Squeezing the Heartbeat Of Our '69 Camaro Between the Fenders

(Tommy)>> You're watching Powernation!

(Tommy)>> Today we're dropping in the heartbeat of our '69 Sea Foam Camaro. The over 400 horsepower small block is ready for install.

(Marc)>> Plus we add our transmission, fuel, and cooling systems to get our Camaro one mile marker closer to hitting the road. [ MUSIC ] [ engines revving ]

(Tommy)>> Hey y'all we're back on our '69 Camaro that we're giving away with Sea Foam, and this ole thing has came a long way since we picked it up. When we first took this thing for a test drive it had kind of a paw-paw feel to it, which is okay, but this thing's got plenty of attitude now. We took our Camaro out for a shakedown run to see what we had to work with. Then we strapped her onto the dyno to get a baseline. [ engine revving ]

(Tommy)>> After making a few pulls we did okay with making a whopping 231 rear wheel horsepower.

(Marc)>> Our next step was teardown. So we yanked the drivetrain out and sent the engine down to the guys at Engine Power. Then it was time to upgrade the handling. Swapped out the decades old technology with a modern tubular sub-frame, coil overs, rack and pinion steering, four link rear, and Ford nine inch.

(Tommy)>> Then we added big brakes, modern wheels, and high performance tires to bring our '69 Camaro into the modern era of muscle, and when we're done with this resto mod bow tie we're giving it to one of you.

(Marc)>> All you have to do is go to Powernation TV dot com and enter for a chance to win.

(Tommy)>> Well it's basically with what I call the hard work done, the suspension and all those goodies, it's time to make this thing be a fire breathing muscle car. [ Marc making engine noises ]

(Tommy)>> If I had a siren right now. No sir, there ain't no seatbelt and I'd have to ride in the floor.

(Marc)>> Well I figured we had all the stuff here. Why not lay it out the way it's gonna go in the car. It looks pretty cool huh?

(Tommy)>> Yeah just looks like a whole lot of work.

(Marc)>> I mean a little bit. I hid all the nuts and bolts so you didn't have to look at that part.

(Tommy)>> So you kept it organized.

(Marc)>> But in all seriousness all of this stuff is just super easy to put in the car.

(Tommy)>> I know!

(Marc)>> Especially this thing.

(Tommy)>> Dude that's gonna be an honor to put that pretty thing in.

(Marc)>> And this actually is not the engine that we sent down to Engine Power believe it or not. They had, let's just say a couple of issues.

(Tommy)>> After dropping the engine off with Mike and Pat they took our small block 350 and ran it on the engine dyno to see what was left in this old girl. After a few pulls they noticed it had some serious blow by. With that they decided to start from the bottom up.

(Marc)>> Once teardown was complete and before sending it to the machine shop the guys gave it a quick crack test and immediately noticed several cracks.

(Pat)>> Look at this. [ mechanical humming ]

(Marc)>> Thankfully they had another four bolt main block stashed away. They bored it out and then began putting it together with an all-new rotating assembly, which included a stock stroke crank, 60 over forged aluminum pistons, and I-beam rods. They added a hydraulic roller cam shaft, 195cc aluminum Trick Flow heads, and a dual plane intake.

(Tommy)>> They topped it all off with a Holley Sniper Stealth e-f-i system. They put it back on the dyno and after making a few pulls and adding a little bit of timing the small block laid down a healthy 442 pound feet of torque, and a matching 442 in horsepower.

(Marc)>> Now all we've got to do is squeeze it between the fenders.

(Tommy)>> Easy, easy! [ MUSIC ] [ mechanical humming ]

(Marc)>> Alright well here's the headers. They slide right in.

(Tommy)>> Man there looks like there's all kinda room on this side.

