Photos: Mikko Viitala

When Finnish driver Mikko Viitala goes racing, he spends more time looking out the side windows than the windshield. The pro series drift driver has run a number of different cars in the past, but his current ride has a lot of competitors looking over their shoulders.

Work begin in earnest last October on a split-bumper second-generation Camaro Z/28 that he bought for this season. The ex-road race car was a good choice, in that all needed suspension work was already done and a sturdy roll cage was in place. Lacking a powertrain, Mikko had a clean sheet to work with, so he ordered in an LS3 crate motor to start with. Adding a Tremec T56 manual transmission, the 505 hp, 6.2-liter engine found a new home in the Camaro.

Weight reduction was a top priority following the powertrain refit. The front clip was replaced with a fiberglass version and fibreglass doors replaced the originals. In the process, Mikko changed the outward styling of the car to a 1970 look… something that suited his tastes better. He even modified the rear of the car to take 1970 rear glass and replaced the tail light panel to match.

In the end, he reduced the weight of the Bowtie to 2850 pounds, including a full tank of gas. Now, the Corvette engine doesn’t have to work as hard moving the metal and can concentrate on peeling rubber. Mikko has a deft hand at the wheel, as you’ll see in the video below.

You might imagine that getting a hold of North American car parts in Finland is a bit of a challenge, particularly for vintage cars long out of production. That doesn’t seem to have held Mikko back at all, because he also owns a 1970 Dodge Charger 500. At the moment, there are no plans to take that drifting, but it sure would be a sight to see.