Dustin Hamm set out to make his first generation Camaro stand apart from the crowd.

Standing out from the crowd in a first generation Camaro is difficult. Already a high profile car, despite only being produced for a three-year period, Camaro owner like Dustin Hamm have to go a few extra miles to make their project car unique and great looking at the same time. 

Dustin set his sights on a Camaro that looked great, rode great and had more than enough engine for the street but fuel economy for long trips in Nothern California. What he ended up with was a Camaro that had plenty of torque, looked like a showcar and could handle a diesel under the hood. Chris Alston’s Chassisworks helped keep the diesel monster under control when it came to handling. 

Using Chassisworks suspension and chassis components, Dustin was able to do all of the work by himself with the few precious hours that he was not working at his primary job as a body shop technician.

Dustin said “I bought my Camaro from my mom when I was 18 and built it as a high school ‘senior project’. After I graduated, I drove it around town and to work all summer, until it started raining in October of ’06. Since it had quite a bit of rot, or at least what I considered quite a bit, I decided it was time to tear it all apart and restore the body.”

“I had the body dipped to remove all the rust, bondo, etc. and got to see what I was up against. It became clear that it was wrecked a couple times in the early to mid 70’s before my mom owned it and was “repaired” very poorly. It needed a lot of work.”

As often happens, the project stalled for a few years but in January of 2012 work started again. “I made a deal with my boss to keep my Camaro at the body shop I work at so I could work on it and fix it the way it should be fixed.”

Dustin used Alston’s Street Machine Bolt-On Front Clip package to support the 6.6 liter diesel and provide good handling characteristics for the unique combination.

Steadily working during his off-shift hours, Dustin modified the body with quarter, rocker and tail panel replacements. He installed a Chassisworks Eliminator II Backhalf system (Pkg #78E223), trunk and tub sheet metal and a Chassiswork’s Factory Welded FAB9 housing (#8261) in the rear of the Camaro.

When it came to the front end, Dustin used Alston’s Street Machine Bolt-On Front Clip (Pkg #7701-2). Finishing up the modifications, He beefed up the chassis with Chassiswork’s 10-point mild steel roll cage with Camaro bends (#7003) and Swing-Out clevis sets for door bars (#7008).

All of the bodywork and paint was done by Dustin Hamm and all the photos were taken by Dustin and sent to Chris Alston Chassisworks. This sweet Camaro is still under construction, we can’t wait to see it finished!