Millions of cars have changed hands on eBay Motors, but few were destined for the fate that awaited Kiet Pham's 1972 Chevy Chevelle. Kiet's Chevelle went from an oversold eBay monstrosity, to a SEMA showstopper in less than a year, but the journey began at a nail salon of all places.
The Chevelle underwent major...
The Chevelle underwent major surgery, with most of the skin being replaced. The front fenders were opened 1.5 inches and the rear quarters by 2.5 inches. Redstone Restorations then laid down a finish of BASF's Candy Black Cherry over Indigo Blue.
Anna Aram is a customer at Kiet's Elegant Nail Salon in Bend, Oregon, and a chance conversation during a visit revealed a common bond between Kiet, and Anna's husband, Gordon. Kiet told Anna he had just purchased the Chevelle and Anna mentioned that her husband built and restored cars for a living. Kiet was interested in Gordon's take on his purchase, and the two soon met. Although the Chevelle was listed as a "show winner," it had a myriad of issues and Gordon was less than impressed with the quality of the Chevelle. "It had more waves in it than Lake Erie," Gordon says. "The only original things left on the car today are the roof and the floor. That's how bad it was."
Kiet didn't have big aspirations for the Chevelle, but hired Gordon to do some basic restoration work. About that time, Gordon received a call from an old friend, Roger Rosebush of Be Cool, asking if there were any projects in his shop they could use for SEMA. Initially, Gordon said he didn't have anything of SEMA caliber, but then a light went on in his head and he asked Rosebush if he had any interest in Kiet's Chevelle. Be Cool had a history of building Camaros, so a slight departure within the GM family was intriguing to Rosebush.
Gordon approached Kiet and simply asked, "Do you want to build a SEMA show car?" Kiet responded by asking, "What is SEMA?" After an Internet-assisted explanation was given and Gordon explained how manufacturers like to build special projects that showcase new products, Kiet was sold on the idea and the Be Cool Bomber was born. Even though SEMA was still the better part of a year away, Gordon knew time was of the essence, and any good build starts with a good rendering.
ProCharger wanted to go big...
ProCharger wanted to go big on the Chevelle, so they sent one of their intercooled F-1R units, capable of pushing the LS1 well north of 1,000 hp on 18 pounds of boost. Of course, a Be Cool radiator keeps the temperatures in check.
Be Cool then called upon artist Jason Hulst for a rendering. With Be Cool's blessing, Gordon described his vision of creating a SEMA-worthy Chevelle, capable of competing in the Motor Trend One Lap of America and OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational, but he didn't want something that looked like a widebody kit had been bolted on. Two days later, Hulst had a concept drawn that with a few minor changes, hit the nail on the head.
Kiet saw the concept, and although he thought Gordon had lost his mind, he was still on board. The rendering was then forwarded to Don Johnson (the PR agent for Be Cool), so he could show Rosebush. All were impressed with the design, but there was some doubt as to whether it could be completed in time for SEMA. Gordon knew this was his shot at the big time, and he promised the car would make it to Vegas in time.
As Gordon dismantled the car, he could've blasted the stock frame, found and fixed any soft spots, and upgraded a few components, but he'd still be working with technology based in the 1970s. That was a compromise that would've cost him a lot of time and Kiet a lot of money, so he decided they'd both be better off with a new chassis. "I wanted a chassis that was proven, and when I mean proven, I mean something that has wins attached to it," Gordon says. "I didn't want a Camaro chassis that was adapted for a Chevelle, because these are very big, heavy cars." Gordon turned to Schwartz Performance and their A-body chassis, which Jeff Schwartz developed under his own '65 Pontiac "Temptress," which had picked up autocross wins and threw down blistering lap times at tracks all around the country.
The dashboard is all business,...
The dashboard is all business, with the most notable upgrades being the Auto Meter gauges resting in the Covans carbon-fiber gauge package. A Painless Convenience Module is also installed, which includes a sensor for automatic headlights and headlight delay, and leaves the radio on until the door is opened, just like a new car.
