Stateside Shop Tour: Auto Artistry In Russell, KS

There are times when the backstory about a car is actually more interesting than the information about building, or rebuilding of the vehicle. Take for instance this stock, low mileage ’67 Camaro that has been sitting untouched for more than 46 years. The focus of this week’s Stateside Shop Tour, this Camaro has one such story.

When the car’s odometer had just 20,000 miles displayed, which was some time around September 1968, it was involved in an accident and actually ended up on its roof. Damage from the single-car wreck exceeded the 1968 value of the car, so the insurance company wouldn’t pay up to fix it. The local salvage yard in Russell, Kansas – Wilson Motor Exchange, bought the car from Jim’s insurance company, because they wanted the engine. Years passed, and the Camaro sat forgotten in the corner of the building, but let’s back up a bit.

The current owner, Steve Karst, is into Chevrolet cars big time, as evidenced by his current fleet consisting of few Corvettes and a couple of other collectible Chevys. This ’67 Camaro and Steve though, have a special connection. When he graduated from high school in 1967, he went looking for a new car at Schlagek Chevrolet in Russell, Kansas. The local car dealer had just received this gorgeous 1967 Camaro, and placed it on the showroom floor. It had everything Steve wanted in a car. It was red with a white vinyl top, had a red interior, a 350ci engine and four-speed transmission, and Steve lusted after it. He really wanted to buy the car, but at the time, he did not have the funds necessary to purchase a brand new car. A few days later, Jim Polcyn, an acquaintance of Steve’s, purchased the car. Since the car was gone from the showroom, Steve thought that it was also gone from his life.

Pulling the 1/4-panel a bit straighter, and straightening the roof.

Since Steve and Jim knew each other,  Steve remembers Jim letting him take the car for a spin. At that time, the car had only 400 miles on it, and that only fueled his desire to own the Camaro. Jim enjoyed driving the car for approximately a year, and put slightly more than 20,000 miles on it. That is, until that fateful day the accident occurred, and the car ended up with Dale Wilson at Wilson Motor Exchange.

We would also like to introduce Mike Schoech, owner of Auto Artistry in Russell. During his early years, he was a resident of Russell, but he eventually left home to attend a vocational school. When he graduated from that school in 1986, he moved back to Russell. Aware of the Camaro sitting in storage, he visited Dale Wilson, hoping to find a project for his new business. Dale showed Mike the Camaro, but at that time, the price was a bit out of reach. Mike passed on the project, but kept it in the back of his mind.

A few years later, Dale Wilson passed away, and his family began selling off his estate. Forty-six years after the rollover accident,  Steve attended the estate sale, and was able to purchase the Camaro and remove it from its years-long storage. Steve wanted it restored to the former showroom floor beauty that he fell in love with, so he contacted Mike Schoech, and enlisted him to handle the rebuild. Mike tasked his technician, Jeff Truan, with straightening the Camaro’s low-mileage body. The 350ci engine is still pristine, and does not need rebuilding. The same goes for the original four-speed transmission.

As of this writing, the restoration is almost complete, and the Camaro is as close to factory original as can be. It was relatively easy, since the majority of the original car is there. When completed, there is no doubt that this Camaro will be one of Steve’s very finest collectibles, and we’re certain it will be for a very long time.

About the author

Roger Jetter

Roger’s interests in cars started at 14 with a ’40 Ford pick-up until he bought his first ’57 Chevy at age 16. That car is featured in the first two books he’s written about the 1960’s and growing up in the Midwest. He’s authored several more books as well and has built several cars over the years that have received major coverage in magazines and won plenty of awards. His current build is a 1948 Cadillac Sedanet, although his current 'driver' is a '55 Cadillac Coupe DeVille.
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