A visit to Special Vehicle Concepts
If we were to play a word association game with names like Jaguar, Suburban, Hummer, Land Rover and Cadillac, terms like “speedy” or “dynamic” probably wouldn’t be the first terms that sprang to your mind. Indeed, most of these names are associated with “heavy”, “big”, “slow” or “utilitarian”. So, you might ask, why would Oli and Jeremy head down to Costa Mesa to visit a company who works with these cars (and several others) on a daily basis?
 Well, it so happens the people at SVC believe that a lot of untapped potential lurks within these vehicles’ platforms, just waiting to be exploited. Many years of research and development, coupled with an in-house design, fabrication and build staff, have produced results with these platforms that are, to say the least, awe-inspiring.
Fancy an Escalade that will hang with most modern sports cars at the “traffic light grand prix”? SVC has been there, done that. Does your big, heavy Hummer just not have enough “get up and go” or does it just look too dreary? Well, SVC can help with that too – they have performance packages as well as internal and external accoutrements to realize any dream you could imagine for your 20 th century urban behemoth. How about your Jaguar S-Type? Not exactly the quickest car off of the mark, right? Well, after SVC gets done with it, just about everything (Ferraris, Porsches and Lamborghinis included) will be eating your dust as you rocket to 60mph in 3.9 seconds.
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From Escalades to Jaguars and Audis – if you can dream it, they can build it |
Modifications to appearance are only the beginning. Let your imagination run wild |
You see, the fine folks at SVC are enthusiasts (like the people who read this website). Their belief in making customer dreams a reality is evidenced in all the products they’ve produced. Peter Cameron, their president, has an extensive background in the customization industry, beginning in 1993 with Canepa Designs in Santa Cruz, California. From there, he went to Stillen, in Costa Mesa, California before beginning his own company, Cameron Concepts with a partner in 1996. Shortly after that, Peter decided to make his own way, starting SVC in 1997.
SVC got their start by specializing in supercharger kits for 1995 through 2002 Range Rovers, shortly thereafter developing a supercharger for Toyota Racing Development. The supercharger packages continued to be a specialty for SVC as they moved forward, developing kits for the Ford Thunderbird as well. Sensing that the market for vehicle upgrades extended well beyond performance modifications, SVC enlisted some design help and began producing bodykits for Range Rovers, Hummers and Jaguars.
 Fancy an Escalade that will hang with most modern sports cars at the “traffic light grand prix”?  |
Perhaps the most noteworthy fact about SVC is that they pride themselves on making customers’ dreams into reality. SVC will tackle any project (short of spinning rims or leopard print seats) and return results that far exceed customer expectations. Take, for instance, one of their most recent projects: For the average person, 480 horsepower from an Audi RS6 would be more than enough to put a grin on your face. However, for one owner, it wasn’t even close, so SVC was put on the case. Their result (pictured in this review) is nothing short of impressive. The look of the car has changed through substantial bodywork, but perhaps the best part about the car is that the performance now matches the looks, as the car has an output of 550bhp.
The design philosophy involves the customer from the very beginning. At the outset of the project, the customer defines his goals for the looks, performance and amenities of the vehicle. After that, SVC’s in house design team go to work on the drawings for the project. These drawings go through several revision stages as the customer makes changes or additions before given the “go-ahead” for production. Once production begins, SVC takes a surprisingly short time to turn these cars into reality. In fact, they can work on half a dozen projects at a time, turning them out as per customer schedule.
Fear not, if you’re not quite sure what you’re looking for, SVC builds cars “on spec” from time to time as examples of their craft. These automobiles often come up for sale and can be found on their website at www.specialvehicles.com or often viewed on Saturday morning at the Crystal Cove Car Show.
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Think the XJR looks to feminine? Not when SVC gets done with it! |
This car sports SVC wheels and bodykit. |
While the photos speak for themselves, and the text explains the company philosophy, what can’t be easily expressed is how incredibly personable everyone at SVC is to speak with. Oli and I spoke with everyone – from the president to the production staff. Everyone has a genuine love for cars and a “can do” attitude. If you were looking for a really unique looking ride, with performance to match, get yourselves over to SVC and speak to the experts.
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