Final Road Test & Review | 1987 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z | IROC REHAB

It’s finally time! Time to take our rehabbed 1987 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z out for a full road test and review and see if the upgrades we made we’re worth our two-week thrash. To recap, we installed a brand new 380-hp Edelbrock small block with their Pro Flow EFI system, a new Tremec TKX 5-speed manual transmission from American Powertrain, along with a host of suspension upgrades such as KONI Yellow shocks, BMR lower control arms and torque arm, along with QA1 sway bars both front and rear from Summit Racing.
From there we hit the cosmetics, and with help from Classic Industries, revamped both the interior and exterior to give the IROC the look and feel we ultimately wanted. Finally, it was time for a proper test drive, and trust us when we say, this 35-year-old Chevy did not disappoint!
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#Camaro #chevrolet #buildseries #edelbrock #summitracing #usradiator
#classicindustries #americanpowertrain #tremec #Covercraft #BlacktopYachtClub
CONTENTS
00:00 - Introduction
00:36 - Project Wrap-up
01:49 - Gabe from Classic Industries
02:30 - Road Test

[@sinepari9160]

Best looking Camaro ever made

[@paulchristie4904]

When this car came out in 85 I was jaw dropped. You guys did a great job..but IROC Z on the doors is as iconic as the bird on a TA.

[@formula112967]

I was in Marine Corps boot camp on Parris Island in 1985, and that was the first time I saw an Iroc-Z.....my drill instructor had a midnight black one with tinted windows and he was pulling into the parking lot next to where we were doing drill....my heart stopped.

[@stratmatt7775]

The "Edel" decals are actually part of a very advanced anti-theft system. The anti-theft system consists of the following: 1. Decals on the door that say "Edel-ROC" instead of " I-ROC" 2. That's it

[@BuzzLOLOL]

Or a GTA: i.pinimg.com/originals/0a/6e/92/0a6e925d76ea7b8a50b40ef04eb7a4b5.jpg

[@thanosianthemadtitanic]

You where alive in 85!?!?!

[@formula112967]

@@thanosianthemadtitanic yes, and I got around so much that I probably took your mom on a date in the Iroc and we listened to Motley Crue Theater of Pain album when it was brand new!

[@brspeedysgarage]

I agree, 350-400 hp is good power. 3rd gens always rule, but you need to go back to IROC on the doors.

[@Foosidol]

When they peeled it off I shit myself!

[@shaunwalsh85]

I love everything except for the edel-roc sticker

[@Thedemon6615]

same and the rims

[@Binfordtools6100]

@@Thedemon6615100%. The oem rims were so much nicer looking on the car.

[@Slowgroovin]

Nice, but door decals look homemade. Needs the original IROC set.

[@scottnewellguitar]

Love how this car turned out. Not wild about the “Edel-roc” decals, that would have to go but awesome job.

[@lobuzz311]

Yeah, getting rid of the IROC Z for a sponsor decal is pretty lame. Still a great car.

[@gracien2008]

The Edel-roc sticker is DIFFERENT I agree but your idea and this SetuIp Package is simply AMAZING! You kept this car looking STOCK with all its new-tech improvements...a total SLEEPER if you want to call an IROC-Z that! I'll be looking forward to your Camaro Project with... MUCH interest!

[@JL-bs6yz]

Had to put sponsorship name on it somewhere

[@PhenomProductions23]

Edelbrock parts aren't cheap, especially a new engine. So they probably got them for free in return for their advertisement on the car, same for QA1 & Classic Industries & BMR

[@maidenrulz73]

I agree…..I like the silver decals better than the gold too!

[@Vintage-vs-Speed]

A big thank you to the whole team for doing this series. I bought a new Camaro Z28 in 1982 when the third gen was the ‘car of the year’. I was 18 at the time and still have my car today. I watched the IROC’s, Trans Am’s, Mustang’s and Corvettes of the time become part of the 80’s American culture. The whole series put a smile on my face and made me feel like I was in my twenties again. Thank you for building a beautiful time machine.

