World Champion Camaro Custom Install

[TeamTCA]

After a very long time, I finally got this car finished (well pretty much), although I plan on doing a few more things before Spring Break Nationals 2012. I have just returned from the 2011 USACI World Finals in Shreveport, LA this past weekend and my car WON BOTH XTREME SQ and Q classes and I posted the highest (w/o SPL) score at the entire event. XTREME, formerly the EXPERT class is typically for manufacturers but I chose to build my car for this class on a limited budget and be competitive in it. We also had two other of our (TC AUDIO) builds that WON also in their classes. We build SOUND & INSTALL cars, NOT pounders. We have won over 30 World Championships in CAR AUDIO since 1990 so none of this is just "thrown" together. The car is functional and sounds awesome. It may be hard to believe but I have over 1200 hours in this build spread over about 10 months. I also have over 1000 build pics on this car, in stages, so let me know anything that you are interested in and I will post them up.

GOALS FOR THIS BUILD:

RETAIN STOCK OEM HEADUNIT
RETAIN AS CLOSE TO STOCK INTERIOR APPEARANCE AS POSSIBLE
ACHIEVE THE BEST POSSIBLE SOUND QUALITY WITH STOCK DASH & SEATS
BUILD THE CAR TO COMPETE IN USACI, IASCA, & MECA Organizations
PROVE THAT YOU CAN WIN WITH A STOCK HEADUNIT AND THE RIGHT SETUP
KEEP ALL EQUIPMENT COST BELOW $5000 at RETAIL ($4,900)---
(DOES NOT INCLUDE PARTS & MATERIALS OR INSTALL LABOR)
BUILD "FLASH" INTO TRUNK AREA BUT RETAIN AS MUCH USABLE SPACE
AS POSSIBLE!!!!

[TeamTCA]

BTW.... Battery rack and amp rack both are built from 3/4" 14ga welded square STEEL that is fastened to the car with (26) 5/16" grade 8 BOLTS using 1/4" welded back plates under the car. It is solid but can still be removed and the ORIGINAL battery can be reinstalled, if desired. Majority of trunk trim work is all made of fiberglass, although some MDF used for flat panels. Kick panels drivers are 6.5" and car was cut and vented to the outside, protected with steel mesh from any debris or water from entering. All wiring was rerouted to make the room needed. The entire install and all panels have a zero gap tolerance but yet remain fairly easy to remove for any service work. OEM dash air vents were used in the rear and have a dual fan, dual blower ventilation system that is ducted in & out of the car through the original trunk side vents. All the wiring, especially POWER cable (1/0ga) to front, is better than factory and the right rear OEM small trunk fuseblock was incorporated into the NEW main fusepanel.

[Daily Driver]

[2010 SSRS]

very nice

[Indpowr]

Sexy, now it is time to dress up the exterior to match

[CamaroKid300]

Damn....I don't even want to know how much that setup would cost.

Looks great, though. I'd love to have it.

[AngelSpeedFreak]

Very clean... Love the kicks.

[frank1557]

Looks awesome. Love it!

[Hendrix-Engineering]

CONGRATES!!!! nice job

[2010SSRSM6]

Can you post pics of the kick panels to see how much they stick out? I had them in previous builds and they were great, just wouldn't work in a manual.

What are you running in the rear seat walls?

System looks amazing!

[BumbleBeeSS2009]

Would really like to see more shots of the rear seat walls as well and some more details

Build looks AMAZING!!! excellent job!

[dmullen]

Fantastic system...you are my new hero! Please post as many pics and descriptions as you can. Beautiful job on the layout, selection of equipment, and install. I would love to hear this system. Going camping in Petit Jean State Park next weekend...might look you up!

[grocerygetter]

Todd is amazing. He did my GN that has won a few titles under his build work as well. I keep telling him we need to find a money tree somewhere to cut down for wheels and turbo kit. LOL

[2010SLVRBULIT]

kickpanels are tight/cool subbox, only thing is the stickers on the front fenders look cluttered. Should be only one row, imo. Curious what you're hitting(SPL) w/ that set up(for SQ), low 140s?..

[Agent WD-40]

I love the fact you kept the factory head unit and went with a fairly stealth install (excluding the trunk). Well done.

[TeamTCA]

Thanks for all the props... I am in the middle of resizing pics (smaller) of the build and I will post up some then. Like I said, I have pretty much step-by-step build pics on every part of the install.

