Back in 1967, Felix Lopez bought a 1967 Chevrolet RS/SS Camaro from Nickey Chevrolet in Chicago, featuring a high-performance 427 with a 4-speed and 3 2-barrel carbs. Amazingly, he still owns and shows the car today. What's perhaps more amazing is that Lopez served an 8-year tour in the Viet Nam War, making him and his Nickey Camaro great examples of what we call "Survivors." Shot at the 2010 Chicago World Of Wheels / Chevy Vettefest show.
Response has been great on the 2009 Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational DVD - Here's what others are saying:
"Great video, the in-car video is terrific! Lots of interesting things were caught by the camera crew in this one, Bills UCA snapping, Larry's off course, etc. Great work guys! Two thumbs up! - David Pozzi"
"I got my copy today. Great coverage of the event. It covers the good, the bad and even in my case, the ugly. Great work Kevin and Kelly, as always, top notch stuff guys. Even if you saw the Speed show on the event, I recommend this one to everyone. Great interviews and some insider stuff that you just did not see on the show. Since Kevin is a car guy, he covered the event with a bit of a car guy twist." - Bill Howell
"I just watched and it really turned out great. Thanks to everyone at V8TV for the awesome DVD and the really cool coverage of Motiv8r as well. Well worth the money." - Larry Callahan
"I just got the DVD, thank you very much, you and your crew did an
outstanding job on the DVD. It really depicted the event and how
things unfolded and gave a more detailed account of the preparation and
effort that went into developing the cars." - Bruce Cambern
Muscle cars need free-flowing exhaust to make power, but that does not mean the have to be obnoxiously loud. However, we all like that sweet rumble from a healthy engine, but not droning in the cabin. What to do? Check out this install video of a MagnaFlow stainless exhaust system with its flow-through mufflers and True-X crossover tubes. Not only does it look slick, but it installs easy, does not rob power, and sounds great at all the right times.
Wheels and tires can make or break a car's looks and performance, and we wanted to choose our wheel and tire combination carefully. We wanted to equip our 1965 Chevelle with wheels that will look good forever, without being too trendy. We also wanted tires that offered great performance without sacrificing ride and comfort. After carefully measuring the Chevelle with a Percy's Wheel Rite tool, we selected a set of Vintage Wheel Works V40 straight-spoke wheels measuring 17x8" with 4 3/4" of backspace. These wheels are practically made for the car, with their crisp, timeless, and aggressive styling. For tires, we chose a set of BF Goodrich g-Force Super Sport A/S tires in 245/45R17 rear and 225/45R17X/L front sizes. The g-Force Super Sports offer aggressive looks, great all-season traction, and construction stiff enough to handle the autocross without sacrificing comfort.
All the sanding and preparation work is finally complete, and we were ready to spray the DuPont BMW Estoril Blue on our 1965 Chevelle. After all the primer was wetsanded to a 600 grit finish, body technician Nathan Newberry wiped the surface down with wax & grease remover and sprayed the body with DuPont Hot Seal sealer to create a barrier between the basecoat color and the primer. Next came the DuPont Chroma Premiere basecoat. Nathan sprayed several coats to completely cover the body shell, then we masked the outside surfaces and sprayed clear on the door jambs and areas that could not be cleared once the car is reassembled. Next up were the doors, fenders, hood, deck lid, hinges, etc. All were checked with the 3M SunGun for accuracy. We're going to assemble the car in basecoat and clear it assembled... stay tuned for that one!
Once the Standox Sprayable Polyester was block sanded to a 220 grit surface, body tech John Blandford prepped our 1965 Chevelle's body for a couple coats of DuPont Hot Prime primer. The Hot Prime is part of the Hot Hues line, and provides the last sandable layer before final sealer and then color. John sprayed the primer using a SATA KLC spraygun and the 3M PPS cup system. The KLC HVLP low overspray primer and filler gun for its ability to finely atomize heavier materials reducing the amount of sanding needed for a flat surface, and the PPS cup system makes clean-up simple with less solvent waste. The next chapter in the '65 Chevelle story... spraying the color!
