Nick Ostas’ ’69 Camaro Makes Use Of Cubic Inches

Cubic inches are the name of the game when it comes to Chevy muscle, and Pro-Touring.com’s Nick Ostas and his matte black ’69 are living proof that the old adage of engine displacement are still true.

Ostas took a relatively “old school” route with his pro-touring, ’69 Camaro build. The motor that he’s stuffed in his early pony started life as a ’70 Gen IV 396ci big-block, but has since been built with a forged, 427 crank. The Gen IV big-block has also received a honing treatment after the motor had been punched out to 0.030-inch over to compliment its internals, consisting of JE pistons and I-beam rods.

Aluminum Pro Comp heads top off the 396ci big-block, while a complete ARP bolt and fastener kit keep everything together. With a hydraulic roller valvetrain and just over $10,000 invested, the engine is good for 600 horsepower and 600 pounds of twist, all while running on pump gas.

Keeping the punched out big-block cool is an aluminum radiator with dual fans, and according to Nick Ostas the car “never runs over 190 on hot days.”

The ’69s body is like new, and all of the car’s sheetmetal has been replaced in a body JIG while keeping original specs within 1/8 of an inch. As described by Ostas, the Camaro has been done in essentially stock interior with the exception of ’08 Jaguar front seats with power recliners,

“All interior parts are new and complete. The trunk is done in stock spatter paint.” Ostas sounds like he’s satisfied with the pro-tour build as a whole,

“All the gaps are perfect, and the body was block sanded perfectly straight. The car has approximately 6,000 miles on it and can be driven anywhere.”