'69 Yenko Nova questions

[copo69]

Were all the cars engine transplants into SS cars? SS or flat hoods correct? I know the red car formerly in the Chandler collection was reported to be a factory installation (although I don't think they had any documentation) and it was restored with a flat hood. Kevin's website says it was the first Yenko 427 Nova in '69. Years ago I had the opportunity to buy the Rally green car recently owned by Dick Bridges. I called Vince Emme who told me this car was the prototype 427 Nova. It got the 427 when the orginal 396 was stolen from the car and was the first one built. Yeah, it was one of those cars ... should've bought but didn't.

[micky69396]

I restored that car after Dick bought it, from what I recall, I think we were told that all of the Novas were supossed to be SS cars, and at the time there wasnt anything to support the red car being a non SS. I also think that out of the 35 all but 7 were transplanted 427 cars the rest were left 396/375. By now somthing must have came to light. If you ever got a chance to see Dicks collection it was one of the best of all muscle car collections with everything being represented. Still is just on a smaller scale.

[Edited by micky69396 (07-12-2000 at 09:15 PM).]

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

The ex-Chandler / Kevin Suydam Yenko Nova supposedly had a COPO box checked on it's broadcast sheet, thereby leading Greg Joseph and Roger Gibson to believe it was a factory 427. I have several broadcast sheet copies from '70 COPO/Yenko Novas, but I haven't found a 'COPO box' on any of them. This was the only information that I heard of that steered the restoration into a non-SS COPO style car. It is also unknown why Gibson installed custom interior panels on a standard interior car, unless the broadcast sheet had a different code. Some Yenko cars received the wrong broadcast sheet, (mine for example). Most believe the car was originally an SS. Some friends and I have spoken with numerous original owners of the '69 Yenko Novas, and they all repeat the same description: SS car, 427 engine, 4 speed, 12 bolt posi, dual exhaust, black interior with bench seat, disc brakes, and XT wheels with little caps and whitewall tires. Some remember just emblems, and some remember emblems and stripes, but they all remember them as Extremely Fast.

As for the first one built; from the info that I have collected, Kevin's car has the lowest VIN #, but Tom Clary's car has the lowest BODY#. This may sound strange that the car with earlier body received a later VIN, but it happened with whole blocks of the '70 Yenko Novas, usually relating to color change. I don't know which number signifies the car's chronological order, any ideas?

The '396 stolen from the car' story is even more interesting. Yenko had a lot of trouble with locals stealing parts from the cars as they sat in a lot, on a hill, that was across a small creek, behind the dealership. They got a dog to roam the lot and keep theives away. One night an engine was stolen from a '69 Nova, (unknown if it was the 396 or a 427), the dog's paw prints were all over the tops of the fenders - apparently amused at all of the activity. A few nights later the dog was gone, never seen again. Theives would row down the creek in a small boat, run up the embankment, cut a hole in the fence and steal stuff. Yenko had a guy (J.Buckels) on an adjacent hill with a shotgun, stuff was still missing - the guy was sleeping most of the night. You have to see the dealership for all of this to really make sense. (Thanks to Donna Mae for her recollections).

Although a lot of this sounds like Yenko Chevrolet was a busy hub of hi-performance activity, when you talk with some of the locals in Canonsburg you find out that they really didn't know what was going on. It was until the cars hit magazines in the '80's that they realized what he was doing. You never know who you will run into, I ran into a guy whose dad owned the tire shop across the street from Yenko Chev. It was always believed that Yenko changed the wheels on the '70 Nova's, but he didn't. Yenko had this guy's dad do it across the street, they called the stacks of XT wheels left over 'the rainbow'. He also remembers having to put tubes in all of the Atlas wheels they installed for Yenko, the aluminum was so poruous they leaked right through. If you ever get the chance, it is really interesting to walk the lots of the old Yenko dealership.

Marlin



[Edited by YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY (07-13-2000 at 08:48 AM).]

