13x13 - 1991 Alfa Romeo 164L

[bunniefuu]

In the early 70s
America, there was a car

destined for gas-guzzling
muscle car greatness,

the 5.7-litre V8 1973 Camaro RS.

It's a great big slice of
red American icon, isn't it?

One oil crisis and an environmental
or later, that green was hung out to dry.

The best you could hope for from this
massive 350 engine was 145 brake horsepower.

Everything about the
car is great until you get

to the bit where you
put your right foot down.

With a 0-60 of only 10.6
seconds, it was really only an

intimidating machine when
revving the motor parked up.

What was the point?

Unless you have an ed and a plan.

I want to turn this into
a proper muscle car.

If we can transform this car
into the icon it was always meant

to be, then we'll not only realise
the dream, but also a profit.

I think you're spending way too
much time in the California sun.

If you're in the car, being in America
in the 60s was a really good time,

particularly if you like
muscle cars, because

Chevrolet and Ford had
an arms race between them.

Who could build a car with the most muscle?

But come the 70s, all that went to pot,
because there was a fuel crisis in America

and the car companies
started to dole down their cars.

They had all the
appearance of a muscle car,

but they didn't really
have to get up and go

underneath the bonnet
where it was needed.

And that's where I come
in, because I'm looking

for a second generation
Chevrolet Camaro.

These cars range anywhere from just
over 10 grand to 40 plus thousand dollars.

I'm after a car that looks
like it's lacking in gym work.

If I can get it into the workshop and get
it bench pressed and give it some muscle,

I know we can generate a profit.

So I've been searching
around for a likely

candidate, and I think
I may have found one.

It's just in La Habra, California,
and it belongs to a guy called Willie.

And it looks like that.

And this looks like it might be Willie.

How are you doing? I'm Willie.

Nice to meet you. I'm Mike.

Nice to meet you, Mike.

Wow, what an eyeful.

It's a great big slice of
red American icon, isn't it?

So what can you tell me about it?

Been in the family since 1973.

It was the pride and joy of my stepdad.

Has a rebuilt engine,
new upholstery, new paint.

Been well maintained and taken care of.

So it was maintained by your,
what was it, your stepfather, you say?

Actually, most of the work was
done by the dealership itself.

And he would follow up and make sure
everything was squared away and done properly.

Wow, that's perfect.

Well, on the face of it, it looks
like there's not much to do.

That'll make my mechanic very, very happy.

Whoa, okay.

Well, it looks nice and clean on the outside,
but not so shiny on the inside, is it?

The engine needs cleaning, needs detailing.

That's the one thing that
sort of lets it down visually,

especially when you're
trying to sell a car.

A little bit of wet's coming
from the front pulley.

So there might be a
little bit of a leak there.

It's a bit of a mess, isn't it?

Yes, it is.

Yeah, that doesn't look tidy at all.

I'm going to say also, there's lots of
overspray all the way around on stuff.

It really annoys me that they've
done such a great job on the outside.

It looks great.

But it would have taken 10 minutes to throw
a bit of paper over this and mask it up.

But it gives you something to do that way.

You're a good salesman, aren't you?

Should I have a look inside?

Let's do it.

Wow, Willie.

This interior is something else.

It looks like it's showroom fresh.

It's got lovely door cards.

The headliner is like new.

The visors are new.

What about this dash pad?

I bet it's been cracked up and
beaten by the Californian sun.

Nope, it's in perfect condition.

I can see that.

It's wonderful.

So should we move
on to the boot of the car?

Let's do it.

And look at that trunk.

It's not massive on American scale, is it?

But it's a good trunk
and it's all original.

Yes, it is.

It's 100% original.

Yeah, very nice.

Well, I'm thrilled by the car.

I really like it.

But the proof for me
is getting it out there

on the road and
seeing what it drives like.

So can I take it for a test drive?

Sure, go ahead.

You're going to love it.

Oh, well, I've got to tell
you, I am so pleased.

Willy chucked me the
keys to this Series 2

Camaro and just said go and
drive it because this is wonderful.

This is the American dream.

You know, driving this
great big slice of very

red Americana with that Burberry
V8 engine up front is just to die for.

What a treat and what a nice car.

I mean, it just cruises
down the road effortlessly.

When the engineers
put this car together,

they made it better
than the first generation.

They made it more refined.

The suspension is so much better.

The brakes are on point.

