Hot Rod 2010 03 Krugeryo

www.storemags.com & www.fantamag.
com
HOT ROD MARCH 2010 3
HOTROD.COM
FEATURE STORIES
52 THE POWER TOUR
CHALLENGE
The HOT ROD staff walked around the SEMA show and picked out
26 vehicles that we liked, then challenged them to come on the 10
Power Tour. These are them. Think theyll show up?
58 THE GOLDEN GREEK
Chris Karamesines is more than 80 years old and yet he still pilots
an NHRA Top Fuel dragster. Heres his story.
HOT RODS
>Cone-crushing action from the Optima Ultimate
Street Car Invitational. See page 14.
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28 11 TRANS AM
36 LINGENFELTER LTA
38 CHALLENGER DAYTONA
40 31 FORD ROADSTER
42C6 + 68 CAMARO
46WILLYS SRT8
48ROAD RACE EL CAMINO
50 427 SUNBEAM TIGER
ON THE COVER
Wes Allison found
the beauty light
to shoot Trans Am
Depots Camaro-
turned-Trans Am.
We shot it at Spring
Mountain Motor-
sports Ranch in
Pahrump, Nevada.
www.storemags.com & www.fantamag.com
C
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TECH
DEPARTMENTS
HOTROD.COM
4 MARCH 2010 HOT ROD
> Could this be your new Trans Am? See page 28.
64 CONVERTING THE LS7
FROM WET- TO DRY-SUMP
The GM LS7 is a remarkable engine that makes big power, but its
dry-sump oiling system adds complexity for an engine swap. We
show how to convert it to a wet-sump and test the power differ-
ence, if any.
70 LATEST NITROUS TRICK
NANO stands for nitrogen-assisted nitrous oxide, and its a bolt-on
that regulates bottle pressure for more consistent performance.
76 TFS FORD HEADS
Testing Trick Flows New Fast As Cast small-block Ford
heads versus its CNC versions
82 WHATS NEW
IN BRAKE PADS
We do a deep dive on the world of performance brake pads and
explain the differences in materials, applications, and more.
8 STARTING LINE
The rampant march of performance technology.
10 HOLESHOT
A shameless plug for another magazine.
12 RODDIN AT RANDOM
Larry Larson runs 6s! Plus some Pro Touring action.
22 WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The SEMA show, the early years.
94 TEST AND TUNE
From headlights to a complete road race car.
100 PIT STOP
Ever wonder who did the first official burnout?
112 WORLD OF HOT ROD
Of pedal cars and Power Tour.

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EDITORIAL
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ART DIRECTION AND DESIGN
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Director of Photography Randy Lorentzen
CONTRIBUTORS
Detroit Editor Bill McGuire

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In this months Roddin at Random, you can
read in detail how Larry Larson, our two-
time Drag Week champion, ran a 6.93 pass
in his 3,400-pound street car. Wow! A 6.93
at 211 mph in a car Ive ridden in (and did
donuts in, too!) and personally witnessed
drive more than 1,000 miles on public
roads. Just un-frigging-believable.
It got me thinking about the old days
when HOT ROD started the Fastest Street
Car thing with the original Memphis FSC
shootout in the early 90s. The fastest Pro
Street cars of the day were running low
8s, and we were totally shocked when the
Super Street cars (then on real 10.5-inch-
wide tires) cracked the 9-second barrier.
The big news of the day was when Monte
Berney ran the first 7-second pass in his 55
Chevy.
As we all know, that scene, especially
the Pro Street part of it, snowballed out
of control to the point that the cars have
become full-on race cars, and the street part
of Pro Street drag racing became a punch
line. Still, its interesting to look back on that
7.99 from Berneys 55 and remember how
big a deal it was, then consider that Larson
has topped that by a full second with a car
that is about 1,000 percent more streetable.
True, Larry had race gas in the tank for the
money pass, but when the event was over,
he pumped in 92-octane and went cruising
the Vegas Strip.
The same Roddin item mentions Tim
Lynchs astounding 6.40-at-225-mph pass
on 10.5W tires, another shot heard round
the drag racing world. Todays 10.5 tires are
in reality waaaaaay wider than 10.5 inches,
and one can never confuse Lynchs full-race
Mustang as a street car. But its twin-turbo
monster motor makes well north of 2,000
hpprobably closer to 3,000. Without
alcohol or nitro, that just wasnt possible 20
years ago.
