Starting from scratch..... almost.

I wanted to send something out to give everyone a look at whats been going on. Unfortunately, my build has not progressed as fast as I had hoped, but there were circumstances out of my control. We are not in terrible shape at all, but I had planned to be at a track this weekend to practice.

Before i get into that, I want to welcome 3 more great sponsors to the 2010 team!

First up! Improved Racing gave us some help getting a front sump oil pan setup with the needed baffling system. Their kit will allow me to have confidence that the oil is staying where it needs to and not taking any unauthorized vacations leaving my motor unprotected.

I have some great new shoes for my car, from XXR Wheels, the 502 model in a stunning HyperSilver finish! I am extremely thrilled to be getting this style of a wheel. I absolutely LOVE big shiny lips on a wheel, especially for drifting.

The other new sponsor, while more hidden, is a great partner in motorsports of all kinds- I introduce my 13th sponsor to you- K&N Filters! Since the first time I heard my SR20DeT run in 2006, a K&N air and oil filter has been keeping my engine performing a step above the other guy. These air filters are so good... I had the SAME filter for 4 YEARS, just some cleaning and re-oiling and it was good to go!


Thank you and welcome XXR Wheels, K&N Filters, and Improved Racing!

There was some construction at the All-American shop which delayed them from accepting and working on getting the motor/trans out of the Camaro. Then, as I pulled my old SR, we noticed a much bigger amount of hidden damage to the car itself. I decided to build this car right and get a new shell so it is not tweaked. A good friend donated a shell, and I once the construction cleared at the shop, I dropped the Camaro off. I took my old shell down to a friend's shop (an hour away) who builds rollcages. The new shell also happened to be in this city. I got both cars to his shop, neither one running, neither one having a steering rack!

Over the next 2 weeks, I took 5 trips (1 hour each way!) just to swap parts from old to new shell. I had no car lifts so I did everything with a pair of jacks, jackstands, and a bunch of hand tools. Thankfully I had a battery powered impact gun! First I had to prep the new shell for a cage so I had to strip out all the interior, and sound deadening materials. The dash, ac/heat assembly, radio, and everything was out. Only the steering wheel was left. Next, I took the entire front suspension off both cars, and swapped. I then did the entire rear subframe which I had never done before; and then the whole gas tank. Finished up with some interior parts and fire suppression system. I finally had all the parts off my old shell!

The cage was very well made, but also set me back in my expected budget. Instead of using my already caged shell, this 'free' shell now has cost me nearly $2000 with trips and the roll cage. Just writing that makes me sad. It had to be done, and in the end, I'm glad I did it right.

I have the car back home now and have gotten the last few parts from my various sponsors in for this swap. A key part of this whole setup will be my awesome Exedy twin disc clutch kit. I always have run Exedy since my amateur days and am very proud to represent them on a professional level.

Here is the majority of my parts I have put together, some of them from my wonderful sponsors, some of them just essential to the swap. Nothing was done to cut corners, just like my first setup. I want a reliable motor and I have addressed all the weaknesses of the LS1 before worrying about upgrading it. Personally, 450hp thats broken doesn't sound as good as 350hp thats bulletproof. Having said that, I still have big plans for this motor as time goes on.

She sits like this right now, and now that everything is here, we aim to have her driving in a week, and hopefully painted the week after.








I plan to make Street Wise Drift Rd2 (4/17) in North Carolina. Hopefully we will have time for a shakedown before going to compete, but if I must test it out there, so be it, I need to get some driving done!