Chevrolet
Yenko Camaro (COPO 9561 L72 427)

Why it matters

COPO 9561 let a dealer order a 1969 Camaro with the iron-block L72 427 straight from the factory, and Don Yenko was the dealer who pushed Chevrolet into it. The Yenko cars are the best known of the 427 COPO Camaros, cheaper than an SS 396/375 yet capable of high-11 to low-12 second quarter-miles.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Photos

Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.

• Chevrolet Yenko Camaro (COPO 9561 L72 427) (Wikimedia Commons search)
  Photo: Eric Friedebach · CC BY 2.0
• Chevrolet Yenko Camaro (COPO 9561 L72 427) (Wikimedia Commons search)
  Photo: Eric Friedebach · CC BY 2.0
• Chevrolet Yenko Camaro (COPO 9561 L72 427) (Wikimedia Commons search)
  Photo: Eric Friedebach · CC BY 2.0

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

Don Yenko, a racing Chevrolet dealer in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, had been installing 427 engines in Camaros himself in 1967 and 1968. For 1969 Chevrolet agreed to build the cars through COPO 9561, priced at $489.75. Yenko sold 198 of them, typically combined with the COPO 9737 handling package, and reportedly cancelled hundreds more orders when insurers made the cars hard to sell. Other dealers such as Berger, Scuncio and Jack Douglass also ordered 9561 cars; no factory production records for 9561 have surfaced, and total output is estimated at about 997.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

COPO 9561 cars use the L72 iron-block 427 with engine suffix MN (4-speed) or MO (automatic) and the 4.10 rear axle coded BE (a regular Camaro 4.10 axle is BV). Mandatory content included a special ducted hood, heavy-duty cooling and power front disc brakes. Yenko cars usually also carried COPO 9737: a 13/16 in front anti-roll bar, 15x7 rally wheels with E70x15 tyres and a 140 mph speedometer. Cars striped and badged by Jack Douglass Chevrolet ('Douglass Yenkos') do not appear on Yenko's inventory lists.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   COPO 427: The Relentless Pursuit of Acceleration Level A Camaro Research Group (CRG) · 2020-07-08

   • Yenko sold 198 COPO 9561's
   • 4.10:1 ring and pinion. It was coded "BE"
   • For 69, 9737 included a 13/16" front stabilizer bar
   • mandatory options of F70x14 RWL tires, power front disc brakes

   Accessed 2026-11-12
2. 2
   Camaro Research Group – COPO Level B

   • 198 COPO 9561 Camaros sold by Yenko. CRG notes that 9561 production records have not surfaced; total 9561 output is derived at ~997

   Accessed 2026-11-12
3. 3
   COPO Camaros Level B Camaro Research Group

   • The L72 is a 427 iron-block engine
   • L72 427 iron-block engine
   • 427 iron-block engine rated at 425 hp

   Accessed 2026-11-11