Kit Car Paradise Awaits in This Retro Abomination

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

It wasn’t for kit cars, the Pontiac Fiero would have never realized its dream of becoming a Ferrari or Lamborghini, and we’d be just fine with that.

That product, born of the heady 1980s, seems tame compared to N2A Motors’ latest offering. The U.S. coachbuilder has taken three classic American designs and melded them, Island of Dr. Moreau-style, into the 789 SS.

It’s a questionable way of hiding a fifth-generation Chevrolet Camaro.

In fairness to N2A, several of its models fall short of ringing the bell on the maybe this was a bad idea meter. The company will drop a 1960s Sting Ray-inspired body onto your C6 Corvette (the Stinger), or turn it into a voluptuous Italian supercar (the Anteros).

If you’ve got money burning a hole in your pocket, the company is only too happy to make you happy. This isn’t the Soviet Union — car buyers can express themselves in any way they want (while following all local, state and federal regulations).

With the Camaro 789 SS, N2A enters the why the hell not category. Instead of emulating another car, this creation covers three. The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air provides the inspiration for the front end, while the 1958 Impala covers the midsection. Out back, the distinctive bat wing taillights and horizontal tailfins of the ’59 Chevy glisten loud — very loud — and proud.

It’s the Human Centipede of cars.

Previous 789s used a donated C5 or C6 Corvette as a canvas, but the Camaro 789 SS uses a less-pricey 2010-2015 Camaro as its starting point. After handing it over to N2A, body panels made of carbon composite and fiberglass transform your drab Camaro into the best Eisenhower-era car never made. Any trim level will be accepted from would-be buyers, but convertibles only, please.

(H/T to Motor Authority)

[Images: N2A Motors]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • MazdaThreeve MazdaThreeve on Sep 19, 2016

    Why the modern alloys and not dish wheels (I hope that's the correct term, correct me if I'm wrong, folks)? The main issue with this thing (subjectivity aside) is it is straddling retro and modern at once. Ditch the modern alloys.

    • BigOldChryslers BigOldChryslers on Sep 19, 2016

      You're stuck with modern wheel offset and whatever size wheels will clear the brake calipers on the new Camaro. Personally I would go with the smallest diameter wheels possible, to allow tires that show a little more sidewall. The smallest diameter the 2016 Camaro came with is 245/50R18.

  • Kowalski Kowalski on Sep 22, 2016

    The company was already building this bodystyle for modern Corvettes several years ago. If they retooled it for the new Camaro then it implies that they have actually sold a few of these things. Like more than 2 or 3. That's messed up.

  • 28-Cars-Later “1. The Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race. They have greatly increased the life-expectancy of those of us who live in “advanced” countries, but they have destabilized society, have made life unfulfilling, have subjected human beings to indignities, have led to widespread psychological suffering (in the Third World to physical suffering as well) and have inflicted severe damage on the natural world. The continued development of technology will worsen the situation. It will certainly subject human beings to greater indignities and inflict greater damage on the natural world, it will probably lead to greater social disruption and psychological suffering, and it may lead to increased physical suffering even in “advanced” countries....It would be better to dump the whole stinking system and take the consequences”― Theodore J. Kaczynski, Ph.D., Industrial Society and Its Future, 1995.
  • FreedMike "Automotive connectivity has clearly been a net negative for the end user..."Really? Here's a list of all the net negatives for me:1) Instead of lugging around a road atlas or smaller maps that do nothing but distract me from driving, and don't tell me where to go once I've reached Point B, I can now just ask my car's navigation system to navigate me there. It'll even tell me how long it will take given current traffic conditions. 2) Instead of lugging around a box of a dozen or so cassette tapes that do nothing but distract me from driving, I can now just punch up a virtually endless library of music, podcasts, or audiobooks on the screen, push a button, and play them. 3) I can tell my car, "call (insert name here)" and the call is made without taking my hands off the wheel.4) I can tell my car, "text (insert name here)" and the system takes my dictation, sends me the text, and reads off any replies. 5) I can order up food on my screen, show up at the restaurant, and they'll have it waiting for me. 6) I can pull up a weather map that allows me to see things like hailstorms in my path. 7) If I'm in trouble, I can push a "SOS" button and help will be sent. 8) Using my phone, I can locate my car on a map and navigate to it on foot, and tell it to turn on the heat, A/C, or defrosters.None of these are benefits? Sorry, not sorry...I like them all. Why wouldn't I? Consumers clearly also like this stuff, and if they didn't, none of it would be included in cars. Now, maybe Matt doesn't find these to be beneficial. Fair enough! But he should not declare these things as a "net negative" for the rest of us. That's presumption. So...given all that, what's the answer here? Matt seems to think the answer is to "unplug" and go back to paper maps, boxes of music, and all that. Again, if that's Matt's bag, then fair enough. I mean, I've been there, and honestly, I don't want to go back, but if that's his bag, then go with God, I guess. But this isn't the solution for everyone, and saying otherwise is presumption. Here's a solution that DOES work for everyone: instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, clean the bathwater. You do that very, very simply: require clear, easy-to-understand disclosure of data sharing that happens as the result of all these connected services, and an equally clear, easy-to-understand method for opting out of said data sharing. That works better than turning the clock back to those thrilling days of 1990 when you had to refer to handwritten notes to get you to your date's house, or ripping SIM cards out of your car.
  • Funky D What is the over-under for number of recalls in the first 5 years of ownership?
  • Normie Dayyum! Great White Woman!The car, I mean. I could feel kinda safe in it.
  • Slavuta "The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked up by it; moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. " --- 1984
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