I love them both so much, I don't care who wins. I've owned a 440. They are absolute monsters...and I've owned a Chevelle. The 440 was a 1967 version. The Chevelle was a 71 SS 454. I only wish I could have had them both at the same time as to settle the debate within myself as to which was faster/quicker. Better yet, I wish I still had them both now. Oh well. I have wished in one hand but I'm not shittin' in the other.
*Cars And Zebra's* They can both beat eachother,but when the times and rules roll into tact it's do or die for each one!! every round has a different winner with these 2 brother!! I want tovtell you something,my 1979 Chevy Camaro Z28 4 speed 3:73 alluminum trac rear end car can blow that Plymouth and Chevy away running easily 11's,it's only got a 170hp 350 v8 bone stock!!...Borgwarner T10 trans i believe!!...4 speed rare option for 79 Camaro's!! 3"73 to make it fast!!...And do you know why i just you this,because yiu're sitting there *chuckling* 🤣🤣🤣🤣 knowing i'm full of shit about my own car!! *chuckles* 🤣🤣🤣🤣 bullshit talks funny anytime there my friend!! My Camaro's an 8 second 0 to 60 16 second quarter mile car!! Great power and speed in 79!! But oh sh*t brother look what era these cars are in,that's right no emission high compression gas blowing machines!! The 79 Camaro really didn't save gas in it's low compression weakear air intake performance,it was much slower than a 69 350 while using like 11mpg it just put more stress on the motor to get it to go fast at it's best!! High emission cars used as much gas lost performance but had more stress in redline if you go out and rev it everyday!! The only real life term difference between the 2 era 350's is ones more powerful one's bone stick!! Input and performance are apples and oranges on a 69 Camaro than a 79!! I just love my 1979 because it has a havier chassis,solid body fenders,and i think it's just a better looking Camaro than 69!! But 69 and 67 were my favorites from tue 60's!! 67 il'd say in the 60's looked a littoe better,69 was more aerodynamic than fir big blocks because it was wide and heavier!! Than 67 was!! Window poppers on a 67 kicked my teeth in,i loved that early 60's window popper look!! Only problem is when they became hard to open anymore,that sucked if they got stuck!! You know what i mean!? 😁😁😁
interestingly, the RR won our of the 2 races regardless. pretty obvious the Chevelle had more beans than the RR but that particular car is a little slow compared to what ive seen before out of those cars. Bob K's car is significantly faster.
Very nice matchup! Im a Mopar man all the way, that COPO Chevelle with the 427 was super fast! But the 440 six barrel in the roadrunner is no slouch either! Both cars are amazing and love this style of drag racing, thanks for another crazy race CAZ!!! 👍
Great matchup of two pretty rare and top dog muscle cars from back in the day. Having either of these cars back in the day would have made you king of your local streets. Based on the fairly inconsistent ET’s it is apparent that launching those high torque beasts on skinny street tires was a handful.
Red light or not, the Chevy gapped the MOPAR pretty far on both runs. Great to see these rare muscle monsters from the 60s going head to head. I’m 73 years old, and used to see this kind of match up both on the street and the strip on a regular basis. GREAT MEMORIES !
L-72 was still the beast over the other beast 426 Hemi. Grew up 15 miles from YENKO CHEVROLET. Was fortunate to see these wicked cars street racing in the rural outskirts of Pittsburgh.Don Yenko started the out the door factory cars under gm horsepower gremlins noses with much help from vince pigins. Berger,Dick Harrel and Motion followed suit.Awesome history
Strictly talking appearances, it's either 67 or 71 imo. The 71 was the best looking to me with the single headlights and the twin round taillights. All Chevelles should have had those tail lights...they screamed CHEVROLET.
@@chevyblue10 Then you should like the 72 Chevelle also, it's identical to the 71 Models, besides Lower Power Numbers, due to tighten emissions regulations.
One of my best friends of 54 years, bought a 1969 Road Runner in 1975, It had a 383 Magnum with a 4 speed Muncie transmission with 4:11 rear gears, we raced another friend who had 1969 Super Bee with the same engine, and it was dead even in the first 3 gears, then my friends Road Runner pulled away in fourth gear, In 1985, I bought a 1969 Chevelle SS 396 rated at 350 HP then I had a Drag Racer build the Engine, and It was putting out about 475 HP, Man, those were some great days, I'd give anything to have those cars today.
Tight, tight, racing! I have to say, the condition of those two cars - it’s like it’s 1969. The paint on the WHEELS of the Road Runner was perfect, let alone the rest of the car. Same condition for the Chevelle. Either of these could be mistaken for trailered cars. Thank you - as always. 🌮 🌮
I have a 66 all original gold Charger 383 4 727. I drive her hard sometimes but I think she likes it. Hey, I'm not going to live forever. Thanks for the videos.
Love the Roadrunners. I had a '68 swapped 440, 830 holley, 10.5:1 compression, 4:10 rearend, torqueflite 3 spd automatic. Bought it off a used car lot in 1972 for $1472.00 . The oil crisis hit in 1973 so I traded it for a motorcycle and a Ford Mustang 302. If I only had a time machine.
