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1989 Chevelle Report article.
CLICK HERE! |
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The Protect-O-Plate (left and above) was stamped at the Baltimore plant as the car was built with the 327. It was issued by Chevrolet Engineering immediately upon arrival in Warren, Michigan to Alfred Laskowski. It is likely he was a Chevrolet employee as the car was not sold on the 21st of December, 1964 before it was converted. The Vehicle Assignment List reference number of 56091 is written on the cover of the Warranty Book as are several other unidentified numbers. This number is also written inside the trunk lid! |
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This is the only known official Chevrolet Engineering record (above) of the two Z16, Baltimore built prototypes. Clearly shown is the VIN of the #1 car. Also shown is the other Baltimore pre-production Z16. The “B” in the VIN indicates the Baltimore assembly plant. The 2nd prototype car is not believed to have survived and it’s VIN has been altered on the document shown to keep dishonest souls from building a fake.
Note that the executive assigned is Don McPherson, well known Chevrolet engineer. He is reported to have driven the car during it’s extensive testing and evaluation.
The date of this Vehicle Assignment List of October 29, 1965 indicates the #1 Z16 was assigned to the Garage at the Chevrolet Engineering Tech Center as of this date. It is possible that this #1 car was one of the 5 Z16’s at Chevrolet’s Desert Proving Grounds (DPG in the location column above for other cars) in February or March of 1965. It was at the DPG that Chevrolet General Manager Semon “Bunkie” Knudson introduced the new Z16 to select motoring press. Included was Mechanix Illustrated’s Tom Cahill. Cahill wrote an article on the Z16 in Mechanix Illustrated’s May, 1965 issue. Given copy lead times, only the Prototype cars and the early production Z16s could likely have been available at that early date. It is hoped a Vehicle Assignment List will turn up from earlier in the year and confirm this probability.
Update, January, 2006: Mr. Tim Hunke was the original owner of the #1 Z16. He bought it from Chevrolet Engineering in February, 1966. See his story here. |
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#1 Z16 Documentation
If special, sample parts aren’t convincing enough, how about some fantastic factory documentation?! Or confirmation that it is indeed the first Z16 by some of the most respected Chevelle and Z16 historians?!
The #1 Prototype Z16 is listed on the Chevrolet Engineering Vehicle Assignment List dated October 29, 1965. This Vehicle Assignment List was furnished from microfilm by Chevrolet. The original Protect-O-Plate and Warranty Book have the information of the car as built in Baltimore prior to the conversion by Chevrolet Engineering and it was issued by Engineering. Ownership history is known and research to contact more previous owners is ongoing. Photographs of the car prior to restoration prove its pedigree.
It is important to note that this car was built the 3rd week of December, 1964 at the Baltimore plant. All other production Z16s were built in Kansas City beginning in late February. It is common knowledge that only the two cars listed below were built as Z16s prior to the production run. They obviously predate the body builds of the Kansas City cars by two months. The #1 car was assigned an earlier reference number (56091 in the far left column below) and had a lower VIN than the number two car (56095). This second pilot car is not known to survive.
Noted Z16 experts Mark Meekins, Doug Garrett and Chris Daniels all studied the car extensively before restoration and have indicated there is no question it is the first Z16 Chevelle built! |
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At right are Mark Meekins thoughts on the #1 Z16. While the NCOA is no longer active, Mark educated many on Chevelles and Z16s in the ‘80’s and ‘90’s. He did a great article on the #1 Z16 immediately after it’s restoration in 1989. The car has been known and accepted by all who are schooled in Chevelles for 15 plus years. |