Big-Block Chevrolet Camaro Ice Racer Runs Double Dually Studded Tires
More tires equals more traction, right? It seems like simple math.
People on the internet have proven that you can drift just about anything. You're better off trying it with a Nissan Silvia than you are with a Ford F-450, but hey, I've seen it done. What's even better than a dually truck sliding around is this Chevy Camaro that's modified especially for ice racing. Instead of making do with just four or even six wheels and tires, it takes it to the next level with eight. You've gotta see this thing in action.
Here it is dancing on a frozen lake in Finland, where they know their ice racing. You can see that the tires are narrow and studded, which is presumably better for traction than one fat patch of rubber. While the rear does poke out when the driver stabs the accelerator, the car is actually pretty composed on the slick stuff. A good mix of exterior and onboard camera angles shows the car responding surprisingly well to steering and throttle inputs.
Now, I can't tell you everything about the build because it's in Finland and I'm not having much luck finding written details. I might be able to MacGyver a fix on my dump truck but we're S.O.L. if it's up to me to translate a Scandinavian language without the help of Google. Fortunately, the owner Pekka Palmgren has been posting videos of his Camaro for years, and some of his older uploads are in English.
It looks like Palmgren runs the car wherever he can, whenever he can—no matter if it's on asphalt or on ice. In one of his previous YouTube clips, he explains that he built the car "as a tribute to old racing Camaros that had a series" in Finland.
Palmgren gives a recorded walkaround of the car, revealing that the engine is a sixth-gen 454 that was pulled from a 1991 Chevy Suburban. It's an aftermarket four-bolt main block and as of 2021, it had an Eagle cast crank, Speed Pro forged pistons, heads that he ported himself, an Edelbrock Air Gap intake, and a Holley 850 double-pump carb. Those mods brought output up to 400 horsepower and more than 440 lb-ft of torque.
The Camaro has stock control arms, but Palmgren relocated the uppers to get more caster and camber angle. He puts that to good use on the ice track, clearly. He also modified the rear suspension by adding coilovers to gain adjustable spring rates and better dampening. The DIY guy also threw on a panhard bar to stabilize the rear axle.
As you probably guessed, the dually wheels are homemade. Palmgren made them by cutting the center out of the outer rim and bolting it to the inside rim. He runs single wheels driving the Camaro on the street or on the track, and while it still looks cool then, nothing holds a candle to the ice racing spec.
If you want to see more clips of the double-dually Chevy sliding in the snow and ice, check out some of Palmgren's earlier videos. He's been running this setup for years, but the uploads from 2021 only have a few hundred views as of right now. It took a little while for word to spread across the Atlantic, but I'm sure glad to know this car exists.
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