Everything about the
car is great until you get

to the bit where you
put your right foot down.

Then this happens.

Yeah, it's the square root of nothing.

That's what happens.

And I know even the
engineers back then would

have been disappointed
with this car the

way it turned out because it
was meant to be so much more.

And that's where we come in.

I want to turn this into
a proper muscle car.

And there is a whole reason for doing this.

And the reason is, is
the world for this kind of

car that I'm describing
is very hot at the moment.

It translates into profit as a course.

If I buy it at the moment, Willie,
he's asking $20,000 for this car.

I think it's probably worth about $15,000,
but because it's got fresh paint because

it looks good because it
actually runs really well.

And I do believe I can sell the engine
under the bonnet and get some money back.

I reckon I could
probably bid him up to

$17,000 and get a car
that I could be proud of.

So how did it go?

Well, I got to tell you, your stepfather,
he did an amazing job maintaining this car.

It truly is in very, very nice condition.

I mean, it drives fine.

There's not much wrong with it.

It steers well.

It breaks well.

It goes up and down
through the gearbox well.

It's just underpowered.

You need more power out of this car.

But I do like the car.

And I know that I can do wonders with it.

It comes down to price and
what you're willing to take for it.

How much do you want for it?

$20,000.

I was thinking you was being
a little bit cheeky at $20,000.

So why not take $15,000 for it?

No, no, no.

That's way too low.

I don't know how I could take
anything less than $18,000 for this.

Make it $1,000 less.

$17,000, you got yourself a deal.

Okay.

Yes.

Good deal.

Top work.

And I just bought myself a Camaro.

Well done, sir.

How are you, son?

What do you think of that?

That is your 1973 Camaro Series 2,
otherwise known as a Super Hugger.

Well, I do know that it's actually the
split bump is very popular right now.

Yeah, you're right,
including the shark nose.

It's actually a polyurethane bumper.

It was there for added
crash protection in that year.

But what do you think of the car?

Well, it's red.

I mean, it's like really, really red.

In fact, it's actually
so red, I am struggling

to think about
anything else right now.

It's just red.

And what's under the bonnet?

Under the bonnet is your big V8 American,
lovely big chunk of iron, 5.7 litre,

that comes with an amazing
set of headline figures.

Are you ready for this, then?



But that's crazy.

You got 1.6 mini, you'll
do like 200 horsepower.

And not only that, it also produced a
headline figure in terms of miles per gallon.

Have a guess at that.



No, try 10 to 13.

Well, what was the point?

There was no point.

Nobody gets what the point was.

They made this amazing car with this
great big engine, which could be fantastic.

But unfortunately,
they detuned it to a way

that they just made the
engine really weaselly.

The interior as well.

That's a triumph.

Look inside.

Wow.

I mean, that really is mint as an interior.

And what about the top of the dash?

Is that all cracked?

No.

No.

It's even got a new carpet.

So I mean, there's basically
nothing wrong with the interior.

Nothing at all.

No, nothing.

And I'm not even going to bother showing
you the boot because that's like brand new.

It's got four lovely lights at the rear,
new chrome down at the bumper.

It's great, isn't it?

I mean, it is a really
lovely stock car, and I

think it'd be great to
probably keep it stock.

Well, that'd be too easy,
wouldn't it, just to do that.

No, I think we ought to do what the
engineers always want to do to this car.

So I want you to drop
in a great big engine

and make it loud with
a nice sporty exhaust,

put some stripes over
the top of it, a boot spoiler,

and that will open it up
to the muscle car market.

But that is a huge amount of work,
and it's going to cost a ton of money.

Let's not worry about spending money.

Any money we spend
on this car, I'm convinced

I'll get it back when
we come to sell it.

Plus, we're going to have
a load of fun along the way.

I think you're spending way too
much time in the California sun.

Yeah, I've got red, haven't I?

I like the car.

Now, Mike has managed to
find this good-looking Camaro RS,

but unfortunately it
was born right at the

end of that rather
wonderful muscle car era.

And therein lies the problem.

In 1973, you could no longer buy the
Super Sport package because of emissions,

and therefore you could
no longer get hold of

that wonderful 396
cubic inch big block V8.

And that means this
car is woefully lacking

in power compared to
all of its predecessors.

And that could be our answer.

If we could find a way of
improving the performance of this car

to reconnect it with the more
aggressive models of previous years,

then I think this car could then
become very much more desirable.

