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Kronix SS, the transformation begins.....ZLX[COTW 3/26/12]Under New Ownership
The start of something special begins.....
What's up C5ers, I'm glad to have found the best Camaro forum out there as I was researching my future SS. Since I'm fairly new here, I'll also give a brief bio & introduction. I recently moved from the South Jersey/Philly area to Central Cali in April (but I'll be moving further south between LA & SD within the next few months). I still have properties & business back east so I frequently fly home for biz & to catch an Eagles game, although this season has been a catastrophe for my team....Anyway, since living here in Cali I went back east 3 times, and all 3 times I rented a Camaro SS from Enterprise rental cars. I did so because I knew I wanted to get back into a muscle car since my last one was a 1989 Vette that I bought new, I got to enjoy that for 4 years until it fell victim to a high end car theft ring operating out of south Florida...Needless to say I was devastated, as I had planned to keep that car forever. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...x23/Cvette.jpg My Camaro love affair started in 1984 when I bought my first Z28, A Black Beauty with Silver Ground Effects then a couple years later when the 5.7L IROC's came out, I knew I had to have one. Black on black with T-Tops, that baby was cherry! Well, in October of 1988 while driving in South Philadelphia, I met an asshole that decided to blow through a red light in his red Dodge Daytona (POS), I T-Boned him square on the passenger door and luckily there was no one traveling with the drunk idiot, cause they would've been dead, as my car crushed his to the center console. I can still remember everything in slo-mo as if it were yesterday, my tops blew off on impact, the car wound up facing 180 degrees the other way..total freakin mess, but plenty of witnesses around & clearly his fault..so I got a nice settlement between him & the City of Philadelphia due to malfunctioning stoplights.....The Vette came when I got my first check, and modded that baby to the hilt!!! Now, 3 Chevy Tahoes later, and after driving a couple of SS's, I started my search. I knew I wanted a Black on Black 2SS, with LS3 tranny & a sunroof. Since central Cali is a little on the slooow side, my choices were limited, I had just gotten back from a trip back east and drove by the only Chevy dealer with 40 miles and right out front were 3 brand new Camaros, and I spotted a Black SS. I swing by and prayed it was a manual tranny, but unfortunately it wasn't. They tried real hard to sell me that car, I have excellent credit so they were rolling out the red carpet, but after driving both the auto & manual, I just couldn't give in and settle for the auto. I continued my search, luckily I made a call to Paso Robles Chevy/Caddy, which is about 40 miles north of me and spoke with an awesome salesman, Dave. I gave him my criteria and he said to give him a day, well long story short, there was nothing in the state that matched, but luckily they located a loaded 2011 2SS/RS with everything I wanted in Nevada. 24 hours later they had flat bedded to the dealership and came down and picked me up to do the paperwork. Never in my life have I purchased a car from a dealership so quickly & smoothly as I did from Paso Chevy. So anyone in the CenCal area, they're the ones to go to. Now the whole time I was searching & researching, I was also putting together my modification list. I knew the first thing I wanted to do was add a supercharger, because I found out that a company called SLP (Street Legal Performance), has been working with Chevy for a few decades, making SS & special edition cars. Well I discovered that if I bought a SC from them & had my dealer install it, I'd be able to maintain the power train warranty & engine warranty...I knew they were the way to go, I got turned onto the west coast regional manager, Rick Hill and he was fantastic helping me with my project. Also the Service Manager at PR Chevy, Mike Tate, was very excited to do the build, as was the owner of the dealership. This would be their first & it opened the door for them to start working with SLP, so I also received a generous discount for putting the two together. So my order from SLP included the 650HP Supercharger, the performance spring/sway bar kit, skip shift, Loudmouth II exhaust, custom engine covers and the optional 5year/100K mile warranty. That covered under the hood, for now. Unfortunately, they will not warranty an upgraded cam or headers, even if it's their products. But 650HP + will be good enough for now I had already been putting together my cosmetic list & starting to acquire them. Here's a list of everything so far: *MTX Sub Box from GM (I'll be upgrading to a Double Din Head Unit when the 2012 models come out, with the help of Double D Mods) *Smoked Black Tailights