For Fan Car Friday this week we bring you Greg and his beautiful 68′ Chevy Camaro RS.  Fan Car Friday is a segment where we want to share with the world the automobiles that our fans have. We have absolutely no affiliation/relationship with the cars, the build or the owners. This post was made with written consent from the owner.

“After a 4-year search for a first-generation Camaro I was about to give up and start looking a second generation when this car found me. In April of 2015 I received a call on a Sunday morning from my friend Jeff while attending church. After church I listened to his message. He was inquiring about a certain Corvette that he was purchasing for a client. He was asking questions from a Divisional NCRS Judge (Bill). At the end of their conversation Bill asked if he knew anyone who would be interested in purchasing a 1968 Camaro that was just finishing being restored. He immediately thought of me. At first, I didn’t even want to look at the car because it was more than I wanted to spend. My wife was the one who strongly encouraged me to make an appointment to at least look at the car. The car was at Tri Power Automotive in Libertyville, Il receiving the final touches. We went to see the car on Tuesday, inspected on a lift on Wednesday and on Thursday after I drove it, we reached a deal to purchase the car. Turns out that Bill purchased the car from Don in Wonder Lake, Il. Don had found the car in gray primer on the side of the road with a For Sale sign on it in June of 1999. Don did not realize that it was a numbers matching car until disassembly. Don worked on restoring the car along with a 1969 Camaro 396 4 speed. These were going to be his and her cars. The projects stopped in 2003 when Don says that he lost interest. He was working as a mechanic during the day and teaching automotive classes at night. In 2014 he decided to sell both cars. Bill purchased the 68 in November of 2014 and took it to Tri Power Automotive for the final 130 hours of restoration.
Don tried to do some research and came up with the following information. The original owner was a widowed lady in California (not confirmed). There was a second owner in California and the car was then sold at Long Beach Auto Auction and it made its way to Wonder Lake, Il. I along with my wife Becky are the proud current care takers of this beautiful piece of Camaro history.
This Numbers Matching 1968 Camaro was assembled in Van Nuys California on October 6, 1967 and was delivered 20 miles away to Carrell Chevrolet in Newhall, California. It has been restored back to original.
Finished in Matador Red with a white vinyl top it includes a parchment and black custom interior package along with special instruments: amp, temp, oil pressure, fuel and Tick-Tock-Tach. It is powered by a 350 cu. in. 295 HP V8 through a Powerglide transmission, ending with a 3.07:1, non-posi, 12 Bolt rear axle.
Rare options included power windows, air conditioning, power steering, comfort-tilt steering column, power assisted front disc brakes, stereo 8-track w/4 speakers, AM/FM radio and folding rear seat.
The rarest option, the Vigilite Monitoring System (Fiber Optic light monitoring system) was installed in less than 1% of all Camaro’s assembled in 1968.“

The first-generation Chevrolet Camaro appeared in Chevrolet dealerships on September 29, 1966 for the 1967 model year on a brand-new rear wheel drive GM F-body platform and was available as a 2-door, 2+2 seat, hardtop (no “B” or center pillar) or convertible, with the choice of either a straight-6 or V8 engine. The first-generation Camaro was built through the 1969 model year.

Almost all of 1967-1969 Camaros were built in the two U.S. assembly plants: Norwood, Ohio and Van Nuys, California. There were also five non-U.S. Camaro assembly plants in countries that required local assembly and content. These plants were located in the Philippines, Belgium, Switzerland, Venezuela, and Peru.

The styling of the 1968 Camaro was very similar to the 1967 design. With the introduction of Astro Ventilation, a fresh-air-inlet system, the side vent windows were deleted. Side marker lights were added on the front and rear fenders which was a government requirement for all 1968 vehicles. It also had a more pointed front grille and divided rear taillights. The front running lights (on non-RS models) were also changed from circular to oval. The big block SS models received chrome hood inserts that imitated velocity stacks and low-gloss black rear tail light panel.

The rear shock absorber mounting was staggered to resolve wheel hop issues and higher performance models received multi-leaf rear springs instead of single-leaf units. A 396 cu in (6.5 L) producing 350 hp (261 kW) at 5200 rpm and 415 lb⋅ft (563 N⋅m) of torque at 3400 rpm big block engine was added as an option for the SS,[16] and the Z28 appeared in Camaro brochures. The 427 cu in (7.0 L) was not available as a Regular Production Option (RPO). Several dealers, such as Baldwin-Motion, Dana, and Yenko, offered the 427 as a dealer-installed replacement for the factory-supplied 396 cu in (6.5 L) engine.

Chevrolet’s Special Production Division wanted to promote the Z28. They had to convince Chevrolet’s General Manager Pete Estes, but the General Manager only drove convertible vehicles, and the Z/28 was never produced as a convertible. A Central Office Production Order (COPO) was placed for the only Z/28 convertible Camaro ever created. The car was placed in the executive garage which Pete Estes had access to. Upon driving the vehicle, he promptly gave approval for promotion of the Z/28. A 1968 Z/28 famously competed in the 1971 British Saloon Car Championship at Crystal Palace in a three-way battle for the lead, a race which was later featured in the BBC’s “100 Greatest Sporting Moments”.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Camaro_(first_generation)

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