Model year · Second Generation
1970 Camaro
1970½ — a new car under a continuing name
An all-new body, four to five months late — the longest single body run in the nameplate's history begins.
The second generation launched February 26, 1970. Popular belief blames a strike; the documented cause was Fisher Body tooling trouble with the complex new rear quarter-panel dies — a 4–5 month delay that pushed the launch out of the normal fall window.
The Z28 got the LT-1 350, borrowed from the Corvette after SCCA raised its displacement ceiling. No convertible was offered this generation (the drop-top returned in 1987).
Engines
- Inline-6 and small-block V8s
- LT-1 350 (Z28) — 360 hp, Corvette-sourced
- 396/402 big block (SS)
Identification
- Split-bumper RS: body-color Endura surround + bumperettes (1970–73 only)
- 1970-only front fender emblem reads “Camaro by Chevrolet”
Open questions
Still unresolved:
- Exact 1970 RS/Z28/SS combination splits not located