[chrisnrod]

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

[Tango68SS]

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)

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.

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!!

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!

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"... 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!

[bigblockragtop]

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.

[chrisnrod]

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

[chrisnrod]

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

[bigblockragtop]

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!

[chrisnrod]

Sounds like you were in similar boat to me. Wow 496 with supercharger I bet that one screams!
What kind of 6 speed did you go with?

I would agree I do like the big block sound too.

[BPOS]

My advice - have fun!

[PowerWindows]

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

[bigblockragtop]

Originally Posted by chrisnrod

Sounds like you were in similar boat to me. Wow 496 with supercharger I bet that one screams!
What kind of 6 speed did you go with?

I would agree I do like the big block sound too.

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.