BAD CARMA....Coming from Georgia.

[87camaroZ28]

Hello Everyone,


My name is Greg and I live in Georgia. I have been wondering around the site checking out other enthusiast’s cars for quite a while. I love all the creative thinking, fabrication and hard work people put into their cars. My particular project isn't necessarily original, high-end or super trick but it will fulfill the vision I have and it will allow me to drive the daylights out of it.

BAD CARMA is a 1987 Camaro Z28 that I purchased for $1,500.00 back in 2005. I was actually looking for a second generation Camaro but I couldn’t find one that wasn’t rusted out, badly cut up or had lots of collision damage. I stumbled upon this little gem with four flat tires and some minor body damage at a local automotive repair shop. After researching the availability of restoration parts I went and made the owner an offer. We hooked up some jumper cables and the Camaro started right up on the first turn of the key. It sounded strong for a little 305 and there wasn’t the slightest hint of smoke. After mounting a set of used tires I drove it home.

It looked so bad my wife made me park it in the backyard. On a good note the car was complete and got over 20 miles per gallon...I had an uncle tell me “That’s great don't touch it!” Yeah, I didn't take that advice....

I have previously owned a 440 powered Plymouth Duster that was a drag car without a lot of amenities, it was fun and very fast but not comfortable. I wanted the Camaro to go around corners really nice, be physically comfortable to drive and handle well at highway speeds. I also wanted something that is primarily a street car but could do weekend duty at the drag races, road course or auto-cross. Events like The Silver State Classic and the MaxtonMile look like a lot of fun.

Inspiration for the car comes from many sources. About 1980 I saw the movie Mad Max and have loved a black hot rod ever since. Then there was Mark Giles’ Big block powered 2nd gen on a NASCAR chassis and Big Red. Recently I have been impressed by cars like Bad Penny, Red Devil, BrianHobaugh's Camaro, Vaughn Gittin Jr's RTR-X '69 Mustang and Spectre's 2nd gen with the huge fender flares.

I'll be creating an actual build thread shortly…but until I get around to it here are some plans for the car. It will be powered by a stroked LS3, a T56 Magnum, Currie 9 inch and Baer Brakes. I have done a lot of work myself but sometimes it's best to pay a professional so that you get the results that you want. To that end the car was sent to Sheppard Race Cars in Covington Georgia for a little work. I also talked with Frank and Mike at Prodigy Customs and got them to help me with the project.

Attached are a couple pictures to show you what I started with and what it looked like after a little work. Keep an eye out for the build thread and I'll post pictures of the work that was done before it went to Prodigy Customs. As Frank and Mike make progress installing the drivetrain I’ll post those pictures too.

[JEFFTATE]

3rd Gen Camaros are great .
They are inexpensive to buy , cheap to modify , and handle pretty good out of the box ..

I like the Mad Max Theme !! Great Movie !!

[SparkyRnD]

Welcome to the club, and looks like a great start to a cool project. Shame you didn't talk to Joe at Bulldawg Musclecars, he's up here in Acworth and builds a lot of cool muscle cars and hot rods, and has a good history with Camaro's like yours. We also have monthly meet & greets at his shop, with free donuts / coffee. They are on the 2nd saturday of every month.

[Nick Ostas]

love the color, wrap it........welcome.....

[CruizinKev]

welcome aboard Greg!

[NoCash]

Welcome to the board, Frank is a good guy. If your car is at prodigy then its sittin next to 2 of my cars. very cool.

[BulldawgMusclecars]

Welcome! Frank will treat you right. I used to live close the Sheppard shop, and last I heard one of my old friends was working in the same complex with them (Brad Brand, Atlanta Chassis Dyno).

[Rogue 67]

Where did you get your frog spoiler.. Did you make it or buy it

[87camaroZ28]

Joe, I got to tour both shops several times, the craftsmanship at both shops is impecable and there is some serious machinary being worked on there. Sheppard did a great job building a ECTA legal roll bar for my Camaro. Welding the extra think reinforcement plates to thin sheet metal took real skill. Acworth is about an hour and a half from the house so you might see me at some of the events that you host. I really don't need much of an excuse to get in the hot rod and take a drive....



Greg

[87camaroZ28]

I purchased the 5 inch rear spoiler from Hawks 3rd Gen Parts. My car is an '87 which has the 3rd brake light in the factory rear spoiler. The new spoiler is much thinner and there isn't room to transfer the factory light bucket. I found some very thin 12 volt LEDs that can be cut to lenght. I plan on recessing the factory lense into the spoiler and lighting it with the LEDs which will splice into the factory wiring.

[BulldawgMusclecars]

I only know Sheppherd by reputation (excellent), but Brad at ACD I can vouch for personally. He did a great job tuning my '91 LX 5.0 coupe (517rwhp, stock bottom end 5.0!) and my '97 Camaro SS. That was back when he was on Buford Hwy in Duluth, though.
Bruce Hawkins is a good friend, too. I have known him since the earliest days of Fender Enterprises (pre-Third Gen Resource and Hawk's). Good people. He's come a long way since the days of shipping parts off his kitchen table.
The next Meet and Greet is coming up soon (Saturday April 14), so we hope to see you there!