2011 Camaro
 

If GM were to produce a limited number of light weight turn-key Camaro race cars would you buy one? My guess on price would be $80,000.00 - $100,000.00 ready to race.

The way I see it is the only way that this will happen is if we step up and ask for it. I would like to make a list of potential buyers to present to GM. Please feel free to PM me if you would like to be added.

Thanks,

Daren

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

would I like to, yes. Am I currently in a financial position to do so, no.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

100k, put the bong down and back away slowly, very slowly...lmao!!!!!!!!!!! j.k.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

More like $125,000 + they can not seem to do it the same as FOMOCO like at thier Road Race car from Riley

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Better order a real wide trailer to go with it. :D

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

This thread was meant to be a positive one. If you want to flame please start your own thread.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

j.k. at the end get it.....

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

No way, have a real nice day ...

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

D w a

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I will take 4!

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Thank you Daren starting this topic. This is just what we all need for the off season. I just got back from P.R.I. where the theme just like SEMA is new aftermarket products for the 2010 Camaro and Challenger. It felt like 1970 all over again.
Mustang and Challenger set the precedent with NHRA approval for 50 car minimum combinations, so now it is time for Camaro to go center stage. The new Z-28 is supposedly supercharged like the Cobra Jet Mustang.
The 6.2 engine should compare closely to the Hemi Challenger. I have an idea for another LS engine for something other than A stock depending on the weight of the Camaro. The front wheel drive Monte Carlo SS and Impala SS of 2006-2007 had a 5.3 LS engine rated and factored at 303 hp. This could be a competitive combination for a 50 car minimum type vehicle even if it wasn't showroom available.
Maybe some L-88 Corvette and 427 Camaro big block Chevy racers from the AA and A stock classes would be interested in the "body-in-white" deal for 2010 Camaros. It will be very exciting to see all 3 makes racing again. Fred Lee

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Fred,

Thanks for your positive response. I hope that some GM racers will step up to the plate. I was also at the PRI show. This has a pretty good chance of happening. And yes, it will most likely be supercharged.

If GM builds them, they want to see them in the hands of racers first.

It was really nice to speak with the reps from all three brands. They were all very positive about these programs. GM is in the toughest position and needs to present a good case to management for this to go through.

This is no joke!!


Take Care,

Daren


My BIW. Proof positive that GM wants us to race these cars!
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k5...1/IMG_0313.jpg

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Daren, I don't think that you have to worry about preselling a special,one off Camaro race car in this day and age. There's still enough collectors around with money who will snap them up if the racers don't. All Chevrolet would have to do is build 50 or 100 and number them. They'll go!

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

If I don't get enough feedback on here the next place that I post will be on one of the collector forums. It would be a shame for none of these cars to ever see the light of day. At least the original COPO cars got a day or two in the sun before they became collectables!

NOTE: THESE CARS WILL HAVE A SOLID REAR AXLE!

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Daren, I won't disagree with that BUT what matters is that they get built! The collectors are going to eventually wind up with them anyway!

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Fred-did you see the new MUSTANG sitting in the FORD Booth that had SS/BA on the window? Someone in the booth told me either $92,000.00 or $93,000.00 I don't remember. It was light gray with a supercharger on it. Nice car.

Phil

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Phil, yes I did see the Mustang. I am surprised I did not run into you on friday or saturday. I am involved in a rear differential project for the 2010 Camaro so I take particular interest in the new Camaros.
I got to speak with some very important people behind the scenes and part of my mission is to make a list of interested parties to race the new Camaro. I hope this topic attracts a lot of attention so let's keep this going. Fred Lee

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

well here is a positive idea, take the price of a new camaro and deduct all the parts and pieces not put on to make it a production car, then add the cost of a supercharger and
solid rear axle with good components and see where you are. i would think you should
be close to the price of a showroom ss or less.. this is where it would need to be priced
for the avg joe to even think of building one.. the prices people are throwing out make it
completely non feasable unless you are very wealthy, other than that the only ones buying
will be collectors..and yes i would like to build/own one but not for 100k aint happening.
what about a little help from the factory? just some thoughts..

