097: Building a Sema Standout With Cheap Tools & the Internet.

The Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ platform is extremely popular in the enthusiast market for plenty of reasons. It’s simple, it’s rear-wheel-drive, it handles, it’s cheap — and there are few platforms out there that have the kind of aftermarket support that the ZN6 has. This is all to say that building one of these cars to a level where it stands above the rest takes something a little special. Cam Cocalis, this week’s guest, knows this all too well, having built one of the most impressive 86s out there, and one that was good enough to find its way into the top 12 of last year’s SEMA Battle of the Builders competition.

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Use “CAM100” to get $100 OFF our HPA Motorsport Fabrication Package: https://hpcdmy.co/fabpackageb

Cam has built something pretty special. It’s one of the wildest ZN6s on the planet with a tube frame front and rear end, expansive cage, wild LS3 powerplant, custom cantilever suspension, and much more. The best part? Cam is only 22, and everything he’s done to this car — design, fabrication, paint, wiring, and more — were skills that he learnt himself using the power of the internet.

In this episode, we talk to Cam about how he became obsessed with the ZN6 platform in his teenage years (which wasn’t that long ago to be fair), culminating at 17 years old when he bought this very FRS as his first car. With Cam’s other main interest being art, he was able to transfer his creative side into the automotive world. We then jump into a full build breakdown on the Scion itself, in which Cam takes us through the whats, whys, and hows of the car. This machine went from your typical Rocket Bunny bagged-on-big-wheels 86 build to something worthy of SEMA glory, so there’s a lot to cover.

Cam also discusses wiring, design, and fabrication at length, covering his ethos behind many of the choices he made on the fabrication side, as well as a breakdown of all the tools he uses in his home garage — the total cost of which might shock you.

This episode shows you that you don’t have to be a professional in the industry or have the best gear in order to build top-level vehicles — you just need the right ideas, motivation, and a healthy internet connection. Let this conversation with Cam Cocalis provide the inspiration you need to get started.

Don't forget, you can use “CAM100” to get $100 OFF our HPA Motorsport Fabrication Package: https://hpcdmy.co/fabpackageb

Follow Cam here:
IG: @cam.cocalis
YT: Cam Cocalis