The GM engineers gained
a vast amount of data during

the production of the
first generation Camaro.

And by the time the second generation
Camaro crossed the assembly plant floor,

many of the components
were refined and well proven.

But this is 70s engineering,

and it'll have to make way for our
high-end pro touring components.

We're looking to pick up
where the engineers left off

by increasing horsepower
and upgrading the suspension.

Mike wants us to improve
the performance of our Camaro,

but I'm pretty sure that
those engineers he mentioned.

would be interested in more
than just working on the engine.

It's all about the general
performance of the vehicle.

Now, muscle cars are
traditionally really pushed

in the direction of going
in straight lines very fast,

but I actually want this car
to go around corners as well.

So we're going to go in
the direction of pro touring.

Now that really means a street legal car
that's great for going around circuits too.

Now to that end, I've got Mike to
get us a pro touring stage three kit.

It cost a princely sum of $3,300

and includes a whole
host of shiny new parts,

all of which are going to help
improve the performance of our car.

So the engine will make it go faster,

but all this stuff is
going to make it stop

better and also go
around corners properly.

Well, first up is the front suspension.

Now out of the factory, the Camaro
is fitted with pressed steel arms.

Now, unfortunately, these aren't
very accurate when they're put together,

but also they use these rubber
bushes, which are also very compliant.

And that means that even if the
engineers have got the geometry spot on,

by the time it gets out of the factory,
it's all a little bit wobbly and not ideal.

So what we're going to do is replace
those with these tubular steel arms.

Now these are welded together on a jig,

so they're much more accurately
put together in the first place.

Now another advantage, as
long with being much stronger

than the original pressed steel parts,
they're also actually quite a bit lighter.

So therefore we're going to get a
real bonus by putting these onto the car

and get it just the way
the engineers wanted.

Stamped steel control arms were
common amongst manufacturers

as they found this acceptable for
typical road use and cheap to produce.

But when they're
pushed to their limits, they

will flex, contributing
to sloppy handling.

Couple that flexing with the squish
from rubber bushes during hard cornering,

and you find yourself
craving for more control.

These aftermarket tubular steel control
arms are engineered to eliminate that flex,

yet they're lighter than the originals.

So we've now got our
little A-arms in position,

so it's now time for the
Springs and the shocks.

Well this is the standard
spring, the standard shock,

pretty normal stuff going on there.

This is the replacement.

You can see first of all
it is considerably shorter,

but also you can see that the top is
actually curled like a little pig's tail.

Now that's because
it's a progressive spring,

which means it's going to
be a bit more comfortable

when you're driving on
your sort of everyday driving,

but it's also going to be a bit stiffer

when you start to really give
it some around the corners.

Now the other thing is
the reason it is shorter,

it's going to sit like so,

and you can see the
threaded portion of the shock

absorber there means, of
course, you can then adjust this,

so you can change the
height or the ride height of

your vehicle, get it
exactly the way you want it.

Also you can see these
two little adjusters down here.

Now this is actually to adjust the damping.

of both the compression
and the rebound stroke.

Now apparently there are 19
little positions on either of those,

which means there are


So you would hope we could
find something that will suit us.

Manufacturers have to
make compromises with the

parts they use due to
costs, installation ease,

and the need for broad consumer appeal.

We, on the other hand,
have none of these concerns.

We're sparing no expense on time or
money, and we have a niche market in mind.

Typically, engineers settled on systems
that lend themselves to the broader scope

for drivers, driving styles, or consumers
in an effort to sell them most vehicles.

We haven't the pressure of GM.

Our challenge is to sell one Camaro.

This one.

The path we've chosen narrows
the market GM was after in the 70s,

but our Camaro will
be specifically tailored

to today's most likely end user,

one who's after absolute performance.

When seeking an all-out
performance handling machine,

I prefer a vehicle that came equipped
standard with an independent rear suspension,

as found on the Corvette.

As our Camaro hadn't
adopted that technology,

we'll have to massage
the rear solid axle leaf

spring configuration
to perform as if it did.

In the end, we'll have a Camaro
that will handle the rudest of roads

while sitting pretty on its
newfound aggressive stance.

So just like the front,
the rear shock absorbers

are adjustable for both
compression and rebound stroke,

and also, these Springs have been uprated,

so these wheels are definitely
nicely planted on the ground.

