How Designing And Building This 1,000-Plus-Horsepower Twin-Turbo Pro-Touring '67 GTO Can Help You With Your Project By Christopher R. Phillip
Photography by Mark Ehlen
http://www.highperformancepontiac.com So you've been thinking about restarting your long dormant Pontiac project. Maybe your mind is set on the biggest engine you can build, electronic fuel injection, multi-piston caliper brakes with pizza-pie-sized rotors, wide and meaty low-profile tires, a leather-laden interior, and a wish list of modern electronics to make even Santa Claus jealous.
On the other hand, classic or concours may be what you're looking for, with your goal to bring your Pontiac back to showroom new-duplicating the factory look down to its minutae, including assembly-line paint overspray, date-coded belts and hoses, accurately-recreated factory assembly markings, and bias-ply tires.
Or you may desire something between the two extremes. Perhaps you're loyal to the GTO's classic look, but want it to accelerate and handle better, and are considering some tasteful engine mods, aftermarket suspension bolt-ons, and bigger and wider wheels and tires. Regardless of which route you take for your Pontiac's buildup, it's easier if you can pick up some tips from seasoned professionals. Over the past months, HPP has shown you how Jeff Hutchens of Springfield, Missouri, had Muscle Car Restorations (MCR) in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, and Wheeler Dyno Service in Blaine, Minnesota, transform his '67 GTO into a 1,073hp twin-turbo Pro-Touring road rocket, capable of taking on some European exotics. Though the build of this GTO is extreme, the challenges faced and their solutions can help you avoid obstacles, or easily overcome them, when you build your Pontiac, regardless of the style, budget, and goals of the project.
From The Frame Up Once a plan was in place, MCR's next step was to determine whether Hutchens' stock frame could handle the rigors of the radical project. "We had to pack so much stuff under the hood and into the chassis that there was no way the factory frame could accommodate our plans," Jim Hudson, MCR's Assembly Shop Supervisor, told HPP. "For the average person, an aftermarket frame is really unnecessary. For 80-90 percent of all projects, a stock frame with aftermarket bolt-ons will provide exactly what you're looking for."
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With the hood off, it's easy to see the IA II 505ci powerplant equipped with twin Turbonetics 72mm turbos. This monster puts out more than 1,000 hp, and the engine is pure Pontiac. A custom-built Bell Intercooler cools the incoming charge and a Be Cool crossflow radiator cools the block and heads.
Looking underneath, it's easy to see the attention to quality that MCR put into this buildup. A custom 3-inch exhaust system features modified Hooker Super Comp headers, and Summit smooth-tube stainless-steel mufflers. Notice the QA1 coilovers, which are used front and rear. [/align]
Project Tip: So what is the primary criterion for determining if your project can use the factory frame or it needs an aftermarket unit? "High-speed handling" is the answer, according to Hudson. "You can get great steering, braking, ride, handling, and launching from bolt-on components on your stock frame at a much lower buy-in price, but if you are determined to get the absolute finest in all areas of performance, there's no comparison between the rigidity of an aftermarket chassis versus a factory frame."
The nice part of the Schwartz aftermarket frame is that it came pre-assembled with tubular upper and lower front control arms, Mustang II rack-and-pinion steering, QA1 coilover shocks, Wilwood 14-inch-diameter rotors with six-piston caliper brakes, and a 11/16-inch solid sway bar in the front. Out back is a four-link setup with tubular control arms, QA1 coilovers, a Moser 9-inch rearend with an aluminum center section, a Detroit Locker True-Trac, 3.73 gears, and 31-spine axles.
Project Tip: If you use a stock frame, however, as most HPP readers will, many aftermarket components will bolt-up without any welding or modification, allowing you to improve in all areas of your car's steering, ride, handling, and response. "The great thing about using a factory frame is that you don't have to upgrade all of your suspension at once," Hudson advised. "You can do your brakes one season, the front suspension the next, and the rear suspension after that, until you are happy with the final results. This way, you can save money, as you're improving the quality of your ride."
Project Tip: What's the biggest challenge to a frame and suspension build-up? "Compatibility," Hudson said. "We were fortunate in our project that the suspension was already engineered to work correctly with the aftermarket frame. When you're buying bolt-on items, you have to be careful that one manufacturer's items will work with another's. Try to get complete kits from one manufacturer whenever possible, and that will minimize the risk of mismatching parts during your build-up."