(Marc)>> Even more here I bet. [ MUSIC ] Can you hold that up for me? Let me get that front one in. [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Well we're making some pretty good progress and the next thing we're gonna do now is install the business end of our transmission, the flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate, and so on. Now luckily for us our Camaro here was a four speed car. It had that groovy Muncie in it, but the next upgrade we're gonna be doing is gonna bring this thing up into modern times. [ MUSIC ] [ metal clanging ]

(Tommy)>> Just a little bit more. One more time! That should do it. [ MUSIC ] I know this looks a little awkward but it's really a smart thing to do. [ MUSIC ] Come on baby! Got it! Man you'd think they'd make them a little lighter. Whenever putting on a pressure plate I like to work around kinda in a cross pattern if you will. That way you're bringing that pressure plate down nice and tight, kinda evenly. You don't wanna just zip one of the bolts down tight on this side because it can kinda cock this thing off to one side. [ ratchet clicking ]

(Tommy)>> Now it's time to torque it. [ torque wrench clicking ]

(Tommy)>> The transmission that we pulled out of our Camaro is a Muncie four speed, and back in the day if you had a muscle car and it had a GM name plate on it and you didn't have one of these you were envious of the guys who did. Now whenever you go to snatching on the gears, chirping second and third, something's taking that abuse and this is what normally happens. It starts breaking the ear, or the tab, where it attaches to the bell housing, or the bell housing itself starts to crack. Now this one's gonna need some repair, and really and truthfully it's flirting with disaster with the power level that we're making. So we went to American Powertrain and got ourselves a TKO. This one is plenty strong enough and it has the overdrive. So whenever we stretch this thing out on the highway it's gonna be a whole lot happier.

(Marc)>> Engine's in, now we have to feed the beast with a retro-fit e-f-i fuel system.

(Tommy)>> Plus we add a high performance exhaust.

(Tommy)>> Well I have to say this overdrive conversion has to be the easiest one I've ever done. It basically bolted right into the spot. Now I didn't have to modify the floor, and the shifter, it also went right into the factory location. The next thing I've got to do is hook up my factory linkage up here on the front, and then do a small amount of wiring.

(Marc)>> Well I'm gonna start working on the fuel system. What we've got here is an o-e-m style fuel tank and this in-tank e-f-i module. All this stuff came from Holley. What's great about this module is it goes in the factory location and it's got everything built in. 255 liter per hour pump, it's got the regulator, and a fuel level sensor. Best of all it's just one hose that goes to the front to that Stealth e-f-i system that the boys down Engine Power installed for us on our engine. Just need to get this thing assembled, get it in the tank. This thing will be running before you know it. First I need to attach the hydromat to the pump. [ MUSIC ] Then I can fish the assembly into the tank, but only part way for now because I need to take the sending unit off. [ MUSIC ] It needs to get fished in on its own... [ MUSIC ] ...and then reattached to the assembly. [ MUSIC ] Then the unit can go in the rest of the way followed by the locking ring. [ metal banging ] [ MUSIC ]

(Marc)>> We've got some brand new straps, and once those are hung into place we'll slide the tank in and tighten it down. [ drill buzzing ]

(Marc)>> Looks nice! This thing's actually coming along. Now we just need to hook up the four wires, two for the sending unit and two for the fuel pump feed, and then we need to run that one hose to the front of the car, which is what I'm gonna do next. [ MUSIC ] It's always a good idea to put some heat shield over the fuel line where it's gonna run close to the exhaust, like right back through here. Big thing about this is it keeps the fuel from vaporizing inside the line, and then also keeps the fuel hose from melting causing a big fire. [ MUSIC ] With our hose routed into the engine bay we'll pull up the excess... [ MUSIC ] ...get it cut, and fastened to our fuel filter. Then comes the line that goes from the fuel filter to the e-f-i system. [ MUSIC ] We'll cut it to fit, make sure it's routed in a safe location, and tighten it down. Well that pretty much does it for our fuel system except for the wiring, but what's nice about this Sniper e-f-i system is that its wiring harness has a relay and wiring for the fuel pump feed built in. So once we get all that installed we'll just run that power wire to the back.

