When GM introduced the third-generation Chevrolet Camaro for the 1982 model year, it was 367 pounds lighter than its 1981 predecessor. The third-gen Camaro had gained most of that weight back by its final model year of 1992, but it still showed plenty of early-1980s-style swagger. Today's Junkyard Find is one of the very last third-gen Camaros ever built, found in a Denver car graveyard recently.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15191/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
This car was built at the notorious Van Nuys Assembly plant in California's San Fernando Valley.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15196/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
This car made it to nearly 200,000 miles, but most of its Van Nuys-built siblings didn't hold together quite so well. The plant was shut down forever, soon after this car was built.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/151919/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
There's a shopping mall called The Plant where Van Nuys Assembly once stood.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15197/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
1992 was the 25th anniversary of the first Camaro, so all the '92s got commemorative dash badges. There was also a 25th Anniversary Heritage Edition Camaro package that year, with extra stripes and special wheels.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15195/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
In order to experience 1982 in 1992, you needed a T-Top roof on your Camaro. This was an $895 option, or about $1,990 in 2023 dollars.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15199/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The VIN and emissions sticker in this car tells us it left the line with a 5.0-liter small-block V8 rated at 170 horsepower.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/151911/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
That may even be the very same engine we see here, but Camaros have traditionally received engine swaps early and often and I didn't feel like getting filthy looking for block casting numbers, so we can't know for sure).
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15193/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
A five-speed manual transmission was base equipment in the 1992 Camaro, and that's what was in this car. The T-5s that went in these cars are still worth something, so they tend to get bought quickly by junkyard shoppers.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15198/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The MSRP for a 1992 Camaro RS coupe with 5.0, 5-speed and T-Top roof was $13,339 (about $29,655 after inflation).
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/151920/junkyard-find-1992-chevrolet-camaro-rs-coupe.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Along with stickers from cannabis dispensaries, this one is standard equipment on junkyard-bound cars in Front Range Colorado.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15541/post.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
The base-level RS didn't get much attention in Camaro advertising.
![junkyard find 1992 chevrolet camaro rs coupe](https://cdn-fastly.thetruthaboutcars.com/media/2023/09/18/15562/post.jpg?size=720x845&nocrop=1)
Did the 1980s linger until the last third-generation Camaro was sold?
[Images: The Author]
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