The birth of Orange Krate...
 

CUT TO THE CHASE---> ORANGE KRATE MODS RUNNING LIST TO DATE:

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showpo...&postcount=593 :w00t:

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The Birth of Orange Krate

Greetings to all Camaro5.com members, readers, family and friends!
Special Greetings to the SoCal Camaro 5 Family!

THANKS to our special friends at the OSHAWA, CANADA Production Facility and the fantastic CAMARO DESIGN TEAM!

I have decided to use this space to unwind, tell you a bit about myself, my obsession (midlife crisis lol) and some of the more important things in my life.

I always answer emails as quickly as I get them and I will respond to posts here.

:rules:
The rules for my blog are simple.
1. Treat others with respect, like the way you want to be treated. :respekt:
2. Be honest.
3. Please share constructive criticism.
4. MOST IMPORTANTLY... Have a sense of humor and "lighten up Francis"! (quote from Stripes).

Thanks for stopping in as I build out my car and follow along in this blog.
:thumbup:

Now that I have a start on my blog...

I am pleased to announce that FINALLY after waiting 5 years reading, wishing, working...working...and working more, my wife and I went down to the local Chevy dealership today, plopped down some cash and submitted our specs for the new baby! Orange Krate's order should be submitted tomorrow morning by the dealer! As I texted to my peeps... "I AM STOKED!!!!"

Orange Krate will be a 2011 (obviously) SS/RS, LS3, HUD, IOM/IO interior, Hurst, Orange Engine Cover, Ground Effects, 20" polished wheels... pretty much all the gingerbread, sans the sun roof, as I am well over 6 feet and need the head room. We loved our test drive! I was really surprised at the power of this beastie.

Oh BTW... did I tell you I am friggin' STOKED!!!! Now the countdown begins and I will be restless until my baby comes home. :drinking:

As part of this blog I thought I would give a few comments about our experience and perhaps help someone out that hasn't bought a new car yet. This is the first one we have ever ordered from the factory. We have bought new vehicles off the lot but never ordered one.

Many people are impulse buyers. I am! I had to restrain myself and with my wife's help we decided to just order what I want and quit looking for the elusive IOM with specific attributes. :headbang:

First...visit the Chevrolet website http://www.chevrolet.com and build your car online (several dozen times like I did) and memorize it until you know the cars options inside and out.

Then visit as many dealers as you can and if you are a frequent visitor/member of this website, print out some of those neat wallet cards and talk to sales people and tell them about the site and how awesome the info is here for new car owners and would be buyers. I think I have been to about 12 dealerships between Sacramento and Carlsbad, California. I tried not to be a pest (accept for Dave Perry who put up with me).

When order day comes printout your cars build sheet from the chevrolet.com website and take it with you to the dealer you have decided to do business with and talk in depth with them about your choices. They should know the cars options by now since we are in the second year of production. If they haven't sold many Camaros you may have a chance to tell them some stuff they don't even know about the car! I LOVE CAMARO5.COM!!! Refer to the Reference Section for RPO numbers etc. YOU FOLKS ARE GREAT!

Finally, GUTS! Put the money where the heart is and go for it. This economy is scary for everyone but this is one purchase I can say I will not have buyer's remorse over, even if I only owned the car for one day! Heaven forbid! :cry: It is better to have had a Gen 5 and lost it than not had it at all. After giving up my 1969, they are going to have to pry the Hurst shifter out of my cold dead hand to get my Gen 5 away from me!

Then after making your deposit and securing an order make sure you read the section on tracking your order! I am looking forward to this part of the transaction, build out and delivery.

Owning a quality car, keeping it up, driving it, enjoying it, documenting everything is what makes a car a classic keeper! It may not make it a collectible but lightning can strike twice and although I have heard debate in the Forum over people saying these are the next Yenko's and such... there are ways to protect your investment and make it retain maximum value. Even if it were a Yugo! :bellyroll: Hey... just being a Camaro is value added right? :cool:

The photo below is a photo of the two gentlemen who assisted us in the new baby order. I want to give a special thanks and shout out to Mr. Dave Perry, Customer Relations Manager (dressed in black) at William L. Morris Chevrolet in Simi Valley. He literally spent hours, on several days, over several months, talking with me and introducing me to the people behind the scenes at the dealership. :w00t: The other gent is Mr. Chris Caumartin who took my deposit and drafted and submitted the Chevrolet Order Workbench. You can see additional info about this process, comments and photos in my photo section.

