The '68 El Camino was purchased in 1989 in Reno NV. It was wrecked on the right fender. The motor/transmission, wheels and tires were removed. I slapped a fender on it some centerlines matched with fat Mickey Thompson's in the rear and BF Goodrich's in the front to get it rolling. Had a friend build me a nice destroked 350ci SBC with a TH400 to get the Elky moving on its own power. Then I drove the car home to Colorado from Reno to start the restoration process in October of 1990. (see pic) The goal was to have it completed and ready to cruise in the 1991 "Hot August Nights" Rod Run in Reno, Nevada. The vehicle was completed for that year and we all had a blast. I cruised the Elky in "Hot August Nights" for the next eight years. (1991-99)

See my Bodyshop Album for the restoration pictures of the car going through the full process; from being striped to bare metal then smoothed out for paint.

In 1996 the Elky went through some major changes to finish the pro-street style that was started before I painted the car. A shortened Ford 9 inch with a custom-built 4-link ladder bar set up replaced the old twelve bolt. Then I replaced the interior floor pan to accommodate a full roll cage and bucket seats. I also changed the motor/transmission from mild too wild. What a difference 650 horsepower makes!

I used a Hank The Crank (HTC) crankshaft to start the rotating assembly for my 350ci. One of his 4340 billet stroker cranks, Carrillo connecting rods, and 13.5:1 Venolia pistons create a combo that, although more expensive than a Mercedes, is virtually indestructible. These parts form the basis of a much wilder combination of components. There is a Snyder true roller cam shaft w/697 duration and 728 Lift resting under 16 Norris Stainless Steel Rockers sitting on a set of Brodix aluminum heads being feed raw fuel from two 660 Holley center squirters on top of a Edelbrock tunnel ram. Mallory magneto fires all this up then it is forced to breathe through a set of Hooker Headers connected to custom dual exhaust system with Flow Masters. All this power is harnessed by a manual shift TH400 w/4800 stall speed. Moving the Elky quickly down the road on a shortened Ford 9-inch rear end with 4.56:1 gears. The car stops on a four-wheel disk brake system.

Double Click on Picture below to watch the Elky beat a Corvette :)

 

The original idea, of course, was to build a 350ci engine for mild street use. Ideas change. Now Mileage is nil and maintenance is forever, but you can't beat the bragging rights.