As critical as any suspension component,

but often overlooked, new tie rods are
key to realizing our newfound handling.

Though for the final
suspension finishing touch,

our Camaro was fitted
with a pair of chunky sway

bars that will tie all
four corners together,

assuring our new
suspension works in Harmony.

Now, our Camaro wasn't actually
fitted with an anti-roll bar on the rear,

although at the time, it was
available as a special order.

So thankfully, in our kit, we do have one,

and this is definitely going
to stiffen up the back end

and again reduce the roll
at the back end of our car.

Well, this is a bit unusual.

I've got a part that needs refurbishing.

I'm not looking to trade anything.

What I'm looking to do is get some advice

and hopefully buy something
at the end of that advice,

because what we need is a
better motor for our Camaro,

because the one we got
just isn't powerful enough.

We need a quick car to make a quick sale.

Now, the man behind
this door, he's a legend.

He's called Joe Sherman.

He's the inventor of the


and hopefully, he can give
me all the advice I need.

Shop, how you doing?

Oh, great.

How you doing?

Joe Sherman, I'm Mike.

How are you?

I'm Mike Brewer.

Wow, Joe, I've always wanted to meet you,

and now I meet you and you've
got an engine right in front of you.

So what's happening here?

Well, this is a dynamometer
to where we test engines.

This is a Ford 351.

It's been souped up.

It makes about 600 horsepower now.

Wow.

I come to see you, Joe,
because I got a Camaro.

It's got that lovely 350 5.7
liter Chevy V8 engine in it.

Now, what I need to do to the
car is to make it go a bit quicker,

and everyone I talk to say, go and see Joe.

Go and see Joe.

Go and see Joe.

You are the man, apparently, that

invented the 383 stroker
engine, that legendary engine.

So can you explain to me how that works?

You basically change something like that.

OK, yeah, that's what a
stroker crank would involve.

When you increase the stroke, you
just increase the distance from the throw

to the center line of
the mains so that as the

crank rotates, the piston
goes up and down further.

It's an old hot rodder trick that's been
in existence since the 30s, probably.

So the difference between 3 and


is just an eighth of an
inch either end of the stroke.

What does that translate
to in terms of power?

The torque is what you get the
biggest increase out of the stroke.

Usually, going from a 350 to a 383,

you pick up 40 or 50 pounds of torque.

So that tiny little amount
gives 45 extra pounds of torque?

Well, you've got to remember, the piston's
going up and down 4,000 or 5,000 times.

So that little bit of stroke
times 4,000 or 5,000

times is where you get
all that additional power.

Now, torque is a really
hard one to measure, isn't it?

If you had a car that felt pretty sluggish

with a full load of people in it,

you have three fat people
get out, and it'll run a lot better.

So if I've got an engine,
how long will it take you to do?

Well, I used to tell
everybody six to eight weeks,

and now the delivery has
been bad on some parts.

So I'm pushing those
up to eight to 10 weeks.

Eight to 10 weeks?

Yeah.

I was hoping I could get an
engine turned around within a week.

The only people that can do that

are the ones that make
what they call a crate

engine, where they build
the engines ahead of time,

and they just wait for a
customer to walk in and buy it.

Right.

What would be the difference
from me buying a crate motor,

one that's on the shelf ready
to go that I can bolt in the car,

and one that would be handcrafted by you?

In terms of performance, we usually build
these 383s in the 525 to 550 horsepower,

and most of the crate engines are going
to be somewhere around 450 horsepower.

Well, that is a compromise.

I mean, I'll be trading off, say, 75
horsepower of going quick and noise and fun.

in the hope to turn
this car around quickly.

I'd so want a handcrafted, handmade


I understand.

I just haven't got the time.

But wait, I'm going
to turn to the Internet.

and buy myself on your
recommendation a crate motor.

So thank you very much.

Can I have a Joe Sherman sticker
so I can put on my crate motor

just to pretend it come from you, though?

I would just as soon not do that.

I thought you'd say that.

The next job is actually converting
our rear drum brakes to discs,

and to do that, I need to
take the drive shafts out,

and to do that, I need
to get into the back axle.

But I've been thinking, all this
extra power we're hoping for,

it'd be good if it actually went to
both wheels rather than just the one.

So we need a limited slip diff,

so I might as well
change that while I'm here.

Access to the rear diff is
limited because of the exhaust.