Another entertaining race. Both are so cool. I would love a Road Runner, but my bank account say's hell no. Back in the seventies when I was in high school, many of my classmates drove Chevelle's and Road Runner's. My transportation to school was bad. It was long and piss yellow and carried the Partridge family and all their musical instrument's...*sigh*
That's a great match up and it looks like it ultimately came down to reaction time and beating the red light. My guess is both of these cars are fairly "pure stock" as they both would be easy 11 or even high 10 second cars with just a few F.A.S.T. mods. This Mopar guy gives props to any COPO 427 car; they are not to be taken lightly.
A specific muscle car doesn't have to be your favorite one,but they were all amazing machines with a difference from eachother,but you should respect them all!!
My dad back in 74 had a 69 road runner 383 , headers ,cut outs, marine head with 2, 750 holley double pumpers, air ride ..cam from a 70 hemi , 4 spd , mickeys all around ... his brother had a super bee hemi ... an he would smoke it all day long ... have pics of his front tires coming about ft off the ground off the start ... was a fast car...he had a big family ..his other brothers had a 70 camaro an one had a 68 gto .. couldnt come close ...this thing was a frickin machine .. he had a buddy that cam close he had a duster done up .. but still half car all day long.... dont make em like that anymore or ever againlol
My assumption is the 6bbl might win,but a COPO with a 433 rear end might still get him!! 4:33 is a clean launch with not much gas,once you reach 35 to 40 punch it!! it moght give him enough of a head start!! But that 6bbl was Maopar's king of the strip and with a 410 they were road ripping until their top speeds,high compression,hungry 2bbl carbs,not very heavy engine either for it's size!! 440 lighter than a Hemi!!
Wow, you see the most incredible cars here. In action! I believe the chevelle was obviously the quicker car here. GAWD I love seeing these cars battling it out as if it was 69 again. Thanks C&Z
"Looks like a grocery getter"? Seriously? Myself & countless others believe these Chevelles looked pretty dog gone sporty for the time. Now the IMPALA looked like a grocery getter, for sure. Still a classy, yet tough looking car though.
By that I was referring to the lack of badging like "SS" or the 427 engine size. I had a '69 Impala years ago with a 350 badge. But it had a 402 BBC putting out over 465 HP that I had built under the hood. [Wink.] JMO.
The 427 is a rocket . I'm a Mopar guy but when that Chevelle turned a 12.2 I thought it was going to take a miracle for the Roadrunner to win. They must have slipped Ricky Bobby in the seat for that last race . Caught that Chevelle with his pants down.. Miracles can happen.
It's one thing to be a racer. It is another to have a $50,000+ car on the starting line... Anytime you get that gut feeling something doesn't/didn't feel right. You have to first prove yourself wrong.
My Dad had the same A12 car , I remember riding in it when I was 9 or 10. It was our daily transportation back then , it wasn’t always washed , and it was driven in the winter.
Funny how some people get butt hurt so easy and start sputtering foolishness when it doesn't go their way. There is certainly no hard and fast proof that have shown one brand to be consistently fast or slow for that matter Just enjoy the cars and racing it will all be alright.
No kidding..its a treat just to see these 50+ year old fossils just being run, and yet some people are still arguing over what one is faster in stock form as if it matters anymore. These cars are all tweaked well past stock form.
The Chevelle gave him the light in the last race, afraid of the red light. He thought he would win anyway based on the previous runs. That COPO is fast.
Another great video C And Z, thanks man! This one makes me think of the lovely black ‘69 SS (396 I think?) which a buddy wanted to sell me just after having dropped a 340 into my ‘74 Charger. Too short on the cash and another parking space way back then!
@@hoost3056 For as simple a combo as the 440/6 was it was an excellent engine. And for any car doing double duty as a street/strip car the 440 was a better choice than a high strung Hemi. Engine Masters did a great dyno comparison in the last year. From 5k rpms up the Hemi makes more, but from everything below a 440 actually makes more. Hemi is definitely the choice if you have slicks, roll bar and a fiberglass bucket seat for sure.
@@1967davethewave I agree. The 440 was always a better street engine because of the better bottom and midrange torque, plus it wasn't as fussy to deal with. The Hemi, performance wise, still had the upper hand once the revs were up. It needed gears and more convertor to make things happen but stock they still ran hard. On the strip the Hemi really needed 4.56 gears and 4000 rpm stall convertors minimum to make them happy. Either that or a stroker kit😁to make those big ports come alive. ( Ask David Dudeck )
All top fuel and funny cars are based on the 426 Hemi. The Chevys just could not make the horsepower. Even in pro stock racing nothing matched the Hemis. It was only when NHRA penalized the Hemis with 200 lbs, and then 400 lbs before the Chevs could match the Hemis. In NASCAR it was all about the Hemis dominating the circuits.
i know for a fact that it really takes a long time for the old 440s to get warmed up and those short runs will do it but it takes quite a good amount of running to get it done even to get the oil pressure stable. Not taking anything away from that awesome 427, it too took a good while to get warmed up but it didn't take as long as the old Mopar. These two cars were really the best deals for young guys back in those years. They were relatively cheap and came ready to run when you got them. Tires back then were really the weakness for regular faily drivers and street cars. There were very few really good tires back then. I liked the wide ovals when they came out but man they didn't last very long. There were other good, fast cars like the Pontiacs and some Fords too, it just depended on how much cash you had.
