Finale Speed’s raw and sinister-looking first carbon-fiber 1969 Camaro called “Viral” really grabbed people’s attention. It was the perfect remix of an iconic muscle car, but that was the first act, and Jason Engel and JD Rudisill had more tricks up their sleeve for us. The newest carbon-fiber 1969 Camaro from Finale Speed has some more flavor with its Candy Red finish and luxurious interior.
It would be easy for Finale Speed to crank out clones of the Viral Camaro, but that’s now how the company operates. According to Engle, Finale Speed wants to be an innovative company, so that means not building the same car over and over again. The goal for the newest Camaro was to create a car that was bold, and the Candy Red paint was the perfect way to make that happen.
Finale Speed puts a lot of work into building each of these carbon-fiber bodies. The process starts with a real 1969 Camaro before the different parts of the body are put together.
“The Camaro itself uses the factory steel inner structure, that’s what makes the cars Finale Speed creates so interesting. Each one starts out as a real car, so there’s still a factory steel floor, inner doors, and lower cowl, along with the rest of the car. The carbon-fiber body is actually made of 17 individual pieces that are bonded together,” Engle says.
Getting the car assembled and the body fitted is one thing, but painting the carbon-fiber itself is a whole different animal. Finale Speed has created its own proprietary process to paint the carbon-fiber body of its cars and give them this unique look.
“The first thing you have to do is clear coat the raw carbon. After that, all of the imperfections need to be removed, which can take a lot of time. Once the finish is slick and ready to go, you have to figure out how much mid-coat will need to go into the candy color to dilute things properly. You have to figure out what’s going to look best by taking the car out in the sun and seeing how translucent it is. You also have to make sure you have the right amount of coverage on the car. The goal is to make the finish on the whole car look the same and like it’s one piece, it really isn’t easy,” Engle explains.
This newest Camaro with that slick BASF Candy Red paint is nice to look at, but it was built to be a driver. A GM Performance 6.2-liter LT4 engine powers the Camaro. A TREMEC T-56 Super Magnum six-speed transmission, and McLeod Racing twin-disc clutch do a great job accepting all 650 horsepower the LT4 cranks out. A VaporWorks fuel pump sucks fuel up from the Rick’s Tanks fuel cell and deposits it in the engine. A set of Ultimate Headers sends all the exhaust gases out of the custom stainless steel exhaust system, and through a pair of MagnaFlow mufflers
Under the Camaro, you’ll find plenty of suspension parts from SpeedTech along with a Ford 9-inch rearend. The Camaro rolls on a set of Forgeline VX3C-SL wheels and Toyo Proxes tires. Finale Speed wanted to be sure the Camaro would stop in a hurry, so a big set of Wilwood brakes were added to the car.
The interior of the Camaro got a lot of attention from the team at Finale Speed. A set of TMI SS Pro Series seats with red stripes were added to the car to punch up the style. TMI also was selected to create custom Alcantara-wrapped door panels that match the TMI dash pad, center console, and headliner. A Classic Instruments gauge cluster was added to the dash so the driver could monitor the LT4 engine.
Finale Speed could have easily hung its hat on cranking out carbon-fiber Camaros that were just one color. Instead, they made the choice to push the boundaries of what could be done when creating a carbon-fiber body and the work was worth it. The Candy Apple red paint just hugs the carbon panels of the Camaro perfectly and makes the car look like it’s going fast sitting still.