In recent years, weve witnessed the fast
cars, and even the horsepower of the aver-
age hot rod, progress to levels that were
unheard of not that long ago. Remember
when 500 hp was a lot for a street motor?
Building a 500hp motor is as easy as fall-
ing out of a tree now. Similarly, a legitimate
10-second street car used to be considered
really fast. Today, if you have a 5.0 Mustang
and youre not running 10s, well, youre just
not trying that hard.
It also seems like this progression of
power and speed has moved forward a lot
quicker in the past 10 years than it did in
all the years prior. How? There are several
factors. First is cylinder head technology.
Guys were using stock cast-iron heads even
into the mid-80s, but todays selection of
aftermarket (and even factory) heads is full
of killer options for whatever you want to
build. There are also affordable blocks, stro-
ker cranks, and quality pistons available, so
the average hot rodder can build a big-inch
engine if he wants to. Back in the day, a 632
was huge, but its not that rare anymore,
thanks to the aftermarkets supply of quality,
affordable parts.
Then theres boost, especially in the form
of turbochargers. Turbos have been around
forever, but they were never accessible to
the common guy. Today, you can go on
eBay and buy a turbo kit for your car, and
its not that hard to find a tuner to dial it in
for you. One thousand horsepower on the
street? Its not that hard anymore.
You also have to credit electronics with
much of the progress. Electronic fuel injec-
tion provides such infinite control over
tuning that its the standard, but you also
have electronic timing controls, data log-
gers, and other such things that are within
the reach of you and me, whereas they used
to be the tools of only the most well-funded
race teams.
My big question is, Where do we go
from here? Its normal to think we might
be nearing the limit of what street cars and
race cars can do, but then we thought that
back in 1993 when Monte put the 7 on the
board. I doubt well ever see a 5-second
street car, but Id love to be proven wrong.
Rob Kinnan
EMAIL ME: HOTROD@HOTROD.com
> The new office. I miss my old view.
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Warning: this column is a glaring sales pitch
for a magazine called HOT ROD Deluxe.
I can justify this gratuitous promotion of
my own product because its extra neato,
not because of me, but because of the work
of many before me who created the docu-
mentation of hot roddings history that we
publish in every issue of Deluxe. HRD is the
magazine about nothing but retro-related
topics from the 40s and 50s with a smidge
of early 60s. Its not rat rods, tattoos, weirdo
art, or rockabilly. Its all cars and legacy.
Best of all, there are loads of vintage
photos in every issue, which is what
prompted me to write this column. If youve
read closely over the past couple of issues
of HRM, you know our company moved
out of the Hollywood area for the first time
in HOT RODs history, and this issue is
the first one produced at our new office
space in El Segundo, California. As part of
the move, Musclecar Review editor Drew
Hardin and I were charged with relocating
the magazines photo archive and research
library. The company began to document
and store all its film in 1955, a process that
created a pristine, decades-long record of
the American hobbies covered by Robert E.
Petersens magazines: hot rodding, custom
car building, skin diving, hunting, and even
teeny-bopper interests.
That began to fall apart in 1993 when
the archives moved from the Sunset
Boulevard office in Hollywood to the near-
by Wilshire Boulevard building; the archive
was gutted to make for an easier move and
was never fully put back in order. In 1997,
after Petersen sold the publishing company,
the new owner right-sized the photo lab,
and the archive suffered more blows. By the
time we moved out of Wilshire last month,
photos were scattered all over the high-rise.
The great news is that relocation forced
us to do something about the mess, and
Drew and I mustered the archive into bet-
ter order than its seen in at least 10 years.
In the process, we discovered hundreds of
photos that had been lost to disorganization
or poor filing. Incredible historic images
were found crammed into boxes with
otherwise useless garbage. Irreplaceable
negatives were recovered from under filing
cabinets and shelves, and so on.
Which brings me back to HOT ROD
Deluxe. I try to deliver lots of old photos in
every issue, but the Mar. 09 issue is truly a
standout, triumphantly packed with 30-plus
pages featuring an eclectic mix of those for-
merly lost photos. Its a must-see.