[sYc]

Recently I had an opportunity to visit with the person who did much of the COPO paperwork in the late 60s, Jim Mattison. We talked about several things, including the 1969 Novas. He told me that there were 0 factory 427 Novas built. I feel that Jim should know, because not only did he work with Chevrolet in the department that handled the COPO paperwork, but Don Yenko would stay at Jim's house when in town. If Don had received a factory 427 Nova, surely Jim would have known. As for SS cars, who knows? Since the Novas were transplant cars, what would keep Don from putting a 427 in a non SS car. As we all know, if that is what a customer wanted and could pay for it, Yenko would build it. Would not a plain, flat hood Nova be the ultimate sleeper? As per the first one built, ?. A have heard from several sources who quote Vince as saying that my Nova was the first one built. Who knows? Vince? Tom

[JoeC]

It seems unlikely that the Yenko Nova would use a non-SS body since you would get it with the big block engine. The 1969 COPO Chevelles still used the SS hood, grill, trim, and SS rear black painted panel eventhough the SS emblems were deleted. If Yenko started with a small block Nova if would be quite expensive to purchase all the needed parts for a conversion.
Tom - did you ask Jim about the 1968 Yenko 427 Camaros? Years ago he stated, in an interview, that he remembers the MV code COPO Camaro engine as a 427.

[micky69396]

Dick bought the car from Carl Dwiggins. It was restored by Dave Tinell(sp). Carl was selling a bunch of stuff so Dick bought that Nova, a Yenko chevelle which ended up in IL I think, and a 65 425 HP Impala, and I think a couple more cars that he sold off. The Nova had a lot of problems so he wanted it totally done over. We did not paint it but it was totally taken apart and redone. That was a long time ago and from what I recall everything was just like a 375 HP car. I dont think they were factory installed 427's unlike the Chevelles or Camaros, there is no special rear end #. I wish I would have taken more shots of that car, but I dont have much. It is on my site on the past projects page.

[copo69]

I found the car in '83 or '84 in Ohio. Car was kind of rough but restoreable. It had a 512 '66 motor, no interior, needed some sheet metal repair,all trim was gone or unuseable and had been "rode hard and put up wet". I also don't care for Rally green. I was really looking for a 427 Camaro and knew if I bought this car I'd have to put the Camaro on the back burner. I called Vince Emme with the vin and he told me the story about it being the first car and was built due to it's motor being stolen. When I decided to pass I called Carl Dwiggins and told him about the car and he bought it. I knew Dave Tenille restored the car and Dick Bridges later bought it. Only saw it 1 time briefly after Dave did the car until it surfaced on display at Floyd Garrett's. What did you have to change on the car? Anyway, I found my COPO Camaro a few months later. I should've bought the Nova though, as well as a lot of other cars, but you know hindsight is 20/20.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Micky:
As you are one of the few that has had the opportunity to restore one of the '69 Yenko Novas, do you have any specific info regarding them that you can share? Anything different or unique on this car versus other big block Novas? Special rear code? Special trim tag codes? Do you know what dealership / history of the Dick Bridges car? How did Dick acquire it / why did COPO69 pass on it?
Marlin

[sYc]

I first met Jim Mattison several years ago at the US Camaro Nats in Pigeon Forge, Tn. We visited for several hours, mainly about Yenkos/COPOS. Following this visit, I cantacted MCR magazine concerning some of the information Jim told me. It was then that MCR did their article with Jim on the COPO cars. Here are a few things that he told me. That 1969 COPO cars would not have been heater delete, as goverment (US only ?) mandates required all cars to have a windshield defroster. That there were a few, around 50, 1968 Camaros that were equiped with a factory 427. He mentioned the 1968 Yenko Camaro at the show (Kory Smith's) as being one of these cars. But Brian Henderson, who restored Kory's car, has information that leads to a different conclusion. The most interesting thing that Jim and I talked about was the number of 1969 Yenko Camaros. Jim feels that there were more then 198 but less then 500 of the cars built. Hopefully some day "original" paperwork will surface that will answer some/or all of these and other COPO questions. Tom

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Sounds like the typical 'Tinnell' restoration, pretty paint but....I guess there wasn't much info to rely on back then. Tinnell says in one article that "the car still had it's original paint and stripes" (?) "Rust was not a problem, but the wheel wells were cut out for slicks". Were there no stripes on the hood when found? They were not put on after the restoration. This car also had power steering according to the article. This is the only one with p/s that I have heard of, are there more? I have always wondered about the custom seat covers, Yenko Deuce door panel stickers, rallyes, fender antenna, headlight bezels ect. on this car. Did you change any of these things?

I am sure Reggie Jackson is pretty happy with it now though, it makes a good partner for his '73 Nickey Nova.

Does anyone know where this car was originally out of? Did Vince release the dealership on record? What part of Ohio? I know that there were several Ohio dealers in the Yenko Network.

Thanks for the background info,
Marlin