THE REAL DEAL

This Pro Touring 1970 Camaro is the perfect mix of race-bred tech and street-car manners

Pro Touring is a label often slapped on any classic ride with plus-size wheels and a lowered stance, but that's akin to calling any drag car with big 'n' littles Pro Street. A real Pro Touring car is so much more-an amalgam of road-race handling tech mixed with enough street manners to make it nice to just cruise. It's classic lines and cutting-edge technology in a car that can drag race, road race, autocross, or just haul ass down your favorite country road. Chris Smith, owner of Smitty's Custom Auto (who we will just call Smitty), has built quite a few real-deal Pro Touring rides, and this 1970 Camaro has to be our favorite so far.

The project started out as a donor shell from Gordon McGilton. It was from California and was a rust-free starting point for what Smitty had in mind. "We spent a lot of effort on the firewall, seating position, and pedal box so that the balance of the car and ergonomics were perfect, recalled Smitty. The project quickly grew in scope, and by the end, the only steel body parts left were in the actual shell of the Camaro. The doors and decklid are Cynergy Composites carbon, the hood is Karbon Kustoms, and the balance of carbon-fiber parts come from Anvil. When all the lightweight carbon panels were perfectly aligned with the vintage steel by Tim Kinn, Tony Smith, and Craig Stinchcomb, the Camaro was shot in GM Rapid Blue PPG paint.

A Pro Touring car focuses on handling, and to get this Camaro ready to win races, Smitty turned to the guys at Speedtech Performance. Up front is their ExtReme subframe that incorporates custom upper and lower control arms, a Sweet Manufacturing dual power rack for the steering, and MCS Motion Control remotereservoir four-way-adjustable shocks.