Kamikaze Chris...Street Outlaw...Yes...but still doing it his way!
/For more than a century now, individualism has been the utmost staple within the motorsports community. The idea that you can take your car and make it your own, mold and craft it to fit your personality. It is that exact individualism that sets Chris Day, better known to some as Kamikaze Chris from the wildly popular Street Outlaws apart from the rest of the crowd.
Hotrodding has been around for longer than most of us have been on this earth, and let’s face it, there is a good chance that the moment the second car was ever produced, a drag race occurred. Ever since Wally Parks created the NHRA in 1951, we as a community have had the opportunity to live dangerously within a safe environment. That has NOT stopped the true foundation of drag racing though, which is on the back roads of somewhere USA, putting the hammer down and seeing who is the baddest of the bad.
Within the past decade or so, we have seen an uptick in the type of shows that are produced for television that revolve around street racing. There are plenty of them, but the original Street Outlaws is still the standard-bearer for that, and Chris has been a part since the beginning. In what started as a suggestion from another TV star, and turned into this mecca for new fans to be drawn into. We had to pleasure of stopping by and sitting down with Chris to talk about all this while we were in OKC a few weeks ago.
Just for transparency purposes, those that know me are well aware of my past feelings regarding the television show, the drivers, etc. One of the reasons that I really wanted to sit down with Chris was because he was the ONLY person from that world that ever had the “stones” to publicly address me and my opinions previously regarding this. It is nice to have an open and honest conversation with someone that isn’t afraid to hold back.
When I was talking to Chris, we talked a lot about the tv show and what his plans for the future might be. There was no confusion on his part in knowing that this tv thing is not going to last forever, but unlike some others, he appears to be smart enough to protect himself and look towards the future, which is life after television. Chris has a background in HVAC and knows what a hard day’s work looks like, just like most of the others on the show. He has also recently moved shops and is in the process of dealing with all those headaches.
I realized very early in our conversation that Chris understood my puppet reference when it comes to Street Outlaws and other shows like it. He understood that the reference refers to the producers acting as a puppet master while trying to control the drivers on the show. In my mind, there is no difference between what Lou Pearlman was accused of with his treatment of his boyband clients, and the way that the producers of Street Outlaws treat their drivers. They are the puppet masters that expect you to do what you are told, and while you are at it, we are going to pay you the stars, very little money compared to what we sell in ad revenue.
As with any tv show, you are a contract based employee. For some people, this means they shove a contract in your face and tell you to sign it. Truth is that they never want you to actually read the shit that they put in there. They could let you sign your life away for $5k an episode and you don’t realize that they now own your likeness and anything included with that. Chris, on the other hand, made damn good and well that any of his contracts are fully reviewed and he is doing what is in his best interest. He realizes that he needs to protect himself and his ability to create income from this wave of popularity while he can also.
I certainly don’t want any of you to think for a second that Chris only does some tv show because of the money. The money is a product of his love, passion, and dedication to our sport. He also does it in a way that doesn’t follow some of the crowd. It would be very easy for some to build me pro mod streetcars and go no-prep racing, but Chris is the definition of individualism. In a world filled to cookie-cutter bullshit (drag racing in general, not Street Outlaws), Chris dares to stick with what he has used for years, and that’s a 1980 Chevy El Camino, part car, part truck, but completely badass.
Folks, this Elco as usually referred to, is not a chassis car. This thing didn’t start out as a pile of bars and then a body was tossed on. This is a true 25.3 chassis in an Elco that has been back halved and front halved. It still retains factory body mounts, factor A & B pillars, factory rockers, factory door areas, along with factory firewall, floor, and bedsides. In fact, this thing has a working tailgate on it still as well. Certainly not a shop queen ride that would start out as a pile of bars coming together on a jig like you see so many others doing. That said though, it does pose its own issues when going against the grain like that. Wheelbase, weight, etc. are all things that competitors have an advantage over Chris with.
First and absolutely foremost, Chris wanted to say a huge thank you to Automotion X, who without them he wouldn’t even be able to race. So now we are on to the stuff that makes us gearheads drool. Under the hood of the Elco resides a 470 cubic inch Fast Times Motor Works BAE Hemi that has been stuff with JE Pistons, MPG rods, topped off with a set of Frankenstein Engine Dynamics head and port work. The heads are crammed full of the good stuff, and that includes PAC springs along with Manley values. An Isky cam, along with Isky components are what keeps the valve train moving. A pair of Precision Turbo 94mm pro mod turbos are what is used to create the 3500-4000 horsepower Chris needs on the street. To feed the beast, Precision Turbo injectors that are fed by an Aeromotive fuel pump. A Haltech system is in place to control everything going on throughout the car also.
All that power needs to make it to the back of this Elco somehow though. That is why a Rossler transmission, along with a ProTorque converter is bolted squarely up to the hemi. That power makes its way to a 10.5'“ Mark Williams modular floater, while Kinetic shocks and struts handle putting the power to the ground. Obviously a streetcar is going to have to stop, and when you are making that much horsepower, rely on your brakes is something that you don’t want to worry about. Chris uses TBM brakes along with DJ safety chutes.
Elco Specks
Total Seal
Moroso pan and valve covers
King bearings
Manton rocket stands and tool pushrods
TMS titanium anywhere I could find a place to put it
Weld wheels
HPP hot and cold side turbo pipework
Woolf aircraft
Haltech engine management
Chassis updates were done by STARTING LINE MOTORSPORTS
Optic Armour windows
Hogan’s intake
Dynamic drive lines driveshaft
Motorsports unlimited valve terrain setup
Lucas oil products
VFN hood and front end fiberglass
VP methanol
Turbo Smart blow off valves and waste Gates
Motion Raceworks chute levers and
Fire core plug wires
NGK plugs for life
Xs power batteries
Autofab racecars components throughout
The sit down I had with Chris, talking about the car, talking about the life of someone that is on television, talking about the fans and the haters, it was all something that as a drag racing fan I truly enjoyed. As a journalist, I loved how open and honest Chris was about everything and his views on some of the ridiculousness of it all is (like rules packages and weights). I look forward to sitting down with Chris again that next time I am in OKC to do a follow-up and see how things are going. Lastly, I learned that Chris is grateful for everything that he has, for all his sponsors that support him, and for all the fans that show him so much love.
Photos by David Hilner and Damon Steinke
