RS SS LSA 69 Camaro / Pioneer Stage 3 Build
 

This year for the 2011 CES show in Las Vegas Pioneer showcase three 69 Camaro's. Pioneer approached Five Axis to build three identical vehicles. The theme was "modernization of the muscle car". Each vehicle featured modern technology headunits at different price points along with advanced drivetrains in the vehicles.

Stage 1: RS 350 V-8 T400, column shift vehicle, Head unit = DEH-3300UB, Base line vehicle.

Stage 2: RS LS3 E Rod motor 4L60, Heidts front and rear suspension components and Wilwood disc brakes along with a console shift with Hounds tooth interior. Head unit = DEH-P6300UB with custom rear trunk bass and amp enclosures.

Stage 3: RS SS LSA 6.2 motor 4L80, Heidts Pro G front suspension, subframe connectors along with independent rear suspension.:thumbsup: Mini Tubs added in the rear to fit the 18" Centerline wheels and BF Goodrich KDW tires. Wilwood disc brakes all round, rears are actually inboard discs, Classis Air, Autometer "Cobalt" gauges surrounded by a unique dash assembly with , custom center console featuring the Top of the line Nav head unit = AVIC-X930BT featuring Pandora interface. The unique seats were fitted from another car and were retrimmed with Alcantara and leather by Turin Models in Santa Ana. Other parts of the interior such as the door panels were replaced with new units from Classic industries, I wanted to keep some of the original look of the vehicle interior, but one thing I did change was upgrading to the pile carpet, I hate the hook and loop. This really steps up the interior of the vehicle. The rear trunk has been trimmed with unique bass and amp enclosures trimmed in leather and carpet.

All three of the vehicles have a similar theme cleaned up bodies with no side markers the side gills have been removed, the front and rear bumpers are tucked tighter to the body for a form fit. The RS grill was also added and painted a unique accent color to match the wheels and the rear tail lamp panel in the rear of the vehicle. Hot Rod TV got involved and a filmed an episode on the builds of the three cars at Five Axis in Huntington Beach and was feature on May 14th on Speed Channel “Triple Threat”. GM Performance, Summit Racing, Monster Transmission, Heidts, Classic Industries, ISIS power, BF Goodrich, Aero automotive, Pioneer all provide support for these vehicles.

The cars were a big hit at the show, it really brought out peoples old memories of these types of vehicles. I talked to a lot of people and all thought the cars were pretty cool. The three cars will be on the Hot Rod Power Tour and can be seen at any of the stops. I will be there on the tour hope you get a chance to come out and see the cars.

Unit,

Nice builds. Did you build these cars? Is your shop located in HB?

David

We did all three, the first one was done last year and was the inspiration for the CES show. We are located right across the street from Chip Foose's shop.

Nice job Sir...:yes:

I know right where that is. I used SW Performance for all of my trans needs. Also, that little restaurant next to foose's shop wasn't that bad.

Awesome. :thumbsup:

But I have to question why the grill surround isn't painted. That's how the plastic part looks coming right out of the box. I guess being a 69 owner, it's just one of those things to me. lol

looks like they painted it to match the rear panel.

The grill portion is painted the color of the wheels and the back portion of the car. We did leave the chrome surround and the healamp covers also chrome. We also fitted the grill to the body opening they usally fit very bad around the sheet metal and it does not look that good if you do not fix this. I'll post some added images of the grill.