Set Your Horsepower Goals
Then Build Your Engine The details of the engine build have been already been presented to readers (HPP Oct. '09, Nov. '09, and Jan. '10) and are summarized here: Wheeler Dyno Service began with a 505ci IA II block and stuffed it with a Butler Performance 4.250-inch stroke, a forged-steel crank with 4340 6.700-in length, forged-steel rods, and Ross forged, 49cc dished pistons. Then, Butler bolted on Edelbrock heads with 90cc combustion chambers, custom porting, SS 2.11/1.66-inch valves, and Comp Cams 1.5:1 aluminum roller rockers. A custom Comp Cams hydraulic roller with 258/248 duration, 0.541/0.541-inch lift, and a 115-degree lobe separation angle was chosen to direct the valvetrain action. Compression ratio is a boost- and pump-gas-friendly 7.96:1.
According to Wheeler Dyno Service owner Jeff Fiala, "John Balow of MCR came to me and asked me to build the most radical Pure Pontiac engine that still retains its street manners. In discussions between our two companies, we decided upon the IA II aluminum block, but it was not available at the time, so we settled for the iron-block."
The two companies decided upon a goal of more than 1,000 hp for the engine, and that goal determined how Fiala chose the specific components.
Project Tip: Jeff explained, "You have to do enough research to make sure you have the right parts selected to achieve your horsepower goal. You can't just say, 'I want 700 horsepower' and hope that's what you'll get on the dyno. The first selection is the cylinder heads because their flow will dictate how much horsepower an engine can produce. After that, you want to choose a good, solid bottom end, so it is reliable and will last."
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The Schwartz GTO frame came pre-assembled with this Ford 9-inch rear featuring a Detroit Locker limited-slip differential and 3.73 gears. Also shown are a Rock Valley custom stainless steel fuel tank and the four-link rear suspension with QA1 coilovers.
Wilwood 14-inch drilled rotors and six-piston calipers at all four corners take direction from a Wilwood aluminum master cylinder via Fine Lines stainless brake lines.
Owner Jeff Hutchens says he loves the look of the '67 GTO, but what we really wanted was a car that drove like a 2009 Luckily for him, Muscle CarRestortions in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, gave him the best of Both worlds. [/align]
For Hutchens' GTO, a stock-iron Pontiac block could not withstand a 1000-plus horsepower application. "We don't like to put more than 575-600 horsepower through a factory block," Fiala said. "That's why we went with the aftermarket IA II block, which is advertised to handle up to 2,500 horsepower."
Fiala had many head choices available for this build including excellent offerings from KRE, and the DCI Motorsports Tiger head available from Allpontiac.com. "Though there are more exotic heads out there, we went with the Edelbrocks because they were good enough to produce the power and torque required for this build-up. Considering that the head gaskets and head bolts are the weak points in the equation, the E-heads have a thicker-cast deck over stock, allowing us to add up to 25 pounds of boost."
"MCR told me the owner really wanted modern power with this block and that led me to a pair of Turbonetics 72mm GT turbos augmented with a Bell air-to-air intercooler," Jeff related.
Fuel and air are managed by a FAST XFI (with an Intelligent Traction Control System) featuring a sequential three-bar MAP, a 70mm Accufab throttle body, FAST 83-lb/hr injectors, a FAST electric fuel pump, a port-matched Edelbrock Victor intake, and a FAST ECM.
Ignition duties fall upon an MSD crank trigger distributor modified for cam sync, an MSD amplifier, an MSD Pro Power coil, Moroso 8mm suppression wires, and NGK BKR60 plugs.
Though installing the EFI onto the traditional Pontiac block was straightforward, tuning the EFI to properly feed the turbos was left to a pro. "Tuning had some challenges and that's one area not to be experimented with by amateurs," Fiala said. "I've been in the engine-building business 22 years, and even I brought in a tuning professional to make sure the complexity of the twin-turbo setup was dialed-in perfectly. For the task, Fiala used Travis Quillen of Quillen Motorsports Engineering. Additional tuning on the chassis-dyno was performed by Brian Ebert of HiTech Motorsport.
