The Adventures of my Camaro in China

[Caveman_SS]

This is such a cool thread. Enjoyed reading through it a few months ago. Since then, my wife and I have been to China on vacation. We were there the first 2 weeks of September. No family there or anything, just hadn't been to Asia yet and thought China would be cool, and it was! We flew into Shanghai and bullet trained around the country for about 2 weeks. Except for the first day... Our flight delays made us miss our train out of Shanghai and there were no more bullet trains left for the day. So, we got on a K train (I think it was a "K") with a standing ticket for 6 hours from Shanghai to Shangrao. It was really fun though, even though we didn't arrive until 3am. The people on there were super nice and I talked with a guy the whole time via Translate app on our phones. We went from Shanghai to Shangrao, Zhangjiajie, Furong, Tongren, Chengdu, Xi'an, Beijing and then back to Shanghai to fly home. Might have forgotten 1 or 2... It was a really eye-opening experience and much different than I expected in a good way. Only American sports car I saw was an S550 ecoboost Mustang I kept an eye out for your car when we were in Beijing though! I had no idea there were so many electric vehicles there. I did see some pretty cool looking cars over there that I'd never seen before though.

[rocknroll_jeph]

Originally Posted by Caveman_SS

This is such a cool thread. Enjoyed reading through it a few months ago. Since then, my wife and I have been to China on vacation. We were there the first 2 weeks of September. No family there or anything, just hadn't been to Asia yet and thought China would be cool, and it was! We flew into Shanghai and bullet trained around the country for about 2 weeks. Except for the first day... Our flight delays made us miss our train out of Shanghai and there were no more bullet trains left for the day. So, we got on a K train (I think it was a "K") with a standing ticket for 6 hours from Shanghai to Shangrao. It was really fun though, even though we didn't arrive until 3am. The people on there were super nice and I talked with a guy the whole time via Translate app on our phones. We went from Shanghai to Shangrao, Zhangjiajie, Furong, Tongren, Chengdu, Xi'an, Beijing and then back to Shanghai to fly home. Might have forgotten 1 or 2... It was a really eye-opening experience and much different than I expected in a good way. Only American sports car I saw was an S550 ecoboost Mustang I kept an eye out for your car when we were in Beijing though! I had no idea there were so many electric vehicles there. I did see some pretty cool looking cars over there that I'd never seen before though.

Thank you for sharing, that sounds like an amazing trip and a wonderful experience! I wish you would have contacted me, I love to show people the other side of Beijing. And there are some really cool new cars here that have creative styling and interesting features, it's fun to car spot from my apartment window and try to guess the make and model.

[Caveman_SS]

Originally Posted by rocknroll_jeph

Thank you for sharing, that sounds like an amazing trip and a wonderful experience! I wish you would have contacted me, I love to show people the other side of Beijing. And there are some really cool new cars here that have creative styling and interesting features, it's fun to car spot from my apartment window and try to guess the make and model.

If I'm ever in your neck of the woods again, I'll be sure to do that. Our flight ended up getting delayed from Greensboro, NC to Dallas, Texas and we ended up getting to Shanghai 3 days late which majorly rushed us into our trip. I did think about contacting you, but we were so worn out from catching trains and hiking mountains that we probably wouldn't have been much fun at that point!

[rocknroll_jeph]

Originally Posted by Caveman_SS

If I'm ever in your neck of the woods again, I'll be sure to do that. Our flight ended up getting delayed from Greensboro, NC to Dallas, Texas and we ended up getting to Shanghai 3 days late which majorly rushed us into our trip. I did think about contacting you, but we were so worn out from catching trains and hiking mountains that we probably wouldn't have been much fun at that point!

Sorry to hear about that delay, that always puts a damper on things. And to who ever else is reading this, if you are going through Beijing, or China, please don't hesitate to contact me, I enjoy helping others whenever and however I can. I feel that is what this online community here at Camaro5 is build upon.

[rocknroll_jeph]

I've uploaded a few new videos onto my youtube page, nothing groundbreaking or amazing, but if you have a few minutes to join me on my journey, I'd appreciate the support!

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...Sal3O_vSlMjp2u

[rocknroll_jeph]

I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you to everyone here, and to express my hope that we can keep this community going strong for many years to come.

Between working on my master’s degree, taking care of a baby, and working full time, I don’t get many chances anymore to make really exciting videos. Still, I hope some of you might spare a couple of minutes to check out my latest one. Here’s the link:

https://youtu.be/KdhgGqC1Kfc


One of the things that prompted me to make a thank-you video was a noticeable shift in the car community here in China. Recently, used Camaro prices have dropped significantly, and there’s been a new wave of young people buying their “dream cars.”

Over the past few months, I’ve been getting messages every couple of days on my Chinese social media accounts—questions, requests for suggestions, and troubleshooting help from new owners. I’m genuinely happy to see this resurgence in Camaro popularity here, and I’m honored that people trust me enough to come to me for help. I’ve even been called “Teacher Jeph” more than once—which, considering I am a teacher, feels pretty fitting.

That said, almost everything I know about my car started right here in the Camaro5 community. What people share on this site, build threads, troubleshooting posts, casual comments, or detailed write-ups, travels much farther than most probably realize. Even when advice is given without any expectation beyond helping a fellow enthusiast, it doesn’t stop here. It gets read, learned, remembered, and passed on.

