Appearance
Although the performance function of a Pro Touring car is generally the main focus, the end result is almost always a muscle car with an aggressive race-ready look that everyone loves. In this case, all of the aspects that make the car perform well also provide a great overall appearance. Detroit Speed perfected the balance of good looks and incredible performance, and the company continues to crank out products that help your muscle car look good and go fast.
Practicality
The balance of performance and practicality in the Pro Touring following is certainly noteworthy. It’s easy to be carried away, so if money is no object, you could put a 1969 Camaro skin on top of a NASCAR chassis and have the wildest setup on the block. But then you’re looking at the inconvenience of using racing slicks and exotic fuels, and trailering the car to each destination. Let’s face it: that becomes more work and less fun. That’s where balance comes in, and Detroit Speed nails it in every new line of products with components that combine race-inspired development with street-friendly driving characteristics. When you’re behind the wheel of a Pro Touring car, the drive should be comfortable but have the capability of handling harsh cornering, heavy braking, and wide-open acceleration without the limitations of sloppy stock components.
As with any custom build, it’s easy to get carried away and end up with a full-on race car. Ken Thompson, from Mooresville, North Carolina, built this incredible Ford Falcon using every ounce of his outstanding fabrication skills. Although impressive, let’s file this one away as overkill for the average Pro Touring enthusiast.
Even though it’s over the top in terms of the average guy’s budget and skill set, Ken Thompson’s Falcon deserves a closer look. The car features a NASCAR-style chassis and suspension, along with this awesome 278-ci Ford Indy Car engine, fit with a single turbocharger. It makes crazy horsepower and handles anything Ken can throw at it.
If you have a car that’s already running, it’s a simple weekend project to update the front suspension, thanks to products from Detroit Speed. New tubular control arms, coil-overs, spindles, and sway bars are easy installs that might prevent you from doing a complete teardown.
The joy of building a Pro Touring car is seeing the results of your modifications. Every one makes a difference in the way the car feels and performs. Every component has a job, and it’s Detroit Speed’s goal to make them strong, efficient, and reliable.
Building a Pro Touring car is not as easy as it sounds, but with the right components you can transform a sluggish muscle car into a machine that reacts quickly, does what you tell it to do, and takes you to work a few times a week if you want it to. Practical performance with classic muscle car style. Does it get any better than that?
The early days of Pro Touring were all about innovation but today’s market is much easier to get into for the average car guy. Complete suspension packages are available, and they are certainly the suggested approach; nonetheless, it’s easy to pick individual components if you’d rather take it slow with your project. Going piece by piece allows you to ease into the Pro Touring realm, without spending a big chunk of money from the get-go.
Some folks start the process with a bigger sway bar, upgraded shocks, and good brakes, but at the end of the day, most end up with the same components that are in a complete kit. You have two options: spend $1,000 at a time and slowly work your way into a car that handles well, or lay down all the cash at once and transform your lazy muscle car into a corner-carving machine in one fell swoop.
Let’s face it, any sort of custom car build is going to cost money, and it is something that swirls around your brain until the moment it is finished. Ideas flow in and out, budgets fluctuate, and distractions get in the way but you will likely be addicted to thinking, building, and buying parts for your Pro Touring car. With all of this in mind, what type of car do you want to build?
Pro Touring builds generally consist of a car from the muscle car era, meaning a midsize car built between 1964 and 1972. This isn’t always the case, as some owners like to step outside the box in an effort to create a wild combination from an unlikely source. Sometimes it comes down to a lifelong desire to own a particular car; perhaps, it’s a car that you owned in high school, or a car that your father or other family member owned, or simply something you’ve always wanted. Everyone has different tastes, so the Pro Touring movement is full of diverse combinations, built from a wide variety of platforms. GM vehicles certainly win the battle of most popular in the Pro Touring hobby because of parts availability and the fact that General Motors made a bunch of really cool cars during the muscle car era.
Some folks like the midsize classics from the 1960s and 1970s, such as GM’s A-Body platform that rode beneath the Chevrolet Chevelle, Buick Skylark (GS), Oldsmobile Cutlass (442), and Pontiac Tempest (GTO). This bright red 1966 Chevelle is owned by Bob Bowe and offers a great mix of practicality and performance.
Although most of this book focuses on GM F-Body platforms, the Nova crowd needs to listen closely because nearly all early F-Body suspension components interchange with the 1968–1972 X-Body platform. This opens the door for all sorts of cool builds, including this all-out Pro Touring machine owned by Mark Turner.
The GM F-Body platform is so popular and widely available that it makes a lot of sense to build a first- or second-generation Camaro. The product support is outstanding, and you can ease your way into it with a simple set of springs and sway bars, or go all out with a custom Detroit Speed subframe kit.
GM Cars
Camaros are undoubtedly the most popular platform in the Pro Touring hobby because they are easily attainable, they have tons of aftermarket product support, and they’re just plain cool. First-generation Camaros (1967–1969) and third-generation Novas (1968–1974) share very similar suspension designs, so the immense popularity of the Camaro naturally trickles down to the Nova, because of the parts interchange. Before 1968, the Nova (commonly known as the Chevy II) featured a totally different platform, and the cars were much smaller.
From 1962 to 1967, Chevy IIs were affordable compact cars, with an optional V-8 engine beginning in 1964, making these lightweight cars very popular with folks who like to go fast. The 1962–1967 Chevy II market is hotter than ever, and you can still pick one up at a reasonable price and expect the same great product support as with the later-model Nova platform.
It’s easy to have tunnel vision when dealing with Pro Touring builds because you see so many midsize GM cars in the show field. Camaros, Novas, and Chevelles are quite common but don’t be discouraged if you prefer another brand or even some peculiar designs. There is almost always a way to make an old car handle like a new one. Some people like to give full-size