Hello All,
Some of you may know about this build that I alluded to in a previous thread called “First Ever Penske 7500 Double Adjustable True Coilover for a CTS-V”. So, let’s start from the beginning.
Once upon a time, a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, blah, blah, blah…I owned a 2005 CTS-V, which I had for a couple of years. At that time, there were very few performance after-market parts available for this car. And, as in my case, every vehicle that I’ve ever owned, I’ve modified in some way, shape or form. I was invited by Cadillac/GM to test drive the 2nd generation CTS-V before they were released in the showrooms, on a road course in New York. After test driving the new V, I was told that GM, would offer a track package for this car. But, because the economy went into the crapper, GM decided not to go forward with this package. So, I decided to wait. At the same time, I test drove an XLR-V on the road course and really enjoyed the car. I knew with some modifications, as always, that the car could be that much better. So, I bought one.
A couple of years later, in 2010, I remembered how much fun and driving enjoyment I got out of driving my CTS-V and figured by this time, there should be performance after-market parts for the car. So, hence, the search began for a 1st generation CTS-V. I decided on the 1st generation, compared to the 2nd, for a couple of reasons. First, I’m a road racer, not a drag racer, so I wanted something that was naturally aspirated, not super charged. Second, the 2nd gens were quite a bit heavier than the 1st gens. And, the electronics – well, let’s just say that the same ECUs and electronics that are in the XLR-V, are also used in the 2nd gen CTS-V. So, for modification purposes, at this time, it’s quite a nightmare, even for some of the most knowledgeable out there.
I found a 2006 CTS-V: one owner, very low mileage, and no accidents. So, this was the perfect platform with which to start. I started with the suspension. I put in a call to Angelo at Anze Engineering, who has built suspension systems for these production cars, along with the race versions. And, since he was using Penske, I knew that he was the best choice for my suspension.
In saying all this, I knew that one of the biggest things that people want on these cars is to put on larger wheels and tires. But, because of suspension, clearance and geometry issues, there were limitations. With all this in mind, I wanted to build a wide body kit to address all these challenges, without major modifications to suspensions or geometry of the vehicle.
After much research and knowing how many people love to take these cars on a road course on a high performance track day, I knew it was time to get some real, solid production parts for these cars, and not some of the so-called after market bling that really does not produce much gain. So, in April 2010, I started to look for someone to work with to build a wide body kit for these cars that doesn’t look like aftermarket, slap-on Jeep fenders.
Finding someone local was my intent, but if need be, out-of-state was an option. Fortunately, I found that person, and he is local. So, thus began the design work. There were three points that I was not going to budge on: Form, Fit and Function.
While designing, I looked at other avenues of the vehicle that I thought needed upgrading, such as larger brake system (not that the OEM isn’t capable, as it is very capable). But, in performance, success is measured in milliseconds and the better the braking capability, the bigger the edge. I have been working with vendors on upgrades to the upper and lower control arm bushings, coilovers to adapt from the OEM rear to a true coilover, 6-point roll bar, and a few other aerodynamic goodies which are being developed. While speaking with quite a few manufacturers over this build, some had expressed the desire to display the car at SEMA (Specialty Equipment Manufacturer’s Association.)
So, the building of the kit commenced on January 25, 2011 and Project “VANQUISH” was born. Knowing that we were heading to SEMA, the amount of work for this car increased trifold. Unfortunately, we hit some snags; some good, some bad. Good ones include my fabricator’s new baby girl in Sept (and as most of you know, life changes dramatically with a new baby.) Some of the bad include the extreme high heat and humidity this summer which made working with fiberglass a challenge. Not to mention health issues. Fortunately, when we were accepted by a manufacturer to display the car, I told them to have a back-up, just in case. And, as of late September, we knew we were not going to make the deadline. Considering there is only one fabricator and one me, and my relentless pursuit of perfection, we did the best we could.
Now, let’s get to the details of the kit. This kit will contain the front bumper, left & right fenders, left & right rocker panels, left & right rear quarter panels and a rear bumper. Options include a heat-extractor hood, front splitter, and rear wing. There will also be a six point, welded or bolted, roll bar available (more on this in another thread.)
To give you an idea of the type of quality that I expect in the vendors that I work with, see Photo 1. It is one of my cars that was featured in national and international magazines and has won countless awards
The kit will be made out of fiberglass. I am investigating the possibility of also providing a carbon fiber kit. The front bumper, rear bumper, fenders and rocker panels are going to be bolt-on. The rear quarter panels will require a skilled body man to install, due to the fact that 98% of the rear quarter panel will be cut out. This kit will allow you to run a 315 tire on an 11” wide wheel, with OEM back spacing in the front, and a 335 tire on an 18” wide wheel, with OEM back spacing in the rear. This kit will only be sold to CTS-V owners and will require your VIN number for purchase. This is to keep the clones at bay. Pricing is yet to be determined, but I will tell you now, that the pricing will be extremely competitive. At this point, our goal is to be ready for production orders in January.
I know you are waiting for photos of this. The only photos I can show you are Photo 2, which is the car as of a few days ago. As you can see, not much to look at….but Photo 3 shows some of the parts, on stands, that have just emerged from the primer booth, waiting to be blocked & sanded to make the final molds for production parts.
I’d be glad to answer any questions that you may have. I promise to keep you up to date on our progress. At this point, the few, (and I do mean few – you can count the number on one hand) who have seen this car, have made comments like “…if I saw this car in my rear view mirror on the street or track, advancing towards me, I would move over…””Mean” “Wicked”
Thank you for your interest and patience; I know you won’t be disappointed.
