81of100

Believe it or not it's old history... The dealer in Denver was at the location where GO Chevrolet is now, (but I'd really have to dig for old receipts to verify their old name). I was there with my wife to pick up a SRTA for my 88 K5 Blazer when I looked at the car... a 97 SS with an LS1. I preferred the SLP LT4 car that was parked right next to the LS car myself and thought the LS was interesting, but strange and never thought much more about it till I just recently bought LT4 #81... (Originally sold in Reno) I was curious about the LS cars because I had seen the one and knew they were even rarer than the LT4 cars... but have never heard them mentioned since… I have nothing to gain from saying that they existed or that they were even built, but I know Camaros’ and have collected, owned, and driven several very special cars over the years.
If this is something that really bothers anyone interested,,, I’m sure you guys could dig a bit and find some of the people who worked at the dealership back then. There must have been hundreds of customers who looked at the car and you might even try contacting John Elway... He started his dealership in Denver around that time and he might even know who has the car. The number of customers who were willing to pay around $46000 for an LT4 Camaro in Denver in 97 would make a pretty short list... and the list would be even shorter for an LS car... Considering only 100 LT4s were sold in the US, that averages about 2 per state… Chances to have even seen one at a dealership were pretty low. To stand your ground and say the 97 SS LS1s didn’t exist because you’ve never heard of one is rather shortsighted…
On a side note, their parts department had a brand new LT5 crate engine sitting on a stand for $13000... That could have also been purchased at the time and used for anything you could dream of... (an LT5 SS would have been fun). Track down the parts guys,,, they would remember too... Regarding the LS car, I don’t know where it came from or who put the engine in… (SLP)? It was a brand new car, anniversary edition SS with the white/houndstooth seats. It was the only one they had, but the dealer said there were a few others… (and he meant a very few)… If SLP did the conversion, they would have records… (they are very serious about protecting people from fakes). If SLP did not do the conversion, they might know who did… Their market is small and pretty highly specialized, so if someone else was doing new car conversions for Chevrolet, SLP would know.

Injuneer

While you may have seen the car, how do you know it was authorized/built by GM? Could have been something a dealer, or independent aftermarket company decided to do on their own.

cnorton

On the other hand, NHRA accepted the LT1 as the production engine for '98 Camaros and Firebirds in Stock and Super Stock classes. That has caused no end of confusion and debate over the years.

c

Injuneer

In order to prevent this from getting out of hand, I have attempted to contact Scott Settlemeyer, "Godfather" of the F-Body at GM. Chris Frezza, founder of this site is also checking with his sources.

I'll try and see if Ed Hamburger is still with SLP, since Rousch bought them last year. He would certainly be able to explain what SLP did and didn't do.

ACE1252

Not really. I know 4th gen f-bodies pretty well. I can't tell you how many times I've ran across people telling me silly nonsense, like that 4th gens are 5-speed manuals only(no 6-speeds), they are 327's, etc, etc. and they swear what they know is true up and down. Until I present them proof otherwise.

My wife even had a dealer telling her that she didn't know what she was talking about when asking about a 6-speed 4th gen Z28. He went to look it up and admitted she was right and he was wrong.

Lord knows I don't know it all, but as my Dad is fond of saying.... "I may have been born at night, but it was not last night.". Undocumented claims on the internet are a dime a dozen.

I do think if something like that would have went down, GMHTP, MT, or Car and Driver would have done an article on it(especially GMHTP). Just about every special variant of a 4th gen F-body has seen time in that magazine(may it rest in peace).

As mentioned above, I do fully expect that GM had LS1's in LT1 nosed cars to prevent any press snooping. However, also as mentioned, they were not for general public sale.

It will be interesting to see what Injuneer's sources have to say on the issue.

ChrisFrez

I did a little research this week while here at SEMA in Las Vegas. I spoke to numerous people, including folks at Chevrolet, David Hamburger at SLP, and many enthusiasts. Everyone I spoke with said this never happened. There is no such cars.

Injuneer

Thanks Chris!!

