Young men dream of speed and winning races. The pole position is synonymous with those dreams but not when it's a telephone pole. Tyler Kurth of Alta Loma, California, was perfecting burnout skills in his just completed '84 El Camino when he and the phone pole finished in a tie, although the pole was later declared the winner. Not only that, Tyler is a high school student and was AWOL that day-not much sympathy around the old homestead. It was time to start over.
As things sometimes do, everything worked out for the best. Tyler and his dad spent lots of time together straightening the body, and then they attacked the motor. Kurth says he followed the SUPER CHEVY Vortec build-up and patterned his motor after that. Of course he went with a high powered stereo (he is a teenager, you know) but stayed conservative on the body work and lowering, winding up with a great handling, great performing, and great looking El Camino. Now he gets to drive the coolest car in town to high school every day, and he stays away from the nasty poles.
| TECH SPECS | Owner | Tyler Kurth, Alta Loma, California |
| Vehicle | '84 Chevy El Camino |
| Engine | '70 Chevy, 355 ci, Vortec Heads, Speed Pro 10:1 pistons, Comp Cam Xtreme Energy .487/.490 cam, Edelbrock
Performer RPM manifold, Holley Street Avenger 770-cfm carb, K&N air filter, MSD 6AL ignition, Hooker Competition
1 5/8-inch headers, Flowmaster 3-inch mufflers, machine work by Curry's Machine, Ontario, California |
| Transmission | TH 350 by Montclair Transmission, Montclair, California, B&M Holeshot 2,000 rpm stall converter |
| Rearend | 10-bolt Posi, 4:11.1 ratio |
| Suspension |
| Front | Belltech 2-inch dropped spindles, Edelbrock Performer IAS shocks |
| Rear | OPG 3-inch dropped springs, Edelbrock Performer IAS shocks |
| Wheels | Chevy IROC, 16x8 |
| Tires | Futura Ultra Z, 245x50x16 |
| Body | Goodmark 2 1/2-inch cowl hood |
| Color | DuPont Brilliant Red |
| Painter | Garrett Kurth |
| Interior | Stock covered with medium Gray fabric embroidered with "Heartbeat," installed by owner, OPG carpets, Autometer
in-dash tach and speedo, LaCarra steering wheel, Empire Motorsports shifter, Prestige P-942 stereo with DHD 400
watt amp, installed by owner and friends |