@@OldGriz708 Those 7 inch tires were killing that A12 and the rear gearing could have been a disadvantage too. i would like to have seen the 60 foot times.
A 1/2 second in quarter mile drag racing is eternity. I think the Road Runner owner was sandbagging it just a bit and I don’t believe the car was totally stock. The COPO Chevelle with the solid lifter 427’s were very fast.
If you see any of these classic muscle cars running ET's that were quicker than factory stock back in the day, you can rest assured they are not "factory stock". Read the rules under the video description. They are allowed to over-bore and bump the compression a certain percentage over factory stock. But many other things have to remain stock.
@@howabouthetruth2157 They are not totally stock but the biggest difference is that back in the sixties we didn't have concrete starting lines or traction compound like they do now. Traction was always a major problem back then. I heard one of these drivers say they launch at low rpm's so the car bogs a little to hook up with the skinny tires. And they practice and tune a lot. These are not daily driven cars.
@@bobthbldr3 Why are you telling me this.......I already know all of this. I was there back in the day to see it myself. If ya watch the latest video on channel "the Horsepower Depot".......one of the tricks to getting much quicker launches on these bias ply tires is explained. They actually take the tires to a shop to have the treads shaved with a lathe, all the way down to the wear bars. Then they do several burn outs to completely remove any traces of tread left. This makes the tires much stickier. They also do something with the sidewalls, I think by heating them with a torch, but I can't recall at the moment. I though it was pretty interesting anyway. I already knew they were getting as much of the tread off as possible, but I didn't know they took all of those steps.
@@bobthbldr3 See my other response to you. I forgot to mention that they actually do tune the cars so that the timing is retarded during the launch, to also help keep them from spinning. This is done with the faster class of the "F.A.S.T." class......the cars with much more power. The result is the engine really does bog during the launch, because in the F.A.S.T. class, they have so much horsepower, there's no way they can launch the car without spinning, regardless of a prepped track surface or not. This is also discussed in the video I just recommended watching in my other response to you. Cheers.
Yea, you could walk into any dealer and buy it. The COPO, you had to know someone to special order it. Off the show room floor, the Chevelle had no chance
I had a Chevrolet SS 396 with the Holley 4 barrel back in the day and I we used to run every Saturday night and various locations to keep the heat guessing. I can also tell you with great humility that any night the hemisphere showed up the only real competition they had was if the 440s with the 6 packs were there too. That's anecdotal I know but real life. At the end and peak of muscle cars molar ruled. But I was happy, my car was still a fast, exciting mofo.
Hats off to both cars both drivers I'm a Mopar dude I've had my share that 427 is no slouch of a motor had a friend that had one and it just screamed love the old muscle cars man remind me of being young again LOL
While it would be nice to see these cars have more seasoned drivers, the series does represent the Wednesday night "grudge racing" I remember at my local track fifty-some years ago. Some of the same cars, now worth fifty times the value then (or more). So no, don't change a thing.
I think there was a little sand bagging going on too. Regardless awesome race...props to these owners subjecting their classics to these races knowing the risk of mechanical failure.
It's clear that solid lifter cam 427 has more power than the 440, not surprising when you consider the head design between the two engines. Still only 1mph between the two cars, suggesting the slight power to weight ratio advantage of the COPO. Willing to bet the farm the 440 has a torque advantage here. Fair match up though and good racing!
Goodday C & Z, Finally 2 x 1969 beauties, battle of the heavy weights. I had to go Mopar, you would of gone the Chevelle path. Regardless absolute Romper Stompers Muscle Car. Love a 69er. Awesome time didn't expect anything less great tight racing. Your number 1 Fan in Australia Louis Kats from Melbourne Australia ☺ 👍 ❤
1969 was a good year. Yet even today, a person can buy a standard cast iron Ford 427 side oiler engine that makes 550 hp and 535 lbft. A formidable engine that'll push any mid size Ford thru the 1/4 mile in 11 seconds. The same engine Ford used in their 1964 - 1968 mid size factory race cars. Available at Roush racing.
Both cars are truly awesome, but that Chevelle could easily walk that Road Runner any day of the week with that L72 427 that in all reality is probably pushing out closer to 450hp than 425hp.
The Chevelle didn't walk the 440/6 this day of the week. Pretty evenly matched. The 4:33 rear was the difference for the Chevelle. If it was the 4:10, the Roadrunner would have walked away with 3 wins.
@@chevyblue10 That slight gearing change would not have mattered that much. This appeared to be a very even race. Neither car wouldn’t have walked the other one.
@@chevyblue10 The 4.10 vs.4.33 Gearing isn't gonna make that much of a difference, the 440 Mopar Will run outta Camshaft before it Will take advantage of any more Gear, those 4.10,s Probably a bit Much for that little tire, probably be quicker with something in the 3.90 range.
