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Fraxum · 02-06-2011, 01:15 PM

My two gripes with the Camaro are the low roof and the weight. Current owners said, "Ignore the view, you will get used to it." They were right, I did. But I still wish when sitting for a traffic light that I could actually see it. And I have already misjudged the corner of the car and scraped the SS against our own Rav4. :=(

But there is nothing that can be done about the roof height, so I will just let it go and enjoy the good looks.

The weight is another matter. I hope to keep my SS as light as possible. And where I can save weight I will. But saving weight is expensive. So I will attempt to save weight where practical and at least try not to increase weight. I have already broken this goal with my first mod, an amp and sub. I had this stuff left over from my previous car and I love music. Okay, so no more going backwards after this.

One thing I will avoid is going the FI supercharger or turbo route for three reasons.

1. FI adds weight.
2. You can have too much horsepower.
3. I can't afford FI anyway.

My number two reason needs some explanation. I love horsepower, like most everyone here. But on the street (and to some extent the track) there can be more power than is usable. A few years ago I got back into motorcycles. I was so amazed I could buy a 10 second bike for $5K. Then once I had it I set about making it even faster. I quickly found out that 10 second vehicles are not very usable on the street. I rarely could even use more than first gear and part of second wide open. One night my throttle stuck wide open and I learned what it means to see your life pass before your eyes.

So my horsepower goals will be moderate. I can get to 420 rwhp with bolt-ons and maybe later 450 rwhp with a mild cam. That should be enough to have fun on the street and on the track. And the costs are reasonable. If I ever decide to go for more after that it would be with a stroker with strengthened internals.

Another goal is enhanced handling. After driving both the Mustang 5.0 and the Camaro SS it was easy to determine that the Mustang was the better handing car. While both are comparable at the track when you look at times, the Mustang feels better. Can the Camaro approach the handling feeling you get in the Mustang?

Here is my thread on that topic:
Rename the Z28?

Apparently, the answer is yes! I will try.

So I am not a fan of the upcoming HPE Camaro and not in favor of calling it the Z28. I had hoped that Chevy would call the new FI car something other than Z28 and save that name for the Camaro Boss 302 competitor.

Edit: Glad to see Chevrolet took my suggestion to name the car ZL1!!!

My thread on that:
Can the Camaro Handling feel Be Improved?

I do think the new Camaro will be cool, but like the GT500 it will most likely be a focused straight-line car. Fun I am sure, but not for me. The spirit of the original Z28 is what I am shooting for.

I want to have fun with this car. I want to take it to Atco. While I have street raced many times in my distant past I have never run a car down a real track. I plan to start tracking the quarter mile this spring. I will post my times here.

I also want to try tracking with curves. The NJ Motorsports Park in Millville is not far from my house. I want to attend a driving course there and learn how to track my Camaro road race style too. Autocross may be a good place to start.

Apart from all this I have some appearance goals. I do like the clean look. While I like other colors, black is by far my favorite car color. To me the stock grill is hideous. And the gold bow-ties are an eyesore. They have to go.

Right now my SS has no stripes. But lately I have been looking at the stripe threads and thinking maybe.

Also I would love the IOM interior. I really wanted this on my car but I could not find one locally. Would you want to sell me yours? I would be happy to trade interiors and give you the cost of the option. I do like the black interior, but the IOM raises the excitement level for me.

So to summarize my goals for the Batmobile:
1. Modest Horsepower goals
2. Upgrade the suspension
3. Track the quarter
4. Track the curves
5. Make it more mine
6. Keep spending under control
7. Have fun

What do you think? Blackout for the taillights?

Dump the SS emblem? (it's the only one on the except for the steering wheel)

02-06-2011, 01:15 PM	#5
Fraxum Drives: a M6 LT1 ordered From Becky!!! Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: NJ Posts: 7,520	My goals My two gripes with the Camaro are the low roof and the weight. Current owners said, "Ignore the view, you will get used to it." They were right, I did. But I still wish when sitting for a traffic light that I could actually see it. And I have already misjudged the corner of the car and scraped the SS against our own Rav4. :=( But there is nothing that can be done about the roof height, so I will just let it go and enjoy the good looks. The weight is another matter. I hope to keep my SS as light as possible. And where I can save weight I will. But saving weight is expensive. So I will attempt to save weight where practical and at least try not to increase weight. I have already broken this goal with my first mod, an amp and sub. I had this stuff left over from my previous car and I love music. Okay, so no more going backwards after this. One thing I will avoid is going the FI supercharger or turbo route for three reasons. 1. FI adds weight. 2. You can have too much horsepower. 3. I can't afford FI anyway. My number two reason needs some explanation. I love horsepower, like most everyone here. But on the street (and to some extent the track) there can be more power than is usable. A few years ago I got back into motorcycles. I was so amazed I could buy a 10 second bike for $5K. Then once I had it I set about making it even faster. I quickly found out that 10 second vehicles are not very usable on the street. I rarely could even use more than first gear and part of second wide open. One night my throttle stuck wide open and I learned what it means to see your life pass before your eyes. So my horsepower goals will be moderate. I can get to 420 rwhp with bolt-ons and maybe later 450 rwhp with a mild cam. That should be enough to have fun on the street and on the track. And the costs are reasonable. If I ever decide to go for more after that it would be with a stroker with strengthened internals. Another goal is enhanced handling. After driving both the Mustang 5.0 and the Camaro SS it was easy to determine that the Mustang was the better handing car. While both are comparable at the track when you look at times, the Mustang feels better. Can the Camaro approach the handling feeling you get in the Mustang? Here is my thread on that topic: Rename the Z28? Apparently, the answer is yes! I will try. So I am not a fan of the upcoming HPE Camaro and not in favor of calling it the Z28. I had hoped that Chevy would call the new FI car something other than Z28 and save that name for the Camaro Boss 302 competitor. Edit: Glad to see Chevrolet took my suggestion to name the car ZL1!!! My thread on that: Can the Camaro Handling feel Be Improved? I do think the new Camaro will be cool, but like the GT500 it will most likely be a focused straight-line car. Fun I am sure, but not for me. The spirit of the original Z28 is what I am shooting for. I want to have fun with this car. I want to take it to Atco. While I have street raced many times in my distant past I have never run a car down a real track. I plan to start tracking the quarter mile this spring. I will post my times here. I also want to try tracking with curves. The NJ Motorsports Park in Millville is not far from my house. I want to attend a driving course there and learn how to track my Camaro road race style too. Autocross may be a good place to start. Apart from all this I have some appearance goals. I do like the clean look. While I like other colors, black is by far my favorite car color. To me the stock grill is hideous. And the gold bow-ties are an eyesore. They have to go. Right now my SS has no stripes. But lately I have been looking at the stripe threads and thinking maybe. Also I would love the IOM interior. I really wanted this on my car but I could not find one locally. Would you want to sell me yours? I would be happy to trade interiors and give you the cost of the option. I do like the black interior, but the IOM raises the excitement level for me. So to summarize my goals for the Batmobile: 1. Modest Horsepower goals 2. Upgrade the suspension 3. Track the quarter 4. Track the curves 5. Make it more mine 6. Keep spending under control 7. Have fun What do you think? Blackout for the taillights? Dump the SS emblem? (it's the only one on the except for the steering wheel) __________________ "Democracy Dies in Darkness" My LT1 Keeper ..... ..... My Car Blog CarPlayList, a free App to build USB and Android Music drives. Last edited by Fraxum; 02-11-2011 at 06:09 PM.