[1]It may not be an LS9, but with over 303hp under your right foot in a car that weighs less than 2,000 lbs., that's more than enough to get you to the corner store.
Today, building a sports car from scratch in your garage sounds completely crazy to many, but whether you want to believe it or not, that’s how some of the most successful sports cars were made. If you need proof then look no further than the Shelby Cobra or England’s own Ariel Atom.
The Atom is a road car built with the intent of going as fast as possible around the track. It’s one of the best handling cars n the world. However, even though it doesn’t have a conventional body and is powered by either an Ecotec or Honda 4-clinder, the Atom still costs over $40,000.
It’s not insanely expensive, but it’s far from practical given that it doesn’t even have a trunk or a roof. It may not be that big of a deal to some, but if you’re a middle-class family man you would be better off spending those 40 G’s elsewhere…especially considering you could build something similar for less money.
That’s what one Ohio man did in the form of this car you’re looking at here. Built just a few years ago, this Atom-inspired machine sports a tubular frame built on a C5 Corvette chassis that utilizes an entire Monte Carlo SS drivetrain, ECU, wire harness, and gauge cluster. The only performance modifications appear to be a cold-air intake and a Borla [2] muffler with custom mandrel bent tubing, but even with the sock 303 horsepower this thing must fly.
There are several videos of this car on YouTube [3] that include the build process, first start up, and the first driving experience of the finished product. We’ve included the latter attached to this story. So for those of you looking to build your own dream car, take it from the guy who built something from scratch from a two car garage. With the right amount of perseverance, anything really is possible.
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