"Our chassis is 200 percent stronger than the factory chassis, so right out of the box you're putting a stouter frame underneath a vehicle and reducing the flex significantly," says Mike Hawley, sales and marketing manager at Schwartz Performance. The Schwartz chassis also allows the user to make adjustments at the track with just a few simple handtools. The added adjustability of RideTech coilover suspension components makes for a combination Schwartz claims can outhandle an '00 Corvette.
Schwartz also recommends using a NASCAR full floater rear end rather than a live axle, which can cause the inside pad of the rear disc brakes to wear faster than the outside, because the axle is moving around and sliding in and out. In a full floater, everything is running on bearings and the axle can't move around, allowing the pads to wear evenly. Since Schwartz is a regular customer of Baer Brakes, they are very familiar with his chassis and were able to supply Gordon with six-piston calipers on all four corners.
When it came time to select a powerplant for the Chevelle, crate motors made a lot of sense for Gordon. "I can't justify telling a client to spend $14,000 on a small-block to get the kind of horsepower that GM can put into a crate motor for a fraction of the price," Gordon says. "An LS motor is just the way to go-it's simple, it works, it's high-revving, and it'll last forever."
The Chevelle's 388ci LS1 was built by Rosebush's brother, Terry, for a client of Rosebush Motorsports. The original owner ran it briefly in a Corvette before deciding he needed something even faster, and returned it to Terry. Rosebush went through the motor again, making sure the engine was still pristine and spending plenty of time on the dyno in search of the best camshaft. Using a carburetor, Terry was able to squeeze out 720 hp at 5,500 rpm and 611 lb-ft of torque at 6,300 rpm. Those were certainly impressive numbers, but this was Gordon's first SEMA build, and he really wanted it to stand out. "I knew I needed something that was just completely nuts," Gordon says.
Forgeline SP3P wheels barely...
Forgeline SP3P wheels barely conceal 14-inch rotors, squeezed by Baer six-piston calipers.
As he scoured magazines for inspiration that would take him off the well-beaten EFI path, Gordon stumbled across an article on Hilborn's new eight-stack injectors for LS motors. A call was placed to Hilborn, but Gordon was told the product was still in development and Hilborn didn't seem too interested in shipping off a prototype to an unknown builder from Oregon. The next morning Gordon received a call from Johnson, who asked if he had planned on supercharging the engine. Gordon had considered the idea briefly, but budgetary limitations had quelled those thoughts. When Johnson mentioned he had a friend at ProCharger, it was game on.
Gordon wanted to avoid a serpentine-based system for better versatility during One Lap competition and when an intercooled F-1R popped onto the radar, Gordon brought up his Hilborn idea to the ProCharger guys. They told him it was possible to run the Hilborn and the blower together, but it had never been done before. To Gordon, that was the same as daring him to be the first to do it. Gordon called Hilborn back and said he had ProCharger on board and they shipped him their only prototype, which he kept for several months during the build.
Gordon now had the ProCharger and the eight-stack injectors, but he still had to come up with an intake system. An Internet search yielded images of box designs, but Gordon couldn't see himself settling for someone else's solution. The answer to his dilemma ended up being right next door at Custom Exhaust Specialties. Shayne Burton of CES was able to help fabricate the intake plumbing that looks so perfect now, but took quite a bit of effort and ingenuity to construct. "We had to cut each of the U-bends in half to get the 7.5-inch centerline," Gordon says. "Then, we had to stagger and offset them and ramp them down on an angle. In the middle, we had to cut straight pieces to join them all together. It took literally hundreds of pieces to make that intake."
Harwood provided the front...
Harwood provided the front bumper and hood, which Gordon massaged to accommodate the eight-stack intake.
