How many SS's did they build anyway?

ThunderCougarFalconGoat said:

In reply to crankwalk :

Then they could have had TWO mustang gts...

Exactly.

Shelby 350s even.

I've been trying to figure out for a long time why every '69 Camaro drag car has a Z28 badge in the grill.

Wasn't there a fairly high profile spat several years ago between two Ferrari owners who had the same VIN/chassis number on two multi-million dollar classics?  The original race car was crashed in the 60s, sat in a warehouse for years before eventually somehow ending up in two pieces which were both restored when Ferrari prices took off in the 80s?  Or am I remembering an urban legend?

In reply to Schmidlap :

I know nothing of this story but it sounds just unreasonable enough to have happened.

nutherjrfan said:

Better still how many Yenkos?  But I digress.  I was hoping this was about the mid 90s Impalas.  Always liked the look.  I wonder how spendy those have got? 

Prices not so hot anymore.  It's not the "last of" anything anymore so people aren't as willing to throw money around. At one point it was big to clone them as well, and the way to tell, besides rear track width because nobody bothered swapping in the wider impala axle, is the WX3 code on your rpo sticker.

i'm not putting ss badging on the chevelle because it's a base model malibu.  

In reply to Schmidlap :

I think that one is still going on. 

In reply to Schmidlap/Cotton:

Ferrari P3/4 chassis 0486 I think you're referring to? It's an interesting read.

Schmidlap said:

Wasn't there a fairly high profile spat several years ago between two Ferrari owners who had the same VIN/chassis number on two multi-million dollar classics?  The original race car was crashed in the 60s, sat in a warehouse for years before eventually somehow ending up in two pieces which were both restored when Ferrari prices took off in the 80s?  Or am I remembering an urban legend?

I don't know about that particular story, but there are Ferrari serial numbers with two or even three cars attached to them, and all vehicles are considered legitimate.

Meanwhile, thanks to the exploding restoration industry, you can build a new 1969 Camaro entirely from aftermarket parts except for the VIN, which you must source from an existing car.

If you want fun, you can find things like rare/valuable firewalls with title on eBay for $10000+.  Want a genuine 427 Vette VIN?

stuart in mn said:

dropstep said:

Im all for modding your car, but dont claim its a true gt/shelby/ss/yenko etc. Be proud of what you actually own/built?

My thoughts as well.  I don't have a problem with building a clone, just don't try to pass it off (or more importantly, try to sell it) as the real deal.

A lot of buyers just don't know, they don't do the research.
 

A lot of the cars I see ARE clones.  That '70 Road Runner started life as a 318-powered GTX.  That '69 Judge started life as a Tempest.  A large percentage of the Grand Nationals I see are reshelled Regals.

What is interesting is that, in the US, the VIN is permanent to the chassis.  In some other countries, if you transfer the majority of parts over to a new chassis, you can transfer the VIN as well.  The tub is treated as a replaceable part.

If I have an '87 Regal that I strip to the bone, install everything from a Grand National, is it a clone or is it a GN with a new shell?

Bear in mind, in some OTHER countries, the VIN is attached to the chassis and engine.  If the engine goes bad, you can't legally replace it.  We accept engine swaps as common in the US, not just for performance upgrades but also for basic repair.  (How many shops refuse to do internal engine work, and just swap in a junkyard or reman engine?)   In those countries, if the original engine is gone, the car doesn't exist.  Here, purists would grumble about not being "numbers matching" but that's about it.

So what I am seeing here is a perception issue regarding "clones", we're just culturally conditioned to believe that the shell IS the car.

In reply to Knurled :

Option 1, buy an original VIN. Option 2, if legal in your area, skip the vin, register it as a "Kit Car" under the SEMA rule. It won't be "Original", but neither is anything on the car. 

I'm thinking a Dynacorn '69 Firebird convertible, a C6 chassis, and an LS crate engine, maybe the supercharged Edelbrock. 

I recall the one (and only) time I saw a 1970 AAR 'Cuda at a car show.  I started looking it over and it looked legit.  It was a clone and I as non-expert would never had know if the owner wasn't honest and put "clone" on his sign.  It's gotten so bad that I mostly assume everything I see are clones or reproductions at local shows.  It's especially bad with Shelby Mustangs...

Of course Shelby COBRAS are a whole nother can of worms.  Anyone know the ratio of kits to real Cobras?  1000:1? 10000:1?  As far as I know I have only ever seen one single genuine Shelby 289 Cobra at a car show, but Cobra kit cars are so ubiquitous that I basically give them a pass at this point.  The muscle car fakes though, that's just irritating.

RE: the vin sharing Ferraris: That is definitley not an urban legend and the lines between genuine and fake become really blurry in that world.  I know of at least one Ferrari I've read about where the "real one" with the original vin is mostly reproduction parts, but it's sister car without the vin is comprised of most of the original parts.  Yet another lost it's gorgeous 1950s period PF coupe body to be returned to "original" with a reproduction spyder body.  There are sooo many examples...  Then there is the issue with the extra 250 GTOs and Daytona Spyders... 

I probably could have put this in the minor rant thread because I feel irritated and am probably just ranting at this point. 

Cobra kits have to be the easiest thing to ID because most of them are 427 replicas with a small block. 

This also reminds me of the quote "there are more 1969 Z/28's today than rolled off the assembly line"

Now this tread makes me want a 96 Impala SS.

Appleseed said:

Now this tread makes me want a 96 Impala SS.

This thread makes me want a 96 Caprice with SS wheels and grill 

My Grand Caravan has Hellcat badges------it's a totally rare model....one of one!   

I don't mind "clones" as long as they are represented as such.  What bothers me is the 67 notchback Mustang that some yahoo painted stripes on, and is now calling it a "Shelby".    I'm also not a fan of when folks call the  "Eleanor" Mustang in the Nick Cage "Gone in 60 Seconds" movie a "Shelby Mustang".   No....it's not.  It's a Fastback Mustang Resto-mod.   There is no historical significance to that car, besides being in a movie.  

johndej said:

In reply to Schmidlap/Cotton:

Ferrari P3/4 chassis 0486 I think you're referring to? It's an interesting read.

0846,  but yeah that's the one.  The thread on ferrarichat is 413 pages long.  Crazy!

Cotton said:

johndej said:

In reply to Schmidlap/Cotton:

Ferrari P3/4 chassis 0486 I think you're referring to? It's an interesting read.

0846,  but yeah that's the one.  The thread on ferrarichat is 413 pages long.  Crazy!

I bet that thread warps spacetime with its accumulation of pretentiousness.

Whats interesting is how many people think that the Nick Cage "Elanor" is what a GT500 looks like. When in reality thats not even what an Elanor looks like.

In reply to johndej :

Yup, I think that's the one.  Thanks!