
In 1967, Mike Nicopolis went funny car racing with this flip-top Camaro. Tom Bonner photo (Instamatic 126)
Strolling through the 1967 Detroit Autorama, I came across the Hemi Hunter Camaro funny car. Owned and driven by Mike Nicopolis, the Hemi Hunter was undoubtedly one of the most unusual floppers I ever saw.
To begin with, the original Camaro was introduced in late 1966, as a 1967 model. Nicopolis had his car more or less complete in January 1967, making this one of the first — or possibly the very first — flip-top Camaro funny cars in existence.
You cannot tell from these photos, but the car was painted a glossy fawn brown. That is an unusual shade to paint a funny car, but it suited the Camaro very well.
The big surprise came when the one-piece body was lifted to show the car’s underpinnings. Instead of the standard tubular ladder frame, the Hunter rode on a square tube chassis.
(more photos after the jump)
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The mystery of the Competition + Mustang funny car
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The SOHC powered Mustang funny car known as Competition + at the '67 Detroit Autorama. Tom Bonner photo (Instamatic 126)
Last time around I posted about what I believe was the very first Camaro flip-top funny car. The 1967 Detroit Autorama also boasted what may have been the first Mustang flopper; the Competition + funny car.
Strangely enough, I can find no information about this car, despite exhausting my usual sources.
Draglist is my goto source for this type of information, but I couldn’t find even a scrap of knowlege about a 1967 Mustang named Competition +. I dug through old copies of Car Craft, Super Stock & Drag Illustrated, Drag Racing, Drag Strip…with no results. Repeated Google searches came up blank for “Competition +.”
This car is a phantom…except for these photos and a couple more taken at Detroit Dragway, I can’t find any proof the car ever existed. Nor do I know who drove the Mustang and what happened to it.
(additional photo after the jump)
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