courtesy of www.smokedouttaillights.com *Matte Black Taillight Bezels & Black Camaro lettering from forum member Overhaulengines (Thanks Lupe) *Valentine 1 Radar System in my rear view mirror courtesy of Scott at www.radar-mirror.com *Heritage Grille from Paul at GMPartshouse *Matte Black Billit Fuel Door (CAMARO) *Fieldgoal00's DRL Harness & AAC Plasma Fog Lights *Gloss Black Billit SS emblems front & rear to replace the bow ties from Sparks *Powdercoated Black SLP Exhaust tips *Eric from MPD1 is making some awesome products, so I went with his Z-Force Hood, Rear Spoiler & their new smooth rear exhaust panel to replace the stock diffuser. *I chose to go with 3dCarbon for my ground effects, as I really like their front fender functional vents. I also got their 4 piece ground effects, because I like the fact that their parts are high injection polyurethane. So front air dam, side skirts & rear spats should flow nicely with the MPD products. *ZL1 Front Bumper with Splitter conversion by Gary's Customz & Ofer's Lighting Harness *AAC Ghosted Black LED 4 piece side marker kit (Looks Awesome, Thanks Jonathan!!) *AAC High Output LED Tinted Reverse lights (Tinted Black) *AAC Kitt Scanner lights 1 red & 1 white mounted behind the grille. *Lloyd SS floor mats *Car already had the red/blue ambient interior lighting. *Glossy Black Painted Interior-Shifter Bezel, Speedo/Tach, Steering Wheel Bezel, Long Side Center Console Strips. Painted by River City Creations *For the added HP, I knew I'd need more rubber to keep her locked down, so working with Sean at WSI I went with the 22" Staggered Giovanni Kilis matte black rims(9x22 F & 10.5 x 22 R) with Pirelli P-Zero Nero rubber (265/30 F & 315/25 R). Sean was AWESOME to work with, so I highly recommend him & WSI. *SLP Removable License Plate Holder *Windows got 30% tint *Hydro-Coated Engine Covers, Fuse Box cover, Rear Drain covers & CAI Lid from Roger at Emblem Pros, he does awesome work for a fair price! *Personalized License Plates (Narrowing it down) *Performance & Handling Upgrades, So Far: Pedders XO Suspension System with Full Alignment Kit, Pfadt Rear Trailer Arms, Pfadt Bushings & Bearings, BMR Bushing Kit, ZL1 Fuel Pump, Jannetty Racing Tensioner with Pulley, 3.6 Pulley *Autometer Dual Gauge Pod with ProSport Boost & Air/Fuel Ratio Gauges *Custom CAI, Inc Cold Air Induction Hydro-Coated with Plexiglass removed to promote true Ram Air Induction. **I'm sure I forgot a few things, cause I've been on a buying bing!! But I'll add as I remember them.. Well, that's everything I've bought and the car presently is at my friend Ray's shop, Extreme Auto Works in San Luis Obispo. I should be picking it up Monday with the new exhaust, performance suspension, skip shift & wheels installed. Then it's off to PR Chevy to make this baby really come alive with the Supercharger next week. So many more pictures will follow. By the time the SC is installed, I'll have the hood, rear spoiler & smoothie rear from Eric @ MPD, then it's back to Extreme for fitting, along with the 3dCarbon kit, Taillights, Blacked Bezels, Debadged, Heritage Grille, V1 Radar System, then off to the paint shop. I'm working on a special Matte Black/Gloss Black paint scheme (more on that later :D ) So, this is the start of my build journal. I hope you all will enjoy my updates and feel free to comment and give advice or ask questions. I look forward to meeting fellow Cali Camaro owners and attending as many events as possible. Now for some pics.... My Birthday present to myself, we met on October 12th, it was love at first sight! http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ix23/photo.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1294.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1393.jpg With her BIG Brother, my Hoe: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1375.jpg AAC Lights installed in less than 30 minutes: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1483.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1482.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1477.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1466.jpg Wheels & Rubber: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ix23/Image.jpg I'll have more pics on Monday when I pick her up from Stage 1 mods, so stay tuned, same channel! :chevy: |
This is the 3dCarbon 4 piece kit I purchased
http://3dcarbon.com/images/parts/Cam...ages_F34_7.jpg I love these front fender side vents, although I'll be a bit nervous when breaking out the saw http://3dcarbon.com/images/parts/Cam...mages_Side.jpg MPD's Smooth Rear Exhaust Panel should fit nicely with the rear spats This is the Rear Panel I ordered from Eric, obviously mine will not say "Nickey" on it. http://www.camaro5.com/forums/attach...1&d=1321281891 http://3dcarbon.com/images/parts/Cam...Images_R34.jpg http://3dcarbon.com/images/parts/Cam...mages_Rear.jpg |
Nice rims... I dig the kit as well.
