COPO Camaros

[Pro Stock]

Check this out


Posted in News

• Email
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Print

Chevy Dealers Building Their Own New COPO Camaros

by Robert Kibbe on December 29, 2010

0Comments



You can't get an LS9 in a new Camaro from GM, but that's not stopping new car dealers! This one is called The Storm and is built by NeSmith Chevrolet in Georgia. Image: GMPP

We all know the stories from the legendary COPO days of the 1960’s. Chevy dealers like Yenko, Baldwin, and Nickey were ordering up new Camaros, Nova’s, and Chevelles from GM directly with 427s via the COPO (Central Office Production Order) Program, branding the cars with their own paint schemes and trim, and then selling them as dealer super cars. The COPO program was a backdoor route to get motors from the factory installed that were not on the factory option sheet.
"The Storm" Camaro from NeSmith Chevrolet with a Corvette ZR1 LS9.

Fast forward to today, and though the COPO program is long gone, dealer built “Super Camaros” are not! With new Camaros still selling like hotcakes a few dealers have decided to take a page out of an old book in building their own black label version of the Camaro, but this time they can’t order the hot engine direct from GM in the car.
They can, however, order up everything they wish from GM Performance Parts and build the hopped up Camaro themselves! Two such examples are the “The Storm” Camaro by NeSmith Chevrolet in Georgia, and the HTR-SS454 Camaro built by DeNooyer Chevrolet in New York with Redline Motorsports. Both cars feature something under the hood from GMPP that is not the factory LS3, and both cars are actually featured on the cover the the new GMPP catalog!
The HT-SS454 from DeNooyer Chevrolet with a GMPP LSX454.

The Storm Camaro from NeSmith features the supercharged Corvette ZR1 LS9. It cranks out nearly 700 horsepower (62 more than in stock ZR1 trim) and retains it’s dry sump oiling system. The extra power requires that the Camaro have higher strength axles, a tougher transmission, and huge six piston Bear brake calipers all the way around. The HTR-SS454 uses GM’s LSX454 engine and features fuel injection instead of carbs and LS7 cylinder heads. The combination cranks out 620 horsepower and 590 ft-lb of torque, and NeSmith added a Corvette ZR1 clutch, taller rear axle, and a few other pieces to handle the extra power. They also have a “weaker” LS7 powered Camaro called the HTR-600 with 600 horsepower.
So, when it’s all said and done, the COPO days may be over but the net result is the same; we get the option of something hotter from the dealer than stock, and are perhaps driving something that people will one day drool over the thought of owning in their collection. Well, more than they’re drooling now, that is!
The HT-SS454 from DeNooyer Chevrolet with a GMPP LSX454.





Advertisement

[Derek69SS]

Cool stuff, but that is one UGLY paintjob on that orange one!

[Mr.VENGEANCE]

thats a paintjob?.. i figure you can get that paintjob at a sign shop.

[Derek69SS]

probably is vinyl, but either way, it's really damn ugly.

[strtlegal]

They should have put those strippy model black wheels on it..Of course ground effects and stripes are what sell's I guess..

[JEFFTATE]

I like these.
The stripes aren't so bad .

I wish my dealership would do some COPO's .

[Pro Stock]

Nobody ever complained that the original COPO's where plain jane white and came with "Dog Dish" hubcaps as recieved by the dealer, I would think that you would be able to find a paint scheme that you would like, the black one looks awesome and 700hp with 6 piston Baer brakes and the other upgrades sounds good to me.


Dale

[vintageracer]

I wonder what, if any, product liability insurance thoughts these dealer converters have considered about the new HP/performance levels with the installation of a LS9 in a Camaro since they will be selling the car as a new/modified car. Included in the purchase price for a ZR1 is a driving school class to learn how to properly drive the car. Obvouisly GM has concerns over this issue. No matter how many release of liability forms you sign it is usually pretty easy to invalidate that and then the dealer/converter may have real problems to deal with concerning their new "halo" car!

If I were a greedy scum sucking lawyer I might just advertise for a client who was injured by their modified LS9 Camaro and sue everybody I could for my injuries and see where the chips fall.

Sounds like a great lawyer opportunity!

[mc84_zz4]

That orange one is only missing the cowl stripe to have all 3 stripe styles.
WTH? more stripes = more car?
The black one looks normal.
Glad to see some dealers putting the power in them, but they should avoid the cosmetic junk - IMO.

[SLO_Z28]

These cars are not COPO. They are very far from it. The last COPO car to come out was in 2002. This is no different than say the Fesler "Black Edition" camaros.

The guy I mentored had the very last COPO car made. It was a phase 3 2002 ZL1 camaro with the C5R engine, 6 speed, 4.10's , exhaust cout outs, and Penske double adjustable shocks. It had corvette brakes and several other vette pieces on it. It left the factory this way and made a tad over 700hp at the wheels with the cut outs. He paid close to $100,000 for it. It did mid 10's at Sacramento raceway(a terrible track). All this is was directly from the factory not from a dealer.

The owner died shortly after I quit working for there, and the car is sitting in a garage in the hills near valley springs. I would try and buy it but I couldnt even dream of paying $150,000 for a car like that.

[EFI69Cam]

These cars are not COPO. They are very far from it. The last COPO car to come out was in 2002. This is no different than say the Fesler "Black Edition" camaros.

The guy I mentored had the very last COPO car made. It was a phase 3 2002 ZL1 camaro with the C5R engine, 6 speed, 4.10's , exhaust cout outs, and Penske double adjustable shocks. It had corvette brakes and several other vette pieces on it. It left the factory this way and made a tad over 700hp at the wheels with the cut outs. He paid close to $100,000 for it. It did mid 10's at Sacramento raceway(a terrible track). All this is was directly from the factory not from a dealer.

The owner died shortly after I quit working for there, and the car is sitting in a garage in the hills near valley springs. I would try and buy it but I couldnt even dream of paying $150,000 for a car like that.

Those cars where buit by GMMG for the dealers that sold them. They left GM with LS1s in them.