not in reference to a SS/RS. By the way, my 70Z came with Hide-Away Wipers and is not an RS so you can see partial RS options were available.

Personally, I, and many 2 GEN enthusiasts, do not like the looks of the RS option on the early 2nd GEN but then there are those that do; if not for any other reason then poor taste, I would say the attraction must be associated more with monitory values that collectors find seducing - LOL.

Chrysler offered a similar handling suspension package back then for their Challengers which, by late 72, included a Rear Disc brake option. This handling package was not specific to the size of engine or the rear axle. I say this because I owned a 72 340 Mag "RS" Challenger bought new in the fall of 71 that had Chrysler's suspension package with heavy duty sway bars. A friend of mine had a Plane Jane (could have been an SE) 73 318ci Challenger with heavy duty sway bars and Rear Disc Brakes. Too bad GM didn't carry the JL8 rear disc brake option over with the introduction of the 70 Camaro; however, I've never felt that the brakes on my 70Z, sporting a 454, were ever over taxed. It's just that them rear disc's look exotic and I had been Rallying a 142S Volvo's with 4 disc brakes for a numbers of years before :o

My 70 R/S SS L-48 (300HP/350), M-20 4spd, WITH included 12 Bolt.



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v470/CamarosRus/70%20Camaro%20RS%20SS%20350%204Spd/AllChevyShow.jpg

Hey Chuck:

Interesting. After 40 years, it's hard to recall or peace any of the 70 data together as they were only in production for 1/2 a year. Does your 70 RS/SS have the F41 rear sway bar as well? Being a 12 bolt, I would assume it does; however, it might also indicate the F41 was part of the RS package whether a 12 or 10 bolt was in the car or the car was a plain RS. If so, would confirm my suspicions that the F41 option was not limited to the Z28. Also, it would seem that all 70 SB SS's either received the 12 bolt or it was an option.

By the way, got to love them 3.31:1 gears for everyday traffic in your ride.

Back in the 80's I worked for a guy that had a 70 1/2 RS / Z28.
It had a 12 bolt, a 350 and a 4 speed. It was pretty heavily modified at the time
but I think he just hopped up the original stuff.

My 71 SS has the 10 bolt and F 41 suspention. Fortunutly I have the original build sheet.

If it is a 70 California car the body tag won't tell you anything with regard to whether it's a Z28, SS, or RS... There is at least one piece of information that is wrong with regard to the 12-bolt... "all 70 Z28's had a 12-bolt"... they did not come any other way, there was no such thing as a 10-bolt Z28 in 1970... also they either had the M22 4-gear or a 400 turbo trans.. so the automatic Z28 cars will have evidence of a electric kick-down instead of the cables found on the 350 turbo transmissions.

One thing I can't figure out is the hidden wiper option on the RS... what exactly was the difference between that and regular wipers?


"And I said yes sir brother sherriff, that is your wife on the back of my horse"

My 350, auto 70 1/2 SS had a 12 bolt as well. 1970 was the last year for 12 bolts in Camaros no matter what engine was ordered.

That's correct... no more 12 bolt Camaros after 1970... I know the 12 bolt was an option with the SS... but I don't know for sure what models the 12-bolt was an option for. The suspension package did not require a 12-bolt.

After doing some research with the help of Chuck this is what I’ve come up with for the 70 Camaro:

The Z28 and all SS’s including both the BB and SB got the 12 Bolt.

The Z28 automatically got the F41 suspension package.
If you have a BB SS the F41 package was likely included.

The F41 suspension like the RS Cosmetic option were available for additional cost for all 70 Camaros including the 6 cylinder models.

The RS Option was purely Cosmetic and did not include the F41 handling package unless it was specifically ordered. So if your SB 70 RS/SS that automatically came with a 12 bolt has the F41 package it was ordered as an option along with the RS option and both items would be on the build sheet.

Anyway; I guess, I’ve confirmed my suspicions that the F41 suspension is NOT a reliable feature in determining whether the chassis is a Z28. The only 2 reliable items I know of regarding whether the chassis is a 70 Z28 would be the Floor mounted Gas Pedal and the Aluminum Stopper on the Lower Control Arm which I do not believe was part of the F41 package.

However; I still have reservations that some SB SS's did come with a 10 Bolt as did some of the 69 models.

RON

Thanks for all the info, I really appreciate the help. Going to look at this car over the weekend

If it is a 70 California car the body tag won't tell you anything with regard to whether it's a Z28, SS, or RS... There is at least one piece of information that is wrong with regard to the 12-bolt... "all 70 Z28's had a 12-bolt"... they did not come any other way, there was no such thing as a 10-bolt Z28 in 1970... also they either had the M22 4-gear or a 400 turbo trans.. so the automatic Z28 cars will have evidence of a electric kick-down instead of the cables found on the 350 turbo transmissions.

One thing I can't figure out is the hidden wiper option on the RS... what exactly was the difference between that and regular wipers?


"And I said yes sir brother sherriff, that is your wife on the back of my horse"
I used to own a 1975 Type LT that included the hide-a-way wipers as part of the Type LT option. As far as I could tell the difference was that with regular wipers when you turned them off, they just went down to the bottom of the windshield. You could still see them above the line of the hood. With the hide-a-way when you turned them off, they went down to the bottom of the windshield, stopped, and then moved down even further, where they were not visible above the top line of the hood.

I believe Hide-A-Way Wipers were an additional Option for any model, my 70Z has them. My Dad's 68 CDN Pontiac also had Hide-A-Way Wipers.

