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Thoughts on Pro Touring route

11K views 27 replies 17 participants last post by  Mkelcy 
#1 ·
First let me say what a great forum this looks to be. I wish they had this back when I had my old 67 firebird in the 80's.

I recently purchased a 67 Camaro, originally nothing fancy just plain 67 originally 4 speed car.
Over the years it looks like the car was a drag racer, based on the patched fuel cell filler hole in rear qtr, along with current configurations.

Currently 454, haven't opened up so don't know if internals modified, 3 speed auto, Dana 60 rear end with 335 gears. Disc brakes in front, not Camaro ones though.

I like the idea of restoring the outside and inside, but upgrading the car to modern standards. Since it doesn't have any special cowl tags and all I figure modified is a safe bet and won't really hurt the value any more. I want it to drive myself, but never hurts to think about whenever I do sell it(no matter how many times I say I won't sell cars I usually do).

What are thoughts in the group about if this one sounds like it would make a good pro-touring candidate with the work already done? I would think changing the tranny would be part of the process, as well as suspension mods.

Thanks,
Chris
 
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#2 ·
Absolutely! It's a perfect candidate! No issues with the "purist" crowd, and it sounds like the car is a pretty solid base to start with...

Some questions you will need to answer BEFORE you head down the road of bringing your first gen into the 21st century...

1) LSx power! you will need to find a good source for the engine, ECM and accessories. (ebay search "LS2 engines" and go from there.. you will see links to all sorts of LSx engine combos. from there you can start figuring out which way to go):D:D

2) Suspension upgrades. I suggest going the "kit" route. (Hotchkis, etc). It makes for ease of install and the parts are designed to work together.:beers:

3) four wheel disc BIG brakes. (again, go the kit route. sure beats piece-mealing it together)

4) Big wheels and tires. Kinda like women choosing shoes... the right ones just make the package look good!! :yes:

5) Join/ search other great websites like pro-touring.com and lateral-g.net, as well as ls1tech.com. those guys have "been-there, done-that" and you can gain mucho info! :hurray:

these are just some of the techniques I started out using when embarking on my quest for my dream car! I am sure others will chime in and it will generate more discussion/ suggestion.

Good luck on you quest for the ultimate in coolness... just like the forum thread says, "Todays performance with classic style"...:thumbsup: I still get a kick out of the " OO's and AH's" when I go to the Chevy dealer and they see an LSx under the hood!
 
#3 ·
Build it for YOU what YOU would like to drive. If you sell you will never get all your money back. What will you be doing with the car... How much driving and what style. Cruiser vs quarter miler vs pro touring. You already have the big block and they are much less dollar for dollar to build hp. No converting it is already there. It depends how deep your pockets are too.
 
#4 ·
Thanks. Always good to hear others thoughts on things.

I have been looking at LSX motors. I am also toying with the idea of adding aluminum heads to the BBC, along with modern fuel injection system, to get motor weight down. I figure I have a few extra pounds with the dana out back so wouldn't throw front/rear weight ratio out too bad.

I do like the idea of a kit for suspension and brakes, hothckis is one of the ones I was looking at. thanks.

Definitely have to find the right wheel and tires. Any suggestions on the best made brands?

Will have to check out those other sites you mentioned, sounds like good info.

Thanks,
Chris
 
#5 ·
I like your thinking. Oh I know I would never get all my money out of it with any car, minimizing the losses by not overdoing too far would be good though:)

I would like to be able to drive it quite a bit once done. That was why the pro-touring side interested me. I think cruising, the occasional qtr mile, and good road tripping. I remember the original stock 67 F-Bird I had was not the best handling car. So I would like to make it handle better, just more fun to drive then.

I was kind of thinking down the same line on the BB. Minor mods to get in the 500+ hp range.

Well that is kind of where I'm at looking down the depth of my budget for the project. While I don't want to spend the 100K I see on some of the rides out there I also want to do it right. I do a lot of the work myself , having been a mechanic in my early years, and have somewhat of a tool horde hopefully that will save me some cash on it.


Thanks,
Chris
 
#6 ·
Tons of money will be saved with labor. The only problem with that is you find more material to spend that money of lol. Wish I had the money to go lsx but my car had a big block in it too. I built it up to a 496 with a procharger. It has a 6 speed manual with 3.9 gears. Cruises at 75 at less than 2k rpm. I have the cast heads not a curve hugging car but handles well. With all that torque the car feels light anyway. Besides love that big block sound!
 
#10 ·
It is a zf6 speed out of a corvette, the tunnel had to be modified and it is the black label one, the blue label = less torque. I had the shifter shortened and it sits right where your had rests while you drive, no reaching.It does scream like nothing I have personally driven or been driven in. Smoking the tires 275/60 nitto drag radials at 60 without popping the clutch. The blower is small and the compression is low and the blower fits under the hood(with some cutting of the hood support). It really is a sleeper. A well tuned carb is not as easy as efi but can work almost as well. I am saving for efi though but that is 4k in parts alone, with out gaining any horsepower. I could really use seats I hat the originals so darn uncomfortable.
 
#9 ·
If it were me I'd go LSx/T56 route. Fuel injected means no tinkering with a carb regardless of weather, altitude, etc. This means you can drive it anywhere at any time.

My 67 has a rat motor also, but that's cuz when I bought the car back in 87 it had no drivetrain and I took it 1/4 mile racing.

My 2002 Z28 went 12.5x @ 109 with only bolt ons. I imagine the 67 would handle just as well (with the correct underpinnings) and run just as fast if I swapped out the engine/tranny combo.

OTOH, there's just something about the feel and sound of a rat motor at 3500 rpm in 1st gear that makes me smile every time :D
 
#13 ·
Build what you want but remember...
1. In 10 years pro touring will be as cool as pro street.
2. 90% of the pro touring "must have mods" do nothing for the performance of your car. Tubular a arms, giant vented/ drilled rotors, after market spindles... still won't hold a candle to a well developed stock set up.
 
#14 ·
Build what you want but remember...
1. In 10 years pro touring will be as cool as pro street.
2. 90% of the pro touring "must have mods" do nothing for the performance of your car. Tubular a arms, giant vented/ drilled rotors, after market spindles... still won't hold a candle to a well developed stock set up.
Uh, no.

A well set up pro-touring car will out handle a stock setup. You can use stock control arms and various mods - GMod or taller ball joints, solid bushings, etc. to get a "stock" setup to work very well, but truly stock isn't going to cut it if, for no other reason, the front end camber issue.

The principal benefit of upper tubular arms is that they allow the Gmod without cutting off portions of the upper control arm mounts and have some caster built in. Tubular lower control arms help re-center the front wheel in the wheel well if you're running lots of caster. Tall after market spindles help correct the camber curve, something the Gmod and tall ball joints do as well. Some after market spindles are also designed to accept late model Corvette calipers without adapters. Big brakes are - well - big brakes which provide more and more repeatable stopping power.

Finally, a pro-touring car is just that - a touring car - one intended to handle well, be reliable and provide modern conveniences, comfort and fuel economy, that is, one meant to be driven and enjoyed. Pro-touring cars are nothing like pro-street cars, which are not intended to be practical transportation.

My guess is that any first gen Camaro that you can jump into and drive 1,000 miles in air conditioned comfort, while listening to tunes and getting 20 mpg is going to be pretty "cool" even ten years from now.
 
#17 ·
I would absolutely without a doubt build another pro touring car. I have had a carbed car since I was 16 and I thought I had the best. That was until I got an LS3. The other folks are correct that you can roll the ignition, turn on the AC and drive cross country in comfort. These cars are jsut more reliable and perform better.
Even if they do go "out of style", I will still enjoy the car.
 
#23 ·
I would not spend more money on the big block. As bigblockragtop posted above that he would like to put EFI on his big block in the future but it is 4K to do it. 4K would go a long way toward a LSX engine. I would watch for the right deal on a LS engine trans combo and go from there. I've had pro charged big blocks, aluminum big blocks, iron big blocks etc. They are fun but the LS is just a different and better world. My current Camaro's that I drive are high dollar but make 800+ hp on pump gas and get over 20 mpg with the ac on and never overheat. We drive them on Power Tour every year. The term Pro-touring might go out of style but I don't think their goal of being fast- drivable and fun will ever go out of style. If you just want to cruise to the local car show etc you can do it with almost any setup but if you really want to use it I would go with a LS. I also think in the future when it is time to sell you will do much better with the LS under the hood than a carbed anything or a big block anything. As I get older I really appreciate the lack of stress you have when driving the LS. My last two Camaro's I notice when on Power Tour I don't even look at the gauges except for entertainment. In the old days you were always checking temps etc. And before anyone calls me a big block hater I've got 4 big block cars out in the barn.
Register on the forums at Lateral-g.net if you want help building a car you can get the most out of.
 
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