Transmission Accomplished This GTO is equipped with a heavily-modified Bowler 4L85-E four-speed automatic transmission. "We chose this specific GM transmission because it will handle over 1,000 horsepower," Hudson said. "We also chose a Bowler billet 2,500-stall, 10-inch lock-up torque converter, which the company recommended to us."
Bolting the modern GM automatic transmission to the IA II block was made easier by the fact that the block "has Pontiac and Chevy bolt patterns, which allowed the Chevy bellhousing on the transmission to bolt right up," Hudson said.
But what if you have a factory Pontiac block? What will you need for your block to mate to a 4L85-E? See how to do it in our 4L85-E SuperMatic install in this issue.
With a non-stock drivetrain, a custom driveshaft had to be fabricated. "After measuring the length from the output shaft of the transmission to the yoke of the differential, we had a local shop build us a 5-inch-diameter aluminum driveshaft, which came balanced.
Project Tip: It's always important to have even your stock driveshaft properly balanced," Hudson stressed. "It's cheap insurance against tearing out a pinion bearing, and it will prevent vibrations at high-speeds."
How did MCR get the 4L85-E to communicate with the vehicle? "FAST makes a transmission controller which is GM compatible, and interfaces with the FAST EFI computer," Hudson said.
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The entertainment system consists of an Alpine IVA-W205 DVD receiver, an Alpine PDX2150 amp, two Alpine PDX1000 amps, and matching speakers. Lizard Skin Ceramic Sound Deadener and Dynamat Sound Deadening keep the interior church-quiet and Dynoliner heat deadener and a Vintage Air Super Gen II system keep it cool. Clayton Machine Works door handles with '81 Firebird armrests adorn the custom door panels. Painless Performance Products 18-circuit universal wiring aided in installing the electronics.
Tuner Brian Ebert dialed-in the traction control. Notice the hood is off, leaving the Ringbrothers hood hinges prominently on display.
The dash and dash pad shapes were retained to give the GTO's cabin a link to its past, but the pad is now covered in leather and everything else is new, including the carbon-fiber dash inlay, Auto Meter Cobalt Gauge Series gauges, Ididit steering column, Momo Jet steering wheel with custom MCR insert, custom full-length console, a late-model Cadillac shifter, Electric Life Power windows, and Wilwood brake pedals. [/align]
Project Tip: "There's a lesson for HPP readers when they're buying transmissions that come with controllers. When we bought the 4L85-E, it came with its own controller, and it was incompatible with our engine's ECU, which prevented our speedometer and traction control from operating. We then had to buy a FAST transmission controller, to ensure seamless compatibility. The best bet is to buy one made from the same manufacturer who makes your engine controller."
Body And Paint Hutchen's GTO required sheetmetal replacement, which is common to '60s-era GTOs. "The rear quarters had been replaced once before and done poorly, so we cut them out and welded in reproduction ones sourced from Ames, and installed new front fenders. Details of the sheetmetal firewall, floor, inner wheelwells, and trunk can be found in the Feb. '10 issue of HPP.
Project Tip: According to Hudson, the metalwork encompassed more than 1,300 hours of labor. Though it is unlikely your project will need anywhere near this much metal fabrication, there is a rule of thumb to be learned. "Unless your car is extremely rare or very special to you, or you have unlimited funds, use the 75 percent rule," Hudson advises. "If you have to replace more than 75 percent of the metal on your car, it's probably not worth building it in the long run. You may be better off finding a different project, or a rust-free body to start with."
After the GTO was e-coated, a process in which the vehicle body was dipped into an electrically-charged tank to adhere the primer to the metal, MCR's body and paint department put the shell on a rotisserie and the e-coat was scuffed," Chris Arendt, MCR's body shop manager, explained. "Our men applied Duraglass to rough out the welded seams to prevent moisture from accumulating, followed by PPG DP epoxy primers, then Marson Platinum Plus lightweight filler to finish the weld seams and correct the sheetmetal imperfections.
Next, MCR's body shop and paint department applied PPG Omni 243 spray poly and followed with block sanding with 120-240 grit, PPG NCP Corrosion Resistant Primer Surfacer, and more block-sanding from 240-400 grit. The final steps in paint preparation were sealing all of the body seams and bolt-on panels with 3M 08300 Tan Seam Sealer, masking the vehicle, applying a single-stage PPG DCC Gray as a paint sealer, wet-sanding with 800-grit, then power washing and drying.