81of100

I'm trying to track down more info on the car... As I said before I don't know how the car originated or how many were made. The one I saw was being sold "new" and only had just a few miles on it. I called GO Chevrolet this morning hoping that someone there would be able to help, but no luck. They suggested I try contacting the John Elway group as their business line does go back to that period. I called and left a message for their assistant business manager and hope to hear from them on Monday. If the conversion was done by the dealership, doesn't that still deserve a place in Camaro history? Think how easy it would be... The 98 is ready to roll out,,, it's the same chassis with a different nose,,, the LS is already available from the factory,,, and it fits... There were plenty of the 30th anniversary cars available as “donor” cars, so why not build a couple and charge twice as much !!! Even if nothing else is special about the car, it would be noteworthy that these cars were among the first (if not the first) to have an LS conversion done,,, (a practice that is so common today that it’s not even overly noteworthy,,,)…

Injuneer

The LS1 K-member and motor mounts are different. PCM and wiring harness is radically different. Body connector interfaces do not match. LT1 transmission does not bolt directly up. Fuel supply is dead-end vs recirculated, operating at higher pressure. Hood on the LS1 car is slightly higher for clearance. It's not a "plug & play".

81of100

To Injuneer: If you have contact with Ed Hamburger, please thank him for me... the LT4 car is awesome! It truly has the heart of a vett and the finest spirit of the Camaro... (and thanks to SLP for all their great work too)
Back to the subject of an LS 97, several things come to mind… theoretically, if it was a 98 (I don’t remember it having the new nose which I didn’t like) painted white with a 30th anniversary type option package, (white with orange stripes) why would the dealer say it was even rarer than the LT4 car? If it was a 98, then theoretically anyone could have ordered one… and there wouldn’t be anything special about that! (I don’t remember the price reflecting it being a standard package ether)!
I remember it being the first time I had seen an LS, and was not really too happy about the new engine and wasn’t overly interested in it. I had been building and driving big block and small block Camaros for about 20 years and had grown up and gone to school with the Sallee’s of the the former Sallee Chevrolet.
From the time I bought my first car, (a 67 396 4 speed Camaro), I had always enjoyed spending time at the dealership talking about which were the best parts to use while I was building another engine. Sallee’s evolved during this same time and eventually set up their own line of custom built engines and ran everything in house on their own dyno. A new small block was a total unknown with no factory or aftermarket support for performance or racing, and to me it meant the end to one of my favorite toys…
Truly, I had little interest at the time,,, and it was probably a couple of months later when I actually remember seeing a 98 for the first time. A Major at Buckley bought one, and while I concede it was a great running car, I still didn’t like the new look.
To note,,, I’m not the one who started this thread. The only reason I got involved was because I was researching info on the LT4 cars since I had just bought one. I remembered looking at the one (LT4) in Denver and had remembered what the dealer had said about the LS car being even rarer!
Whatever the outcome, if a 97 LS can be proven to have been sold new or not, this is just a continuing reflection on how each of our cars are different and unique! I have said it before and I’ll say it again… I have never seen two Camaros that were exactly alike…
It’s a big part of what owning these cars is all about,,, (and also part of what makes it fun)!
(,,,and yet for now, the hunt continues in Denver)

jonnyz28ss

I own one of the few 1997's with the ls1. My car was custom ordered in 1997 with the ls1 engine near the end of the 1997 production. The car has the aluminium block which is the reason i know.its an american model that ended up in southern new brunswick canada and i bought it.so yes. There are some 97's with the ls1 in them.

shoebox

Let's see some pics including one of the RPO sticker.

danielaguirre74

Hey guys, I'm new to the forum. I know this is an old thread, and there a lot of opinions about the 1997 Camaro with the Ls1. I recently acquired a 1997 Camaro and it has the Ls1 in it, and its a T-top car. Pretty clean car all things considered. The only reason I got the car, was to pull the engine, tranny, and rearend, to use in another project. My question is.........Would this car be considered Rare to any degree? I'd sure hate to tear this car apart, and then years later regret destroying one of God's great creations. I could easily use a 5.3 in its place or even find another Ls1 from a wrecked vehicle...... What are your thoughts, or opinions. Thanks in advance.

FirebirdGT

Let's see some pics including one of the RPO sticker.

danielaguirre74

Whats a RPO sticker?