More on the build of the Pioneer Stage 3 car
 

Here are some picture from the start of the project. I got the car from Redding Ca. and was an abandon garage project. The car was bought site unseen and when it arrived we were all kind of weary of what could be under the primer. So off to the blaster to see what was underneath. The body did have some issues but I have seen worse so cut out the old, weld in the new. Since there was rust in the seat pan area I got hold of a pair of seats from a Honda CRZ. I fit them to the removed floor pan sheet metal and fabricated new mounts for them. Then the seats were retrimmed with leather and suede and the perforated suede has red in the backing of the perforations. The dash panel uses a Detroit speed metal dash panel but I wanted to do some thing different to improve on the standard cut the holes out and stick the gauges in. I made an additional panel that surround the gauge openings and added the gauge hoods for the speedo and tach (similar to 60’s Mustangs) also created a unique turn light lens and unique vent openings. Another item I changed was the plain old ugly headlamp and wiper switch, I hate these so I used a light switch from a Dodge Dakota (it helps when you know some Chrysler dudes that can aid in making this work) and made a custom knob and switch assembly for the aftermarket switch for the variable wiper motor assembly that needed to be added because the stock unit hits the motor. One of my many discoveries on the build. Classic air provided an electrical switch panel to replace the mechanical levers and this was located on the other side of the lower panel. On to the center console, since Pioneer wanted to showcase a Nav unit I needed to make up a center console that would fit the bill. After a few patterns mocked up in place the design came together and I was able to make up the console. One thing we did on the console was to make it look like a production part. Most consoles I have seen, builders make a console and just cover the entire console, just does not look finished and do not have different levels of details. I worked on cars for the Sultan of Brunei for his private collection and we built many consoles with the same techniques I used on the Camaro. I wanted something clean and looked like it belongs there so no over the top just clean design and execution. Another item added is the finish panel above the glove box. If you look close the Camaro emblem is on the right side, not the left side that it usually is and it has a clean finish with no ribbed surfaces. One more item we did in the interior on the alum parts, we put a tinted matt clear coat on top to give the alum a darker appearance almost anodized looking, the effect is quiet good. That is all I am going to write for now.

Fantastic Car
 

Looking forward to checking this car out in person, will this be on the Power Tour for 2011?

It just looks unfinished to me. :)

Here the dates and locations for the power tour. All three Camaros are on the tour.

June 4 - Port Canaveral, Highway A1A, Cocoa Beach, FL (start) 32920
June 5 - Georgia Motorsports Park, 2521 Hwy 41 North, Adel, GA (297 mi) 31620
June 6 - Motorsports Park, 2600 N. Belt Dr, Montgomery, AL (238 mi) 36110
June 7 - LP Field (Coliseum), 1 Titans Way, Nashville, TN (285 mi) 37213
June 8 - Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Georgetown Rd, Speedway, IN (292 mi) 46222
June 9 - 'downtown', Shoreline Drive, Muskegon, MI (299 mi) 49441
June 10 - Metropolitan Beach, 31300 Metro Pkwy, Mt. Clemens, MI (205 mi) 48045
Saturday June 11 - Long Haul awards location TBA (1616 miles) 2011 Directions

See you then

can I have one?

When will the cars be back on the west coast?

Nice job on the console. I like the overall shape and size. The stitching sets it off nicely too. Would love to see some in-progress pics of the console.

Good work and welcome!

Here is a few images of the center console construction. I thought I had more images. I used lite weight MDF and made a router template to make both sides. A round over bit was used on the side to get the edge detail and then trimmed with leather. The center pc are are made of acrylic and painted. One thing that you encounter on building a pc like this is the stack up of the carpet and the leather material. I should have trimmed just a bit to compensate for the carpet. Not a big issue but something you need to consider when building a part like this. I am going to add a charging pad behind the shifter for my phone.

They aka Hot Rod magazine is giving away the Stage 1 car after the Power tour. Watch for it maybe it can be yours.:thumbsup:

My car , Stage 3 will be back around June 18. I plan on taking it to the Donut Derelicts in Huntinton Beach some time after that.

It's refreshing to see an SS hood on a '69 again. I feel like it's been ages since I've seen one being used.

My Cars
 

I saw your cars on your site and they are very impressive. I dig the finishes on the small block turbo, it looks very modern mechanical, industrial tech. I prefer this type of look for engines. I also noticed the cool set up on the intercoolers that is sick :thumbsup: I noticed that you had all the suspension powder coated and or painted, just fyi for future builds I used a paint from DEFT they make a single stage urethane that is pretty tough and it comes on some very cool finishes, I used this on all the suspension and frame parts of the vehicle. We used two colors a lighter titanium color for parts that moved, control arms etc and a granite gunmetal gray for the engine compartment and frame rails. It is worth checking out and can be bought at most auto refinishers. Very nice work hope to see the car inperson some day:thumbsup: Nev

Thank you and thanks for the paint info. I have started moving back into paints vs powdercoating. Can't always find the exact color or finish you want in powdercoats. :cheers:

Deft has some really cool colors and they can custom mix to match. Disney actually uses this paint on all their rides for durablity. I found out about this paint on a project we did for Honda Motorcycles, they used the same colors for the seat and tank we made for them so I used the colors on my car :thumbsup: Just FYI Deft is located in Irvine Calif. Hope it works out for you.

