[Modges'66]

Flip, in my opinion, you should build the 1st gen Camaro for your wife first, if you want to go fast for cheap anyway!
On a side note, about a month or so ago, I rode in a friends '68 Camaro for the first time...A full tube frame, aluminum interior, Willwood brakes, four-link 9 inch, top notch, all-steel car...with a ZZ502 crate-motor that is basically stock except for cam, intake & dominator carb.
the motor dyno'd at 576 h.p. and runs low 10's in the quarter...I know, hard to believe.
Now I am not a drag racer, Have done it in a few cars that I have owned (LS-6 Chevelle, Buick Grand National and assorted Corvettes) But they were childs-play compared to this.... Nor am I up to speed with all of the electronic gadgetry, i.e trans-brake, rev-limiter b.s, electronic nitrous controls, etc, but I can truly tell you that ...Never, NEVER, have I experienced something so brutal as a launch in that car!
HOLY-F! we did it several times on a country road, and I could sense the tire spin and smell the rubber from the 19.50 x 32 M&H Racemasters way past 100 m.p.h.
Now I am not sayin that you need to make your wife's camaro that fast, but with some of your go-fast parts, it could be real healthy, and you could go LS with the new racer truck!
What are you thinkin about now? LOL!