@@badass6.0powerstroke10 All mine went places! My grandpa was a Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge dealer from 1946-1977 so I grew up on MOPARS & never had much trouble out of all the ones my family & I drove! We did drive other brands but most had some sort of MOPAR whether upscale, sport, muscle or truck as I remember them all! I just sold my best one, a '96 Ram with the Cummins turbo, just cant find a better diesel, it was a workhorse hauling tractors, skid steers & roofing & siding equipment around for 25 years, 425,000 miles & still running strong! In high school 1984 I had a '70 Dodge D100 440 4bbl that would smoke the tires for a 1/4 mile but my uncle had the bad ass 1978 Lil Red Express that was the fastest production vehicle that year! I could go on & on but thats just me....
@@markg7030 Yenko had a whole line of cars around the COPO as did Baldwin Motion and both heavily advertised them in the late 1960's. These were car dealers, they wanted to sell cars, not hide them. While the average Joe Blo might not have know about them any car enthusiast that read any hot rod or drag race magazine would have seen the multiple ads.
@@1967davethewave I said "only a few dealers" and you mentioned 2. There were a few more in the whole country. Besides those few dealers (out of hundreds) you would never know about who had a 427 car to sell. Not everybody read car mags back in the day.
Exactly what you said, the weight savings, most Engines Used Very Heavy Cast Iron Intakes back in the day, the High Performance Engines usually had an Aluminum Intake Manifold.
Place your bets! Who is winning this one?
Took the COPO, its flat out sexy!!
I figured the A12 would've been heavier, it wasn't and I figured the Chevelle would've been pricier and it wasn't
COPO, but I’m a GM guy.
I love them both so much, I don't care who wins. I've owned a 440. They are absolute monsters...and I've owned a Chevelle. The 440 was a 1967 version. The Chevelle was a 71 SS 454. I only wish I could have had them both at the same time as to settle the debate within myself as to which was faster/quicker. Better yet, I wish I still had them both now. Oh well. I have wished in one hand but I'm not shittin' in the other.
*Cars And Zebra's* They can both beat eachother,but when the times and rules roll into tact it's do or die for each one!! every round has a different winner with these 2 brother!! I want tovtell you something,my 1979 Chevy Camaro Z28 4 speed 3:73 alluminum trac rear end car can blow that Plymouth and Chevy away running easily 11's,it's only got a 170hp 350 v8 bone stock!!...Borgwarner T10 trans i believe!!...4 speed rare option for 79 Camaro's!! 3"73 to make it fast!!...And do you know why i just you this,because yiu're sitting there *chuckling* 🤣🤣🤣🤣 knowing i'm full of shit about my own car!! *chuckles* 🤣🤣🤣🤣 bullshit talks funny anytime there my friend!! My Camaro's an 8 second 0 to 60 16 second quarter mile car!! Great power and speed in 79!! But oh sh*t brother look what era these cars are in,that's right no emission high compression gas blowing machines!! The 79 Camaro really didn't save gas in it's low compression weakear air intake performance,it was much slower than a 69 350 while using like 11mpg it just put more stress on the motor to get it to go fast at it's best!! High emission cars used as much gas lost performance but had more stress in redline if you go out and rev it everyday!! The only real life term difference between the 2 era 350's is ones more powerful one's bone stick!! Input and performance are apples and oranges on a 69 Camaro than a 79!! I just love my 1979 because it has a havier chassis,solid body fenders,and i think it's just a better looking Camaro than 69!! But 69 and 67 were my favorites from tue 60's!! 67 il'd say in the 60's looked a littoe better,69 was more aerodynamic than fir big blocks because it was wide and heavier!! Than 67 was!! Window poppers on a 67 kicked my teeth in,i loved that early 60's window popper look!! Only problem is when they became hard to open anymore,that sucked if they got stuck!! You know what i mean!? 😁😁😁
Awesome races. The Plymouth driver tree'd the shit out of him on that last pass. But the Chevelle did get the quicker ET's in all 3 races.
The Roadrunner redlit on 2nd race. Only treed him on he 3rd.
And the MOPAR WINS AGAIN....
interestingly, the RR won our of the 2 races regardless. pretty obvious the Chevelle had more beans than the RR but that particular car is a little slow compared to what ive seen before out of those cars. Bob K's car is significantly faster.
Indeed. Reminds me of old Pro Stocker Butch Leal. The California Flash who could chop the tree down and beat anyone. Except Bob Glidden
Chevelle is the faster car Mopar the better driver
Very nice matchup! Im a Mopar man all the way, that COPO Chevelle with the 427 was super fast! But the 440 six barrel in the roadrunner is no slouch either! Both cars are amazing and love this style of drag racing, thanks for another crazy race CAZ!!! 👍
Great matchup of two pretty rare and top dog muscle cars from back in the day. Having either of these cars back in the day would have made you king of your local streets. Based on the fairly inconsistent ET’s it is apparent that launching those high torque beasts on skinny street tires was a handful.
Light cars have an advantage with the tire rules.
American Muscle, love them all.
two nice cars. I’d take the COPO myself in this race. L72 a tough motor.
Yeah, its certainly the chick with big boobs in this matchup.
Chevelle is definitely a classic and very rare with that engine.
motors are electric cars have engines.
@@MasterWitchDoctor you say potato I’ll say po-ta-to. Motor sounds better
@@danmyers9372 u7i8
The 427-425 HP L72 Was practically unbeatable on the Street
Red light or not, the Chevy gapped the MOPAR pretty far on both runs.