While that issue is extra special, the
thing thats regularly fantastic about HRD
is that every issue seems to connect a lost
car with an old owner or reveal the history
of an unknown car after it comes to light in
a previously unpublished photo. The com-
pany launched Deluxe thinking it would be
big with the new wave of retro hipsters, but
the truth is that it has mostly hit home with
the audience of graybeards and pioneers
who are reliving their glory days with every
issue. They give us the stories behind many
cars and people we cant identify, and I
could not be more thrilled.
People email frequently to ask for a list
of all the HRD issues that have been pub-
lished, so here it is: the first one was dated
Spring 2008, then the magazine quickly
went into regular production with cover
dates every other month starting in May
2008. That does not count two issues with
the same name that were produced in 1999,
but that are very different from the cur-
rent iteration of HOT ROD Deluxe. If you
missed an issue, try to buy one at
www.simbackissues.com or on eBay.
HOT ROD Deluxe is only available on
the newsstand bimonthly. While readers
constantly beg us for subscriptions, they
are unlikely to be offered (for financial rea-
sons). The extra-bitchin Mar. 09 issue that
Ive described in this column goes on sale
January 26. If you have trouble finding one
at a convenience store, try a local bookstore.
Future issues go on sale every other month
between the 25th and the 30th.
Check it out.DAVID FREIBURGER
> Theres me in the freshly emptied photo
archive room at the old office on Wilshire
Boulevard.
SEND STUFF IN: EMAIL: HOTROD@HOTROD.com MAIL: HOT ROD, 831 S. Douglas St., El Segundo, CA 90245
PHOTO REQUIREMENTS: Minimum size 1,600 x 1,200 pixels MESSAGE BOARD: HOTROD.com
November was a wild month for the entire street
car drag racing scene as records were set in jaw-
dropping performances. At the top of the list is
HOT ROD Drag Week hero and two-time winner
Larry Larson and his 66 Nova (which we incor-
rectly identified as a 67 in the Jan. 09 issue). The
smack talk about being the first Drag Week car
to run in the 6s was hot and heavy before the
09 Drag Week, with the front runners being
Larson and Jeff Lutz. Larson ran as quick
as 7.25 during Drag Week, while Lutz broke.
But at the Super Street Nationals in Las Vegas,
Larson ripped off a string of 6-second passes,
the quickest being a 6.93 at a screaming 211
mph . . . then drove the car into Vegas and through
downtown. How cool is that? The other big
record set in Vegas was a stunning 5.98 at 243
STREET CAR RECORDS SET
mph by Cory Rabon in his 07 Mustang Pro
Mod car.
Then there was the Shakedown at Englishtown
(Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in New Jer-
sey), intentionally held in the fall when the air is
cool and the density altitude is similar to a mine
shaft. The big news was former HOT ROD Top 10
Tim Lynchs Mustang (also tuned by Steve Petty)
breaking the 10.5W tire record with a 6.40 at
225 mph. Just as impressive were the identical
6.89-at-210-mph runs of Dave Hance and Alex
Vrettos on Mickey Thompson drag radials. Finally,
in Nitrous Pro Mod, Jim Halsey was first to the 5s
in 2008, and in 2009 he went 5.86 at 243 mph
to reclaim the record. Halseys car runs a Fulton
Competition 870ci powerplant with four stages of
nitrous. MICHAEL GALIMI
> Jim Halseys Camaro was
built by Tim McAmis Race Cars.
>Tim Lynch does it again, running 6.40 on 10.5W tires.
> Larry Larson did what we expected
him to, running in the 6s with his true
street-driven car. It didnt happen
during Drag Week, however, so tech-
nically the first 6-second Drag Week
pass is still open territory. Still . . . .
> Cory Rabons Mustang ran in the 5s with
this Steve Pettybuilt 670ci monster. Wow.
Photos: Michael Galimi
Heres a drama thats been interesting to follow,
especially as filtered through our experiences
with founding the original Fastest Street Car
Shootout way back in 1992. This time the event
is the Optima Ultimate Street Car Invitational,
and it stands to have a similar impact on the
industry as the old HOT ROD street car series
but in the world of Pro Touring rather than drag
racing. We were there for the second running of
the Optima Invitational at Pahrump, Nevadas
Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch this past
November 7 immediately following the SEMA
show, and it was nothing short of impressive. In
no time at all, the event has grabbed the atten-
tion of the aftermarket and top car builders.
