Yenko Deuce Found - pics finally!

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Here are the long awaited for pics of the long searched for Huggar Orange Deuce that has been commonly referred to as 'the Centreville, MD' car.

New owner plans a full resto.

Thank you Denis and Rob for the help resizing the pics!

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Another of the Front.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Another of the engine compartment.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Another of the interior.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Another of the trunk.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Last, the rear underside.

[Stefano]

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

[SS427]

Very neat Marlin! The hunt is the best part of these cars. Looks like it will need a very extensive restoration but well worth the efforts.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif
Rick

[55chevy]

Very cool. So what is this car's life story? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Here's the deal on the Orange Yenko! About 7 years ago Ray (sixtiesmuscle knows this guy!) from MO buys a Nova off the streets of Baltimore, MD with the rumour that it's a Yenko Deuce. The seller claims that when he was sanding down the º's the outlines of the stripes showed up. Ray and I hook up a few months later, and I confirm that the car is indeed a Yenko Deuce. Ray proceeds to tell me a story about a huggar orange Deuce also rumoured to be in Chestertown, MD and says that a guy in Dover, DE used to own it. I find the guy in DE named Lee Slaughter, he owns a used car lot. Lee remembers the car quite well, and informs me that it was a black stripe car, 4speed, power steering with a 454 in it. I tried to tell him that it came with an LT1, but he was convinced that since he owned the car in '73-'74 with the 454 already in it that it must have come that way from GM or Yenko. (Now that the car is found with the original stripes still on it, you would think that the LT1 decals on the hood would have been a strong indicator of the original engine). Regardless, I did not argue with him, and tried to get more info from him. He claimed that he sold the car within 6-8 months for $8,000. This also seemed like a stretch, they were approx. $4500 new, and certainly didn't go up in value after the gas crunch hit, but again I did not argue with him. He then confirms that the car did indeed go over to Chestertown, MD. This is as far as I got in '97.

In '98 another inventory sheet showed up, page 8 to be exact, with 7 of the 10 orange Deuces on it. Bingo, the first orange Deuce produced was sold out of Lustine Chev. In Hyattsville, MD! This must be the Lee Slaughter car right? Well, a friend did a title in MD for the Lustine car, and the car exists but has changed hands recently but has not been retitled - so we don't know exactly who has it. A divorce is involved, yada yada, yada... The car is also tubbed, caged, tied, and NHRA cert. - makes sense if it had a 454 in it from '73, somebody took it 'all the way'. So, we conclude that they are one and the same car. I figure it's just a matter of time before the car is brought to light, and I can close the loop on this one. Wrong!

In late '98 a stranger tells me about a huggar orange Deuce that is sitting next to a transmission shop in Centreville, MD. Oh yea, I say that car is now a race car, it was owned by such-n-such in '86. Impossible the guy says, in '86 it was sitting outside! Hmmm, two of the 10 orange Deuces in the same state, same general geographic area? In '99 two more independent accounts of the car are given, one as far away as Florida, about the Deuce sitting next to a transmission shop.

In '00 a coworker informs me that his cousin just bought some Impala parts from a guy in PA with an orange Deuce jammed into the back room of a barn, and it's for sale. It was too tight to see any numbers, condition, etc... but he assured me that it was not a Rally Nova. Of course I ask 'where?', and they proceed to tell me a small area in the opposite direction of where the car actually turned out to be. Nice, eh? I drive all around where it was supposed to be, obviously no luck. By this time I'm realizing that there could very well be two different orange cars involved!

In April of '03 Sam calls me to say that his friend Dennis found an orange Deuce in Schwenksville, PA - Ω hour from my new house! It's in a barn, jammed into a back room, black stripes, Cragars, no tach, for sale etc... a duplicate description from 3 years earlier. Of course I give them the body number singular! Because it is a 4sp with p/s it can only be one number since there was only one orange Deuce in this configuration. The number ties out - amazing! I go to see the car within a few days to verify it in person, and give some restoration analysis.

The car has a plastic emblem on the trunk lid saying 'Lee Slaughter Auto Sales' and a small oval decal on the hood molding and º window that says 'Midway Transmissions, 4 miles west of Centreville, MD' and then the address. Obviously the puzzle pieces really started to fall into place now, but where was it sold new? We found some receipts inside the car from ShallCross Chev in Dover, DE - but are still unsure if that was the original selling dealer.