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looks great
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Thanks guys, they're so many awesome Camaros on this site, it's great seeing everyone's personalization!
Angel are they the same rims that you have? If so, how do you like them? I noticed that some of the spokes actually stick past the tire, so parking next to a curb must be done with EXTREME care! |
I am really digging your wheels and your build, will check back often for updates! :thumbsup:
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what email did you use to get a hold of the black chrome dealer on the website you have linked? i tried and it said it wasnt working? pm if you can, that would be great, thanks
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Quote:
PM sent |
Well the first round of mods is done, just waiting on the alignment and I'll have her home tomorrow. I can wait to feel the handling differences and also freeing up the restrictive exhaust, plus I got rid of the annoying 1-4 shift.
Installed this week: *SLP's suspension package, which included new springs to drop it an inch both front & rear, and 29mm sway bars with 2 way adjustment in the front & 3 way in the rear. * SLP's Loud Mouth II exhaust with powder-coated tips. I love the sound of the exhaust now! It finally sounds like there's more than 400HP now. Once I get her home tomorrow, I'll try to do a sound video before the SC gets installed. *Skip Shift Eliminator *22" Giovanni Kilas wheels & beefed up P-Zeros It'll be nice to hear the engine opened up, sit a little lower and feel the upgraded handling & cornering over the next couple of days. Next week she gets round 2 and has the SLP TVS 2300 SuperCharger installed, then it's into the 600+ club :happyanim: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1512.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1511.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1508.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1509.jpg :chevy: |
Here's some better pics, now that she's home for the weekend. It's remarkable the improvements in handling that the performance springs & sway bar make. I really like the adjustability option of the sway bars, and when you look at the Eibach bars compared to the stock ones, you really see the quality. Much larger diameter and the adjustability factor.
The biggest difference is the exhaust.....now I know why I love V8s!! SLP's LoudMouth II exhaust really opens the flow up, in both back pressure & sound. Got to love when you downshift and it's rumbling & popping!! http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1513.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1515.jpg Ordered this week: Black Billit Catch Can with Black Aeroquip hoses & an Oil Cap Breather, from forum sponsor, D Revolution Motorsports , Johnny Rameriz...Johnny's a great guy to talk to about Superchargers and any other engine mods, as he's doing some crazy stuff down there in FLA..Thanks Johnny! Catch Can Breather Cap I also picked up some more stuff from AAC, the White LED Scanner Light, Upgraded Plasm LED bulbs for my DRL to go with the harness I picked up to keep the DRL on along with my headlights, and lastly I got a Blue LED Dome lighting to go with the already installed ambient footwell lighting. Next week she gets dropped off at Paso Robles Chevy/Caddy to have the SLP (WARRANTIED) :happyanim: TVS 2300 SuperCharger & Tune. And I just spoke to Eric @ MPD and my Z-Force Hood, Spoiler & Smooth Exhaust Panel is getting shipped today, so that'll be dropped off at the paint shop along with the 3dCarbon 4 piece kit + Front Fender Vents. Stay Tuned for more..... |
Swapping out Tail Lights & Bezels
Well I did a little cosmetic mod over the weekend, in preparation for getting the TVS 2300 installed (hopefully this week). I figured I would document the cosmetic mod and make a DIY, since I didn't see one for both bezels & tail light removal & replacement, you can find it Here
I must admit with the proper tools, these Gen 5 Camaros are fairly easy to work with & plenty of fun!! Here's some completed pictures http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1563.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1561.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1564.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1558.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1559.jpg The next 2 weeks should really bring my Camaro closer to where I want it, the MPD Hood, Rear Spoiler & Smooth Rear Exhaust Panel were shipped Friday, so as soon as they arrive here in Cali, they'll go to the paint shop along with the 3dCarbon Front Fender Vents & the 4 piece Ground Effects Kit. In the meantime, I'm waiting on the dealership to tell me when they can install the TVS 2300 Supercharger. Hopefully that can happen, while the parts are being painted, and I can work on what I'm doing to the interior. I think today I'll start removing the badges....Maybe my Heritage Grille will get delivered today :thumb up: and I can do that also! I enjoy documenting everything here in my journal, it's a great idea that this forum has, I hope you guys enjoy the transformation, as well. |
