The featured muscle car – 1968 Chevrolet Camaro C5R is 2013 Goodguys Muscle Machine of the Year Finalist! It has Doug Rippie Motorsports built C5R LS1 engine, Five speed TREMEC transmission, Full DSE suspension, Custom Forgeline wheels, C6 Z06 brakes, Custom fabrication everywhere, STACK gauges, 295 front, 345 rear tires!
Let’s look at the evolution of this muscle car from it’s creators:
Larry’s been tearing around in this car (he calls it “development,” of course…) and wound up at Goodguys in Charlotte in October. He was there to do some autocrossing, and finishes FOURTH overall out of more than 30 entries, including ALL of the pro class cars! Not bad for an ‘ol Camaro with a guy who started autocrossing this summer behind the wheel, wouldn’t you say? Click on Read more for more information and 139 photos!
Our first mod this time around was to stick more rubber at each corner. We managed to fit 295/35ZR19’s up front and 345/30ZR19’s out back…without cutting the exterior sheetmetal! Sure, fabricator Pete had to cut back into his inner fenders for clearance, but that’s a small price to pay for more than DOUBLE the widest tire available when the car was new! Out back, we had some rubbing issues, so we replaced the DSE suspension links with chromoly tubing and Teflon-lined rod ends. For more stiffness around through the cones we ditched the big 1″ splined sway bar in favor of a huge .250 wall 1.25″ bar, and we went with AFCO double adjustable coilovers at all four corners. Inside, we added a pair of Porsche GT2 carbon fiber buckets and Simpson harnesses to hold us in place. We’re better informed thanks to a full complement of STACK programmable gauges, and we feel cooler shifting with our new CNC milled shift handle. A Sparco competition steering wheel finishes off the inputs.
Of course, the biggest change was bolting up a set of Forgeline centerlock wheels, 11″ wide in the front and 12″ wide in the rear. We kept some flair with the polished lips, and the red locks echo the interior. We dropped the car even further into the weeds now that it’s stiffer, and we can’t believe how this thing handles!
We’ve torn into the car again! We’ve upgraded to an intercooled Magnacharger with 8psi of boost rather than the standard blower with 4psi. This necessitated new coolers, and we went with an AFCO intercooler with twin SPAL fans as well as a CSR oil cooler with billet end tanks. We’ve dumped some weight with a trick hood and decklid combo from Anvil, and JRi shocks are replacing the AFCO units. There will be more by the time we’re finished!
Under the hood we added trick Katech valve covers and coil relocation brackets, upped the cooling with a new fan and baffled the power steering tank. That’s the kind of stuff you figure out when you actually USE a car you build!
One of our own, dressed to kill with enough power to do it quickly. A supercharged, stroker C5R race block built up by Doug Rippie Motorsports resides within our custom engine compartment surrounds. The sound makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck, and those huge 335/30ZR18 Toyo R888 track day tires don’t stand a chance when you’re anywhere near full throttle in lower gears.
The Detroit Speed and Engineering catalog was thrown at the car, with their fabricated subframe up front a four link out back. Mini tubs hold the extra rubber. Corvette C6 Z06 brakes lurk behind custom Boyd Coddington black V-Twin wheels. Fat sway bars and killer coil overs maintain a level stance no matter the curve.
Outside, we’ve shaved the door handles and wipers, and we’ve selectively blacked out trim. All new glass is in place, and of course all of the chrome is perfect. You’ll see the custom exhaust outlets poking out from the rocker panels–we custom fabbed those, too.
Inside you’re enveloped in materials beyond those found in any production Chevrolet, ever. Attitude rises from the faux ostrich pattern on the doors and dash, as well as the bright red seat and door panel inserts. We went with a Covan dash holding a full array of gauges, a classic chrome stick connected to the five speed below and billet touches as we saw fit. It’s buttoned down and bad ass all at the same time.
