As far as we know, Chevrolet’s 1967 Waikiki show car never actually made it to Hawaii.

Behold the 1967 Camaro Waikiki, a convertible SS350 specially customized by Chevrolet and the GM styling studios to complement the glamorous surfer lifestyle. Except the scene is not the island of Oahu, and those are not the blue skies of Honolulu.

No, this car shoot clearly took place on Belle Isle in the middle of the Detroit River, and those are the gray, greasy skies of the Motor City circa 1967 we see here. You can almost smell the old U.S. Rubber plant on Jefferson Avenue smoking away in the background. For us, these photos of the Camaro show car, so tragically out of its element, always bring to mind the old 1965 surf-pop tune by The Tradewinds, “New York’s a Lonely Town When You’re the Only Surfer Boy Around.” (The group was from Rhode Island.)

From the official 1967 Chevrolet press release: “Already riding high on a wave of popularity, Chevrolet’s sporty Camaro is sure to make another big splash with a new auto show version. The ‘idea car’ is a remodeled version of a Camaro SS 350 convertible and was designed specially to demonstrate the car’s versatility as a sports-type vehicle. Called the Camaro Waikiki, it is ‘tailored’ for specific use by the sun and surf set.” (Their air quotes.)

“Teak wood panels running full-length along the sides complement the bright yellow finish,” the press release continues, though it looks more like teak vinyl film from here. We took special note of the gold shag carpeting, a stunning innovation years before the van craze, and there’s one more feature we wish we knew more about: the rear lamps were rigged up to illuminate in green during acceleration, yellow when coasting, and red under braking. Introduced in the summer of 1967, the Waikiki toured the ’67 car show circuit and also made the rounds of Bob Larivee’s travelling hot rod show, the Autorama, into the 1968 season. But sadly, it doesn’t appear that the Camaro surf custom ever made it to Hawaii.