Soooo..... Story time!
I had been playing with the idea of either finally doing some power mods on the Camaro(headers, tune) or changing platforms.
I was beginning to plan for power mods. I was shopping for deals and researching headers/tunes, and then thinking about eventually going heads/cam. SCCAforums build thread last year with the Katech package was a huge tease but that is also a huge $$ investment into a platform that has a significant and un-fixable handicap. Weight. I think the lightest 6th Gen SS I've seen on here was into the 3400lb range with a lot of gutting and loss of all amenities. Hell, the GT4 Camaro was still 3130 dry. I don't have $250K just sitting around though.
Alternatively, I was thinking of trying something different. Corvette C6-C7, Viper(GenIV), Cayman, Supra, were all options I was considering. Even a used TA2 race car was on the menu for a bit. I was watching BAT auctions and creeping on forums just to see what was out there and figure out some of the trade offs/benefits of each platform. I also talked with a guy at the SCCA time trials this spring that owned and raced a C6Z, a C7Z and a C8(Z51). He described the C6 as a lightweight scalpel but without the safety nets of advanced PTM modes, the C7 as a sledgehammer, with electronics to keep it from bludgeoning the driver(to a point), and the C8 as a different car entirely, more supercar than racecar. I also figured the C7 would be the smallest change given the shared components with the Camaro. But would it be enough of a change? I wasn’t sure. A Viper would be BAD ASS, but it would have to be one that had likely already been beat on. Cayman’s come with Porsche tax, but Supras(A90) have a pretty solid and fast reputation. Maybe even something totally different. Caterham? Ariel? Lotus?
Choices, choices…… Then, about a month ago, a corvette popped up on BaT.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/20...port-coupe-20/
I watched the auction with a bit of interest but issues came up. The seller was not responding to questions. Obviously, there were a few answers needed given the modifications. I figured it would either price out of my range (given the single reciept from Katech for $61K!!) or fail to meet reserve. So, I stopped watching it with a day to go to prevent myself from getting into some sort of auction bidding escalation trouble. Apparently with 5 hours to go, the seller popped up and said he had not been notified that the auction went live! He tried to answer questions, but it had already lost interest and did not meet reserve.
I saw the result a day later and did some research on the car. I found it posted on the corvette forum. The forum also popped up with details from the original owner. Apparently, it was not his first Katech Corvette, but it was one of the first C7s Katech had installed their 427 package in. SN 04 specifically. They had also used it as the promo car for the package, complete with an awesome 10 minute video, detailing the build!
https://youtu.be/XR4Mv7kyQck?si=Wc7sY_mdbIKPfXX-
Epic!! The dealer posted a price on the forum that I thought was very reasonable given the money dumped into the car!! But again, they were not responding the comments and DM! I googled the VIN and it popped up at a dealer in Kalispell, MT. I reached out through their website and finally got a response!! I had the dealer give me a good tour on a video chat and haggled a bit. Everything appeared to check out and they agreed on my offer, so I dropped a deposit on the beauty! WOOHOO!! A couple of days to drive over with my trailer and back and she was nicely parked in my garage!!
Honestly, this car is more than I am used to(obviously) and will definitely take some learning. The motor is ****in’ nuts! It pulls ALLLL the way to 7K, which doesn’t sound like that much more than 6.5K but this thing is so linear it feels like 9K!! The twin plate clutch is ahem….quite.. finicky and the cam is pretty aggressive. Getting it off the line is a balance of actually get moving and piss off the neighbors, or kill it and die from embarrassment. It does need a little work and prep for the track. New fluids, brake pads, maybe rotors? Front and rear tires are mismatched, and the cold idle surges a bit, not sure if it needs a tune up or that’s just the way this motor/cam/tune idles. But boy does it wake the dead!!
I loved cutting my teeth on the Camaro but this was a deal I couldn’t turn down. The Camaro was a fantastic and forgiving platform to be my first foray into the muscle car realm. It was my DD for 3 years and then a weekend toy for the last 4. It was an awesome machine that took everything a rookie driver could throw at it. It was a fun development platform for my aero experiments and carbon fiber creations! There are a laundry list of little things I would’ve loved to do with the Camaro, that I won’t get to. I have molds for splitter tunnels ready for layup and more little aero ideas that will never come to fruition (on the Camaro at least). but sadly I can’t justify 2 track cars. I’ll being posting it for sale shortly and hope to see it go to a good home with someone who will drive it like its meant to be driven!!
Also, a big thanks to EVERYONE on this forum, you guys have been inspirational, informative, encouraging and downright BADASS. I will certainly still be on here from time to time as this group has been one of the less dramatic, better organized and most supportive online communities I have been a part of. I hope to still see a few of you at the track and hope to come across more of you in the future!
Keep it on track!
Eddie