Great to see these rare muscle
monsters from the 60s going head to head.
I’m 73 years old, and used to see this kind of match up both on the street and the strip on a regular basis.
GREAT MEMORIES !
L-72 was still the beast over the other beast 426 Hemi. Grew up 15 miles from YENKO CHEVROLET. Was fortunate to see these wicked cars street racing in the rural outskirts of Pittsburgh.Don Yenko started the out the door factory cars under gm horsepower gremlins noses with much help from vince pigins. Berger,Dick Harrel and Motion followed suit.Awesome history
I've always been a chevy fan always wanted an ss chevelle this one is very special love it .thanks for the video
69 Chevelle was the best looking of all the Chevelles made! IMO
Strictly talking appearances, it's either 67 or 71 imo. The 71 was the best looking to me with the single headlights and the twin round taillights. All Chevelles should have had those tail lights...they screamed CHEVROLET.
1970
You are correct sir! 1969 is the best looking Chevelle ever. I own a hdtp and a convertible, both over 30 years.
@@chevyblue10 Then you should like the 72 Chevelle also, it's identical to the 71 Models, besides Lower Power Numbers, due to tighten emissions regulations.
One of my best friends of 54 years, bought a 1969 Road Runner in 1975, It had a 383 Magnum with a 4 speed Muncie transmission with 4:11 rear gears, we raced another friend who had 1969 Super Bee with the same engine, and it was dead even in the first 3 gears, then my friends Road Runner pulled away in fourth gear, In 1985, I bought a 1969 Chevelle SS 396 rated at 350 HP then I had a Drag Racer build the Engine, and It was putting out about 475 HP, Man, those were some great days, I'd give anything to have those cars today.
Mixed feelings. I'm a Mopar guy now, but after college I had a 69 Chevelle. Oh hell, one of each please.
What the heck
So glad I grew up through the muscle car era.
I'm a MOPAR guy but have IMMENCE RESPECT for those 427's !! Great racing right there !! LOVED it !!
Tight, tight, racing! I have to say, the condition of those two cars - it’s like it’s 1969. The paint on the WHEELS of the Road Runner was perfect, let alone the rest of the car. Same condition for the Chevelle. Either of these could be mistaken for trailered cars. Thank you - as always. 🌮 🌮
🌮
I have a 66 all original gold Charger 383 4 727. I drive her hard sometimes but I think she likes it. Hey, I'm not going to live forever. Thanks for the videos.
Good stuff right here, I'm a Pontiac guy but both of these cars ROCK.
Man, those A12s are no joke, and neither are the Copos! Really quick cars, can’t wait to see the next video!
Love the Roadrunners. I had a '68 swapped 440, 830 holley, 10.5:1 compression, 4:10 rearend, torqueflite 3 spd automatic. Bought it off a used car lot in 1972 for $1472.00 . The oil crisis hit in 1973 so I traded it for a motorcycle and a Ford Mustang 302. If I only had a time machine.
Another entertaining race. Both are so cool. I would love a Road Runner, but my bank account say's hell no. Back in the seventies when I was in high school, many of my classmates drove Chevelle's and Road Runner's. My transportation to school was bad. It was long and piss yellow and carried the Partridge family and all their musical instrument's...*sigh*
Must have small piggy bank. Work more ot and u can play with the big boyz. Try Mecum at Kissimmee this Thurs for a pistol grip 70 RR! Bing bong.
That's a great match up and it looks like it ultimately came down to reaction time and beating the red light. My guess is both of these cars are fairly "pure stock" as they both would be easy 11 or even high 10 second cars with just a few F.A.S.T. mods. This Mopar guy gives props to any COPO 427 car; they are not to be taken lightly.
Love these apex-predator matchups, two of the best from 1969.
Great Battle two evenly matched cars almost wish the roadrunner would try a 4:30 rear end to see what it would twist for a time
Wouldn't make that much of a change and might make it slow down because it will be.pulled out of its powerband, at least with the stock cam.
If I’m not mistaken, the A12 cars came with a 4.10 rear ratio.
4.10 is plenty. that RR was a little lazy for some reason. in pure stock, they tend to run a bit quicker, generally high 11s/12 flat.
These are two monster cars, with owners who were giving it their all.
I love those A12 Mopars ! Very hard to beat.
Awesome! Amazing on the adusted prices. Wish we could get that performance at the adjust price.
A specific muscle car doesn't have to be your favorite one,but they were all amazing machines with a difference from eachother,but you should respect them all!!
My dad back in 74 had a 69 road runner 383 , headers ,cut outs, marine head with 2, 750 holley double pumpers, air ride ..cam from a 70 hemi , 4 spd , mickeys all around ... his brother had a super bee hemi ... an he would smoke it all day long ... have pics of his front tires coming about ft off the ground off the start ... was a fast car...he had a big family ..his other brothers had a 70 camaro an one had a 68 gto .. couldnt come close ...this thing was a frickin machine .. he had a buddy that cam close he had a duster done up .. but still half car all day long.... dont make em like that anymore or ever againlol
Hemi cam dosent work in a 383 block.
Two great cars and about as even as you can get!
look forward to these... thanks
Thanks for watching!
