Not deterred, John took the remains to retired bodyman Bob Carlton in Olympia, Washington. In a small backyard garage, Carlton performed a brilliant sheetmetal resurrection. Everything was replaced except the roof, one door, and the trunk lid.

While the fresh sheetmetal was being hung, John was collecting parts with the enthusiasm of a man assembling his own future. He spent most of his life in motorsports. Endurance marine river racing, jet boats, dirt bikes, and off-road toys were part of life back home in New Zealand. He built his own engines for the boats, tuned them, and leaned on them hard. But a full car restoration at this level was a different animal.

Enter Dave Carnock of Carnock Creations in Des Moines, Iowa. The two met at the Goodguys Heartland Nationals. John explained his vision and shared a rendering of the car he had done by Street Rod Designs for the Camaro. Carnock was impressed with the direction John wished to take the Camaro. “Carnock spoke my language and we agreed on so many levels on so many things. I instantly knew he and his team were the right choice to move forward with on the build.”

By this time John had acquired most of the parts for the heart of the build. He configured the engine build with the help of Bob Beam at Brute Speed in Roanoke, Indiana. The direction was clear. This would not be a polite Pro Touring car. This would be a supercharged sledgehammer with little to no manners.

At the center sits an ERL Performance Superdeck 427ci mill, machined and assembled in Albany, Indiana. Bore measures 4.125 inches with a stout 4.00-inch stroke. The compression set at 9.5:1 to nicely play with boost. Inside spins a Callies Dragon Slayer crankshaft, Callies Ultra Rods, and Wiseco pistons. The camshaft is a Comp hydraulic roller with 0.614/624 lift, 277/293 duration, and a 114 LSA. LSA-ported cylinder heads feed the fire.

Up top the ProCharger F-1D supercharger force feeds the combination through a billet Motion Raceworks ICON throttle body and Plazmaman intake. Holley HP EFI handles fuel and spark duties with injectors, coil packs, and tuning precision. The accessory drive is ProCharger with cooling handled by a Meziere water pump, dual 14-inch Spal fans, and an Auto Rad aluminum radiator.

Exhaust exits through Ultimate Headers into a custom 3-inch system fabricated by Carnock Creations, capped with Borla Pro XS mufflers and carbon-fiber tips. The numbers tell the rest of the story. The conservative, pump-gas friendly tune was installed by Joe Keyman of Excessive Autosports in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Even so, with 641 rwhp, it’s the kind of output that makes rear tires reconsider life choices.

Backing that boosted mill is an American Powertrain TREMEC T56 Magnum, shifted through an S1 sequential gearbox and clamped with a Ram Concept twin-disc clutch. A Precision Shaft Technologies driveshaft spins a late-model Camaro SS rear axle loaded with 3.91 gears and GForce axles. It’s a drivetrain built for road courses, dragstrips, and late-night industrial park therapy sessions.

Underneath, the Camaro wears modern architecture by way of an Art Morrison Enterprises (AME) GT Sport subframe with C6 spindles and control arms. QA1 double-adjustable coilovers and springs control motion, while an AME sway bar and Detroit Speed rack-and-pinion steering sharpen response. Out back, an AME Multilink IRS replaces leaf spring nostalgia with contemporary grip, again using QA1 hardware to keep the rear in check.

Wilwood 14-inch rotors reside on all four corners—six-piston calipers up front and four-piston units in the rear. An ABS booster and proportioning valve give modern braking performance.

Forgeline GZ3R wheels measure 18×10 in front and 19×12 in the rear, wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport rubber (275/35R18 front, 325/30R19 rear) fill the wheelwells with authority hinting that this Camaro is not here to pose.

Inside, the cabin walks the line between track day and tailored lounge. TMI upholstery and dash components set the tone, with charcoal-colored German weave carpet underfoot. 515 Upholstery handled installation. Recaro Speed S seats hold the driver and passenger in place, anchored by Schroth Racing four-point harnesses tied to a Ridetech Tiger Cage. A Flaming River column supports a MOMO steering wheel while Lokar’s Clayton Machine Works pedals bring mechanical honesty to the driver interface. AutoMeter Carbon Fiber Ultra Lite gauges report the vitals.

The exterior reflects John’s original intentions with disciplined restraint. Carnock handled bodywork and paint, laying down Sikkens custom-mix Charcoal base topped in House of Kolor clear. The hood remains stock but wears custom louvers and latches. The bumpers are custom tucked and play well with Eddie Motorsports door handles and Anvil Auto Bullet mirrors.

The build stretched over 11 years, between the sheetmetal at Carolton’s in Washington, coming back to Iowa, then at Carnock’s to be finished, it never drifted from its initial trajectory. “The quality of the build initially by Carlton, then taken to the next level by Carnock and his team is beyond anything I could have imagined,” John says.

The proof arrived at the Goodguys Lone Star Nationals in Texas where the Camaro made the Muscle Machine of the Year finals. John and Carnock drove the 100-mile reliability run, lapped Eagle Canyon Raceway, attacked the Goodguys AutoCross, roasted a set of Michelins in the burnout contest, and even made passes on the dragstrip.

“There’s nothing I’d go back and do differently as I’ve enjoyed driving it ever since it came out of Carnock’s shop. It’s certainly no trailer queen as on the first drive I whipped shitties (English translation: did donuts) all over the yard in front of my house. This car was built to drive, and with so much power, it’s an absolute blast—way more fun than I expected.”

John’s recipe for muscle car fun: Replace metal, add boost, then drive it like you mean it!