(Tommy)>> When you have a high performance engine like ours you want your exhaust to match. We're all the time showing you guys the latest and greatest products from Magnaflow but sometimes you need just a simple classic designed kit like this one. This is the Magnaflow Street Series performance exhaust system. It comes with two and a half inch stainless steel mandrel bent tubing and Magnaflow polished straight through mufflers that give you that deep Magnaflow performance tone with a comfortable interior sound. This is a perfect kit if you have a classic car and want that modern performance like we do in our '69 Camaro. [ MUSIC ] [ drill humming ] [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Marc I need a clamp! [ MUSIC ]

(Marc)>> You done yet? I thought you said this was gonna be quick and easy?

(Tommy)>> All I lack is finishing up and I'm doing the best I can with what I've got to work with.

(Marc)>> That's all I do. All we need to do is get this thing down so we can get belt drive, and cooling system, and all that other stuff done. So let me know when you're out of the way and I'll get it down. We add some bling to the engine bay installing a new serpentine drive.

(Tommy)>> Then get our chill on with a frosty cooling system.

(Marc)>> You about done there with what you're working on?

(Tommy)>> Oh yeah man, I was just hooking up the oil system trying to get some of the older stuff hooked back to this pretty new engine.

(Marc)>> Well somebody ordered the shiniest belt drive kit that Summit Racing offers. So I've got to get busy working on this.

(Tommy)>> Let me get out of your way.

(Marc)>> So like I said we got this from Summit Racing. This is our entire belt drive system for our Camaro. This is a Billet Specialties True Track kit. It comes with everything from the a/c compressor, alternator, power steering pump, water pump, and all the brackets, and pulleys, and hardware to get it installed. The first thing that needs to go on though is going to be the crank pulley. [ MUSIC ] [ drill humming ] [ MUSIC ]

(Marc)>> I really like these billet aluminum kits, especially the way they mount to the water pump mounting holes. They're super easy to install and all of the hardware is labeled. So you know which bolts go where. [ MUSIC ] Once the water pump is installed with the spacers and those are tightened then you can install what's called the bridge, and it's this bracket that you start mounting accessories to. It even includes ARP bolts. Tensioner goes on next, followed by the power steering pump, and this thing just bolts on with two bolts. [ MUSIC ] Same goes for the alternator. [ MUSIC ] With our a/c compressor tight we can get the pulley mounted to our water pump. [ MUSIC ] Then we can route the belt, install the tensioner pulley, and tighten it down. Well that does it. I like the way that belt system went on, nice and easy. We still need to plumb up the power steering hoses, and of course we've got this manifold here for the a/c compressor, but because it's open we don't really want to put that on yet, open that compressor up until we get ready to put the hoses on. The other thing we need to do is the cooling system but I'm gonna leave that to Tommy.

(Tommy)>> You know whenever you're talking about high performance normally one thing that isn't really discussed would have to be your cooling system. Now with our Camaro we're making quite a bit more power than what we started with and we want to continue making as much as possible. Now our car from the factory had a mechanical fan that was driven off the accessories off the front of the engine, and that actually cost us a few horses. So what we're gonna do now is convert over to an electric setup. Now all this stuff came from Frostbite and simply bolts in the factory location. It has all the right hose connections and there's really not that much to it. Now it's time to put this piece of jewelry in place. First thing we need to do is snatch off this fan shroud bracket cause we don't need it. [ MUSIC ] [ drill humming ] [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Now it's time to install our fans. Now some people take a regular ole electric fan and basically zip tie it to the radiator. The problem with doing it that way and the only air that really gets pulled through the radiator is whatever diameter the fan is. Doing it this way with a shroud on it, if you notice that this goes all the way around the perimeter of the radiator causing kind of a vacuum effect and pulls all the air through all the radiator. That maximizes your efficiency. I'm gonna run a little self-drilling screw in here. So I'm gonna put a couple of pieces of tape that way my bit doesn't mar up my surface. [ drill buzzing ] [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Whenever it comes to this upgrade it doesn't get much simpler than this. A couple of bolts, couple of screw clamps, and you're just about ready to ride. Now we are gonna have to do a little bit of wiring here on our fans but that's no big deal. Don't be intimidated by it. We've got a relay kit and then we're gonna tie back into our Sniper setup. That way we can select the temperature we want to turn those fans on. And all of this, man look at that. It looks great too!

