Bad Carma a 1987 Camaro Z28

[87camaroZ28]

A couple of weeks ago I introduced myself and this project on the intro page of the forum and as promised here is the build thread. Please read the initial post to see what I started with and where I am headed with this project. I have two years of work invested in this car which is what I will try to show over the next couple weeks. Later this month I'll be visiting Frank and Mike at Prodigy Customs to see the progress they have made on installing the drivetrain. But for now lets look at what I did prior to turning over the car to them. We'll start the update with pictures of the roll bar which was installated by Sheppard Race cars. After getting the car back from Sheppard I fabricated double shear seat belt mounts and welded them in. I also reinforced the seat mounting points and increased the stud size to 1/2 inch.





The first picture shows the extra thick plate used in the ECTA legal roll bar. I thought about a full cage but I didn't want to get into cutting the dash and the HVAC system. The projected speeds for this car don't require a full cage. I understand the safety factors and made what I thought was an educated calculation and went with the roll bar.




The floor of the car was great shape. Only a couple spots of surface rust which I ground off and epoxy primed. These photos show where I used spray on bed liner to insulate and protect the metal.





The next step was to pull the old drivetrain. Good help comes in small packages!

[GeoffP]

Great project - I have a soft spot for 3rd gens! Where'd you get the steel wheels? I've seen a couple cars with them - assume they have the correct offset? What size are they?

[sokoloka]

Excited to see a third gen getting done up! Looks great so far.

[87camaroZ28]

Geoff,

The wheels and tires are Cragar Soft 8's with BFG KDWS's. The fronts are 17x8 with 4.5 inches of back spacing with a 255/45/17 tire. The rears are 17x9 with 5.0 inches of back spacing with a 255/50/17 tire.

Greg

[87camaroZ28]

Eric,

Thanks for checking out the car! Third generation camaros are not really known for their style or performance. I think that's what makes one that has been well done so cool. I hope mine will get a little respect even though its not a popular body style. The LS3,T56, Ford 9inch plus a few other cosmetic changes should make the car standout a little. Things should get a little more interesting once I get a little further into this thread with the paint and suspension.


Greg

[randywyatt2000]

nice camaro

[bonecrrusher]

Those headlight covers are very Mad Max looking - love it!

Also like the fact this build looks its being done in a 2 car garage!

[srh3trinity]

I miss my 87 Camaro. I will recreate that car down the road as a barely street legal cone killer.

[87camaroZ28]

Before taking the car off the road I had installed Jegs sub frame connectors, Eibach springs, AGX adjustable shocks, Edelbrock LCAs and an adjustable Panhard bar so the next step in the evolution of the Bad Carma Camaro was to install the 9 inch Ford rear end which I acquired when the buyer of the old 305 TPI engine told me that he just happened to have a Currie Crate 9 inch Ford for my car that he was looking to sell. The rear end had Drum brakes and 3.70 gears, the price was right and my car had factory rear drums so it bolted in without any problems.






While I worked under the car my oldest son cut out the only cancer on the entire car.

[87camaroZ28]

Spohn Suspension Components....


[ATTACH]

[87camaroZ28]

Paint....

[GeoffP]

Looking good! I've used Spohn's stuff before - it's nice stuff. One suggestion, make sure you brace that tranny cross member. They have been known to pull the nutserts out of the frame even with a bolt in all three bolt holes.

[87camaroZ28]

Geoff,


That's good information. I was already looking into that some because each side of the trans mount only had two of the three nutserts. Also, today is a big day... I'm heading to Florida to see Frank and Mike and hopefully take lots of pictures of progress they have made on the car!

[deadman]

i always wondered what soft8's would look like on a 3rd gen. we have basically the same idea with our cars. my 88 is black with red suspension parts. im following this for sure. looks good! i love 3rd gens!

[CruizinKev]

good work so far! nice paint!

[87camaroZ28]

I impressed myself with the paint. It doesn't have any trash in it and polished up really well. Not bad for bargain paint sprayed in a make shift booth in my garage. The paint is Summit brand that has progressively more clear added for each coat. We'll just have to see how well it holds up to the elements.

[shovellac]

I want to build one of these for strip,track duty start racing NASA maybe, I will be closing following you. Nice work so far, sub'd

[bonecrrusher]

Damn - I am impressed with the backyard garage paint booth - and how well it turned out!

[woody80z28]

Glassy black with Soft-8s. Love the look.

[87camaroZ28]

I was surprised how well the soft 8's looked on the car. When the car comes back from Prodigy Customs it will prabably be wearing Forgelines. I'm not sure which ones yet. ZX3R's look really good so do the Lateral G's. I have looked at some Team III and Vintage Wheel Works minilite's...As the car's stance and body modifications shape up We'll decide which wheels to go with.

Also, I got to visit Frank at the shop last month. He's been busy, lots of projects in his shop. So no new pictures with significant progress just yet. The engine is ready and we got to discuss some design aspects of the car in person. I'm getting excited!!