Nev

Thank you for the pics and explanation. This will be one of my next projects so this is very helpful.

2011 Hot Rod Power Tour
 

Just got back to sunny Calif . We had a great time on the tour. We started in Cocoa Beach FL and drove 1500 miles to end in Metro Beach MI. we went from Hot to hotter and thento downpours that cooled things off. All were great locations but Indy was on of the highlight. Got to drive around the track at the end of the day!. Muskegon was also a great venue the down town was coverd with custom cars with perfect weather. The last day was alittle wet but nothing we could not handle. Hi to all that I met on the tour it was a fun meeting you all. :thumbsup:

Dash
 

Is that a DSE dash?

Hahaa...Green DONK! :yes:

I heard Indy was great. Glad you had fun!

It is a DSE dash but is modified to accept the gauge panel that I made. All the people that saw it during the Hot Rod power tour thought it was the best cluster they have ever seen.:thumbsup:

I had the pleasure of seeing your cars at Metro Beach during the last day of the Power Tour. They are simply amazing. The attention to detail is flawless. Thanks for taking the time to so me all the details and let me take some great pictures.

It was great meeting you thanks for coming to the event. Too bad it was wet afternoon.

Some additional images from the Hot Rod Power Tour road trip. If you want the larger file size let me know and I will email it to you.

Car Craft Nationals
 

Next week the Pioneer Stage 1,2 and 3 cars will be at the Car Craft Nationals in Minn. Pioneer is the offical car audio for the Car Craft nationals and the event will host approx 3000 vehicles. Look forward to meeting and talking to any memebers coming by the Pioneer booth. See you there.

You've built some awesome cars there!
 

Enjoyed meeting you in Nashville.

Would love a copy of that photo, nice work. sent u a pm with email address.

Jonathan " 69 green convertible"

Images on the way
 

John,

I emailed you the three images I took let me know if you got them. The files we large so hopefully they went over.

Nev

Trunk
 

Is there anyway that the trunk panels can be pre-made for purchase? I have a 69 and love the lay out.i currently have a stereo system but it takes up to much space and like this idea.

Thoughts, comments?

Here is some install photos, I need to find the ones of the Stage 2 car. I will post them for you.

Wow!! very cool build.:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

How to convert your trunk into a finished compartment
 

For those that want to turn their oh hum trunk into a finished compartment with added stereo components here is the set up that we did for the stage 2 car. A little more simple but easily made in ones garage with some wood working tools, table saw, router, jigsaw and a disc hand grinder. Also going to need some speaker carpet, super glue, mdf lite or regular board, spray glue or some sort of fabric adhesive, duraglass or polyester putty,and fiberglass which is optional. You have to source the materials your selves

We start off making the side speaker housings, you are going to lose some truck space but this is the best way to orientate the speakers for the best sound. Some people will say to do it different and that is their opinion. We ended up using the 10 in dia, the 12 did not fit and required more volume. Make sure you build the recommended box size for the woofer. We first build the all sides minus the speaker location. Once the box has been fitted the speaker can be positioned. We first bond in a wood ring to hold the woofer and allows to put it at and angle. We close out the rest of the face of the box and then build the next panel that goes further into the trunk. We use the MDF for all the panels. Cut, fit and tweak the panel in place, this is where you use the polyester material to fill any voids or openings that need a tighter gap. Bracket panel in place.
Next build the rear panel that will cover the latch area. We cut some boards with a slight angle on the edge, this allowed the panel to curve. Once we had the basic shape we fiberglass the back with one layer of 10 oz glass. On the outer surface we used the polyester putty to smooth out the panel.
Fit into trunk and bracket in place. You can add to the woofer and to the back panel to create a smooth contoured transition between the panels, don’t glue them together, and also make sure you compensate for the speaker carpet thickness. If you have amps we hide these under the main panel , first mount amps in location then build new floor panel to fit on top as the images show. Once all the panel have been made we cover with good old speaker carpet. The final look is a finished trunk that still has room for baggage.
I know I overview the complete build but you have to have some skill level to take on a task such as this but it can be done by DIU. If you have any questions let me know and I will be glad to answer them.

SS Hood images
 

Here some added pitures of the SS hood. I took out the orginal grill material and added a speaker grill mesh.

Other Five Axis Builds
 

Here are some other cars we have done over the years. We have a pretty nice car we did for the detroit show but can not divulge what it is at this time. Look for the update after the 12th of Jan.