And as this old peashooter will be replaced

with a properly tuned
performance exhaust system,

it's off to the scrappie.

I've chosen a 3.73
limited slip differential,

a bit on the hairy side when
it comes to the highway,

but as our Camaro will be fit for
canyon carving and not the autobahn,

this ratio will assure we get up
to the legal speed limit in a hurry.

I've now got my brackets
for my calipers in position.

They just go about there or so.

You can see there's a bit of an anomaly

because you've got one
on either side of the axle,

just like the shock absorbers.

Now that's really Chevrolet trying to
solve a problem while saving money.

Now when you're nailing it off the line,

if you imagine you've got your
wheels spinning around in that direction,

obviously there's going
to be a counter torque

which is resisted by
this leaf spring here.

But that torque is effectively
trying to turn that back into an S.

And of course when it straightens out, you
get a bit of a bounce, a bit of tramping,

and of course that means
you lose traction on your drive.

So to try and avoid that,

ideally you'd have
shock absorbers on either

side of the axle to
stop that spring twisting.

But to save money,
they've just gone with half.

So you have one on
rebound, one on compression,

and the idea is that's
supposed to be a bit better

than having them both
on one side of the axle.

Now because the shock
absorbers are asymmetrical,

obviously the calipers have to be as well.

Now it does look odd, but it does work.

During the early 70s,
four-wheel disc brakes

were often only found in high-end
sports cars and luxury automobiles.

But with the array of
affordable aftermarket

kits available today for
most makes and models,

there's just no excuse
not to make the leap.

into creating a safer performing vehicle,
even if you have no intention of cramming

an excessive amount
of horses under the hood.

A little bit of plumbing to do, but
we've now got disc brakes all around.

We have a 373
posi-traction limited-slip diff,

and of course we've got very
sporty suspension to go with it all.

About time we added some horsepower.

How you doing, son?

I'm the man-bearing gift,

and this is a 350 size Chevy V8.

Well, I've already got one of
those, so that's no good to me at all.

Ed!

How you doing, son?

I'm the man-bearing gift.

Excellent stuff, that's great.

That's a nice big block.

Well, don't say that, because
that's a small block Chevy V8, isn't it?

And this is a 350 size Chevy V8.

Well, I've already got one of
those, so that's no good to me at all.

What if I was to tell you that in that box.

there's 420 horsepower that's
been dyno tested at 440 horsepower?

That'd be awesome, well done.

You'd be happy in it.

Well, that's fantastic,

because obviously the small
block is lighter than the big block,

but also all the same
bracket, the engine mounts,

all that kind of stuff is all going
to be the same, which is fantastic.

Only thing is, though, then,
because of the extra power and torque,

we are going to definitely
need a new transmission,

and also because I've done
the work on the suspension,

it'd be nice to have
another steering box as well.

So you think I would
go to all this trouble.

and forget the gearbox
and the steering box?

That's been known.

Would I do that to you?

No, they're on their way here, too.

Nice.

Huh?

Like Christmas.

As Mike suggested, it
is a bit like Christmas.

I'm anxious and at the same time curious

to see what lies beneath
the chipboard box exterior.

Mike made no mention as to
how complete this stroker is,

and surely there are
bits still to be found.

Well, here is our crate
motor in all its shining glory.

Now, out of the box, it does come
with a distributor and also a carburetor,

and Mike's got all the
other bits and pieces

we need just to make
the most of this package.

Now, what's the main
difference between the 383 stroker

engine we have here and
the 350 we have as standard?

Well, the clue is in the name.

First of all, the
stroker part of the title.

Well, the stroke of an engine,

if you imagine there's your center line,

it's actually the distance,
or in fact double the

distance between the big
ends and the center line.

So if you imagine when
the crank is actually spinning,

the distance between that
line there and that line there.

Now, the difference
between our 383 and the

standard is actually
a quarter of an inch.

Now, that quarter of an inch
is only as thick as this plate,

so it's a tiny measurement,
but it is very significant.

Now, we think about the other
half of it, so the 383 versus a 350,

well, that's 33 cubic inches bigger.

Now, if you divide those 33 cubic inches.

by the eight cylinders, you get
four and an eighth cubic inches,

and that translates to 68 milliliters,
which is exactly this amount.

Now, bear in mind that the piston
is about four inches in diameter.

Now, this little saucer
here, it's about five inches.

I've actually poured this out.