Some of you may know about this build that I alluded to in a previous thread called “First Ever Penske 7500 Double Adjustable True Coilover for a CTS-V”. So, let’s start from the beginning.
Once upon a time, a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, blah, blah, blah…I owned a 2005 CTS-V, which I had for a couple of years. At that time, there were very few performance after-market parts available for this car. And, as in my case, every vehicle that I’ve ever owned, I’ve modified in some way, shape or form. I was invited by Cadillac/GM to test drive the 2nd generation CTS-V before they were released in the showrooms, on a road course in New York. After test driving the new V, I was told that GM, would offer a track package for this car. But, because the economy went into the crapper, GM decided not to go forward with this package. So, I decided to wait. At the same time, I test drove an XLR-V on the road course and really enjoyed the car. I knew with some modifications, as always, that the car could be that much better. So, I bought one.
A couple of years later, in 2010, I remembered how much fun and driving enjoyment I got out of driving my CTS-V and figured by this time, there should be performance after-market parts for the car. So, hence, the search began for a 1st generation CTS-V. I decided on the 1st generation, compared to the 2nd, for a couple of reasons. First, I’m a road racer, not a drag racer, so I wanted something that was naturally aspirated, not super charged. Second, the 2nd gens were quite a bit heavier than the 1st gens. And, the electronics – well, let’s just say that the same ECUs and electronics that are in the XLR-V, are also used in the 2nd gen CTS-V. So, for modification purposes, at this time, it’s quite a nightmare, even for some of the most knowledgeable out there.
I found a 2006 CTS-V: one owner, very low mileage, and no accidents. So, this was the perfect platform with which to start. I started with the suspension. I put in a call to Angelo at Anze Engineering, who has built suspension systems for these production cars, along with the race versions. And, since he was using Penske, I knew that he was the best choice for my suspension.
In saying all this, I knew that one of the biggest things that people want on these cars is to put on larger wheels and tires. But, because of suspension, clearance and geometry issues, there were limitations. With all this in mind, I wanted to build a wide body kit to address all these challenges, without major modifications to suspensions or geometry of the vehicle.
After much research and knowing how many people love to take these cars on a road course on a high performance track day, I knew it was time to get some real, solid production parts for these cars, and not some of the so-called after market bling that really does not produce much gain. So, in April 2010, I started to look for someone to work with to build a wide body kit for these cars that doesn’t look like aftermarket, slap-on Jeep fenders.
Finding someone local was my intent, but if need be, out-of-state was an option. Fortunately, I found that person, and he is local. So, thus began the design work. There were three points that I was not going to budge on: Form, Fit and Function.
While designing, I looked at other avenues of the vehicle that I thought needed upgrading, such as larger brake system (not that the OEM isn’t capable, as it is very capable). But, in performance, success is measured in milliseconds and the better the braking capability, the bigger the edge. I have been working with vendors on upgrades to the upper and lower control arm bushings, coilovers to adapt from the OEM rear to a true coilover, 6-point roll bar, and a few other aerodynamic goodies which are being developed. While speaking with quite a few manufacturers over this build, some had expressed the desire to display the car at SEMA (Specialty Equipment Manufacturer’s Association.)
So, the building of the kit commenced on January 25, 2011 and Project “VANQUISH” was born. Knowing that we were heading to SEMA, the amount of work for this car increased trifold. Unfortunately, we hit some snags; some good, some bad. Good ones include my fabricator’s new baby girl in Sept (and as most of you know, life changes dramatically with a new baby.) Some of the bad include the extreme high heat and humidity this summer which made working with fiberglass a challenge. Not to mention health issues. Fortunately, when we were accepted by a manufacturer to display the car, I told them to have a back-up, just in case. And, as of late September, we knew we were not going to make the deadline. Considering there is only one fabricator and one me, and my relentless pursuit of perfection, we did the best we could.
Now, let’s get to the details of the kit. This kit will contain the front bumper, left & right fenders, left & right rocker panels, left & right rear quarter panels and a rear bumper. Options include a heat-extractor hood, front splitter, and rear wing. There will also be a six point, welded or bolted, roll bar available (more on this in another thread.)
To give you an idea of the type of quality that I expect in the vendors that I work with, see Photo 1. It is one of my cars that was featured in national and international magazines and has won countless awards
The kit will be made out of fiberglass. I am investigating the possibility of also providing a carbon fiber kit. The front bumper, rear bumper, fenders and rocker panels are going to be bolt-on. The rear quarter panels will require a skilled body man to install, due to the fact that 98% of the rear quarter panel will be cut out. This kit will allow you to run a 315 tire on an 11” wide wheel, with OEM back spacing in the front, and a 335 tire on an 18” wide wheel, with OEM back spacing in the rear. This kit will only be sold to CTS-V owners and will require your VIN number for purchase. This is to keep the clones at bay. Pricing is yet to be determined, but I will tell you now, that the pricing will be extremely competitive. At this point, our goal is to be ready for production orders in January.
I know you are waiting for photos of this. The only photos I can show you are Photo 2, which is the car as of a few days ago. As you can see, not much to look at….but Photo 3 shows some of the parts, on stands, that have just emerged from the primer booth, waiting to be blocked & sanded to make the final molds for production parts.
I’d be glad to answer any questions that you may have. I promise to keep you up to date on our progress. At this point, the few, (and I do mean few – you can count the number on one hand) who have seen this car, have made comments like “…if I saw this car in my rear view mirror on the street or track, advancing towards me, I would move over…””Mean” “Wicked”
Thank you for your interest and patience; I know you won’t be disappointed.