Many of the people who have helped shape my knowledge will likely never meet me, and they certainly didn’t set out to influence car owners halfway around the world. Yet through this community, they have. The collective knowledge, generosity, and willingness to share that exists here has had a real, positive impact far beyond this forum, and I’m proud to be one small link in that chain.

[1JEWLDSSRS]

Awesomely said Jeph!! We are all one big family of Camaro owners and enthusiasts and have a passion for these wonderful Camaros, and love to share what WE have learned and experienced with them. Your Camaro, and everything you have done with it is a testament of YOUR dedication to your passion, and your vids and writings along the way, paves new roads for those who come behind you over there. Keep up the great work, and enjoy all you have! And if I helped you in any way along the way, I'm grateful to have done so. Cheers my brother!!

[GodsRambo]

Thinking of picking up a set of those taillights. They are now sold on AliExpresss (I recognized your car from the photos).

They are sold with amber outer lenses and an amber led, but they agreed to do red lenses with keeping the amber led. I plan to use it for strobing instead of turn signalling, as I will keep the american style turn signal.

Only issue is they're $600 USD which is not cheap, but is cheaper than infinity taillights and they do look fantastic. Like the original concept car!

[rocknroll_jeph]

Originally Posted by GodsRambo

Thinking of picking up a set of those taillights. They are now sold on AliExpresss (I recognized your car from the photos).

They are sold with amber outer lenses and an amber led, but they agreed to do red lenses with keeping the amber led. I plan to use it for strobing instead of turn signalling, as I will keep the american style turn signal.

Only issue is they're $600 USD which is not cheap, but is cheaper than infinity taillights and they do look fantastic. Like the original concept car!

That is really cool to hear that, thanks for sharing!

And if you haven't already figured out, I absolutely love my taillights, after years of modification, they are finally perfect.

Just double check that they get the wiring correct as the made for China Camaros outer light is turn signal ONLY and the inner lights are brake and driving lights ONLY. I am not sure how many they have sold to owners overseas at this point so they may not know the USDM (And I assume Canadian domestic market?) wiring is different.

[GodsRambo]

I fully anticipate the wiring to be different because on North American Models there is no dedicated turn signal wire, it just flashes the brake light.

This means however they're powering the amber led won't work here, but that's fine because I'm planning to do custom wiring anyways (I've done a good bit on the car already).

[rocknroll_jeph]

Originally Posted by GodsRambo

I fully anticipate the wiring to be different because on North American Models there is no dedicated turn signal wire, it just flashes the brake light.

This means however they're powering the amber led won't work here, but that's fine because I'm planning to do custom wiring anyways (I've done a good bit on the car already).

Nice, I hope you can share the progress, I'd love to see how others are modding.

My taillight wiring is a mess after 4 versions of taillights. Every wire is taped up, twisted together or randomly touching the right spots. I need to get in there and clean it up.

[rocknroll_jeph]

The last two shops I took my car to all said I should replace the serpentine belt, but there's no way I'm paying someone else for something as easy as that... So, I took it to my friend's shop to work on it myself before they opened for the day.

I wish it was as easy as it looked in the video, but in reality it took me 3 hours and I put the original one back on in the end because the replacement was the wrong size for the aftermarket pulley I have installed. I have the new correct size belt sitting in my trunk waiting for some slightly warmer weather.

If you have a few minutes to hang out with me, here's the link to the video. If you like it, please share, subscribe or comment- it's great for my ego and keeps me motivated too.

https://youtu.be/ryPvHzepoZ4?si=jsk-bAowTV_539wu

[rocknroll_jeph]

So... updates. on valentines day my wife used my car to go to work- and took her car keys with her, so I had to take a taxi to and from work and scratched the back end pretty bad... at least it gave me an excuse to make a video... here it is for your viewing pleasure:

https://youtu.be/43AMu35ItV0?si=ZpEUP69kFyDwP7un


however, I used that as an ice breaker and guilt trip her into letting me buy my dream car.

The car has already been delivered to my home in Michigan, however, I won't be back until the summer, so I need to wait. Good thing I am very patient.

This car is a Michigan car, build in the Ohio plant, and it has some of the expected mid-west weight reducing speed holes, but mechanically it is solid.

The previous owner had it for around 30 years, did some cool 90's mods- fiberglass front end, intake and exhaust, very 90's wheels and tires and shaved the door handles. It has the L69 5.0L, a 5 speed manual transmission and a 10 bolt rear end.

Of course the brakes don't work, and the t-tops leaked and ruined the headliner, and the dash is cracked, but I look at that as a fresh start.

I'm planing on upgrading the brakes anyway. The headliner was black, I'm thinking a tan or greyish headliner to brighten up the interior and get some seat covers to match.

As the rust needs repaired and I want a new paint job, the door and t-top seals will need to be removed, so that should be completed in one go.

If anyone has any knowledge or can help me with my plans, know where to snag some cheap parts, has any advice, wants to teach me or anything else, please feel free to reach out.

I am looking for shops in southern Michigan to get the body fixed but so far my search has come back empty.

[rocknroll_jeph]

I just had a stellar session working on my car this afternoon. The weather was nearly perfect (just a bit windy) and I got EVERYTHING I had planned on finished up, with not a single hiccup along the way. I guess mincing my hands and feeding my Camaro some blood and skin a few weeks ago really did the trick.

I documented it all on my channel, I really hope you all can enjoy some down time, relax and check out the video, and as always, I appreciate your comments, questions and interactions!

https://youtu.be/DYAlB1FuWxc