(Marc)>> We take a break and grab some grub, and learn a little bit about our fans.

(Tommy)>> That looks good! Come on buddy! [ MUSIC ] Oh yeah! [ plastic crackling ]

(Tommy)>> I figured you'd show up about break time.

(Marc)>> You found my hiding spot.

(Tommy)>> Yeah.

(Marc)>> You bring me a honeybun?

(Tommy)>> Yeah, I left it in the machine for you though. You know I hadn't been out here since they put them fans up.

(Marc)>> Yeah it's pretty slick. You can't even hear it running.

(Tommy)>> For sure. You know this is a big warehouse and heck, I can feel a breeze from right here.

(Marc)>> Why do you think I'm here?

(Tommy)>> Found you a cool spot. You know I was here whenever they was putting them things up. It didn't take them guys long at all.

(Marc)>> You may know the name Hunter from fans in your house but they're also involved on the industrial side. This is their new Titan series available in sizes ranging from 14 to 24 feet. It has a direct drive motor that is designed specifically for industrial applications. Installation is made easy with pre-wired down rods and pre-aligned mounting brackets.

(Tommy)>> It has the most efficient technology in the ceiling fan industry allowing wide spread air movement that covers from 7,000 to over 22,000 square feet. The Titan is available with a networkable touch screen controller that can operate up to 30 fans.

(Marc)>> We chose the 20 foot span, which is capable of effecting over 15,000 square feet. It only weighs about 190 pounds and comes standard with a 15 year warranty.

(Tommy)>> You know I guess it's about time for us to get back at it cause that Camaro ain't gonna build itself. This gives you a perfect opportunity to give me some cheesy joke about that thing.

(Marc)>> Glad you got to meet my biggest fan? That was fantastic!

(Tommy)>> Oh you sold it on that one. Well big man what do you want to get started on first?

(Marc)>> Well we've been putting it off long enough and it has to be that electrical system.

(Tommy)>> Yeah you know I don't really mind wiring but sometimes it can be a bit difficult.

(Marc)>> It's not really glorifying is it? But we do have to do the e-f-i system, which is pretty simple. Fuel pump, wiring up the alternator, a couple of factory wires, and then of course the easy part's gonna be the battery. This is the Duralast Pro Power Ultra. This is designed to outperform your o-e battery. In case you need more starting power for a high compression engine like we've got in our Camaro. It comes with a 5 year warranty. 3 years of those are free replacement. All we need to do is get it in the car. [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Hold up before you hook them wires up there hoss. I've got a few I need to connect first.

(Marc)>> I know we've got several wires left and that's not all. We've got a couple of other loose ends that it's gonna keep us from firing this thing up today, and I wish we could but I just don't see it happening.

(Tommy)>> Nah, I've still got to put a driveshaft in it. We've got to hook up the power steering pump over here, and that's just naming a couple.

(Marc)>> Yeah I know but we are getting close. We'll get that done next time and get it running, and then getting the interior fixed up a little bit and a couple of other little things, and this thing will be good to go right?

(Tommy)>> Oh absolutely, and you know when we're done with it Sea Foam and us, well we're giving this thing away to some lucky winner.

(Marc)>> I wish I could win it.

(Tommy)>> You're already a winner, what are you talking about?

(Marc)>> That's what my mom always tells me.