The car came with a non match 350, and an M20 trans, NOS º's, outer wheel houses, front fenders and front inner liners plus some other misc. parts - not a bad start huh? The bad news is that there is no hood tach, rear sway bar, or shifter - but I have them for the new owner if he wants them. The car will need a lot of sheetmetal repair, both floors, trunk, door work, full interior, and the all expensive drivetrain!

So, that's the whole story - the new owner plans a full resto when he completes his '69 Z28 project, and I hope to see it on a regular basis.
M

[JIMT1971]

Marlin this is your former co-workers cousin and I told you the car was in Lansdale. So I did not miss lead you. I just wanted to clear that up.I did not send you the wrong way in you search.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

It wasn't you, the co-workers cousin, nephew, or somebody correlation is only a coincidence. It was a guy who told me the car was in Upper Black Eddy, PA. completely the opposite direction!

I know you told me about the car too, but it was after the first guy - you were actually right on for the business address, the car was fairly close by. I know you and Albert were trying to help, I appreciate it. Hope to see you at another Vargo show.

[Supercar_Kid]

Marlin, great story and awesome pics. Just a few questions though. Being that it's a later batch "special color" Hugger orange car, am I correct in assuming it would have been prepared by Hurst? I just noticed it's lacking the "Deuce" text from the front of the hood and thought perhaps it was an oversight by the guys at Hurst. Do you remember if there were any reminants of the Deuce decal left on the hood? Also, can't tell from the pics but was there any evidence of the tach originally being installed on the hood, hole etc., or is it possible that it never got one in the first place?

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

I'm not sure about the DEUCE decal on the nose of the hood, it may have been there originally or Hurst failed to install it. It is a Hurst car. There is a hole for the tach, although it is missing. There was a hood scoop bolted onto the hood at one time, making the paint underneath of it less dull than the rest of the car. The scoop was not the rebel machine style.

[Salvatore]

Great job on the pictures and posts, Marlin! The Z/28 got its new heart and will probably be going home this weekend to Dennis house. See you in Perkasie under the stars on Aug. 16th? Sam /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggthumpup.gif

[will]

boy ! been waiting to see those for a while!

nice to see the first yenko I tried to find myself.

kinda sad that the chase is over though!

that what I'd be looking for in a duece,maybe I need the go chack out the guy up the road with a 12bolt 4speed no motor 70 ,last time he was going to fix it up ,yeah his house doesn't even have plumbing ,but he's going to spent his disalbiliy check on a car....yeah,I'll probably see it on the hook one day.

[mc25t190]

marlin, i've seen one of those done, they look pretty nice!

[Belair62]

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/haha.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/haha.gif

[bilede]

looks like a great find, congrats guys!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/beers.gif

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Kevin;
Yes, you do have one of these flashy orange deuces /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Now that I think about it, I will have to check the orig. pics of your car to see if it had the nose decal. BTW, your orange deuce is the only orange deuce found with it's original drivetrain - just some trivia!

[mmcporter]

You've gotta love the chase, the stories that go with it, and the final result of finding the car! Congratulations. Great story.

[will]

ran in to guy that claims to have owned this car when it had the LT1 still in it he blow it up and yanked a 454 from 70 chevelle and dropped it in it,said it was unreal fast,he sold it to the centerville man.
do the #'s on the block support his story,he did know everything about the car til centerville ????

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Hey Will;
The car was sold here without the BB, the seller had removed it many years ago when he first bought it from the guy in Centreville.

We'd like to talk to the guy who sold it to the Centreville man. Doesn't happen to be Lee Slaughter?

[will]

lee slaughter has past on,this is his son,chris.
I have the #number at work but my server was down today.
I should be up tomarrow.
I told him that he should expect a phone call!
he seemed o.k. with that ,but he was trying to sell me a vehical.

[will]

long shot on finding the orginal motor for this car,seem the man that dropped in the 454 is said to never throw anything away,have name and phone #.

oh was told car was bought in new york with rod knock but still ran,was brought to del and recieced and 454 from a wrecked 70 chevelle.
M,
did you call or pass on the phone of the dealer ???
he said no one has called him about the car.

[Cents]

Regarding this old post. I have 8 HO Duece so was this the one sold from Lustine Chevrolet #369234

[Schonyenko2]

Are you saying that you have a H/O deuce?

[Zedder]

I thought he was saying he had 8 Deuces <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/smile.gif

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

This car is not the one sold from Lustine, that car is known too. We are speculating that this car might have been sold from Robert Chevrolet in Hicksville, on Long Island, NY.