My assumption is the 6bbl might win,but a COPO with a 433 rear end might still get him!! 4:33 is a clean launch with not much gas,once you reach 35 to 40 punch it!! it moght give him enough of a head start!! But that 6bbl was Maopar's king of the strip and with a 410 they were road ripping until their top speeds,high compression,hungry 2bbl carbs,not very heavy engine either for it's size!! 440 lighter than a Hemi!!
I'd be proud to own either one. I have a 69 roadrunner I'm building with a 440 auto trans. That 427 chevelle is a beast! Love 'em both!
I like it that the Chevelle looked like a "grocery-getter", a definite edge on the street. [Wink.] JMO.
Wow, you see the most incredible cars here. In action! I believe the chevelle was obviously the quicker car here. GAWD I love seeing these cars battling it out as if it was 69 again. Thanks C&Z
"Looks like a grocery getter"? Seriously? Myself & countless others believe these Chevelles looked pretty dog gone sporty for the time. Now the IMPALA looked like a grocery getter, for sure. Still a classy, yet tough looking car though.
By that I was referring to the lack of badging like "SS" or the 427 engine size. I had a '69 Impala years ago with a 350 badge. But it had a 402 BBC putting out over 465 HP that I had built under the hood. [Wink.] JMO.
Factory specs vs factory specs the Road Runner wins every time.
Both are beautiful cars.
Those high hp big block Chevies lost 50+hp because of the exhaust manifolds. Headers really unlocked them.
I GOTTA SAY THE COPO CHEVELLE IS MY FAVORITE CAR OF ALL TIME ... FOR ME ... EVERYTHING IS SECOND BEST
The 427 is a rocket . I'm a Mopar guy but when that Chevelle turned a 12.2 I thought it was going to take a miracle for the Roadrunner to win. They must have slipped Ricky Bobby in the seat for that last race . Caught that Chevelle with his pants down.. Miracles can happen.
It's one thing to be a racer. It is another to have a $50,000+ car on the starting line... Anytime you get that gut feeling something doesn't/didn't feel right. You have to first prove yourself wrong.
My Dad had the same A12 car , I remember riding in it when I was 9 or 10. It was our daily transportation back then , it wasn’t always washed , and it was driven in the winter.
I bought a 69 Chevelle in '88. At that point there wasn't many drag era mopars on the road in my area. Maybe a Duster or two. Fun car for high school.
Funny how some people get butt hurt so easy and start sputtering foolishness when it doesn't go their way. There is certainly no hard and fast proof that have shown one brand to be consistently fast or slow for that matter
Just enjoy the cars and racing it will all be alright.
Well said.
No kidding..its a treat just to see these 50+ year old fossils just being run, and yet some people are still arguing over what one is faster in stock form as if it matters anymore. These cars are all tweaked well past stock form.
Blows my mind bolth cars are adjusted for inflation about the same price as my 15 second civic
Really digging this channel lately! Well done!
Incredible race! Finally no redight! Very evenly matched. Great video.
The Chevelle gave him the light in the last race, afraid of the red light. He thought he would win anyway based on the previous runs. That COPO is fast.
Another great video C And Z, thanks man!
This one makes me think of the lovely black ‘69 SS (396 I think?) which a buddy wanted to sell me just after having dropped a 340 into my ‘74 Charger. Too short on the cash and another parking space way back then!
Close, so close. I kinda like the copo chevelle, but that six pack mopar. . .whoever reacts the quickest
The A12 cars were the zenith of showroom stock muscle cars.
Definitely strong runners!
@@CarsAndZebras .....who wants strong runners? I'll take a fast runner (BB Chevy) any day over a strong runner.
Disagree.......the zenith was the Hemi Roadrunner. Just a supertune and gears prolly .5 second faster than the 6 Barrel.
@@hoost3056 For as simple a combo as the 440/6 was it was an excellent engine. And for any car doing double duty as a street/strip car the 440 was a better choice than a high strung Hemi. Engine Masters did a great dyno comparison in the last year. From 5k rpms up the Hemi makes more, but from everything below a 440 actually makes more. Hemi is definitely the choice if you have slicks, roll bar and a fiberglass bucket seat for sure.
@@1967davethewave I agree. The 440 was always a better street engine because of the better bottom and midrange torque, plus it wasn't as fussy to deal with. The Hemi, performance wise, still had the upper hand once the revs were up. It needed gears and more convertor to make things happen but stock they still ran hard. On the strip the Hemi really needed 4.56 gears and 4000 rpm stall convertors minimum to make them happy. Either that or a stroker kit😁to make those big ports come alive. ( Ask David Dudeck )
Nice to watch these old muscle cars.
What's crazy is that either of these cars would be outrun by any run-of-the-mill Tesla or even Turbo 4 cylinder these days.
I could microwave a steak and get it faster but that doesn't mean I want to eat it.
@@jeremymcgillis4057Dude, I will use that from now on!
The A-12 is one of my dream cars. Love everything about them.
No losers here, just love this!
Super close. Love it!
Two of my dream cars going head to head!!🥵🥵
Quality cars, quality race, quality video.
