You didn't see Mitchell Vannatta's '68 Firebird in the Aug. '10 Engine Swap Drags coverage-not because the car isn't cool or it didn't fit into the rules, but because Mitchell and Brian Miller were thrashing to get the car together in time and didn't make the show. And by thrash, we mean they completed the paint and bodywork and the assembly of the entire car in the two weeks before the event. They fired the car for the first time the morning of the race. That kind of effort always gets you into the magazine.
Tech Notes
Who: Mitchell Vannatta
What: '68 Pontiac Firebird
Where: Surprise, AZ
Engine: Originally, the Firebird had an LS1 parked between the fenders. When the Tahoe Mitchell was driving launched a rod, the Firebird had to give up its engine. To replace it, Mitchell scored a complete LQ4 6.0L after seeing it advertised on Craigslist for $500. Stoked, Brian Miller pulled the cam for something hotter, and the bearings came along for the ride. Fear of more bad parts required the engine to be completely torn down, vatted, and rebuilt with stock rings and bearings. The Internet also provided leads on a set of L92 heads and an LS3 intake. Now the Firebird makes 423 hp and 400 lb-ft at the wheels using a Nick Williams 92mm throttle body and a Comp 226/230 at 0.050 cam with 0.598/0.600 lift.
Swap stuff: To get the car together the first time, Mitchell found a complete fourth-gen Camaro drivetrain on eBay and bought the running gear and all the ancillary parts at the same time. The 'Bird uses its rack-and-pinion and FEAD, so those parts fit without cutting the subframe. They ditched the 4L60E when they decided a six-speed would be a lot more fun. They fabricated a crossmember and used a Wilwood master, an LS7 clutch, and a throwout bearing to get it done.
Rearend: The rear is a 9-inch that was found on eBay and stuffed with 4.10:1 gears, Strange axles, and a limited slip.
Wheels/Tires: Those are Billet Specialties 18x8-inch Rails with Nitto 555 tires. The sizes are 245/40ZR18 in the front and 255/35ZR18 in the rear.
Paint/Body: The car had a color for each panel before Brian got to it. Now it has one coat of House of Kolor Gun Metal Gray. If you look closely, you'll notice the emblems were shaved and the marker lenses were erased from the rear quarters.
The brake: The thingy sticking out of the floor is a hydraulic rear brake arm for drifting. The other stick is a short-throw shifter for the T56.