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Good point. No price has been written in stone as of yet. GM wants to put out something similar to the Mustang in content. That would include the cage, wheels, slicks, headers, etc.. If you can't afford it all at once a BIW is a good idea. I was surprised to see that most of the trim parts are reasonable.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

gump check your p.m.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Daren please PM me. Your name came up during a conversation at P.R.I. Our goal is the same. Thank you. Fred Lee email: mod12bolt@gmail.com or cell 231-740-5534

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Daren, In all seriousness. If it could be built in "kit" form, with full support from GM (like the CJ with completion kits, etc. Then we might be interested. WE ARE interested, just not currently able to write that big of a check.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I would assume that GM will make these along the same price point as Ford did the Cobra Jet. Ford didnt have any troule selling those.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

If I could afford to buy one, I'd prefer just a BIW. I have the 3rd BIW Olds Ciera produced by FJ. I currently run it in SS/CS with a 30 year old "Corporate" Small Block. As I said, if I could afford it, I'd love to get a 2010 Camaro BIW. I'd hand it over to my chassis builder (Darryl Smith Racecars) and let him do his magic.

Oh well, a guy can always dream!

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

If this happens it will open a lot of doors.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

These latest generation Camaros will end up being great racecars....just wait a bit. NHRA gave Ford and Mopar pretty much what they wanted, specs-wise, so Chevy should get the same treatment....let's see. WJ

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I would buy a Camaro if it was complete like the Ford's! And GM wouldn't have to worry about me storing it away as a collector piece.....I'd race the wheels off the thing! Make mine silver with black strips please. Tom Nolan SS GT/AA 6015

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

A assume that was sarcastic...

Chevy will get the same treatment when they start giving away trucks...

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Actually, I spoke with people from Ford, GM, and Chrysler at the PRI show. They all want to see more of the new cars racing. It also seems that the NHRA wants a three way battle.

Because of GM's financial situation their road is a harder one to climb. You can imagine what it would take to get this approved. The first step is to prove that they can actually sell these cars if they are built. History tells that there were 69 Camaros built in 1969 that proved very hard to sell due to their high price tag and exotic race motor! Hopefully the collector status of those cars will help the new cars sell.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

In the December 4th issue of National Dragster, there is a mention in "Bits from the Pits" about a Dodge Challenger package car at Glendora Dodge being offered at $45,000.

If the Camaro was at this price point, I might be able to find a way, especially if GMAC would finance the purchase.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I think this would be a great idea. I wish they would do this.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

As someone involved in the fielding of a new Challenger Drag Pak, I too would be interested to see this, I like Mopars but Ill be completley honest Id run anything that could/would be competitive.

I would think it would be easier to "run up the flag pole" than many think. Someone just have to have the DESIRE inside GM, Dodge had that with the people that made the Drag Pak happen (dont forget this was BEFORE ford, although it took longer to get out and anyone woulda liked) They took orders first, when the orders were filled then they decided to and built the cars, after the orders were filled.

GM Could do this if they had someone inside willing to make it happen, the OTHER option, is for a big tuner, Hurst, hell someone with about 5 million bucks could make a 50 car program happen. (thats COSTING the cars at over 100k each) 50 cars even priced at 125-130 if they are ready to race will sell out first day, just like the Challys and the SCJs, people WILL pay it. Tuner cars are legit as long as they meet the same criteria, the could do a deal with GM to buy the bodies, co-brand the cars, and there is ZERO out of pocket risk for GM, ZERO. Downside ? None, upside ? All kinds of free press for really doing nothing more than supplying BIW's and some castings.

If I had a spare 3-5 million I would be all over this in a hearbeat, there is a potential if they are sourced cost effectivly to make a 100% profit if you could cost the cars at 50k, 20 for a well built engine from a respected builder, another 15k for cage and suspension work, say 10 for the BIW and other stock parts, costing and another 5k for tranny. Sell them for 100k everyone is happy, and there is a 3 car field...

Cmon GM fans make this happen....or someone loan me 3.5 mil and Ill make it happen.

This isnt rocket science....at least it dosent seem like it to me.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Drooze,

The desire is there, but building Stock Eliminator cars is not a management priority at the moment. If this happens it will be because it makes good business sense.

