What Is It?
Baldwin Motion Super Coupe
What's Special About It?
Another Baldwin Motion Camaro, another quarter-mile guarantee. Well, not exactly. You see, at 3,700 pounds and a minimum of 500 horsepower, the Baldwin Motion Super Coupe doesn't really need a guarantee according to company representative Marty Schorr.
Based on the 1969 Chevrolet Camaro, the Super Coupe is designed as a modern version of the cars that made Motion Performance founder Joel Rosen famous in the glory days of the muscle car. Back then, he made his name by promising his cars would run 11-second quarter-mile times. Schorr says depending on engine configuration the new car should be capable of covering that distance in the 10-second range.
The Super Coupe may be based on a 1969 Camaro, but its construction is virtually all custom. Even the chassis is manufactured of 2-by-3-inch steel tubing to accommodate the independent rear suspension. Motion installed rack and pinion steering and a Dana 44 posi-traction rear end. In fact, the only parts of the original Camaro chassis which survived the transformation are the VIN plate, the roof and the rocker panels — everything else is new or handmade.
Limited to a 12-car production run and priced at a not-so-coincidental $427,000 (original Motion Camaros used 427-cubic-inch big-block engines), the Super Coupe is offered with several engine configurations.
Schorr admits that specs haven't been finalized for engine options, but the base engine will likely be a 540-cubic-inch Merlin big-block with a four-barrel carburetor capable of 500 hp. More powerful configurations will be available with Kinsler fuel injection for an additional fee, of course. The transmission in every car is a Tremec TKO five-speed manual.
"Comparing this car to a regular Camaro is like comparing Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Monte Carlo to a stock Monte Carlo," says Rosen. And he's right, the Super Coupe is clearly a huge leap in technology and engineering from the original car. With a modern chassis, suspension, brakes (14-inch rotor with six-piston calipers) and tires (18- and 19-inch Michelins), the Super Coupe might just be the most advanced Camaro ever built. It might also be the most expensive.
What's Edmunds' Take?
Infusing old cars with modern technology always seems like a great idea, but the execution usually leaves us dumbfounded. As much as we think the Super Coupe is an incredible car when evaluated from a design, construction and performance standpoint, 19-inch billet wheels will never look right on a '69 Camaro.
And the price tag? The first Super Coupe is scheduled to sell at the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, this January, and it should prove to be the ultimate litmus test for the ultimate Camaro. — Josh Jacquot
Baldwin Motion Super Coupe
What's Special About It?
Another Baldwin Motion Camaro, another quarter-mile guarantee. Well, not exactly. You see, at 3,700 pounds and a minimum of 500 horsepower, the Baldwin Motion Super Coupe doesn't really need a guarantee according to company representative Marty Schorr.
Based on the 1969 Chevrolet Camaro, the Super Coupe is designed as a modern version of the cars that made Motion Performance founder Joel Rosen famous in the glory days of the muscle car. Back then, he made his name by promising his cars would run 11-second quarter-mile times. Schorr says depending on engine configuration the new car should be capable of covering that distance in the 10-second range.
The Super Coupe may be based on a 1969 Camaro, but its construction is virtually all custom. Even the chassis is manufactured of 2-by-3-inch steel tubing to accommodate the independent rear suspension. Motion installed rack and pinion steering and a Dana 44 posi-traction rear end. In fact, the only parts of the original Camaro chassis which survived the transformation are the VIN plate, the roof and the rocker panels — everything else is new or handmade.
Limited to a 12-car production run and priced at a not-so-coincidental $427,000 (original Motion Camaros used 427-cubic-inch big-block engines), the Super Coupe is offered with several engine configurations.
Schorr admits that specs haven't been finalized for engine options, but the base engine will likely be a 540-cubic-inch Merlin big-block with a four-barrel carburetor capable of 500 hp. More powerful configurations will be available with Kinsler fuel injection for an additional fee, of course. The transmission in every car is a Tremec TKO five-speed manual.
"Comparing this car to a regular Camaro is like comparing Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s Monte Carlo to a stock Monte Carlo," says Rosen. And he's right, the Super Coupe is clearly a huge leap in technology and engineering from the original car. With a modern chassis, suspension, brakes (14-inch rotor with six-piston calipers) and tires (18- and 19-inch Michelins), the Super Coupe might just be the most advanced Camaro ever built. It might also be the most expensive.
What's Edmunds' Take?
Infusing old cars with modern technology always seems like a great idea, but the execution usually leaves us dumbfounded. As much as we think the Super Coupe is an incredible car when evaluated from a design, construction and performance standpoint, 19-inch billet wheels will never look right on a '69 Camaro.
And the price tag? The first Super Coupe is scheduled to sell at the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, this January, and it should prove to be the ultimate litmus test for the ultimate Camaro. — Josh Jacquot
Add A Comment »