You can actually see quite
how little that volume seems.

when you stick it on top of a piston.

Look at that, it doesn't
even go over the edge.

If you think about this
tiny bit of extra volume

on each piston, it does
seem rather insignificant,

but we know it makes a huge difference.

We get three times the
power and twice the torque.

Now, our original engine
was designed to be as

rubbish as possible
because of political reasons,

whereas our crate motor has been
designed to be as awesome as possible

by using some of the very
best performance parts available.

So all of these components
are going to finally give

our Camaro the performance
level it's always deserved.

Well, we've now got a
nice new transmission.

Now, it's a turbo 350, just
like in our Camaro originally,

but it's been heavily modified,

so the valve body, the brain,
if you like, of the gearbox,

which is down in here,
has actually been modified.

so that the shifts are much more
instantaneous and much more like a manual.

And to go with that, we've also
got a high stall torque converter.

Now, a standard torque converter would
normally stall between 800 and 1100 RPM,

which means when you're
sitting there with a car

idling, there'll be
just a little bit of creep

so you can get away from
the line reasonably easily.

With this, it's been raised
up to about 2400 RPM,

which means you do need a
bit more beans to get off the line,

but it also means, of course,
your engine is now much nearer.

It's torque and power band,

and that means you better get
off the line with a lot more oomph.

In an automatic transmission,
the stall speed is the RPM

at which the torque converter
transfers engine power to the gearbox.

So if you think of it in
terms of a manual car,

when you really want
to get off the line quickly,

you raise the engine
roads first and then you let

off the clutch so you're
already in the power band,

leading to a much quicker acceleration.

Our high stall speed torque
converter does the same thing,

so now our Camaro
will really leap off the line.

Now, as part of our upgrades,

also fitting this nice, very
shiny billet master cylinder,

but the most important
bit is the little unit beneath,

and that is a brake bias adjuster,

so you can actually change the proportion
of braking from the front to the rear,

which again means we have much
more control over our overall handling.

Right, so shoehorning our 383 V8
and the new transmission into the car

wasn't actually so hard
because all the mountings

were exactly the same
as what came out of our

vehicle, but really this
was just the easy bit.

I now have a very long
night ahead of me fitting all

those other parts that Mike
got to complete the package.

Once all this less than glamorous
plumbing and electrical work is done,

I'll let Mike indulge
his artistic sensibilities,

earn his stripes if you will.

Ed's done a great job
so far of fitting the engine,

upgrading the brakes and
the suspension of our Camaro,

but nothing screams muscle car more

than a little bit of attitude.

So I'm gonna fit a nice front splitter, a
good boot spoiler, some tasty wheels,

and of course we all know
what makes a car go faster.

Yeah, I've got some racing stripes.

Now rather handily, the factory
had some pre-drilled holes.

They would be for a factory chin spoiler,

but this aftermarket splitter
wraps up around the sides.

So I have to knock in a couple
of holes onto this lower valance.

I'm just gonna punch
where the hole should be,

pull it up and...

And it's always a bit nervy when
you take a drill to bodywork of a car,

but you just need to
have a bit of confidence.

If drilling into the inner wing
arches was a bit unnerving,

consider drilling directly into the
exposed paint surfaces in plain sight.

The rear boost spoiler
mounts directly onto

the boot lid and some
drilling is required.

Measure carefully, measure twice.

I've gone for 18s at the
front and 19s at the back.

Better traction all round,

but especially at the rear when that
extra power will be hitting the tarmac.

The wheels are looking really good.

Now we all know that under the
bonnet of this is a 383 stroker engine,

that V8 rated at around 450 horsepower,

so it should be pretty quick.

But we all know that's
academic because it's

not going to go any
quicker until it gets these.

It's go faster racing stripes,

and that's what I'm going to do next.

Top tip.

Before installing any of the graphics,

make sure you've got
a complete set on hand.

Okay, now this is the thick stripe.

for the rear deck of the car.

What I'm going to do is I'm just
going to lay down a thick stripe first.

Once I get this into position,
I'll remove the masking tape

and put the thinner stripe that
goes around the outside thereafter.

Make sure you tackle jobs
like this with an open schedule.

You don't want to rush things
as they can get ugly pretty quickly.

Patience and a steady hand are key.

Here comes the big
job at the front of the car.

Now I've used this vinyl before.

It's really nice.

It's very forgiving.

