Boise Street Sighting: Chevrolet Camaro

As a car aficionado, I try to steer clear of putting cliched cars on this blog. Part of that cliche criteria includes leaving out--or not shooting-- certain vehicles that are commonplace in damn near every subculture of the automotive hobby. I realize that Camaros and Firebirds are everyman's muscle-car, as is the Ford side with its Mustang and Cougars, and will continue to be so for quite some time, but there are certain versions of every single one of the mentioned cars that tickle my fancy.

Growing up in Kansas, I was inundated with images with third-gen GM F-Bodies slathered with various redneck and/or NASCAR stickers. As I got older, the beater third-generation turned into a beater fourth-generation, and then, slowly but surely, the amount of beater F-Bodies tapered off into near extinction.   Fear not, though, a part of the country exists where ever F-Bodies seem to thrive--not in large numbers, but they thrive nonetheless. Unfortunately, the surviving cars aren't quite what I would call Concours material.

First off, I realize there are a few things that aren't quite "right" with this particular car; I love the color on this one, and I do like the base steel wheels as opposed to the popular Rallye wheels. But those are the only pluses I'll give it.

Upon closer inspection, is this even a legitimate SS? Sure, it has the badges, but they're off-center and tacked in odd places.  Also, the much-loved "SS stripes" are not quite straight either, not to mention their piss-poor condition. Although I realize that the SS package wasn't strictly about power, I don't think I've ever seen a second gen SS with a padded vinyl roof. Shame, really, because honestly I like this application.

I don't recall what the interior looked like, but I can only imagine; the Idaho sun probably cracked the dash to shreds and decades of Bubba driving probably ripped the seat to bits. This poor Camaro definitely deserves more.

I am glad I shot this, because I have not seen it since; or maybe I have seen it because its been restored and I didn't recognize it? Or--worst case here is, it would up in Jalopy Jungle because Bubba didn't know how to fix it mechanically?

Either way, this poor muscle car definitely deserved a better fate than being left out in the sun to dry-rot.