70 - 73 rs = hide a way wipers and they were always flat black in color . also could be ordered on any camaro as "C24 hide-away wipers with articulated LH blade". on the non hide-a-way the left and right blades were the same. with the hide-a-way on the drivers side there was an extra arm to pull the wipers down. also with hidden wipers you got the center hood bump stop

I owned a 1970 SS 350 with a 12 blt. 3.73 posi, so I do not subscribe to the “Big Block SS only having 12 blt theory”
The SS and Z28 are both performance packages (i.e. Powertrain, and F41 suspension packages).
RS was an appearance option only and had no bearing on the powertrain or suspension. Although I don’t know who wouldn’t like the look of RS and it definitely brings up the value because it is more sought after.

There are way to many option combinations that could be ordered in 1970 and many more that can also be added to the “Z” options (i.e. Z21, Z22, Z28, etc..). So I believe the key thing to spotting a fake Z-28 is looking for the didn’t just as much as the did options. Also, bolt on stuff is easily transferred from body to body (i.e. gages, Z28 badges, etc..) but the F41 rear sway bar brackets are welded to the rear frame, alum. Spacers under the control arm upper bumper is difficult to come by and the Z28 special perf. gas pedal are not so easily swapped and take more work.

RS and SS:
Both came with hideaway wipers and this is easily identified by; the round wiper motor (round vs. square), one LH articulated arm, and of course the wipers tuck under the hood. RS parts can easily be transferred to base Camaro to make a RS clone; however, most people do not know what options came with an RS and what options didn’t and usually on put on the more obvious stuff (i.e. grills, bumperetts). First I look for Hide-A-Way wipers because this would be time consuming to transfer the wiper transmission and motor over. There is no way to know by the VIN or Cowl tag if the vehicle was equipped with RS option.


Unique to Option packages:
1970 Z21 Style Trim - Body colored insert door handles, bright window, body, sill and hood panel moldings plus bright accented parking lights, taillights and backup lights. (Inc. with RS option).
1970 Z22 Rally Sport - Black painted grilles with Urethane nose, rubber tipped vertical center bar; Independent bumpers vs. 1pc. bumper; license plate bracket mounting location; park lights w/ bright accents mounted on grille panel; Hide-a-Way wipers w/ black-chrome arms and articulated left blade; bright window, hood panel and body sill moldings; body colored door handle inserts; RS emblem steering wheel; Rally Sport frt. fender emblems; bright accented taillights and back-up lights. (RS emblems deleted with SS or Z28 option).
1970 Z23 Accent Group Interior - Additional instrumentation lighting, wood grained accents on IP cluster and steering wheel (Inc. w/ Z87).
1970 Z27 Super Sport - 300-hp 350 eng. and bright accents; pwr brakes, special ornamentation; hood insulation; F70-14 bias belted ply white lettered tires, 14" x 7" wheels; black painted grille; hide-a-way wipers w/ blk chrome finished arms and articulated left blade; SS emblems on steering wheel, fenders, grille and rear deck (avail. w/ V8 only, avail. w/ 4-spd man. or auto transmission only, opt. eng. are L34 350 hp 396 and L78 375 hp 396)
1970 Z28 Special Performance Package
Engine: Special 350 CID, 360-bhp LT-1, Carb by Holley 780-cfm 4-barrel a top high-rise alum. manifold. Chrome dress up kit, larger-cap. rad.
Frt Susp.: Similar to previous Camaro's. Z-28 anti-roll bar 1.0-inch diameter instead of standard 0.6875-inch unit.
Rear Susp.: RPO F-41 special susp. standard, incl. 5-leaf rear springs, 125 lb./in. spring rate, staggered HD shocks, link-type rear
Other Options, equipt., facts: 1pc. low-profile rear spoiler std.; 3 pc. high spoiler (COPO 9796) optional after Apr. 20, 1970; special instrumentation; dual exh.; blk. grille; Z28 emblems on grille, frt. fenders and rear deck lid; rear bumper guards; hood insulation; paint stripes on hood and rear deck, door handle colored accent inserts.
1970 Z87 Custom Interior - Deluxe seat & sidewall trim; glove box light and extra instrument cluster lighting; wood grained accents on instrument cluster, steering whl and door trim panels; luggage compartment mat plus special engine compartment, hood and interior insulation (cloth or vinyl seats).

This stuff is no secret...its on the internet and in books. But the key is research and knowing things most people don't. For example, most "Experts" might be inclined to know Z-28's did not come with A/C and could not be ordered. Which the average person wouldnt know; however, they would not be able to tell you that an RS model has unique rear hood bumpers that no other option did and if you knew the differences than you could even spot a really good fake RS. Likewise, Z-28's w/ TH400 had an extra hole drilled in the firewall next to the steering column break out...bet you gurus never heard those ones before. There is more but I can't give a way all my secrets...

All 1970 Camaro SS both big and smallblock had a 12 bolt as did all 1970 Z/28's. All 1970 Pontiac Formulas including the lowly 350 and all 1970 Trans Ams had a 12 bolt with a rear sway bar. No F body build after 1970 had a 12 bolt.

The RS option was available on all V8 Camaros from 70 thru 73 from the low po 307 with a powergide and one legger all the way up to an L78 4 speed.

Well your question was answered but on a side note ..........

There are no 1/2 a year cars its either a 70 or 71 etc. I know production started late on the 70 because the 69 models got extended. But this is something that will always be around people saying 1/2 yrs.

If someone was born in July 1975, then he or she would say that they were born in 1975. not 1975 1/2.:D