Hello,

Kind of strange...Chevrolet built over 20k of these things and only 3k of these cars came with a cowl induction hood. Wonder why you never see 69 Z's with flat hoods? It's funny to look at all of the $50k-$200k Z's that are for sale and will say "restored to 100% original" or "all original"...But they ALL have the Cowl hoods. Sure, you may see a few out there. But I am talking about 95% at least all have Cowl hoods now. Its also strange how some of us will buy certain bolts with the correct letters and such. But what about that original hood? Is this something that folks are over looking when trying to be 100% correct?

Reason I bring this up is because I do own a true survivor Z28 with a flat hood. I hated the hood at first and really wanted the cool looking and functional cowl hood. A matter of fact, the cowl hoods with the 302 emblem has been one of my favorite things about these cars visually for years. But what is humorous is the first compliment I get at local car shows is "nice job on keeping the original flat hood"...
Now since these cars are mostly restored with the cowl hoods I am beginning to respect these cars with with plain jane hoods. Funny, they are becoming more rare I guess...

By the way I am not bagging on the Z's with cowl hoods. I am just bringing up what I think is interesting.


Thanks,

I agree. When I purchased my car back in 1982 it had a cowl hood on it. While taking it apart for restoration, many years later, I found the build sheet and per the build sheet I found out it came with a flat hood. I sold the GM cowl hood the previous owner installed to a local restoration shop for decent $ and purchased a flat hood. I'm like you that I loved the cowl hood at first, but now I really like the look of the flat hood. Maybe it's just being different than most of the Z28's out there. It's all preference though, they both look nice on any Camaro.

Mine has the original flat hood and no spoilers and I'm going to leave it that way.

I must admit I like the cowl hood/spoiler look better........

Doug, I've got a flat hood X33 car. Debating on cowl versus flat. Everyone tells me go with the cowl, but flat is what she had at birth,so the purist in me might win out after all. Also, now I need a 302 pulley as well! As I'm sure you know, they are going for some crazy $!

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b339/belairbobs/larson180x80sm.gif

My car is an original RS/Z28...and it came with a cowl hood...as a matter of fact, it still has that original hood on it. I don't have the paper work to prove it, but I took possession of the car around 84 or 85 and was familiar with it 5-6 years before that...and it still has many of the actual cowl induction parts on the firewall. Most of the parts were stripped out of the hood, but some of them were left on the firewall.

I guess this would have been something to brag about at one time, but now there are so many Z's out there with cowl hoods...everyone thinks they came with them.

The flat hoods have grown on me too, but I will keep my cowl hood, just because it left the factory that way.

Doug, I've got a flat hood X33 car. Debating on cowl versus flat. Everyone tells me go with the cowl, but flat is what she had at birth,so the purist in me might win out after all. Also, now I need a 302 pulley as well! As I'm sure you know, they are going for some crazy $!


Bob,
Seems we both have the same "originality" disease. :o

Yes, I did just recently pay a good chunk of change for an original smog pump pulley. I'm glad I finally found one. I have a repro that was sold to me as an original (still trying to get over that one) that needs a new home now.
Doug

http://www.camaros.net/showroom/data/500/DSC00092.JPG

Hello Bob and Doug. See where I stand. I have it waiting for the paint job.:thumbsup:

Yep, that pic sure says it all... cowl hood installed with the flat version in the background! :hurray:

So Gary, are you removing the cowl hood and going back to the flat?

Doug

WOW, there are some flat hood folks out there.

Not to change the subject....but what the heck. I am going to a stinger hood on my 67. I had flat hood for years, went to a GM cowl and sold it for good $$$ now going stinger. One thing that's cool with the first gens is you can swap out hoods for a totaly different look, that all look great.

INstresting note about the Z's and flat hoods. Not owning one I never think about them not having one. In fact I saw one not long ago with no spoilers also and did a double take. It was nice driver type car, pretty much all orginal witha build sheet displayed and original paperwork when it was bought. I belive the owner was the original owner. He was Shreveport. I saw it at our small local show last month. Never seen here before and I live in a small town. Maybe he will be back next year.

Hello,

It's funny to look at all of the $50k-$200k Z's that are for sale and will say "restored to 100% original" or "all original"...But they ALL have the Cowl hoods.


And console guages!

And console guages!


That's funny you said that. I was about to add that in my original topic.

But really, isnt it funny how owners get crazy with the correct nuts and bolts but
they may not even have the correct console/guages or hood....To me having the correct main parts are much more important than a GM hose for example.

I was at big show in Dallas a few weeks back. Low and behold every Z I looked at was optioned like a Cadilac. Then you talk to the owner and they are showing you pictures of the car in a gillion pieces behind a barn somewhere. Then they say, yip all original. Maybe they are??

Ya know I do not care if someones car is original or not. But it would be nice for a owner to say. Yes I had her restored the way I wanted with all of the goodies I like. Oh well....this is what makes the hobby interesting.

So Gary, are you removing the cowl hood and going back to the flat?

Doug

Yes I am. I like the flat hood spoiler look. :thumbsup:

I don't know if I told you Doug, but the spoiler is original to the car. It has the heavy spring that has blue over spray. The subframe did not have a hole for the front spoiler bracket, but I am very sure the front clip and subframe were changed out due to a wreck. That is because the front light harness did not have the correct wire for the ammeter (voltmeter) in the console. They just used the wire harness on the clip.

I was at big show in Dallas a few weeks back. Low and behold every Z I looked at was optioned like a Cadilac.