It's unlike the stuff that I used to
use in the olden days, which was stiff.

I used to have to spray
down oodles of soapy water

and then squeegee out
all the water underneath

until it would stick
down to the bodywork.

But this stuff is more modern.

It's much more forgiving.

And if you get bubbles,

they just sort of push out.

Look at that.

Now I've only got one stripe on one side.

I'm yet to do the other,

but already the car looks like it's
going 100 miles an hour quicker.

I can't wait to button it
up and show it off to Ed.

I was looking for a
car with unfulfilled

potential that Ed and
I could make a reality.

The 5.7 liter V8 1973 Camaro RS.

This is the American dream.

It had the attitude,

but was lacking in
performance and handling.

Where you put your right foot down,

then this happens.

It's the square root of nothing.

Ed needed to perform a full overhaul.

That is a huge amount of work.

I think you're spending way too
much time in the California sun.

Yeah, I've got red, haven't I?

I like the car.

New suspension and brakes.

About time we added some horsepower.

A brand new crate engine and gearbox.

This was just the easy bit.

I now have a very long night ahead of me.

Plus a new look from yours truly.

I can't wait to button it
up and show it off to Ed.

We've now lifted this car into a place
the engineers could not have imagined.

Dreams don't come cheap though.

Well, the car itself costs $17,000.

New suspension and brakes with 3,635.

Crate engine and gearbox, 7,549.

Wheels, tires and alignment, $1,339.

Spoiler and paint, 469.

Exhaust system, 1,328.

Decals, 700 bucks.

General maintenance, 261.

Which gives us a grand total of $32,281.

Or around 25,000 pounds.

And 53 man hours.

Quite an investment, but it's quite a car.

Look at that boot spoiler.

And the front splitter and the
stripes which I put on, I hasten to add.

It makes the car look
so much more muscular.

It looks like a beast of a car.

It looks like it's ready to go for
a run and pounce on someone.

Well, this beast of a car, as you call it,

is definitely the
predator and not the prey.

It's got all that lovely
muscle up front for speed,

but also it's got this
wonderful new suspension

which is clawing at
those winding roads.

So now what you're saying is this thing

is a pink slip or
registration document eater.

It's just gonna snaffle them
up as it goes through its life.

But more importantly, now we've
got upgraded brakes and better power,

you can really dive onto the
brakes in those tight twisty turns,

but you can get on the
power and the loud pedal

a lot quicker and blast
out of those bends.

And talking of twisty turns,

obviously this car already
had a great reputation

for actually being able to
go around corners better

than most, but we've
taken it to a whole new level.

We've now fitted it with tubular A arms.

They're lighter, they're
stronger, they're stiffer.

They keep the geometry
the way you actually want it.

But also you got a little bit more ground
clearance, got a little bit more camber.

It's fantastic.

This car is really gonna grip the road.

Yeah, I mean it all sounds great,
but I simply don't believe you.

What do you mean you don't believe me?

Well, I don't believe you.

I mean you're saying it's gonna go faster,

it's gonna stop better,

it's gonna go through
the twisty bits better.

It's a load of nonsense.

I don't believe you.

Okay, I see where you're going with this.

We're on this wonderful mountain location

with these lovely
curvaceous roads ahead of us

and you want to try out
my handiwork right now.

Now that sounded like an invite to me.

It's all part of the best
job in the world, Edward.

Strap yourself in.

because we are about to hit the horizon.

Oh!

Nice 11th there, sir.

Did you appreciate not
only the lovely limited

slip diff but also the high
stall torque converter?

I'm sorry you just said
something and I'm not listening.

You know why?

I'll tell you why, Ed.

Because I've been saved for years.

I'm a car whisperer.

I can talk to cars.

But for once this car.

is talking to me.

Look, it's having a chat with me.

It's telling me just how happy it is.

I mean that's the first time I've
really heard that exhaust note.

That is fantastic.

The sound, Ed, coming
from that exhaust system.

It's amazing.

Well, we had to put
on a custom exhaust,

obviously, to make the
most of the new engine.

And boy, does it sound good.

It sounds great.

Whoever drives this car and does that...

Whoa!

They're just going to have it.

For first experiences
behind the wheel of a car,

this is it, you know.

I can't tell you just how
happy I'm feeling right now.

The brakes on the brakes are really good.

Well, the thing is, we've now
got disc brakes on the rear,

but all of the brakes all
around are vented, cross-drilled.