[@John-cg8hb]

The IROC races were fun to watch for sure!

[@davidheitman7004]

It was good. Mike made it. With that shit red jacket. Ha. The car need the beefed up. Tuned port system! Monster ports. In your face. Probably more reliable hp!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Really appreciate you watching and commenting! Thank you!

[@ECS46987]

That is a beauty. One of my favourite cars of all time.

[@bhcamaro2002]

This is how the car SHOULD have came in 87! 😎👍

[@hemmingsmotornews]

That's what we thought as well!

[@MrSFSTUDIOS]

Takes me back to 1989 when I first drove my '85 Z-28. Looks great!

[@bobp64014]

I enjoyed the series. This last video is really just a 16 minute ad for the guys that supplied the parts. I get it, however, a rundown on the cost (for us viewers) of this build would've been appreciated. Keep this type of content coming!

[@93notchback]

I noticed the tachometer wasn't hooked up. Yeesh

[@hemmingsmotornews]

@@93notchback We had one in the bluetooth tablet so all good.

[@John-cg8hb]

Another person too lazy to go to the sponsor websites and shop around for themself.

[@polygaryd]

@@John-cg8hb we want to know the exact part numbers they used and all extra costs involved. Has nothing to do with laziness. Smh

[@John-cg8hb]

@@polygaryd so you want someone else to find you your parts, part numbers, prices, and where to get them??? That's laziness to a T. Plan and research your own project! smh

[@kimnach]

I have been driving my '88 IROC (305/5spd/t-tops) for almost 35yrs and it's still fun to drive. I rebuilt the engine a few years ago, ported/polished the intake, increased the in/ex valves, installed Dyno Don headers and terminated the 3" exhaust with a GMMG "muffler", etc. It's not a load of HP, but these engines are very "torquey."

[@74SD455TA]

Yeah, good for you, they run great!

[@capricetony]

Happy I still have my 1987 Iroc 5.7L T-Top all these years 😁👍

[@stevegold2784]

I have an 86 near mint garaged 65 k life is good

[@richardrichards8401]

Love that you didn’t go too big with the tires, only an inch bigger, very savvy. Looks fantastic! Excellent work guys 😉

[@robertpoudrette4483]

You have to stay with the original look as much as possible, these cars were styled just so, not a wrong line anywhere and the IROC rims, both styles of 16 inchers looked great. The 17 inchers here aren't out of context and make the car look right. I just wonder why not have 275-40-17's on these rims since their like 9.5 inches wide.

[@Supercruze]

That sound is intoxicating. Well done guys. I went to HS and College in the 80s and these IROC Zs were all over the place. Just so cool.

[@markdellacqua1038]

But 5.0 Mustangs ruled the roost.

[@bird-man4022]

Mustang 5.0 didn’t rule anything. However, I will say their exhaust was the best sounding for that era. I raced the 5.0 Foxbody in my 5.7 IROC-Z in the 90’s, close race every time..👍

[@theeducatedredneck4144]

This video makes me miss my '89 IROC Z !! Sold long ago !

[@rockzhard2009]

had a factory black & gold '87 IROC that was ordered with the Corvette L98 in it. (i didn't order it but i worked with the dude that did) and then it had aftermarket upgrades added. it was a beast. the wife was turning in the driveway and a 17 y/o girl, on her phone, t-boned her in the passenger side and bent the frame all to hell. after the insurance paid it off i was going to buy it back but the guy at the frame shop said it would never be as good as it was before the wreck. (he may have just wanted it for himself idk) but i came across a fall guy GMC truck so i went with that. but man that IROC was sweet.

[@carlos64030]

Man, that car sounds fantastic! There's NOTHING like the exhaust rumble from a SBC V8. They sound soooooo much deeper and more throaty than LS motors, IMO. Going with the larger reproduction wheels and lowering the suspension are two of the best visual enhancements for theses cars. I gotta say, I'm rather stumped on why someone chose to put 245 width tires on the new larger wheels, though.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

There's a story to that.

[@LateNightCable]

I thought proportions of those wheels looked a little off. I think the original size would have looked better.

[@SuperSport2024]

I had a 1985 Z28 when I was 19. It wasn’t the fastest, but it was the funnest car I ever owned! Thanks for bringing back the memories! 🤘🏼

[@jrunberg]

Had an 85' as well. 305 TPI. I smoked a 1993 Mustang GT, lol

[@darrylmuse9948]

Same here my first car I bought when I joined the Marines loved those T-Tops 😁

[@orlandobromell]

I love this build. I just picked up my dad's old Z28(1991) and looking forward to using this series as the blueprint.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Great to hear and thank you!

[@johnschiavone3058]

I bought 1986 Chevy Iroc Z28 pretty solid 5.0 TPI .. looking to do a slow Restore … and swap out the 5.0 TPI to an LS .. I drive it daily .. I smile every time I drive and get so many compliments.. just want more Power

[@MrTheNoradin]

Very close to what I built. 89 Iroc z convertable, 400hp 480ftlb 350, converted from Automatic to manual 5 speed, Moser Engineering 8 inch rear diff with 3.73 posi, trackbar and subframe connectors etc etc. 400hp is perfect for this type of car, not blow your doors off fast but still a very quick car all while being tame enough to just have fun with on a daily bases. Life and everything else got in the way and I moved on from it but I do miss it at times. Seeing this video brought back memories.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Nice - and glad we could help with the memories!

[@WhiteMouse77]

What a sweet machine! So lovely balanced gentle sporty GT. BiG WoW!

[@timmcpeck2764]

Came out great. I like the silver rims and decals personally and the tach not working would drive me nuts, but what a huge difference.

[@GrandPitoVic]

That is a gorgeous car!!! You guys did so great with that Maro. Thank you for bring back one of the great camaros.

[@jefffixesit60]

Nice results from good bones! I refrained from panning the brake upgrade you chose, as I knew this was just a starting point for this project. Not sure about going to 18" rolling stock with those wheelwells and fender openings, but already salivating in anticipation of bigger brakes and contact patches! Good job, keep on keepin' on

[@davidvela6891]

A 1986 IROC Z28 was my first vehicle. Looking at this video reminds me of the potential that car could have had. Beautiful car and nice results. Great job you guys!!!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

🙏

[@BlackMesaSecurity]

I look forward to more updates in the future of this Camaro. Really love what you guys did with it.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

And you shall see it Sir! Stay tuned!

[@richnick1911]

Got my 87 IROC brand new when I was 18...Loved it!

[@___Reaper___]

Huhh, I'm in love, the color, the stance, the sound... it's just perfect. A shopping list would be nice if allowed, especially for the suspension parts. :) I hope you'll have more videos with this beauty, this mini series made me love my car again, and I'm planning to pull it out of the garage after 1 year sitting to fix it and enjoy it again, it'll take time, but at least I really want to do it again :) Thanks for that!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Definitely expect more content around this car soon.

[@salehprohim9812]

Great video! Thanks for sharing. I bought an 89 Iroc back in high school. Love it then and love it now. Gave it to my son for his high school graduation so I had to replace it with another 89 Iroc convertible. Thanks again for doing this project, love it.

[@darrellgordon7456]

She's amazing, really nice job. I really have to watch the entire playlist for this car. Love it !

[@johnhoward7083]

Thank you the car is beautiful and it really brings back memories. In their day this is one of the coolest things on the street

[@robertferguson5518]

Great job guys, really like the look (& sound!) of the IROC-Z, especially lowered & with the original looking 17 inch wheels. Being from the 80's it's a real classic but still looks sort of modern at the same time, very cool!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Agree - these car have aged really well.

[@AnberThe]

Mine was 84’ -Z28. I miss mine. Took it for granted. I wish I still have it.

[@B41512]

One of the best reviews and builds on an IrocZ. Very impressive! I had to watch it a few times👍🏾

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Appreciate that, thank you!

[@searlearnold2867]

Listening with the headphones. Like rediscovering that old record you haven't played in a while.

[@thehemmingshotrodbbq4970]

Great description!

[@dsmith584]

Love it. Great job and thanks for including us.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Thanks for watching!

[@lamboferruccio]

Really enjoyed this build series, car turned out sweet, only thing left is the interior especially the seats and steering wheel, a nice set of period Fishnet Recaro’s and a Nardi leather wrapped wheel oh and that shifter yeah definitely need to do something with that, can’t wait for what’s next!

[@tomgronowicz8150]

Great series. I loved everything about it.

[@juancolon887]

Man, I wanted one so bad when I was younger. Just couldn't afford it. Now I can afford but can't find one, lol. Chevy did this one Justice. Loved the IROC-Z

[@robdfar]

I would love to own that car. I miss mine so much at times. looks and sounds really good.

[@mattadams7231]

Good video. I'm in nh, so it's neat to see Vermont getting some representation. Looks like a nice September ride in the green mountains!

[@AV131082]

You guys did an awesome project, my hat´s off to you guys!

[@williamdixoniii]

My first car was a 1987 White Iroc Z. really miss that thing.... good job guys!

[@Decembererykah23]

This Camaro is 🔥! My dad had a z28 when I was a teenager and this brought back memories. I would so love to have a muscle car like this ❤️🤍💙

[@sambarnes9520]

Mike you had some great comments and thinking concerning power levels. Ive had cars in the past that had to run drag radials just to be safe in dry conditions.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Appreciate that - thank you. I think it's all about setting expectations and being honest with yourself about what you want to do with a vehicle before you build it. Too often people go WAY overboard.

[@digitalmagicAR]

Great video and footage. Glad you basically kept the amazing stock look. That looks like a really fun car - same great looks but more performance without losing driveability

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Thank you, and yup, that was the goal!

[@robqcmccullum8797]

This brings back memories of my 87 IROC-Z I purchased new and kept for 18 years boy do I wish I'd never ever sold it!!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

May be time to buy another one, no?

[@TheWarzoneHackerIsBack]

Really great video on the most important topic; improve the old, adding smile after smile as you go.

[@KMack-1975]

Wow, just wow. Amazing how that IROC sounds. Just beautiful

[@hemmingsmotornews]

💪💪💪

[@listenerjim]

I loved watching this, I love my 85 Iroc Z.

[@paulchristie4904]

I love my 87 !

[@prestonedmonds4128]

Love the 3rd gen content. More please!

[@chrisbrady8186]

I had a stock 88 IROC Z28, Black/Gold. 305HO- 700R4 Tranny. Good looking car, and that's it.

[@Daniel-mn5qg]

I had an 87 white with all blacked out lights and I pinstriped the louvers. Also had a B&M slapstick. Damn I miss that car. YES I'm Italian. LOL Great job guys.

[@gordonmills2748]

I had an 89 IROC - same color as this one was (with the t-tops) and really enjoyed watching this build. If I had more money and a bigger garage, I'd totally buy this.

[@vinewood8295]

Beautiful car guys, great work Dale Sr would be proud if he was still with us. Someday with any luck I will own one of these cars, it was my dream car as a kid back in the 80's & nothing's changed...

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Get them while they're affordable.

[@27Zangle]

About 10-years back I had an 85 IROC with the 305. What a fun car! Slow but fun!

[@m0j0rising]

Great upgrades to a classic....

[@WattsRaider]

Man I would ride that in 2022 that car came out when I was 6 years old. It looks great

[@kazee502]

car looks great, well done....my buddy had one in high school and this iroc looks just like it... 5 stars

[@cgbodyauto7635]

Sweet!! And that sound, man!

[@ugl10x12]

You guys are so lucky to have drove this its my dream car.

[@bearlemley]

I had the 84, the 86, & 88. The were fun and trouble free.

[@americanracecraft110]

Please keep the Iroc stuff coming!! Great series

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Will do and thank you

[@jonthomas5398]

Thanks for the endless commonsense banter instead of the test drive we've all been waiting for!!

[@calitri-boost]

I live this car so much! Wow great job guys 🎉

[@michaelf.1581]

Love, love love this series Mike. Feels like the old House of Muscle series that loved to watch.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Appreciate that Sir, thank you! And who knows, maybe one day THoM will make a return!

[@user-rb1yf4he9q]

My buddy had the 5.7 IROC in Red with gold trim wheels. The car was a blast to ride in , only got to drive once but for it’s day it owned the streets.

[@Pete391]

My dream car was a 1990 Iroc..........Never came true..Those are beautiful cars...

[@Champwsox05]

I came about $300 away from purchasing a '92 RS back in 1997 in really great condition. The guy wouldn't accept my offer because I just couldn't afford it. I was 17 at the time. Biggest non purchase of a car I ever had in my life and I'm 41 now.

[@muff-waggle-b9408]

I’m absolutely loving this car ! I want to go to a shop with an 87 iroc “ Hello sir how can we help ? “ Me: Hi there ! Here watch this video and do everything they do ! Thank you !

[@joewolfe642]

awesome to see Musto again ! was wondering where he has been. Big fan of the 3rd gen's so it was great seeing this build. So clean.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Been behind the scenes on a lot of projects, but it's good to back in front of the camera again - thank you!

[@LC-nr9vo]

My is a 87 too love it!👊🏾😍 Can’t wait for spring..😂

[@dougshaw2944]

It came out rad & looks damn fine.

[@dlee6985]

This was the first car I remember seeing that caught my eye when I was 5 (‘87) that made go ooooh what is that? That looks cool! And it was also a black/gold iroc. Great job and looking forward to see what else you guys do to it.

[@sokola311]

Absolute perfect exhaust sound.

[@vicmerle57]

I bought one brand new in 1987. Black with gold wheels and trim with black interior. No T-tops. 305 TPI with a 5 speed. Top speed I did was 135mph. Loved that car!

[@bullyelfuerte]

Love the content on the Third gen Camaro.

[@kinch613]

My 1987 5.7 TPI was a kickass car back in the day. I got it really fairly new as a used car. Maybe a demo from Bob McDorman Chevy in Columbus, Ohio. Cherry red , red interior , gold wheels and stripes and decked out. Even T Tops with the 140 mile speedo. My favorite car of my now 55 years. I miss it. This brings back a LOT of memories. Agree keep the IROC on the door. Thanks for this. Man all ya need is some Van Halen blaring out of that radio. Oh it was a BOSE system in mine. Great memories! BTW saw the landscape and I knew it was upstate. Brought my IROC back to Utica NY not far away from where this was filmed if that was Albany

[@gatorunleashed275]

Really nice work I love these cars.

[@nman7044]

Great video, great countryside backdrop in New England, being your neighbor in NH hopefully I will see this baby out tearing through the backroads. I agree with the HP for a fun street car. I have a LS6 in my SS that’s 500Hp…..just enough to have fun and stay out of trouble….keep up the good work!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Oh, we think it's a fair bet you will

[@donniebrasco4114]

I recently got a 87 5.7 it’s completely stock and I wouldn’t change anything about it except it needs a nice sounding exhaust. Car is so much fun to drive. Always wanted one.

[@formula112967]

All it needs now is a vortech supercharger.....I had one installed in my 6 speed C5 and it woke it right up! you earned my sub with this fantastic Z!

[@7viewerlogic670]

Awesome IROC!

[@colterbolton9418]

Love the series.

[@choward874]

I owned an 87 vette back in 92. I met a iroc Z on the road in a small town and we raced and he absolutely blew my doors off! I found out later he had a 383 stroker under the hood lol. It was a sweet car.

[@mikehenry7848]

That 5sp with a 5.7 is a MACHINE. I had an 84 Z28 with a 5.7 5 spd manual and I made several runs from Mammoth Ca to Atascadero Ca. I started on Hwy 41, to 58 to 5 to 223 "Arvin" to 58 to 14 or 178 to 14 to 395 and up to 203. 360 miles. I've taken all routes from Atown to Mammoth. One was through Yosemite. Hwy 41 entrance west side out Tioga, Hwy 41 in UNDER an HOUR Again do the math. After midnight in those days there were no guards, no entrance fees, just roll it. Don't crash!!! If you were a passenger, you needed a barf bag. I flew that thing over the humps going across the California valley on 58 headed towards Taft, or going the other way. I have some great stories about late night driving in the desert. I didn't play.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Glad you're still with us, and more importantly, no bad memories!

[@mikehenry7848]

@@hemmingsmotornews a couple but nothing dangerous. More really great ones! Like driving down through Owens valley and having enough 16 keeping up with me somehow going that slow for him. I can see his landing gear through the t-tops of my Z28. He wasn't more than 100 ft off my roof. sooooio cool

[@expeditionjay]

The camaro turned out awesome. Been loving this build!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Thank Jay!

[@jasonleehulse]

I have an 87 here. It has all the bells n whistles of 1987. an original G92, LB9, posi/limited slip, t-tops, found classic industries has "almost" every part. Has a 383 Holley Stealthram with a PATC Raptor 700-R4. Has only 60K on the body. Suspension has also been upgraded to the same specs as your build oddly enough. Couldn't ask for a better cruiser, I've owned it since 98'. These have gone up in price drastically the past few years. Especially for "Unmolested" examples. Again, beautiful build.

[@bretthatfield2516]

Well done Mike and Crew!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Hey Brett! Thank you Sir!

[@Chevyhead85]

I loved it from the start because I’m in Arizona and I have an 87 iroc. So thank you for this video

[@hemmingsmotornews]

You're welcome!

[@kareemrichards8635]

I like the points you made on this vehicle about adding power to an older car, good work. Thanks for sharing captain.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Thanks for watching!

[@lb9gta307]

I agree but would open up range to about 500hp for one of these because you can put a lot more grip in them. But at 380hp it has roughly the same power to weight as a 485hp Challenger Scat Pak. That's very respectable and an amount I'd be happy with in my GTA.

[@kareemrichards8635]

@@lb9gta307 True that!

[@hunterf.777]

Absolut perfection guys! Love it i want to do this exact build

[@molallamerica896]

Love it. IROC are so cool.

[@jackvinceta]

Thank you for giving me the boost to get my 1990 IROC back on the road, she's been sitting for about 10+ years. Lots of life things have been getting in the way, but. I'll will soon start wrenching on her this year.

[@John-cg8hb]

You have a very rare car!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Get on it man!

[@grumpygrant4537]

I have a 78. It’s got the stock motor and stock trans but has a lot of new parts Love that car so much

[@willjam465]

Really enjoyed this series and how the car turned out (though not completely sold on the exhaust note, myself). Look forward to more content like this. Would be great to see a Pontiac Trans-Am GTA along with a fox body Mustang and then do a comparison series after their builds.

[@hemmingsmotornews]

We like the way you think 😉👍

[@JoeyRiz]

@@hemmingsmotornews a GTA would be awesome

[@JoeyRiz]

I think the exhaust is fine but they need a cutout for track days

[@markdellacqua1038]

A stock Coyote in a coupe Fox body = very low 12's.

[@bmwpete65s55]

The exhaust would sound even better if they put the factory slant cut on the tailpipes. It really does make a difference! The exhaust bounces around under the car a little instead of going straight out the back.

[@johnpanos8247]

Great video series

[@seahalk1]

Love the sound

[@chevyhead84]

This Is an all time #1 on my bucket list maybe one day I'll be able to get one. What you have done with this is exactly what I want to do to one. The original was awesome just power train needed to be a little more and now we have that ability

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Exactly and well said

[@jimcabezola3051]

It's better than new! Well done!

[@hemmingsmotornews]

Thanks Jim.