First order of business; I am using a plasma cutter to remove all of the brackets and tabs on the Camaro rear axle. This is the first step in setting it in the HHR mule. All new brackets will be fabricated for the coil-overs and panhard bar.

 

I located a 2010 body that had burned...sort of a rare thing in my opinion. Almost all HHR wrecks are hit on one of the corners enough to throw everything out of whack. This one is really straight. I'll get the burned/rusted areas sand blasted and then take a spray can to the area to keep it from rusting again.

 

Nice find. Almost fully stripped for you.

With a 2010 HHR won't you need a 2010 or newer motor in it to pass inspection?

 

This body is strictly to mock-up the rear wheel drive/V8 engine&trans. When I get all of these components designed and fabricated in this body (the mule) then I will transfer them to my '08 Panel. And yes, I will be required to use an '08 or newer engine. This is a problem that I haven't solved yet. I really doubt if I can LEGALLY get thru a smog referee here in Calif. Lots of horror stories there. I might just get a phony smog certificate ($500) or maybe I'll just move in with you in Arizona and register it there!

 

As long as I get to drive it once in a while

 

Just relocate over to Mississippi. Heck, our laws go like this....
If you can make it to the inspection station, then obviously it runs good enough to drive!!

Register/title it here, then just transfer it to another state.

 

Why not use the old body and get a reconstruct title?

 

It wouldn't do me any good legal wise. I need an '08 or newer engine for totally legal smog. Plus, this junk body has a salvage title and this will be waaaaay too much money and work to have a salvage title. I'll probably register it in AZ when I can no longer do it in CA. Also, I'm gonna cut the crap out of this mule so I can learn. I really don't want to do that to my Panel

 

You can use my address for that . But I do want to drive it atleast once .

Cali is not all that strict on state title transfering like AZ if I am not mistaken so that just might work. In AZ they give you 10 days to register it here, after that you could be ticketed. But they have to pull you over first and the cops here are very leinient as long as you do not have too dark of tint that is lol.

Perhaps you could just get a nice LS(?) 6.2l from the Vette, 430hp/424tq. Or the G8 version LS2 which has about the same power as that LS1 at 361hp and 350tq.

 

I'm open for donations.......got a spare LS7?