*Update*
Maggie TVS 2300 being installed by Paso Robles Chevy, could be done today :happyanim: Just got a bunch of stuff from Granatelli Motorsports, great products & service, ask for Richard, he'll hook you up!!! 1G Suspension Brace kit: http://www.granatellimotorsports.com...e-2384-28.html 80KV Coil Pack: http://www.granatellimotorsports.com...-1428-548.html Hi-Temp Coil Near Plug Kit: http://www.granatellimotorsports.com...mp-335-24.html From Apex Motorsports, another great company & forum sponsor: Got a CAI made to work with the Maggie from Cold Air Inductions, Inc: http://www.apex-speed.com/cold-air-i...1109910bm.html Pfadt Race Engineering Rear Arm Package: http://www.apex-speed.com/pfadt-race...e-1410134.html BMR Fabrication Rear Cradle Bushing Kit, Pro Version BK030: http://www.apex-speed.com/bmr-fabric...ion-bk030.html I also picked up from Apex the "Strong" MAF sensor. All MPD1 parts (Z-Force hood, Smooth Rear Exhaust Panel & Rear Spoiler), along with the 3dCarbon ground effects & front fender vents are being painted and install will take place next week. Custom SLP Supercharged Engine covers are going to get Black Chromed, along with the tube for the CAI by Greg at www.autodynamicswest.com Today I'm going to prep my Heritage Grille and remove the bowtie from it and replace it with the Black Satin Billet SS. I also picked up a set of Black Billet Race Pedals from Billet Anything on ebay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/270748469264...ht_4907wt_1413 I'm hoping the dealership calls and says the car's ready to be picked up, pics will follow once I get her back! |
I'm now the proud owner of a Supercharged Camaro SS! I picked up the car this morning from the dealership, and it's now an entirely different car! I must say that Paso Robles Chevy did an awesome job on the install, they had their top Master Tech do the install and I emphasized that I was in no rush, I just wanted it to be perfect, and they didn't disappoint. The tech ran through everything with me, and showed me all the little things, he was awesome and it looks like it came right from the factory.
He had nothing but good things to say about the SLP support he received when he called them, and that it was an excellent kit, that was very thorough with easy to follow directions. They enjoyed doing my car so much that they are now an authorized retailer/installer for SLP, and they have me to thank for that and they reflected it in the install pricing. Under regular driving conditions it drove just like before, but when I hit the gas, the fun really begins!!! I was in triple digits in no time! It's a remarkable feeling getting pushed back in the seat like that....I am one happy SS owner! I'll enjoy it for a day or so, then it's back in the shop for the installation of the MPD1 Z-Force hood, rear spoiler, smooth rear exhaust panel, the 3dCarbon Front Fender Vents & their ground effects. Then I'll work a little more on the already modded suspension, adding to the already installed Eibach Performance Springs & Sway bars, will be the Granatelli 1G Suspension Brace kit, Pfadt Race Rear Arm kit,and BMR Bushings. Then to finish everything under the hood, the install of the Granatelli 80K Coil Pack, Hi Temp Coil near Plug wire kit, my black Billet Catch Can along with an oil breather cap and lastly, swap out the SLP Blackwing tube & filter for a Cold Air Inductions black powder coated CAI. The remaining exterior mods that I have lined up are the Heritage Grille with black billet SS, to replace the bowtie. Removing the rear bowtie for another black billet SS emblem and then remove the chrome Camaro side script for flat black ones. I also have some custom badges coming from Emblem Pros, and custom hydro coated engine covers to work with the Supercharger. When it's all finished I'll take it down to Granatelli Motorsports to throw it on the Mustang Dyno and get some numbers! Here's some pics of the SC: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1606.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1607.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1608.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1610.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1613.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...3/IMG_1612.jpg |
got any pics of that V1 mirror?
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