During the final generation of the Chevrolet El Camino nameplate (1978 to 1987), Chevy decided to unveil a unique cosmetic package for the car/truck hybrid dubbed the Black Knight. Unfortunately, GM was promptly sued over copyright issues, so the special edition vehicle was subsequently renamed Royal Knight, and now, a pristine example is up for sale on Bring a Trailer.
The Chevrolet El Camino Royal Knight came decked out with a number of styling upgrades, including decals added to the fenders and hood, with two huge winged dragons for the latter and Olde English lettering for the former. To modern eyes, it’s a strange aesthetic, but that’s part of the charm.
The Chevrolet El Camino Royal also boasts a fresh fascia and black grille, plus pin striping, sport mirrors, and black rear window moldings. This particular example comes with rally wheels wrapped in new Primewell Sport PS860 tires.
The cabin space is finished in a searing shade of red, and comes complete with Royal Knight floor mats. The dash is fitted with a full spread of rounded gauges, including an 80-mph speedometer, a tachometer, and several other gauges to keep tabs on the engine vitals. There’s also a Delco AM/FM radio, power windows, and air conditioning too.
Mechanically speaking, this 1979 Chevrolet El Camino was equipped with a 267 cubic-inch V8 engine, which comes topped by a two-barrel carburetor and is rated at 120 horsepower and 215 pound-feet of torque. Output is sent rearwards through a three-speed Turbo-Hydramatic automatic transmission. Just 64,000 miles read on the odometer.
As of this writing, the current bid for this 1979 Chevrolet El Camino Royal Knight sits at $7,800, with less than four days left before the auction ends Tuesday, October 8th at 1:35 PM. Considering the condition, odds are it’ll see a healthy bump in price over the weekend.
All told, this thing is a bit unusual and definitely quite interesting. Maybe Chevy should consider additional special edition models with dragons on the hood?
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Source: Bring a Trailer
Comments
I don’t recall ever seeing one of these. Probably if I had, I’d have just assumed somebody stuck a decal on their hood.
It’s too bad that it’s from the era of wimpy big engines though.
Graphics were the thing back then cause engine performance certainly wasn’t. Always liked concept of el Camino. With everything truck today surprised they don’t build these?
Chevy car bring back the “El Camino” using the front end of the Malibu. Many would love to buy a light pickup with all the comfort features of the present Malibu, and not buy a Colorado.
Many would love it, but still probably not enough. I suppose a unibody, front wheel drive truck would appeal to some people. I suspect the cargo and towing capacity would be ridiculed by those who love full size trucks though.
was all set to buy the Pontiac Sports Truck….the Holden Ute when Pontiac was killed. Saw it at the Atlanta Auto Show in 2007 it was so hot. I own a ’67 with the 396 and an ’86 El Camino Conquistador.
I like everything about this El Camino EXCEPT for the Thunder Chicken type decal on the hood…
I remember these and occasionally still see one. A friend had a 79 Camino in black with these same wheels but not a Royal Knight that had the larger 160 HP 305 4BBL. At the time it seemed pretty quick and would easily lay rubber. Later in life he upgraded the cam and intake and richened the secondaries and it would burn up tires at will. There is no limit to what one could do with a Small block Chevy
I owned a brand new 1980 Royal Knight El Camino. One day I had to pick up my buddies brand new Honda motorcycle . I put it in the back. There were three of us in the cab. No problem!!!! I would like to see it come back out. Chevys Rule.