If you are in the So Cal area you might want to give them a jingle if you want to buy a vehicle or RV. They swear they won't be undersold. So far so good! :thumbsup: The dealer agreed to let me document the purchasing and delivery process starting with me writing out a check for the deposit! :clap:

Also included below is a photo of the 2011 Camaro Sales Booklet that was given to me by the dealer.

Welcome aboard. Glad to see you have fulfilled your dream and got your new passion ordered. Careful though the surfing Camaro 5 bug is catchy along with the Mods.

By the way nice color choice. :thumbsup:

Welcome! Hang on for a great ride. Many sleepless nights ahead, lol!

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlohaBR (Post 2447970) Welcome! Hang on for a great ride. Many sleepless nights ahead, lol!

This is night two! I have to work at the Long Beach Marathon in about 7 hours. I went to bed at midnight (last night) and got up at 4 AM and drove to Long Beach. I worked until 7:00 PM drove home, arrived at 8:30 and received word that I got the Order Number from the dealer... PGNB7H. Looks like the process has begun. Oh Happy Daze! LOL :happyanim: :happyanim: :happyanim: :happyanim:

Below is a sanitized version of the GM Order WORKBENCH which details the "CONCEPTION" of our new baby Orange Krate. You can bet I will be going to http://www.chevrolet.com to check up on order status as soon as the order is accepted into the production system.

Congratulations O.K.

Probably feels pretty great finally realizing your dream to again have a Camaro is being fulfilled. :w00t: An IOM SS is a beauty! As you already have been doing, enjoy this site. There is a ton of good information and a lot of great people that have a common interest in the Camaro and beyond. You should try to attend the Camaro 5 Fest 2 at Firebird Raceway next April if at all possible. It is an event you won't ever forget and it is definitely driving distance from Simi Valley.

Speaking of Simi Valley, that is a beautiful area. I am out there many times a year to meet customers and that is also where the SST Camaro is right now.

So as you go along on your Camaro journey, if there is anything I can help you with your new ride, just yell. :)

Congrats
 

Congratulations and welcome to the CULT.You haven't seen anything yet.Just wait until it is in your possession.Oh boy.You will see. :sm0:

You are not kidding about this being a cult. I haven't seen so much activity since I almost got run over by a gaggle of Miatas doing a road race on a country road in Solvang, CA!


Thank you so much for the kind words. Is the SST Camaro being worked on out here? Would be happy to take some photos for you if you like. I do a bit of photography on the side and love to take photos for friends etc. NO CHARGE!

I grew up in this area and it truly is one of the best areas in the country. The only limiting factor is the States confounded smog laws as they exist now. Lot of politics for sure.

I appreciate your offer and may very well take you up. I love to hear what people do and and how they accomplished certain objectives and goals with their cars. For now I will just be happy to get one and then start tinkering (sooner) later.

Yes, the SST is out there right now. Very close to being completed. (I guess "close" needs to be explained - hopefully within a month. It will end up as 18 months of continuous modification.) Yeah, if you are around when I fly out, some pics would be cool ! Thanks. :D

Enjoy your new ride when it comes in. You will have a blast. Yell when you start 'tinkering'

Great start Orange Krate. This will be an epic thread to chronicle the life and times of your IOM Camaro. Pass it along to future generations :facepalm:

You're in a great place to wait it out and I hope to see you from time to time on the tracking thread. Get that trip lined up to Firebird so we can all see the beauty in person.

Thanks for your participation here, you'll be a great addition to an already great group. :thumbup:

Thank you Becky! I appreciate your encouragement and really appreciate the help, assistance, guidance and insight you provide to all of us here on Camaro 5! I was at my local Chevy dealer today and it amazing to walk in there knowing we have a baby that will soon be delivered there and actually sitting as a center piece in their showroom! It is so... :w00t:

HOW TO KILL TIME WHILE WAITING FOR BIRTH...
 

:popcorn:

So the wait begins... hummm, heeee, hawwww.... yawn! I am dozing at my PC dreaming of the wife and I cruising the coast of California checking out the sights in our new Gen 5! :5thgenvert:

Oh the impatience. I am so thankful for this website. I would go crazy without it! Time to go to Youtube and watch the Greatest Factories: Camaro Plant in Oshawa (again!) and visualize my new wheels coming down the assemblyline! :iono: