Jedd Schola’s 1969 Camaro
Persistence and the will to forge through a challenge sometimes come into play during a restoration or hot rod build. Jedd Schola knows this all too well with his ’69 Camaro, as he and his family have powered through highs and lows that would have sent lesser enthusiasts out of their garage long ago.
The story begins in the mid-’90s when Jedd and his dad restored the Camaro the first time, finishing it when Jedd was still a teenager. He enjoyed it for years, until the car was vandalized horribly in a hotel parking lot in 2012. Several years later, Jedd was towing the just-refinished Camaro home from the shop when he had to brake suddenly. Bad luck struck again, as the rear straps broke and sent the fresh Camaro through the front of his trailer.
For the third and final rebuild, Jedd wanted to up the ante in performance and handling. He assembled a 355c.i. small block topping it with a B&M blower. A FiTech EFI system was chosen to manage the air/fuel mixture while a Stage 4 700-R4 trans from Mad Dog transmissions handles the shifts to send power to a Strange 9-inch rearend.
With the power side of the equation handled, Jedd looked to Detroit Speed to help in the handling department with their control arms and JRi coil-over system. The rear was treated to a set of QA1 adjustable shocks as well as a SpeedTech sway bar. Wilwood brakes were added on each end along with a set of Billet Specialties wheels (17×8/18×9.5) with BFG tread.
Jedd treated the interior to similar performance-based updates including a Classic Dash filled with AutoMeter instrumentation. The stock seats received new foam and modern leather and suede covers along with detail parts from Fesler, Ringbrothers and Lokar. He also took the time to update the wiring using a harness from American Autowire and installed a Corbeau harness to keep himself and a passenger secure when it’s time for a little fun.
While the front sheet metal was being reworked, Jedd had the team at BRC/East End Rod Shop modify the cowl with a set of Ringbrothers Mustang cowl vents and installed an Anvil firewall cover. Once deemed perfectly straight, a deep coat of PPG #9700 Black was applied and finished to a mirror shine.
As they say, the third time is a charm, and in the case of Jedd’s ’69 Camaro, we have to agree!
Photos by John Jackson