Obviously two very closely matched cars. Really nice examples of yesteryear.👍👍🇨🇦
Awesome looking road runner. Always loved that year
All top fuel and funny cars are based on the 426 Hemi. The Chevys just could not make the horsepower. Even in pro stock racing nothing matched the Hemis. It was only when NHRA penalized the Hemis with 200 lbs, and then 400 lbs before the Chevs could match the Hemis. In NASCAR it was all about the Hemis dominating the circuits.
6bbl is a Chevy killer!!
i know for a fact that it really takes a long time for the old 440s to get warmed up and those short runs will do it but it takes quite a good amount of running to get it done even to get the oil pressure stable. Not taking anything away from that awesome 427, it too took a good while to get warmed up but it didn't take as long as the old Mopar. These two cars were really the best deals for young guys back in those years. They were relatively cheap and came ready to run when you got them. Tires back then were really the weakness for regular faily drivers and street cars. There were very few really good tires back then. I liked the wide ovals when they came out but man they didn't last very long. There were other good, fast cars like the Pontiacs and some Fords too, it just depended on how much cash you had.
I’d take the A12 all day, especially if it was a 4spd.
So you like losing??
@@OldGriz708 Those 7 inch tires were killing that A12 and the rear gearing could have been a disadvantage too. i would like to have seen the 60 foot times.
@@OldGriz708 I guess if it was only about winning, I suppose I’d want a Tesla Model S Plaid (look it up).
A 1/2 second in quarter mile drag racing is eternity. I think the Road Runner owner was sandbagging it just a bit and I don’t believe the car was totally stock. The COPO Chevelle with the solid lifter 427’s were very fast.
If you see any of these classic muscle cars running ET's that were quicker than factory stock back in the day, you can rest assured they are not "factory stock". Read the rules under the video description. They are allowed to over-bore and bump the compression a certain percentage over factory stock. But many other things have to remain stock.
@@howabouthetruth2157 They are not totally stock but the biggest difference is that back in the sixties we didn't have concrete starting lines or traction compound like they do now. Traction was always a major problem back then. I heard one of these drivers say they launch at low rpm's so the car bogs a little to hook up with the skinny tires. And they practice and tune a lot. These are not daily driven cars.
@@bobthbldr3 Why are you telling me this.......I already know all of this. I was there back in the day to see it myself. If ya watch the latest video on channel "the Horsepower Depot".......one of the tricks to getting much quicker launches on these bias ply tires is explained. They actually take the tires to a shop to have the treads shaved with a lathe, all the way down to the wear bars. Then they do several burn outs to completely remove any traces of tread left. This makes the tires much stickier. They also do something with the sidewalls, I think by heating them with a torch, but I can't recall at the moment. I though it was pretty interesting anyway. I already knew they were getting as much of the tread off as possible, but I didn't know they took all of those steps.
@@bobthbldr3 See my other response to you. I forgot to mention that they actually do tune the cars so that the timing is retarded during the launch, to also help keep them from spinning. This is done with the faster class of the "F.A.S.T." class......the cars with much more power. The result is the engine really does bog during the launch, because in the F.A.S.T. class, they have so much horsepower, there's no way they can launch the car without spinning, regardless of a prepped track surface or not. This is also discussed in the video I just recommended watching in my other response to you. Cheers.
fun watching the 396's and the 427's gapping hemi's and 440's , and not even using Chevrolet's best version of the 427 .
A couple of cars at the top of the heap of the great muscle car era.
RR A12 in action again! Very close race. The 440 Six Barrel powerplant is just a masterpiece...
except for the tiny .454 lift camshaft.
The cool parts how much easier it was to order the Roadrunner
Yea, you could walk into any dealer and buy it. The COPO, you had to know someone to special order it. Off the show room floor, the Chevelle had no chance
I had a Chevrolet SS 396 with the Holley 4 barrel back in the day and I we used to run every Saturday night and various locations to keep the heat guessing. I can also tell you with great humility that any night the hemisphere showed up the only real competition they had was if the 440s with the 6 packs were there too. That's anecdotal I know but real life. At the end and peak of muscle cars molar ruled. But I was happy, my car was still a fast, exciting mofo.
Hemisphere, going spellchecker. Hemis, Hemis
And molar? Mopar you piece of shit spellchecker, Mopar
Hats off to both cars both drivers I'm a Mopar dude I've had my share that 427 is no slouch of a motor had a friend that had one and it just screamed love the old muscle cars man remind me of being young again LOL
That was racing. Great job.
Two awesome muscle car's there!
Great race
While it would be nice to see these cars have more seasoned drivers, the series does represent the Wednesday night "grudge racing" I remember at my local track fifty-some years ago. Some of the same cars, now worth fifty times the value then (or more). So no, don't change a thing.
Someone mention Roadrunner?
Love the channel keep up the great work do you have any races with a 1970 super bird👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Are these cars stock ? Ported heads,big exhaust pipes,cams, hot ignition, timing, carbs all tuned and rejetted ??
Studebaker,Edsel,Ford,Gm,AMC,Mopar's,Shelby,Yenko!! They're all what started the muscle cars of today!! The hype can live forever!!😁
Best race I've seen yet. They look like they were true competitors
Still killing it Cars and Zebras!
I love both these cars so much, I don't care who wins.
Both cars had looks, power, and relative affordability.
