Loco for motion
Classic El Camino unearthed in Mexico
Roger Fiola discovered this mint 1966 Chevrolet El Camino in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
Since purchasing the car in 2006, Fiola has completed a frame-off restoration.
Fiola\'s El Camino may look ready for a Manitoba winter, but moments after this photo was taken it was returned to a warm garage, where it will remain until spring.
Although the interior in the El Camino was in nice original condition, Fiola opted to recover the vinyl bench seat. Future plans include fresh carpet and a kicking sound system.
We’ve all heard tales of classic cars discovered in backyards, barns and even farmers’ fields, but it’s likely a sure bet that Roger Fiola is the only car guy in these parts who found his dream machine in Mexico.
Fiola first spotted this 1966 Chevrolet El Camino back in 1997 while visiting a friend in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, a tourist and snowbird hot spot at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula. His buddy owned a condo there, and Fiola, a lifelong gearhead and former stock car racer, noticed the spotless white El Camino in the parking lot. A quick inspection revealed that the car was in relatively original condition and was factory equipped with a 327-cubic-inch engine and a rare, four speed manual Muncie transmission.
Over the years Fiola vacationed in Cabo several times, and the El Camino was always parked in the very same spot. In 2006, Fiola and his better half, Barbara Saindon, decided to purchase a condo of their own in the same complex.
“After signing the deal, I was told that the owner also had a car for sale, and was wondering if I’d be interested,” Fiola said.
“I couldn’t believe my ears when the realtor told me that the car was the same El Camino I’d been admiring for 10 years.” After a short telephone negotiation, he bought the car for $3,500.
“To be honest,” Fiola said, “I was more excited about purchasing the car than the condo.”
According to the seller, his wife had bought the El Camino brand new in December 1965. After leading a sheltered life in sunny California, it was officially imported into Mexico when the owner retired in 1993.
In October 2006, Fiola and Saindon flew to Cabo to check out their new condo, and drive home their vintage El Camino. After commissioning a Mexican garage to change the oil and top up all the fluids, the couple began the week-long journey back to Canada. “It was the trip of our lifetime,” Fiola said.
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