All of Gordon's builds feature Painless Performance Products and as he talked to the crew at Painless, they offered one of their new ECMs to handle engine management duties. The system came with a baseline program, but the Hilborn stacks and ProCharger required plenty of tuning and 72-pound MSD injectors to handle the fuel demands. "Even without the supercharger, this Hilborn system pushes a lot of air," Gordon says. "We went with the 72-pound injectors because when it gets to the top end, it's going to want all the fuel it can get, and it's better to go big than small with injectors."
The interior of the Chevelle is not Spartan, but it was designed for functionality over appearance and ostentatious gadgetry. A Vintage Air system moderates cabin temperature and a pair of Yonaka Ronin seats offers a solid balance of comfort and support. Aftermarket door panels necessitated power windows, and power door locks were added to eliminate the OEM push buttons. An ididit steering column with an antitheft key fob ID system allows the Chevelle to fire up without an ignition key.
The battery was relocated to the right rear corner of the trunk, offsetting weight and leaving the trunk wide open for One Lap supplies. The factory fuel tank was narrowed 2 inches, with flat sides added and two -10AN bungs installed on the bottom for the Weldon fuel pumps.
It was nonstop work, but Gordon finished the car in time for SEMA. Nevertheless, delays from some suppliers prevented him from accepting an invitation to the 2010 OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational. The plan of running the One Lap and OPTIMA event in 2011 is still in place, and we look forward to seeing the outcome!
By The Numbers
1972 Chevy Chevelle
Owner: Kiet Pham; Bend, Oregon
Builder: Gordon Aram of A-Team Racing
Total cost to build: $150,000
| ENGINE |
| Type: |
'04 LS1, 388 ci |
| Block: |
aluminum |
| Oiling: |
blueprinted Melling pump, Canton road race pan |
| Rotating assembly: |
Eagle steel crankshaft, Eagle ESP connecting rods, |
|
Smith Brothers pushrods, JE forged pistons |
| Cylinder heads: |
Diamond Racing 64cc chambers, ported, polished, and flowed |
| Camshaft: |
custom grind, 244 degrees at .050 inch, .568/.601-inch |
|
lift with 1.8:1 ratio Jessel shaft roller rockers |
| Valvetrain: |
Ferrea 2.02-/1.60-inch stainless valves, COMP Cams springs |
| Forced induction: |
Intercooled ProCharger F-1R, K&N filter, |
|
custom-fabricated Hilborn manifold |
| Ignition: |
MSD coils, Taylor 10.5mm wires, NGK plugs |
| Fuel system: |
Hilborn eight-stack fuel injection, controlled by 72-lb/hr |
|
MSD injectors, Weldon fuel pump |
| Exhaust: |
American Racing stainless steel headers with oxygen bungs and 3-inch |
|
collectors, Custom Exhaust Specialties 3-inch exhaust, |
|
Flowmaster mufflers |
| Cooling: |
VSS-activated Be Cool Direct-Fit 1000hp polished radiator, |
|
chrome fans, Be Cool antifreeze |
| Output: |
estimated 1,050 hp, 833 lb-ft of torque at 18 pounds boost |
| DRIVETRAIN |
| Transmission: |
Tremec T56 Magnum six-speed, Hurst shifter |
| Clutch: |
McLeod Twin Disc |
| Driveshaft: |
3.5-inch chromoly |
| Rear axle: |
Moser 9-inch rearend, Randy's Ring & Pinion |
|
3.88:1 gears; 31-spline axles, Detroit Truetrac |
| CHASSIS |
| Front suspension: |
Schwartz chassis, spindles, upper and |
|
lower control arms, and splined |
|
swaybar. RideTech coilovers with 550-pound springs |
| Rear suspension: |
Schwartz chassis, splined swaybar, |
|
RideTech coilovers with 350-pound springs |
| Brakes: |
14-inch Baer brakes with six-piston |
|
Baer calipers on all four corners |
| WHEELS & TIRES |
| Wheels: |
Forgeline SP3P wheels, 19x8 front and 20x10 rear |
| Tires: |
Continental 255/35ZR19 front, 295/30ZR20 rear |