23-04-2025
After 53 Years in Hiding, Teen's Rare Camaro SS396 Makes Show Debut
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In 1972, Bill Finley was just 17 when he walked into a Chevrolet dealership and ordered a brand-new Camaro SS396. What he couldn't have known then was that the muscle car he chose would become one of the rarest of its kind—and that more than half a century later, it would finally take the spotlight at one of the country's most prestigious collector car events.
Now 70, Finley and his Mulsanne Blue Camaro made their first-ever public appearance at the 2024 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals (MCACN), marking the debut of a one-owner survivor that has only clocked 71,000 miles in 53 years.
'I always knew it was special,' Finley said in a video interview with automotive YouTuber Lou Costabile. 'But I never expected it would be this rare.'
Only 970 Camaro SS396s were built in 1972, as a United Auto Workers strike cut production short. The 402-cubic-inch V8 engine under Finley's hood—still labeled '396' for marketing—produces 300 horsepower and remains mated to its factory Turbo Hydra-Matic 400 automatic transmission.
The car retains much of its original equipment, including rally wheels, soft-ray tinted glass, air conditioning, and a Positraction rear end. Though Finley passed on the tachometer option, the total cost of his upgrades added over $1,500 to the base price of $2,879—a sizable investment at the time.
Restored in 2019 with a focus on authenticity, Finley oversaw every detail, sourcing correct-date parts to match the car's original specs.
After decades of private enjoyment, his long-preserved Camaro finally drew applause on the show floor, a fitting tribute to one man's lifelong bond with a true American classic.
