[taylorforschool@gmail.com]

Originally Posted by Sephx1

Thank you all!

Yes it felt great to finally get it on the road. My boys were as excited as I was. I still need to replace the ABS module, get the new modules programmed and A/C charged, hopefully no leaks. Then it goes to Cordes Performance next week to dyno tune it. Last, it will get inspected by the state next Friday so I can register it and get my plates.

Toast to that!

[RamAir02]

Originally Posted by Sephx1

Thank you all!

Yes it felt great to finally get it on the road. My boys were as excited as I was. I still need to replace the ABS module, get the new modules programmed and A/C charged, hopefully no leaks. Then it goes to Cordes Performance next week to dyno tune it. Last, it will get inspected by the state next Friday so I can register it and get my plates.

So awesome! What a project and she came out beautiful. I love that you went for a complete OE look.

Is the hood insert black or CF? Hard to tell from the pics and I don't think I saw you mention in this thread.

[CW3SF]

Just out of curiosity, was this project cost effective in the final analysis or would the cost have been comparable to source an undamaged used car?

Great project and nice work.

[Sephx1]

Originally Posted by RamAir02

So awesome! What a project and she came out beautiful. I love that you went for a complete OE look.

Is the hood insert black or CF? Hard to tell from the pics and I don't think I saw you mention in this thread.

Thanks! The insert is carbon fiber. It had a chunk of the clear coat missing. They refinished it and you can't tell where it was repaired.

[Sephx1]

Originally Posted by CW3SF

Just out of curiosity, was this project cost effective in the final analysis or would the cost have been comparable to source an undamaged used car?

Great project and nice work.

Thanks

It was not cost effective for at least three reasons:

1. The unibody and roof panel was damaged, and I had to outsource a lot of labor and materials to fix those problems and fix them right.
2. The welding on the block damaged the ECU and several modules which was costly in parts, troubleshooting, programming and re-tuning.
3. There were far more damaged parts than I anticipated and the cost of many of those parts were very high, even at wholesale.

There are several other factors such as buying worthless used parts with modules that couldn't be used on another vehicle, buying out of state where I had to use a broker and pay fees, then sales tax on top of that which on $30k was still a few thousand dollars. Here in Arizona if you can buy from a private seller, you pay no sales tax. Problem was I couldn't find one and people were asking unheard of prices for their ZLE, especially 6 months ago.

I am planning on posting a complete breakdown of the costs when it is 100% complete. I have separated it into 2 categories, one for costs that were necessary to restore the car and another for additional optional costs such as the exhaust and other mods.

If you look at the link to the other Camaro I rebuilt in post #1, I came out great on what I spent on it. $5900 for a 2SS and it took 60 days to fix it myself.

[Sephx1]

Today was dyno day at Cordes Performance in Tempe, AZ. Nic D is the in house tuner and he is well known for his work. The last cars Nic did for me was a couple of C6 Corvettes about 15 years ago.

Although we were able to get the air/fuel and other parameters dialed in, we did not have the success I had hoped for on the dyno pull. Nic noticed very high manifold air temperature right away and said it was likely an air pocket in the intercooler system or a failed intercooler pump. I had used the JRE intercooler fitting and topped the system off several times, both with the car off and running. I must still have an air pocket somewhere.

Anyhow I was told this car with the mods it has should make around 700 rwhp and it’s only making 560

[Evansa22]

Originally Posted by Sephx1

Today was dyno day at Cordes Performance in Tempe, AZ. Nic D is the in house tuner and he is well known for his work. The last cars Nic did for me was a couple of C6 Corvettes about 15 years ago.

Although we were able to get the air/fuel and other parameters dialed in, we did not have the success I had hoped for on the dyno pull. Nic noticed very high manifold air temperature right away and said it was likely an air pocket in the intercooler system or a failed intercooler pump. I had used the JRE intercooler fitting and topped the system off several times, both with the car off and running. I must still have an air pocket somewhere.

Anyhow I was told this car with the mods it has should make around 700 rwhp and it’s only making 560

Great job on your build! Sounds like even though your cost to rebuild may be comparable to buying used, you did get some upgraded goodies on the car which could be a money saver. Especially if it's a cam (which it sounds like), saved a lot on labor there.

