Oh I hear ya... and even tho I hate to admit this to ya, yours is right up there too. My tastes and preferences for drivetrain and styling have changed since my Camaro was sold.

Yeah.....me too!! :yes: Must go with the name Tony! :cheers:

As much as I have TONS of respect for those guys at DSE, I have to agree with Todd. His car is my current favorite.:bow: :cheers:

Hey now don't go strokin Todd's ego like that.... like he needs it. :D

For the record, I was saying Manning's Camaro is a masterpiece. Thanks for the compliments. Back to the regularly scheduled programming.

A number of similarities with 'Notorious' and it works IMO

...thought that 'metal strip through the taillights' treatment looked familiar.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...7-22-08122.jpg

Looks like they flipped the colors on the wheels.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...nning-391L.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...s/IMG_2448.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...te-10-059L.jpg

From 'Hotrod & Restoration'
 

Featured Vehicle: ‘One Nasty-Looking’ 1969 Chevy Camaro

Posted By Ashley Majeski-Smissen, June 10, 2010

"Sinister functionality” is the term Michael P. Manning uses to describe the concept of his 1969 Camaro. Since the day the original concept of the car was formulated, he knew one thing: it had to be a menacing muscle car.
“I was into the Trans-Am series and [am] a big fan of Mark Donohue,” he said. “1969 was a banner year for the team and I wanted to do a No. 6 recreation.
“My original concept was to produce a car with an immediate ‘bad boy’ look,” said Manning, who is president of electrical and wiring company American Autowire.
Manning knew what he wanted and set out to find a build team that could bring his concept to reality.
“I had just met Kyle and Stacy Tucker [owners of Detroit Speed] at an NSRA show where they had showed me [the company’s] ‘Twister Camaro,’” said Manning. “[I thought] bingo! We’re on the same page.”
The trio agreed to work together to build Manning the muscle car he had envisioned.


Detroit Speed built a custom "SS" hood for the Camaro.

“Detroit Speed (DSE) was just beginning the development of its hydroformed front subframe and Quadra-Link rear suspension,” said Manning. “My Camaro became the prototype mule for that development.”
Though he stayed close to his original concept for the car, after buying a Z06 Corvette he was so impressed with its performance that he decided to make a bold change in his Camaro’s concept. The car still had to have a sinister look, but now it also had to be functional.
“No bling. No add-on stuff. No chrome,” said Manning. “If it wasn’t functional, it didn’t go in or on the car.
“Being a functional racer, it needed to look and act like it belonged on the track,” he said. “Sitting still, it needed to look like it just came off the track.”
The Camaro was purchased from one of Manning’s dealers in New York and, though it was in sad shape, it still had its original GM quarters and fenders.
“The car was hurt, but that never mattered, as we knew it was going to be ripped apart,” said Manning.
Detroit Speed started the ground-up restoration, formulating a slew of custom parts for the Camaro, including a custom “SS” hood and a low-rise rear spoiler.

A GM LS7 sits under the car's hood, along with a T56 six-speed tranny.

“The custom bumpers and spoiler were subtle changes to the overall style of the car,” said Manning. “The 1969 body is so distinctive that we never wanted to drastically change the look.”
The front and rear bumpers were recessed and tucked, and Detroit Speed body and frame parts were added, as was a Ford 9-inch rear with 3.70:1 ratio. Under the hood, the team installed a GM LS7 engine and many other custom parts, including fuel rails, coils and valve covers.
The car, which took about two years to build, was painted in a Dark Titanium Pearl color to give it a sleek and wicked look.
When the car was complete, the Tuckers brought it to the 2010 Hotrod & Restoration Trade Show to surprise Manning. It was unveiled in front of a crowd of hot rodders, all eager to see the beast under the sheet.
Manning said he knew that he had achieved the look he wanted for the car one day after he brought it home.
“We were sitting in a street-side bistro and the Camaro was parked across the street,” he said. “No one in the bistro knew the car belonged to me. Two gentlemen were sitting behind us and one says to the other, ‘look at that Camaro. That is one nasty-looking car.’ The other one added, ‘There’s no way I want to mess with that!’ That pretty much sums up.”


The Camaro features modified Recaro Specialist front seats.