The event included 40 cars selected by
the Optima Batteries team, plus a handful of
exhibition cars, to participate in a competition
involving the BFGoodrich Open Track Challenge,
the RideTech Autocross Challenge, and the Baer
Brakes Speed Stop (0-60-0). There were also
points awarded for style as judged by a team
of four gearhead car designers. Therein lies
the rub.
This year, an original-owner 427 Cobra
absolutely owned all the driving competitions,
especially embarrassing every other car at the
autocross. But at first, it was not named as the
overall winner. To the credit of Optima and orga-
nizer FM3 Performance Marketing, a glitch in
points tabulation was remedied in the week fol-
lowing the event and the Cobra was announced
the champion, but not before a number of mes-
sage boards and industry insiders were buzzing
about the injustice of it all.
The few days of confusion had the naysayers
coming out of their seats. We felt we were back
in the FSC days as we started to hear the claims
of thats not a real street car against the Cobra.
Some say it was too loud. Others screamed
it should not have been allowed since it was
1,000 pounds lighter than the muscle cars, or
because its a sports car, or because it has fewer
aftermarket parts than the other entries, and
so on. On the other side of the argument, people
accused the Optima team of intentionally har-
pooning the Cobra.
The invitational is scored based on cumula-
tive elapsed time in the driving challenges, plus
the points scored for design, which are 1 to 10
with 10 being the worst. In practice, the show
judges score the cars from 1 to 100, then divide
by 10 to give a final score in seconds thats
added to the tally; a show score of 87 becomes
an 8.7-second penalty. Its the division that was
missed the first time, leading to the faulty rank-
ing that was subsequently corrected.
Even so, its easy to see that the only way for
a car to win with a 10-point design score is to
be 9 seconds faster in the driving competitions
than the next closest car. With a field of very
good cars, the gap in on-track performance is
much tighter than 9 seconds, so a poor design
score almost guarantees a loss.
Heres us adding to the noise: Wed like to see
the design score factored down significantly to
put the emphasis on performance and to high-
light the parts from the aftermarket manufactur-
ers so the likes of, say, Detroit Speed & Engi-
neering and its test car Camaros are not ousted
because they have some pebble rash. Thats just
one thought in a very large sea of opinion.
The other thing that has come from this
years invitational is a cry from spectators and
competitors that the cars should really be
street driven to competeagain, shades of
Fastest Street Car woes. In this case, we dont
see any of these Pro Touring cars having any
problem on public roads, but if Optima does add
a caravan from Las Vegas to Pahrump, as is
rumored, it would be neat to see.
The fact that people are talking about it so
much and caring so deeply reveals that Optima
has smacked a homer with the Ultimate Street
Car Invitational. The growing pains are a small
chink in a program that will get ironed out to
most peoples satisfaction, and the invitational
will be bigger and more important next year. For
more, watch www.optimainvitational.com.
OPTIMA PRO TOURING INVITATIONAL GOES BIG
DAVID FREIBURGER
Photos: Wes Allison and David Freiburger
>The overall winner proved to be Bruce Camberns entry, which is believed to be the last original-owner 427 Cobra other than Shelbys per-
sonal car. We love that he flogged it so hard and destroyed the muscle cars in on-track performance.
> Event sponsor Bret Voelkel of RideTech was there thrashing his
Velocity Camaro, as usual, and taking 10
th
Place while having a blast.
Hes chased on the parade lap by JR Granatelli in an exhibition Nissan
GTR and by the Roadster Shop 70 Chevelle.
> The invitational was a true test of steering and cooling systems. Between
those problems and the off-track excursions, 17 cars did not finish.
> Steven Rupp of Camaro
Performers magazine was floored when his Bad
Penny Camaro was initially announced as the event winner. Rupp
was vocal about something not adding up and very gracious about the quick correc-
tion in the results. Bad Penny won the inaugural invitational last year.
> HOT RODs Rob Kinnan intended to compete with the Factory Five 33 Race Rod but hit the dirt
in the first turn, much to the enjoyment of the competing magazines in attendance. The damage
to the Race Rod looks way worse than it is.