How true. To the best of my knowledge my car was ordered as a plain Jane, no frills X77.

M20
Manual Steering
Console, no gauges (Now has owner installed Auotmeter plate w/Guages)
No Tach (Now has owner installed column mounted)
No Cowl Hood (Now has cowl hood (Too early - Nov 68 - to have one) but was the car when I bought it)
No rear spoiler (Now has rear spoiler - Had one when I bought it, but I don't have the two different sized torsion bars to confirm "factory" installed spoiler)
Standard black interior

satz28,

Sounds like you have a really cool Z. Do you have any pictures. I love the ones that are pure like that.
They are so hard to find these days as we discussed....

One more spark to the fire - chambered exhaust. Go to Autabuy.com and check out the Z's for sell.
They are ALL rare with soooo many "original" options. LOL!!!!!:sad:

Was the cowl hood an option on the Z, or did it come through with them as standard equipment? Reason I ask is that the cowl hood didn't show up until the ZL1 in December of '68. Every Z made from there on out could have had one. Guess I'm looking for a little more schooling on them....

My Z is similar to Robs....its a 10C car; pretty early '69. It came through with no console gauges, no tach, and a flat hood. It has a spoiler, but don't know if it was factory or not. It's a '68 "shorty" spoiler to boot...

Only 3k out 20k came with the optional hood. But like all of the post say most everyone has the cowl hood on their Z's.....

The reason that there so many have been modified (and cloned) is simple - The 69 Camaro with cowl hood, spoilers, and Z28 stripes is one of the best looking muscle car designs ever (IMO). :thumbsup:

Of course, now that I'm getting older (I mean been around a while...) I too have learned to appreciate the originality of the cars that were originally flat hood, spoiler delete, etc.

Well, on my 69 coupe car...I decided to add front and rear spoilers. It looked great, so next was a cowl induction hood. When I painted the car, I added the 'Z stripes'. I never once even thought about adding any Z emblems, because it's not a Z. It takes one quick glance through the windshield at the vin to see that ;) I look at old pics of my car sitting in the driveway with the rotted out vinyl top and spoke wire rims and laugh to myself how great it looks now compared to then. People add stuff to their cars because the General did such a great job back then!!
Dano:)

Flat hood and no spoilers. Just like it left the factory in October of 68. I have to admit that I love the looks of the spoilers on the Z but I just couldn't do it.
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0205.jpg

Oh, before you guys get all over me, I had a headache the day I put the grill emblem on. It's fixed now! :clonk:

Only 3k out 20k came with the optional hood. But like all of the post say most everyone has the cowl hood on their Z's.....

Actually there are no hard numbers on how many Z/28's came with the ZL2 option. Per CRG there were 10,026 cars shipped with that option. That would be 10,026 out of 56,300 total eligible cars (Z/28 or SS) or about 18%.:beers:

Hmmm, everything I have read shows around 3k Z's with the cowl hood. Not sure about SS's and the others. Plus a lot of the guys that grew up with these cars that I have talked to have said they hardly ever saw these with cowl hoods back in the day. But we all sure see them now! It is a documented option......But who knows.....

I am a big 442 fan too. Same thing! You see more 1970 442's around with hood scoops than you do anything else....

travlinz28,

Do you have any more pictures of your car? That thing is incredible!
I sure wish mine was yellow.

Thanks to Jeff in Hawaii I finally worked my way through Photobucket. Here you go WAC.

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0206.jpghttp://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0207.jpghttp://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0208.jpg

Engine.http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0208.jpg

Interior - All original except carpet and NOS package tray.

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o230/travlinz28/100_0207.jpg

Very nice, Gregg :thumbsup:

Should the "57" on the firewall be "76"? :D

I have a flat hood Z in the shop now. Cowl induction was never a consideration, but it does have a D80 tag, so it has spoilers.

For the ZL2 figures, remember that they were standard on the COPOs and PCs, so you can rule out quite a few there.

I have a picture the original owner took of the engine compartment in 1970 and it looks like a 57. The picture is also the reason the overspray of yellow laps down on the firewall. If anyone can shed some light on the number on the firewall I'd love to hear it. I have seen different things there.

Usually, a 2 number code there is for color. 57 would be fathom green. Most often, firewall writing is either color or RPO codes. But like you said, there are many unexplained variations.

The body color overspray would be correct.

And before we get replies: Yes, most all firewall chalk was under the black firewall paint :)

travlinz28,

Beautiful car. Is it a Van Nuys or Norwood build?

Doug

My Zs got a GM cowl hood on it, But at 11D it can't be right. When it gets shot next month I'm putting a flat one back on it. Can't decide whether to paint both , sell the cowl, or put it away. I actually wish it was a non-spoiler car too, but it has the big spring, so...W.A.C., I'd take LeMans blue over yellow any day! Of course I'm dying to find a Burnished Brown Camaro,so....

Doug,

It's a Norwood car.

Here is my good ole original plain jane flat hood....

http://www.camaros.net/forums/profile.php?do=editprofilepic

Nice pic! Where have I seen that car before? Hmmm....:thumbsup:

It is the picture in my profile!

http://www.camaros.net/forums/profile.php?do=editprofilepic

Its in mine too! I sold the car about 18 months ago....

like mine or mine?

W.A.C.: Your earlier link was bad, just sent everyone to their own profile.

W.A.C.: Your earlier link was bad, just sent everyone to their own profile.

That's great. I wondered how he got my picture!:clonk: