Rusty Feathers (1967 Firebird)

[Jeff_R]

As I mentioned earlier, in 2010 I wanted a Pro-Touring or Resto-Mod type car. Something comfortable that I could drive everyday, have fun with on the weekends, and wouldn't break the bank (HA!).

So I started planning... before that, I had built the car into a one of none car (OHC-6 Sprints could not be ordered with a 4-speed and Air Conditioning); but it wasn't that exciting to drive. I had always been a fan of handling over speed, so that helped in what direction I wanted to go, and as is my habit of over-thinking everything, I spent a lot of time researching (all while saving money).



So the plan was the following:

- ridetech Coilovers, front and rear
- C6 Front Brakes - using Kore3 hubs (those things are a work of art!!!)
- 4th Gen Rear Brakes - which, don't work real well with a Pontiac rear axle... so that required a swap to a Chevy version... not all bad, as that also gives me the chance to upgrade the ratio (3.73:1).
- Vintage Air
- T-56 - I had read and re-read Socrates awesome thread on his T-56 in his GTO. It was a great inspiration for me and I was able to locate a Viper T-56 nearby at a decent price... but... when they say your mileage may vary, in my case it did. I would have to cut a very large hole in the floor to make it work. In hindsight, I suppose the LS folks actually mount the engine lower than the Pontiac, so there was no way that was going to work. Plan B, a TKO-600 from Silver Sport Transmissions.
- Pontiac 400 - I LOVE the sound of a tuned Pontiac at idle, it just sounds so mean! I have 7K3 heads, an old Edelbrock intake with a 1406 carb, and a RA III cam. Stock exhaust manifolds (7K3 only has 4 exhaust bolts, instead of the standard 6). It was freshly re-gasketed and ran pretty decent (granted, that was 6 years ago when I last ran it).

So while all this planning was taking place, in 2015 a buddy got me hooked on an addictive hobby (more than working on the car). Cross-country scavenger hunts with Rally North America (www.rallynorthamerica.com). The idea is that at the starting line, you get a clue card with 6-10 things you need to take a selfie at... these aren't the normal tourist trap things, but neat stuff nonetheless. We cover about 300-400 miles a day. We do have some track events, high-speed parade laps at race tracks (Watkins Glen, Summit Motorsports, VIR, Pueblo, Portland to name some of the ones I have been on) and drag racing. All of this is to raise money for charity... so it has a good cause, great friends, awesome roads/cars... what more could you ask for?

So, this changed the plan a little bit... as I now want to use the Firebird for a rally. And to add to the plans, this summer is around the Great Lakes (a bucket list item for me). And we are taking the kids (all three of them, in two cars). So I need to get busy!!!