"For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the El Camino be."

Coming from LuciferV8, the irony is not lost on us.

The problem with an El Camino as a Project Car Hell entrant is that it's just too easy. Even the most decrepit example shares most of its components with made-by-the-millions cars that benefit from a vast reproduction parts industry and pool of junkyard parts, making the parts-obtainment process nowhere near hellish enough. But when you get into an El Camino that's been converted into a drag race car in someone's back yard... well, now we're talking! See, what you really want to take to the dragstrip is a vehicle with apocalyptic amounts of power combined with zero weight over the drive wheels, preferably with drum brakes on at least two wheels. Watch the video below and tell us you don't envy the El Camino drag racer!



The Camino above probably cost quite a bit to build, but you say you want to run 10s on a shoestring budget? Picking up this '73 El Camino (go here if the ad disappears) for $4,000 (or less) would start you well on your way to the dream of getting all sideways out of the lights and munching the guardrail at high speed! This one has a small-block with tunnel ram and dual 4-barrel carbs... but the seller neglected to specify much else about the engine, including its displacement. Is there a dead-stock '73 350 (as the "numbers-matching" part seems to indicate) beneath that intake? What about the rear end- does it have a 2.73 one-legger 10-bolt to go with those ladder bars? We can't say!

Where's the fun in a cartruck just like countless others, you ask? Right! You're not like the others, are you? That's why your cartruck needs to be a luxury model that no automaker would have Caminoized in their wildest DMT-inspired hallucinations... say, something like this 1990 Lincoln Mark VIIchero (go here if the ad disappears). The seller says it was "done pretty nice," and we'd agree; it appears to have a functioning tailgate, and that's what sets the hurried backyard hack jobs apart from the patient backyard hack jobs! Watch out, though, because this machine needs TLC... and you know what that means in a Craigslist ad. Anyone who knows these Lincolns is going to groan a bit when they read "air suspension fills and raises car alittle," but all the hours de-sagifying the suspension will be worth it when you start heaving sacks of cement into your Mark VIIchero, not even deigning to glance at those lowly proles loading up their boring old F-150s. Overall, this thing seems fairly solid, needing only a supercharger on the 5.0 and perhaps a more distinguished paint color to cover any conceivable cartruck need.

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If things couldn't get worse, the owner of the El Camino is reportedly a Raiders fan. Putting a propane tank in the back is just asking for an El Caminocide to occur. R.I.P. you ugly Camino and damn the assholes that did this to you. [MTV; LA Times]

Rolls Royce has been passed around in its history, the recent back and forth between BMW and VW was a bit of a drama, but before that the Rolls Royce brand was owned by the British company Vickers. Now, Vickers was a industrial company more in line with aero-engines, steel, and the Ministry of Defense, but they also acquired the Cosworth brand in 1990. Said brand has a well known affiliation with Ford, and was sold in part to none other than than Ford Motor Company. Rollsachero, now that's a twisted path to an inane naming convention if ever there was one.

We'll let them tell the story on this very serious business-in-the-front ute:

We started building our new project car, a VE SS Ute 3 weeks before Summernats. There were many late nights spent building an Engine, Strengthening the Driveline and Developing the Supercharger kit to where it is now.

The engine was stroked to 409 cubic inches, with a one off crank, rods and pistons installed to ensure the engine could withstand over 20psi of boost at 7200rpm. A Custom Camshaft and Ported Big Valve Heads were also used in the build. A custom supercharger kit was developed to allow a V7 YSi Supercharger to be driven off the crank with a 50mm gilmer pulley system. The supercharger kit install includes larger 3.5" pipework and a Custom 200mm thick intercooler with Mondo Bypass Valve mounted behind the front bumper. Exhaust Gasses leave the engine via CAPA 1 7/8" Tri-Y Extractors and a Twin 3" Exhaust.

With all the extra power up front, the drivetrain and brakes had to be upgraded accordingly, with a built T-56 gearbox, Twin Plate Clutch and Full Spool 3.45" installed. Touring Car inspired brakes help bring the Ute to a halt, with 365mm 6 Piston Front and 320mm 4 Piston Rear Brakes sitting behind 22" wheels wrapped in 245mm and 265mm wide rubber. The car sits lower to the ground using Bilstien Coil-overs specifically set up for this ute.

Additional fuel is supplied by an alloy fuel tank, 3 bosch motorsport pumps and a Vortech Super FMU.

We entered our ute in the Horsepower Heroes dyno competition, and it made 856.6 Horsepower at the wheels. The Ute is capable of producing more power, but we had some unfortunate issues with the Clutch slipping. We will be working with Xtreme to build a more powerful clutch before we run the ute up again, which should see the Ute produce over 1000 Horsepower at the wheels. We also took home the Top Super Tech Trophy, which was awarded to the best Street Car which features New Technology and High Levels of Innovation.

[YouTube]

We're obviously pushing the "El Camino" name pretty hard and there's a reason for it. We spoke with the guys over at the National El Camino Owners Association (NECOA), we spoke with Mike Levine over at PickupTruck.com, the guys at GM and we spoke with each other. I feel like the right name was chosen, but now it's time to hear from you — was the right name chosen for Jalopnik to push as the name for the new ute?

***Remember to go and vote today for "El Camino!"

[Aces High Homepage]

While non-pickup Chevelles of this era are a rare sight, you still see quite a few El Caminos. No doubt this is due to the usefulness of the truck bed motivating owners to keep the things running long after the non-bed-equipped A-bodies were crushed.


This '75, a fine example of the Malaise Era GM A-body, lives on the same block as the Bonus Cab '71 Chevrolet pickup; I think they may belong to the same owner. Since that owner is a high school classmate of Belvedere Adrian (who, by the way, informs me that the '71 has 454 big-block power), I can make some inquiries about this El Camino and see if I can learn more about it.


The Malaise El Caminos were bigger than the generations that came before and after them... but I'll bet this one is still lighter than the new Pontiac truckcar.