Kicks do NOT stick out very much at all. I still haven't had custom aftermarket floormats made yet from Lloyds but I intend too. The "dead" pedal was removed and the new kick panel just covers where it was. The carpet was NOT modified or cut in any way. The OEM mat still fits in car now and just barely goes under the kick panel in one spot by maybe an inch or so. But I agree, that is exactly why I ordered an auto. Once metal is cut (if your are willing) and wiring rerouted, you could physically put a 10" sub down there if you wanted. The cavity has alot of depth and is pretty big. The 6 1/2" mids are mounted as low as possible without cutting any structure. You will see from the pics. One of the really cool things about these kicks are that both speakers are mounted on 3/4" birch baffles that are secured to the car itself, but the black vinyl main panel & painted "tub" are detached from this, so therefore there is NO panel resonance or vibration yet very solidly installed. Pics will show you, again once I get them up.

The MS-8 main processor (hi-level inputs from deck, 31 band eq, xovers, time alignment, etc) really needs "REAR" spkrs to function properly. It can be done without it but it really does help. Please also note that there is NO center channel speaker in this car as it is a 1SS model. The rear deck 6x9" speakers were removed to allow the trunk mounted 10" subwoofers to "breath" better into the car. On all Camaros, the large side rear plastic panels (beside the rear seat) really waste alot of room. There is only 3-4" thick foam behind these panels and the metal of the car (even more room behind metal--between it and actual outside of car---- easy to put 10" or even a 12" in there). I built ver basic 1/2" birch panels that were surfaced mounted and then Dynamatted in place to hold a 6 1/2" JBL coax. Then I laid everything out on the plastic, cut, and build a basic steel mesh reinforced grill that is attached to the rear of the plastic panel. Again, speaker is mounted to car and grill is mounted to panel so NO vibration. The end result is that both REAR speakers fire straight across the rear area just behind the front seats. My car is "judged" on sound with the seats in the farthest most back position. With what the MS-8 does in processing it works FAR BETTER than rear deck mounted 6x9's.

The fender decals are temporary and yes I agree they do look cluttered. I plan on having all sponsors & partners logos painted on the front part of the door.....maybe. Just trying to show some love for all those who helped out with equipment on this build. I plan on alot more mods on this thing before I'm done but takes $$$. I own my own small business (RETAIL) and business is like a roller coaster. I ordered this car in March of 2009, picked it up in July of 2009 and began designing everything that I wanted to do to it. A single turbo and more suspension work has been part of the plan the entire time. Just hard to catch a break with anyone. Thanks for the comments though.

SPL, really don't know... I would guess upper 130's. Most comps now do not include SPL unless you run certain classes. In Daytona this year, I entered RTA/SPL challenge and the car did 136dB in the seat on a bs AudioControl meter so I would guess around that. The rear trim panels knocked quite a bit of sound out of the interior once they were installed. The upper panel around the top amplifier is vented. I will post pics up on it as well so that you can see how it is built. Sometimes, dealing with a car this small you have to sacrifice "boom boom" for appearance and function, well I did anyway.

As for the exterior, wheels maybe....I just really don't like very many other than the factory. I have another set I plan on widening for the rear and run 315/35's and run the OEM rears on the front. A low profile, nice rear spoiler---NO RICER and a nice clean hood. I have no desire for ground effects but maybe a front splitter. Need nice set of adjustable coilovers too. I also have another rear lower diffuser that I have been working on and plan to paint it body color to match. It all takes time and money. Sponsors will be greatly accepted...LOL

I bought this car to drive and it only has 1,972 miles on it right now...how sad is that?
Ok, I am going to work on uploading some pics now. Stay tuned... Thanks...

[TeamTCA]

REAR SPEAKERS (SIDE WALL INSTALL)...

[TeamTCA]

KICK PANELS...

[TeamTCA]

BATTERY RACK...

[Switchin2Chevy]

Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about..!!! Nice set up..!

[TeamTCA]

Thanks bro... I will get some more build pics posted up at the first of next week. Appreciate everyone looking.......

[Kevinshawnm]

One of the best installs ive ever seen in ANY VEHICLE!!!

[Darth V8R]

This is amazing - attention to detail is jaw-dropping

[Mindz]

That's a truly amazing build. Mad props!

[dermo1989]

I used to be involved in the car audio scene from the early to late 90's.......... and that is one of the best and cleanest installs i have ever seen. My Chevy Beretta was sponsored by Alpine. Hat's off to you!! SICK!!