54-year-old Chevy Camaro ‘Fenix’ conceals nearly 1,200 hp under the hood

Well-known car designer Sean Smith has attended a roadster show in California this weekend with his latest project, a Chevrolet Camaro restored to peak condition with hypercar levels of power under the metal.

The car was carried over to a custom-designed stainless-steel frame and outfitted with RS Fast Track suspension, Corvette C7 components and other modern sports car parts. Six-piston Baer brakes with 360mm (14-inch) rotors made it to both axles, while custom HRE wheels rounded off the exterior styling. The front pair measures 18 inches in diameter and 9 inches wide, while the rear pair comes in a much bulkier 19x12-inch size.

The customer who ordered the conversion selected an LS7 V8 tuned by Wegner Motorsports for the engine. After the swap was complete, the output to the wheels amounted to a colossal 1,196 PS (1,180 hp / 880 kW). Interestingly enough, the Camaro was given a six-speed manual gearbox – a Tremec T56 – to contend with all the torque. We cannot imagine it being easy to switch, but to everyone their own.

As a side note, Sean Smith is a renowned tuner with more than two decades of experience in the industry. He has collaborated in various projects with Saleen, Ringbrothers, SpeedKore and Rockstar, among other companies. He also received assistance from other professionals as he built the Fenix, too – but mostly through the Internet.