[Tom]

Hi Marlin - I am brand new today to the forum. I have some interesting information on the orange Yenko Nova from Centerville, MD. In 1986 I worked for the Maryland State Railroad Administration,(the agency that used to be responsible for the MARC commuter train, and also for all local freight lines on Maryland's Eastern shore. One spring day in April 1986 I was driving north on MD 213 to Chestertown, MD to review a project to upgrade the rail yard there. When I got to Centerville, for some reason I slowed down and looked to the right to see a bunch of old cars sitting near a small outbuilding shed like structure. Suddenly I saw an orange Nova. I then recognized the black Yenko stripe on the side, carrying over onto the trunk lid. Could it be a real Yenko Nova? My heart started pounding. The grass and the weeds were all grown up around it, but I knew it had to be the real deal, not a clone. Remember, no one cloned cars back then, especially in an area so remote! I was 27 at the time, and tried feverishly to find someone in the area to inquire about the car. No such luck! I pawed around that car as much as I could, but felt I may get into trouble for trespassing, being a State Employee. For a couple more years I saw that car, and then one day it was gone.

About 10 years ago, I attended a Camaro car show in Frederick, MD at the fairgrounds. There were several Yenko Camaro's there, and I ended up talking to an owner about the Nova in Centerville. This person told me it was a myth, but I never let on that I had actually touched it!

Last Saturday, June 21, I happened upon a website showing a Yenko Camaro clone for sale. I automatically thought of the Centerville Yenko Nova, and Googled It. Voila! Your blog shows up with pictures and &quot;the rest of the story&quot;. THE INTERNET IS AMAZING SOMETIMES! I could not wait fast enough to join the registry to tell you my story!

Anyway, thanks for such a great ending, and for providing the photos! Now you may add my two cents worth to such a neat mystery! I AM SO HAPPY THIS CAR WAS RESCUED. Now I only wished it was mine! <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/smile.gif

Would it be possible to see the car sometime in the near future? I notice your blog is from 2008, so I am taking a chance here. I would love to see it, if the owner is willing. Also, I do not know if you own it, or just know the owner. If not I would understand, but either way maybe some more photos of its current condition.

Anyway, I would appreicate an answer to this blog. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

PS - I have been to Lee Slaughters (Delaware) numerous times. I know he sold the business some time ago, but it has reopened in Florida!

Sincerely,
Tom from Emmitsburg, MD

[DW31S]

Wow, I thought the one Skip found was rough.......

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Hi Tom,
Thanks for the recollection, always good to hear more first encounters with Yenko cars. This car is currently restored and the owner takes it to local shows. I'm not sure if he will venture too far from SE Pennsylvania, but you never know!

The building you saw the car resting next to was probably the transmission shop, I heard it was in an out of the way location. The current owner, Dennis, has been down there and took pictures of that building.

[dw69z]

Hi Tom this is Dennis. I believe that you are speaking about my Orange Deuce. I've taken the car out a couple of times this year. The second time I ran into Joe that I purchased that car off of. He told me about all of the loops that he had to go through to purchase the car from Midway Transmission. So that Joe could look under the hood the guy would not let him look until he paid him $20. He gave him the $20 and told him to come back tomorrow. These are some of the hoops that Joe had to take to purchase the car. He purchased the car in 1990 and I purchased it from him in 2003. If you'd like to see some pictures of the car you can look on Muscle Car Corvette Nationals 2012 or if you would like just email me and I can send you some pics ([email protected]). We are in the process of moving, so all of the pictures and documentation that I have are packed away right now. If you would like to see the car sometime please let me know and we can arrange that too after the move.
Thanks,
Dennis

[mrays]

Is this the Yenko Deuce we're talking about? Did you ever figure out what dealer this car was sold from? Sorry the picture isn't the greatest, but this is from MCACN in 2012.

http://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/pics/usergals/2014/06/full-18308-13231-img_6090.jpg

[dw69z]

Yes it is the car. No we have not find the dealership.

[Tom]

Dennis:
I can't believe I haven't posted in 4 long years. Many personal issues. Anyway, your Deuce is awesome. I hope you still have it. Sure would like to see it in person. So glad I was a part of this "mystery car". I am going to try your email address. My email is [email protected] and I live in north central Maryland near Gettysburg PA.

I cannot thank you and Marlin enough!
Tom