Call 440-914-0000 or email
[email protected] 1971 Camaro
Brute Force Wow! This car exceeds the definition of pro touring!
And the best part is it exudes craftsmanship and ingenuity!
Description An ultimate Pro Touring build! Built LS7, T56, Detroit
Speed chassis 657 hp at 6,700 rpm Massive amounts of subtle changes
Multiple time magazine car Fresh and ready to race Check out this
article from Car Craft : Remember those games in kids' magazines
where you try to spot the differences between two pictures? Bob
Bertelsen's '71 Camaro would be great for the car guy's version of
this game. There's not a body panel on it that hasn't been
re-formed, modified, or otherwise massaged, but most of the changes
are so subtle, without a stock example sitting next to it, they
escape the eye. That exemplifies what Bob does as a car builder. He
works with the original design, and without trepidation, crafts it
into the vision of how he sees the car in his mind. Bob is not a
professional car builder, although he certainly possesses the
ingenuity and capability it takes to be among the best in the
business. Most importantly, he lacks that mental block that most of
us have-the one that mocks us, saying, You aren't capable of doing
that! Take, for example, the roof of his Camaro. Bob wanted to
integrate design cues of a fifth-gen Camaro into the car, including
a 12-inch-wide recess in the roof panel. Most people who don't do
professional metal-fab work would shun the idea, and even quite a
few pros would be hesitant to launch into such an endeavor. Not
Bob. He dove in, starting by rolling two 3/8-inch tubes and
adhering them to the roof to create a basic structure and shape. He
then cut out the 12-inch-wide section and crafted a new
centersection. He didn't get the consistent arch he wanted the
first time, so he modified his metal stretcher, welding a socket to
the tool and using a torque wrench to modulate a consistent torque
applied to the stretcher. He welded the recessed section into the
roof for a subtle enhancement that looks so natural that many
people don't even notice it. Bob had RPM Hot Rodding do the
interior, starting with a clean slate. They fabricated a custom
dash, door panels, and console that houses everything Bob will need
for performance driving as well as hitting the open road. The
unobtrusive rollcage was created by Bobs friend, Tom McKenzie. That
design element continues as the air flows rearward over the
decklid. An original spoiler would have looked disproportionate and
clunky with the flush and smooth rear panel of the car. Bob created
a new spoiler that is 3/4-inch shorter and 1 1/2 inches smaller
(front to rear), incorporating the same 12-inch recess from the
roof panel into the center of the spoiler. Another critical part of
Bob's craftsmanship is functionality. This is true in the basic
hardware, and also in the design aspects of the body. All of the
ports and ducts carved into the sheetmetal of his Camaro-aptly
named Brute Force-perform a purpose, whether it's directing fresh
air toward the engine, onto the rear brakes, or exhausting hot air
from the engine compartment. Nothing on this car was overlooked,
and every millimeter of sheetmetal was intentionally shaped. Even
with his exceptional level of fabrication capability, Bob took the
Camaro to Area 51 Autoworx when it was time to have the finishing
bodywork done and the car sprayed. Choosing the color was an
adventure in itself. His local paint store mixed a dozen or so
variations of blue and sprayed them onto sample panels, but none of
them were exactly what Bob envisioned. So he talked the paint shop
into letting him do some mixing on his own. A dash of this, a drop
of that. He was able to create a color he loved, but there was no
formula for it. He sprayed it onto a panel and took the pieces to
BASF. They scanned it and created a formula, complete with the name
Brute Force Blue! A casual glance doesnt uncover the extraordinary
craftsmanship in this car. What looks like an RS bumper is actually
three completely custom metal sections, and the original marker
light openings were filled with round foglights and brake duct
inlets. Even the grille was custom created just for this car. Bob
is the owner of A-Plus Powder Coaters, so he made generous use of
his company's coating capabilities on the car. Anything that wasn't
painted on the Camaro was powdercoated in a special gray texture
that he created. On some surfaces, such as the valve covers, he
added black with orange accents, creating detail and connecting the
engine to the exterior graphics. In addition to a unique look, the
powdercoating is durable and easy to clean. He even mixed up a
special orange powder and sent it to Baer to have the calipers
powdercoated to match the detail paint he used throughout the car.
Even though this car was primarily built in Bob's two-car home
garage, he is quick to acknowledge those who helped him. Shayne
Smeltzer, Willys Smith, and Tom McKenzie all spent weekends at
Bob's place working on the Camaro. And Jason Rushforth penned the
first rendering of the car. Bob and Jason bantered back and forth
about many of the design details that make up the overall statement
of the car. One area that combined many of their ideas was the nose
of the car. Jason recommended recessing the grille and using a
three-piece front bumper. Bob created a grille using CAD tools and
had it cut using a water jet. He didn't want the nose to look like
an RS, though, so he omitted the upper marker lights and integrated
round foglights into the rectangular openings that would have
housed standard parking and turn signal lights. Some time ago, Bob
was incurably infected with the Pro Touring disease. He competed in
the Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational (OUSCI) with his
previous F-body, Code Red, and he took measures with his current
project to make sure it lived up to the brute in its name. In fact,
immediately after the car debuted in the summer of 2012, Bob
competed in our inaugural Muscle Car of the Year (MCOTY)
competition at National Trail Raceway, a mere day after earning the
Goodguys Muscle Machine of the Year award. Since Bob has competed
with cars in the past, he knew that he needed to outfit his machine
with the right equipment to get the job done. He chose DSE
suspension systems front and rear, using the company's Hydroformed
subframe up front and its Quadralink kit in the rear. The front
subframe is a bolt-in system that mounts tubular upper and lower
control arms, C6 steering knuckles, DSE power rack-and-pinion
steering, and a DSE splined sway bar into one seamless package. The
Quadralink rear system completely replaces the leaf springs, using
a tubular four-link setup with a Panhard bar. Bob used JRi
coilovers-DSE's preferred unit-at all four corners. Bob also
installed a pair of DSE wide wheeltubs in the rear to make room for
massive 335/30ZR18 tires. Together, the front and rear DSE systems
created a high-performance chassis that's as competent on the track
as it is on the street. Of course, suspension upgrades alone do not
a Pro Touring car make. The DSE front spindles wear Baer 14-inch
rotors and six-piston calipers, while the Moser 9-inch rear axle is
outfitted with the relatively new Baer Tracker full-floating axle
kit and 14-inch rotors with six-piston calipers. The Baer Tracker
converts the rearend to a full-floating design to eliminate
axleshaft deflection during hard cornering. This keeps the rotors
from pushing the pistons into the calipers during high lateral
loads, requiring you to pump the pedal to move the pads back into
position. The entire rear view of the Camaro is created by Bobs
fabrication handiwork. He formed a sheetmetal bumper and molded it
into the rear panel, along with crafting a lower val...for more
information please contact the seller.