After a fresh remasking, MCR applied four coats of PPG DBC 9300 Black basecoat, followed by four coats of PPG DCU 2002 clear. Additional wetsanding involved 1,200-3,000 grit, followed by 3M Perfect-It final polishing.
Project Tip: How can you get professional results for your project, even if you have a much tighter budget? "Cleanliness and high-quality products are the answers, even if you're doing the paint yourself," Arendt said. "You don't want to be putting product on top of contaminants or you will ruin the finish. In addition, I can't say enough about using the best-quality primers, fillers, and paints that you can buy. Saving a couple of dollars on the materials will show in the results.
Interior MCR took a team approach to the interior, and allowed six or seven project members to offer suggestions on how the cabin should be designed. "We wanted a beautiful, yet classic-looking interior, with modern leather, and with a strong Pontiac personality," Hudson said. For instance, "We kept the shape of the dash and dash pad, but the gauge panel and gauges are completely different." The remainder of the cabin accoutrements are best seen and described in the captions.
Project Tip: "Make sure the gauge collection you choose has all the instruments that you're looking for, before you buy any of them," Hudson said. "We had chosen a set of gauges we really liked, until we learned the manufacturer didn't make a tachometer in the same style. We had to start over."
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The custom work even extends to the taillights, where MCR swapped the factory bulbs for a Lambert Enterprises flush-mount lighting system, consisting of eight rectangular panels, each housing 96 LEDs, hidden underneath the clearcoat of the rear tail panel, and incorporating a plastic diffuser panel. All eight panels light up for the taillights, the four outside panels light up for the brakes, and the four inside panels are utilized for the turn signal indicators.
One look inside the trunk, and it's easy to see the custom wheel tubs that allow this GTO to run 18x9.5 billet Rally IIs. Note the two batteries in the Schwartz Performance Optima trays and the trunk-mounted amp and speaker systems. This GTO has so much electronic equipment that one battery just wasn't enough.
From the exterior, this GTO still resembles its factory siblings in many ways. MCR went to great lengths to preserve the beautiful bodylines and augmented them with 33 percent tinted glass, restored brightwork by Paul's Chrome Plating, and rechromed front and rear bumpers from Keystone. As a class project, students at the Chippewa Valley Technical College came up with their own twists on the classic GTO emblem design and presented MCR with a selection of the best. (See the chosen one on page 46.) "Presenting a real world challenge with the possibility of the finished product appearing in a magazine turned out be an engaging curriculum for these future machinists," MCR's Jermy Cortner said. [/align]
Make A "Wheel Good" Choice For this project, the owner wanted a Pontiac-looking wheel, which prompted MCR to go with the Wheel Vintiques Billet Rallye II in 18x9.5 front and rear, with a 5-inch offset (front) and a 4-inch offset (rear). They're wrapped in Goodyear Eagle F1 245/45R18 (front) and 295/40R18 (rear) rubber.
Project Tip: MCR suggests you measure for your needed offset correctly before you order custom-sized wheels because they may not be returnable. "There are some inexpensive tools for checking wheel offsets, so don't guess, or if you're uncomfortable with the procedure, ask a local tire shop to determine the correct measurements for you," Hudson said.
Owner's Comments We've heard from the builders of this '67 GTO, now we'll hear from its owner. "Before I started the project, it struck me that I owned a '67 GTO but that wasn't what I wanted," Hutchens recalled. "I wanted an '09 automobile that looked like a '67 GTO. With that said, you can understand why I went to such great lengths to build my GTO. I wanted to build a new car with all the new technologies that are available today, but retain the classic '67 body style and look.
"I am totally satisfied with the construction portion of this restoration, but what I'm really pleased with is MCR's ability to take my idea and turn it into the automobile that we see here. For someone who's not a gearhead like me, my best suggestion is to contact a company you can trust, like I did with MCR, who can take your vague concept of what you want and turn it into an actual automobile."
Conclusion Starting back up on your project is a whole lot simpler when you take some solid advice from the pros. You may not ever go to the extremes of the GTO buildup featured in this story, but we're certain the challenges faced by its builders and the solutions they developed and implemented will help you succeed in your next project.
Oh be still my beating heart
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