Those were great times!
TOP NOTCH RACE!
So many horses back then.
Remember the 70 GTO 455 !
Some top dogs for that era !
I think there was a little sand bagging going on too. Regardless awesome race...props to these owners subjecting their classics to these races knowing the risk of mechanical failure.
When and where are these races held?
Nice!!
Damn, that Chevelle moves the ef out. I wasn't expecting it to be that quick
With 4:33 gears how could it not?
@@OldGriz708 That L72 had a lot to do with it too though.
@@OldGriz708 ahh yea that would make sense. I often forgot to take the rear gear ratio into consideration 👍
It's clear that solid lifter cam 427 has more power than the 440, not surprising when you consider the head design between the two engines. Still only 1mph between the two cars, suggesting the slight power to weight ratio advantage of the COPO. Willing to bet the farm the 440 has a torque advantage here. Fair match up though and good racing!
Both of these are great cars! Good drivers, too, on those finicky street tires.
Goodday C & Z,
Finally 2 x 1969 beauties, battle of the heavy weights.
I had to go Mopar, you would of gone the Chevelle path.
Regardless absolute Romper Stompers Muscle Car.
Love a 69er.
Awesome time didn't expect anything less great tight racing.
Your number 1 Fan in Australia
Louis Kats from Melbourne Australia ☺ 👍 ❤
Kinda knew going in with all things being equal it would be up to who cut the best light.
These were the peak level muscle cars from that era, excluding the rare L-88s and ZL1s
Amazing!
Given the fact both cars have been modified, what's the point?
1969 was a good year. Yet even today, a person can buy a standard cast iron Ford 427 side oiler engine that makes 550 hp and 535 lbft. A formidable engine that'll push any mid size Ford thru the 1/4 mile in 11 seconds. The same engine Ford used in their 1964 - 1968 mid size factory race cars. Available at Roush racing.
Both cars are truly awesome, but that Chevelle could easily walk that Road Runner any day of the week with that L72 427 that in all reality is probably pushing out closer to 450hp than 425hp.
The Chevelle didn't walk the 440/6 this day of the week. Pretty evenly matched. The 4:33 rear was the difference for the Chevelle. If it was the 4:10, the Roadrunner would have walked away with 3 wins.
@@chevyblue10 That slight gearing change would not have mattered that much. This appeared to be a very even race. Neither car wouldn’t have walked the other one.
@@chevyblue10 well if you want to say the minor gear difference was was a factor then factor in that the Chevelle was heavier by almost 100 lbs.
@@chevyblue10 The 4.10 vs.4.33 Gearing isn't gonna make that much of a difference, the 440 Mopar Will run outta Camshaft before it Will take advantage of any more Gear, those 4.10,s Probably a bit Much for that little tire, probably be quicker with something in the 3.90 range.
Some gorgeous Detroit Muscle! I’m glad the Mopar edged out the Chevy but you gotta hand it to the drivers. They were not holding back.
Go back and look at the ETs of the final round. If you remove the red lights and the hole shot the Chevelle won 3 for 3 based strictly on ET
In that last race you could just hear that 6 barrel gulping air as it came towards the finish line - MOPAR OR NO CAR!
Mopar or no car ??? Don't you mean Mopar Don't Go Far ???
@@badass6.0powerstroke10 All mine went places! My grandpa was a Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge dealer from 1946-1977 so I grew up on MOPARS & never had much trouble out of all the ones my family & I drove! We did drive other brands but most had some sort of MOPAR whether upscale, sport, muscle or truck as I remember them all! I just sold my best one, a '96 Ram with the Cummins turbo, just cant find a better diesel, it was a workhorse hauling tractors, skid steers & roofing & siding equipment around for 25 years, 425,000 miles & still running strong! In high school 1984 I had a '70 Dodge D100 440 4bbl that would smoke the tires for a 1/4 mile but my uncle had the bad ass 1978 Lil Red Express that was the fastest production vehicle that year! I could go on & on but thats just me....
@badass6.0powerstroke10
Just far enough to take home the win!
You can central office production order whatever you want.....still won't catch a mopar
Hall 1000; Rules state; No dealer installed engines. Chevelles didn't come from the factory with the 427.
Where you watching?
@@cobracharmer6178 Only on special order. Only a few dealers knew or would want to order one.
@@markg7030 Yenko had a whole line of cars around the COPO as did Baldwin Motion and both heavily advertised them in the late 1960's. These were car dealers, they wanted to sell cars, not hide them. While the average Joe Blo might not have know about them any car enthusiast that read any hot rod or drag race magazine would have seen the multiple ads.
@@1967davethewave I said "only a few dealers" and you mentioned 2. There were a few more in the whole country. Besides those few dealers (out of hundreds) you would never know about who had a 427 car to sell. Not everybody read car mags back in the day.
I have to ask a dumb question. He highlights the “aluminum” intake manifold. Other than a couple of pounds, what is the point of even mentioning that?
Exactly what you said, the weight savings, most Engines Used Very Heavy Cast Iron Intakes back in the day, the High Performance Engines usually had an Aluminum Intake Manifold.
In today's money the copo goes for about 100k more
Pound for pound, cubic inch for cubic inch, chevies almost always spanked the mopars.