My understanding is that GM likes the Ford approach better than the Challengers "kit" packaging. It is pretty obvious that most of the first batch of Mustangs have been put away. I would bet that a higher percentage of the Challengers will actually get raced. Maybe there is a place right in the middle that would put the price where racers would buy them and not just collectors?

Time will tell.

Daren

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Do a 100-build competitive LS-blower-motored, 80-90% race ready car in the 3000lb. raceweight area---just like Ford has done, cage, headers, lightweight wheels and all, and price it in the $65-75k range, and the bow-tie people will jump at the chance to own/race one. Simple, special use vehicle.... Take away a few of those GM giant executive bonus pkgs, and they could do a Camaro AND a Corvette racer......;) WJ

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

The new camaros should be offered with different motor combos such as LT1 or LS1 instead of just the jet airliner motor that you have to weigh 4000lbs to race. The shipping weights should be kept as low as possible for versatility.
I have a 96 camaro with an LT1 in SS/IA. Do you think a new camaro would ever fit anywhere near that???

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

The first problem is that GM is not going to invest a ton of money in developing a new engine package. Most everything they have on the shelf already has a fairly legitimate factor on it, so to have some ringers like Ford and Chrysler have, they're going to need a new engine combination. It'll cost them $1M to get it done. GM has pulled support from winning teams in various motorsports, I'd be surprised to see them invest heavily in a program that will be at best a break even proposition.

GM asked Stock racers about this two years ago. Oddly enough, the Stock racers GM asked wanted a car with a 3000 to 3200 pound curb weight and a realistic HP factor of between 7.0 and 8.0. They expected a legitimate competitive combination, and not the abominations that have been dumped on Stock.

The program died. The way GM is being run, I have little faith in it being revived. I truly wish that were not the case. The market has already been tapped. There are a bunch of the Ford and Chrysler cars out there already, it's going to be extremely hard for GM to sell their version a year or two late to the dance, in a faltering economy. I'd love to see it happen.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

This is how I would approach this situation. Since the body in white Camaros are already available, any interested parties could add their name to a list of 50 or 100. That list could be submitted to GM. I believe this forum could set up a sample list or you could PM Daren or myself with all your contact information. That would be step 1.
Step 2 would probably require a non-refundable deposit. If there are not enough class racers to fill the list I am sure bracket racers would fill the void. At this point I would like to bring up my favorite saying for race car projects "You've got the talking part done".
Step 3 is having the solid rear axle installed in a way that is NHRA and IHRA accepted for stock class. This should be easy since the Challenger has already been legalized for it's I.R.S. replacement conversion to solid rear axle.
Since Daren already has his 2010 Camaro body in white and I am involved with a magazine project car that wants to use my 12 bolt I.R.S. replacement for the 2010 Camaro, we could handle this phase together.
The serious people will then find their own chassis builder and accomplish their goal.
Ohters may wait a year for a special price on that "onesize fits all" kit car that may never happen because of corporate politics, etc. A body in white with a "race ready" aftermarket 12 bolt solid rear axle for $100,00 is a steal in this economy. Fred Lee

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I would like to change that last sentence to read : $10,000 not $100,000. Sorry. Fred Lee

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

I agree with your idea Fred. They need to take it a step further, and open up their parts bin.

They need to put together trim and interior packages, at a very steeply discounted price (dealer wholesale) available only to the people who purchase a new body.

Then they need to do the same thing for engine parts. If you buy a BIW, you should be able to buy all the GM parts used to build an engine for it at 5% over cost or less.

And the same thing for all of the front suspension, and the rest of the stuff to put the car together. They know every piece that is needed to build the car, they should offer packages for all of it.

They need to make it really affordable to build a car. Anything a person who purchases a BIW from GM needs that GM can supply they should sell at 5% over cost, or less.

Re: 2011 Camaro
 

Alan, thank you for the vote of confidence. I personally can't afford even a body in white. But I am trying to help in any way that I can to get these new Camaros out there racing with Mustangs and Challengers.
Please call me at 231-740-5534 Cell or email mod12bolt@gmail.com for more information on how you can help Daren and I keep this thread interesting and find more racers that want to get on the list. Thank you. Fred Lee