Would recommend some kind of resevoir for the supercharger coolant system to help with trapped air. Relatively inexpensive, easy to install, and eliminates any headache trying to get the air out. Several options out there and think Cordes makes a nice one too. Good luck!

[KingLT1]

Put one of these on it.
https://www.tascaparts.com/oem-parts...-tank-42439124
https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showt...587347&page=11

[Sephx1]

Another milestone today, the car passed its level 3 inspection and is now restored title status and registered! Also got the A/C charged after replacing a leaking hose. In the photo the tech is adding oil that was lost due to condenser and line replacement. Last thing I want is to buy and change a compressor because it was low on oil. Next post will be the dyno numbers and final cost breakdown.

[JTS]

Very nice Sephx1, a long road but that kind of gratification makes the headache parts of the project seam not that bad. From what I remember, but my experience was 60s muscle an classics . Light years different compared to today's technology you delt with. Again very nice

[L78toLT1]

Very nice! I have thoroughly enjoyed this thread, and hate to see it come to an end, although I suspect that you are releaved to finally get this project behind you.
How many miles are on the car? The one thing I would have done differently is to remove and refresh the heads, and inspect the rest of the valvetrain. Given the collateral damage that the car incurred during the header installation, it appears to have been a very amateurish job. If the same guys did the cam, it's entirely possible that the lifter preload was not properly set. I'd check the rocker trunions also to verify that they have been upgraded. I would be extremely nervous pushing this car to the limits on track without knowing a little more about the mod history. Even assuming that everything was done correctly, if the cam and valvetrain have over 25k or so hard street miles or 40+ track hours you could be one track session away from losing a valve, taking out the block, one head, and either the rotor pack or the entire blower.
After all of the blood, sweat, tears, and dollars you have invested in this project, it would definitely suck to lose a motor the first time you hit the track.

[Sephx1]

Originally Posted by L78toLT1

Very nice! I have thoroughly enjoyed this thread, and hate to see it come to an end, although I suspect that you are releaved to finally get this project behind you.
How many miles are on the car? The one thing I would have done differently is to remove and refresh the heads, and inspect the rest of the valvetrain. Given the collateral damage that the car incurred during the header installation, it appears to have been a very amateurish job. If the same guys did the cam, it's entirely possible that the lifter preload was not properly set. I'd check the rocker trunions also to verify that they have been upgraded. I would be extremely nervous pushing this car to the limits on track without knowing a little more about the mod history. Even assuming that everything was done correctly, if the cam and valvetrain have over 25k or so hard street miles or 40+ track hours you could be one track session away from losing a valve, taking out the block, one head, and either the rotor pack or the entire blower.
After all of the blood, sweat, tears, and dollars you have invested in this project, it would definitely suck to lose a motor the first time you hit the track.

Thanks, the car now has 31k miles. I agree with you and if I had to do it over again I would have had the motor gone through especially since it was out of the car for 5 months while it was at the body shop. Had I known it would be that long I would have gone through it. I wasn’t even sure if the car was fixable so I sat on my hands and held on to my wallet as best I could. My 2nd biggest regret. My 1st was buying the car to begin with. It’s been redone right but has not been a financial success. I will keep going on it until every issue is worked out because I have to.

If it blows up I’ll be looking for a stock crate LT4. Plenty of power for what I’m doing anyway.

Just had the crankshaft seal replaced on Saturday, former GM power train engineer did the work. I had the LT4 seal and the LS3 seal, he chose the LS3 seal as it has a better design. He found that the clutch was slipping as well. We wanted to do a compression and leak down test but ran out of time as these guys were only in town for the day.

[Sephx1]

Thought I would add a couple updated photos to this thread. Just had the hood and roof wrapped and covered in satin Xpel PPF today. I can finally say the car is complete. I’ve put 2,000 miles on it, had it to the track a few times and will be trailer it it back to the Reno/Tahoe area in a few days for vacation. This is where it all started as I bought it at the Reno Copart auction almost a year ago. Might even make the NASA event at Sonoma in a few weeks.

[SSDan]

Awesome job! I hope you get many miles of good time and fun with it. You’ve earned it!