Stat Sheet:
Car: 1969 Chevy Camaro
Owner: Michael P. Manning of American Autowire
Location: Bellmawr, New Jersey
Builders: Detroit Speed, Inc., Mooresville, North Carolina
Interior: The car has custom rear seats and door panels, as well as a custom DSE dash with AutoMeter gauges. The console was done by Chuck Hanna of Hot Rod Interiors in Mooresville, North Carolina.
Powertrain: The car is powered by a GM LS7 engine and a T56 six-speed transmission. It also has a custom Petersen dry sump tank.
Body & Frame: A Detroit Speed hydroformed front subframe was used, as well as the company’s Quadra-Link 4-Link rear suspension, frame rail connectors, Deep Tubs, firewall fill plate and a custom six-point roll cage.
Tires: Goodrich tires, (KDW-2 NT, 275/35/18 front, 335/30/18 rears)
Wheels: Fikse Profil 13, 18 x 10 (front), 18 x 12 (rear)
Paint: The build team used the Dark Titanium Pearl paint color that was used on the 2009 Dodge Challenger.
Other Features: The Camaro features an American Autowire electrical system, an ididit steering column and a Vintage Air Gen IV air conditioning system. A low-rise rear spoiler was also added to the car, as were custom bumpers.


http://www.hotrodandrestoration.com/...-chevy-camaro/

Thanks for the support
 

Everyone has been really supportive of this new car. I had just 3 hours behind the wheel before we hit the track at Gingerman. I was quite happy as the car is really quite predictable. However, I wish I had more seat time before the event. Respectable, but there is always room to improve. All the people at the Motor State event were top shelf. Many of you know the players but if you don't personally, I can say that they are all real regular, approachable people just out to have a good time and enjoy their cars. We all love new ideas and technology as well as style themes. Everyone has a different take. Mine is not for everyone, but I will say that everyone has had nothing but complements. I don't comment much on the forums as I am always careful not to show any bias by American Autowire. Better yet, if you all remember the wiring fire rumor you know how things can get out of hand. We are going to be at Columbus with the car and I will do my best to spend as little time in the American Autowire booth as possible to enjoy the car with all friends, fans, customers, supporters, etc. Again, thanks for all the positive feedback.

Thanks Steve
 

Thanks for the photo coverage. It was great. I can't admit how crazy I was when I realized that I left my Camera in the room before we went to Gingerman. So, you helped the coverage.

Thanks again,
Michael

Mike

Was great to spend some time hanging with you and crew

Cant wait to see all the pics rob has done for you

The car is OFF THE HOOK cool

Marc

Great pics Marc. :thumbsup:

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...20Camaro/2.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...20Camaro/1.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...20Camaro/3.jpg

Very nice car indeed. Love the color.

What's the button on the steering wheel for?

I would guess ejection seat for nagging wife LOL

Just kidding LOL

That middle pic is the money shot for sure!! VERY NICE!
Love the stance.:yes:

This car makes me feel smarter just looking at it. :cool:

A little info
 

Guys and girls,

The money shot for Kyle is the first one. How about the logo big as life above the car. I wish my own American Autowire logo was there. Perhaps a Photoshop exercise is in line. The red button on the wheel is in fact the ejection seat button. However it doubles as a shot gun blast if you hold the button down. In reality, it is the horn button. The steering wheel is removable, so the button is used with a plug in the column hub.

Hahahah! Check that LeMans style ignition key! What a cool car.

Tyler

Ignition key
 

Tyler,

That ignition key is the only part we should have put a little glamore to. All the keys were on the same cheap ring. I should have had only one key with the others in my pocket. Oh well.

Michael

I'm not knocking it! I'm loving it! I think it's the small details like that that make the overall execution killer.
The people at DSE know how to make a 1st gen Camaro.

Tyler

:lol: No, wait. :_paranoid Yeah, it was :lol:

Somthing like this mike ????

:yes:

I don't think what you said was anyway knocking the car.

Nice touch. :thumbsup:

These shots from Columbus were taken by Marty M. Rumor has it his camera also has full-time AWD. :unibrow:

More from Marty here: http://www.garagescene.net/gallery2/...010GGColumbus/

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_54_.jpg



http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_63_.jpg

lol - yep that car was awesome - Rock Solid in my book. I would be overjoyed to drive it like this guy does.

I just wish the trunk was latched when i took the picture.

ps - that's Paul and his Dad in the background looking at the car.

I just noticed that this Camaro does not have a DSE closeout panel. Does anyone know why they are not running the closeout panel?

This car is top notch from front to back!

I also like this one you took Marty.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_61_.jpg

face it - it's hard not like a good rear end

The only thing i can think is the fact that the car was built to be driven and driven hard. So thy may have left it off so they can get to the cooler below if there is a problem.

More from Marty

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_56_.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_57_.jpg

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...lumbus_59_.jpg

They put the car together the way the customer wants it. They will run it if u want to.

Looks real straight to me, cool car.

man i take a lot of pictures

Kingmakers rarely take few...




:lol:

From DSE...

They've got a bunch of Columbus pics here:

http://www.detroitspeed.com/news_events/columbus10.htm


http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k1...en-10-098L.jpg