I mean, basically, you know, you can't
get much more on the off-sopping power.

I could die of late on the brakes,

get more on the power quickly.

It's brilliant.

And this gearbox, what is this all about?

Well, the thing is, it's an
uprated turbo 350 gearbox.

It's basically the standard box that
would have been fitted to this car,

but it's been souped up a little bit.

So the brain, if you like,

the bit that actually controls
the shifts has been tuned.

So now, after those shift
changes, it's almost instantaneous.

But really, this car is more about the
corners than going in a straight line.

That is just so intoxicating.

The way it pushes you into the
back of the chair, and the noise!

Oh, it's just brilliant.

Do you know what me and
you have managed to do?

We've managed to change
this car's whole marketplace.

We've taken it from a
fusty granddad's market,

and we've changed it by
the power and performance

upgrade you've done, and the
visual appearances that I've done.

It's now a proper muscle car.

And therefore, it puts this car

into a completely different
market for different money.

Well, that's good, because I'm
slightly, if not very, concerned.

Obviously, we've kind
of spent a few pounds.

I actually dread to think
quite how much the total is.

How are we going to sell it?

In fact, what are we going to sell it for?

OK.

Well, I gave $17,000 for
the car on that $11,000.

You were going to get
a right telling off today.

Do you know how much you spent?

No.

You spent $15,000, around
$10,000 on spare parts for this car.

That is a lot of money.

This car now owes us $32,000.

And I was a little bit
worried, but the good news

is, the muscle car market
is really, really strong

out there at the moment.

And guess what?

I've already got somebody on their
way down to come and see it at $40,000.

That's around 26,000, 27,000 pounds.

That's amazing.

Not bad, eh?

Yeah, that is fantastic.

Just goes to prove
you're doing the job right,

you get a profit.

Right, now you get under the bonnet

and have a look at that
wonderful 383 stroker engine.

Now this car has changed a lot
from the car that we first found.

When I found it, it was
sitting on that driveway.

If you pardon the pun, it
was a bit of a granddad's car.

It was never the car it was intended to be.

But now we've got the
right engine, that 383 stroker,

got the right wheels, the right stripes,

certainly the right presence, and the
way it drives, the way it holds the road.

It's a car that anyone could be proud of.

It's a proper pro-tourer that
you could put in any collection.

Very much like this guy behind me.

He's called Kent.

I've just given him a
thrill ride of his lifetime.

Let's see if I can put a deal together.

So what do you think?

You like it?

It's wonderful, Mike.

It does everything that you said it did.

It's fast, it's loud, and
it turns and it stops.

Tick and tick and tick.

Here we've got all those boxes.

Which is great.

And why do you want one of these cars?

I want a Canyon Carver.

Something unique, something
to drive around on the weekends.

You just said the right thing.

Canyon Carver.

Because this is a car
you don't need a stereo,

you just need to drive it
through those canyons

and listen to the soundtrack of the
exhaust bouncing off those canyon moors.

This car's going to put a
smile on your face forever.

So are you the man to buy it?

Yes, at the right price.

I'm your guy.

Okay, that's good.

Well, the right price is $40,000.

That's a bit high for a
second-generation Camaro.

How about $35,000?

$35,000?

I was being a bit cheeky
with the price, I know.

I'll come down a bit.

$37,500, what you say?

It's a lot of car, but
I came with $35,000

and it's for my boys
and I to drive around.

I'm a 10 and 14-year-old.

So now you're tugging at my heartstrings.

You've got a 10 and 14-year-old.

They're two impressionable boys that
we want to encourage with cars like this.

And you've got to pay for their
college education, haven't you?

Two.

Yeah, you're going to need
every penny you can get.

Hold out your hand.

You bought yourself a cracking Camaro.

Congratulations.

Thank you, I appreciate it.

I'm glad you're going to enjoy
that car for many years to come.

Cars are all about the journey.

And this car has been
on a remarkable journey

for our workshop.

We've changed this car's personality
and therefore changed its marketplace.

And it's delivered us great
fun and a nice little profit.

But the money wasn't the important thing.

This time it was about
Kent and his two boys.

And I'm sure they're going to
enjoy it for many years to come.

If you want to see more cars like this.

being turned around by me and Ed,
join us again soon on Wheel of Dealers.

Ta-ta.

Ta-ta.