Tired of “me too” cars? Why drive a garden-variety early Camaro when you can drive a potential show-winner? Stock Camaros are awfully easy to find, and if one isn’t to your liking, there’s another one just like it just a few miles down the road. You can go to car shows and see ten of them lined up like they would have been at a Chevy dealer in 1968. Why not try something unique and different to stand out from the crowd?

This thundering ‘68 Camaro is guaranteed to draw a crowd wherever it goes, and not because its hose clamps are perfectly aligned or because the date codes on every major component are exact. In its bold black with orange SS stripes paint, this piece stands out as something special. Then you look a little closer and see all the little details that make it unique, from the 3-inch cowl induction hood to the custom interior to the stout small-block under the hood.

This car started out as a very straight 6-cylinder Camaro with very mild aspirations as a daily driver. During its rotisserie restoration and reconstruction several years ago, it was given a second lease on life and a series of substantial upgrades in the performance department. Looking at that inky black paint, you can see that a lot of time was spent getting the bodywork flat and smooth. We see a lot of cars at shows and cruise nights where only a few more hours of block sanding would have made all the difference in the world. It’s obvious that the person working on this car understood that a little extra time is the only difference between decent and outstanding. This car has certainly been prepped all the way to “outstanding.”

Those Harley Davidson orange SS stripes are paint, not tape, and have been expertly applied under the clear-coat for a smooth, flawless final surface. The lines are straight and crisp, with no bleeding or rough edges. Tricky areas like the grille at the base of the windshield have complete coverage, indicating that the painter was a real pro who knew what he was doing. The car was clearly disassembled before painting, with the stripes extending underneath trim and even under the rear deck spoiler. They definitely went the extra mile to get the outside of this car looking so good.

Inside it’s more of the same with a completely custom leather interior. The front seats are buckets, while the rear bench is OEM, all covered in yards of supple tan, black, and orange leather. The door panels have a custom look all their own with embossed hash marks that break up an otherwise flat expanse of material, all acting as a background for billet aluminum handles and window cranks. The carpet is brand new tan luxury pile, and the headliner has a trick insert that matches the seats. In front of the driver are a combination of the stock gauges and a Faze 10,000 RPM racing tachometer, supplemented by a trio of white-faced gauges under the unique upholstered center stack. The original steering column is topped by a Grant GT custom steering wheel and gear shifting chores are handled by a ratcheting Hurst Pro-Matic 2 shifter.

Mechanically, this car is an absolute beast, with a built 350 cubic-inch small block Chevy backed by a TH350 automatic transmission. A single 4-barrel carburetor feeds the aluminum-headed motor, while a set of ceramic-coated headers in conjunction with a Flowmaster dual exhaust system handle the exhaust chores. An MSD ignition system keeps the fires lit. The entire engine compartment is highly detailed with a variety of polished and chrome-plated dress-up items, such as the cast aluminum Moroso valve covers, and the paint on the inner fenders and firewall is as nice as the exterior. You’ll be proud to pop the hood on this car at your local cruise night.

You’ll have even more fun driving there. Not only is the engine cranking out some serious power, but the chassis has been engineered for fun, too. In addition to upgraded shock absorbers all around, there are Wilwood 4-wheel disc brakes at all 4 corners, heavy duty sway bars front and rear, and a set of brand new chrome Rallye wheels wearing 225/60/15 Fuzion radials. And underneath it’s just as clean, without any undercoating to hide the unblemished floor pans.

All of this adds up to a show-stopping Camaro that runs as well as it looks and draws admiring glances wherever it goes. Some of us here in the shop have even suggested that it would look great next to a Harley-Davidson of one kind or another, thinking that perhaps the builder was a bike fan, too. Either way, you have a great-looking, strong-running early Camaro with a ton of street presence. All the hard work has already been done, all you need to do is turn the key, smile and enjoy!