P
h
o
t
o
:

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t
e
v
e
n

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p
p
> Detroit Speed & Engineering had a strong
showing with Ryan Matthews driving the com-
panys 69 Camaro test car to a Second Place
finish and Kyle Tucker wrangling the DSE 70
Camaro into Fifth overall.
> Hero Mark Stielow nabbed Third overall in
the Jackass 69 Camaro he built for Charlie Lil-
lard (see Jackass, HRM Sept. 09).
I used to own the former Steve Lisk Pro Street 71
Hemi Challenger that was featured in the Dec.
09 issue (Street Machines, page 64). I first
saw the car at the 78 Car Craft Street Machine
Nationals in Indy. It was for sale but had no
takers. So in 1979, Steve was there again and
we struck up a deal. I bought the car minus the
Hemi and Lenco transmission as a rolling chas-
sis and installed my own Hemi and TorqueFlite.
The car was primarily built by former Pro Stock
racer Mike Fons in Michigan. The Dana 60, ladder
bars, and wheelie bars came from the Motown
Missile, as well as the cool-looking front license
plate that says, Dodge. Depend On It.
If you notice in the photo in the Dec. 09 issue,
there is a very thin cable/lanyard that runs from
the center of the hood down to the center of the
license plate that connects to a very small hood-
pin, hence the three holes in the front plate.
I still have that license plate hanging in my
garage today. The car was running a 5.86:1 gear
and I had it changed to a 5.13 set up by former
Pro Stock racer Arlen Vanke. Ever try to sell a
LISK CHALLENGER
You would be so fired for doing this in your com-
panys parking lot, but then youre not the head
guy at Ford Racing. Just before the SEMA show
in Las Vegas, HOT ROD was invited to Ford Racing
Headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, for a pre-
view of the Cobra Jet drag car, freshly revamped
for 2010. The new Mustang has a more powerful
5.4L engine with an aluminum block and a 4.0L
Whipple blower, slotting the package into NHRAs
Super Stock/B category, where the class leaders
run in the high 8s. To demonstrate the factory
racers improved performance to the assembled
media, Ford Racing Director Brian Wolfe fired up
the SEMA show car and performed a rolling burn-
out the length of the parking lot. As has so often
been noted, its good to be the boss.
BILL MCGUIRE
FORD LAUNCHES
THE 10 COBRA JET
> Brian Wolfe of Ford Racing blazes the
Hoosiers past a stunned Detroit press
corps in the 10 Cobra Jet drag car.
THE CHEAP
THRILLS LEAD
In the Jan. 09 issue, we ran a Roddin at
Random item showing that HOT RODs long
lost Cheap Thrills Dart had been found, but
at the time, we had lost the name of the guy
who gave us the lead that ended up with us
locating the car. We had promised to give the
guy credit, so here it is: Our tipster was David
Melvard of Route 66 Auto & Truck Recyclers
in Phoenix. Thanks again, David!
ALL STEEL,
TOTALLY SLICK
We like to stop in at Ed and Diane Scutch-
fields metalworking shop in Ray, Michigan,
if for no other reason than to behold their
gigantic hammer-forming machine, which
originally came from a WWII-era aircraft
carrier. (The flat-tops had complete aircraft
repair shops below decks.) During our most
recent visit, we spotted this 34 roadster
being constructed for Chuck Watson of Wat-
son Engineering. Built on an Alloway chas-
sis with a reproduction steel cab section
by American Speed, the roadster features
Eds trademark steel bellypan and other
panels with some additional modifications:
The cowl and hood have been masterfully
reshaped to reconcile the 34s body lines
with the classic highboy look. The rod is built
like a house with every inch of metalwork in
steel. And since its by Scutchfield, the work-
manship is flawless. BILL MCGUIRE
used set of 5.86 Shiefer pro
gears? Its not easy. The
car used a slider setup and
ran two left, 3,400-pound
Super Stock rear leaf springs.
The wheeltubs were split
and moved inboard, and
the wheel openings were
enlargedthe car was
never tubbed. It was almost
impossible to get a street
race because the car had
too much of a reputation. I
sold it as a roller to a guy in Kentucky who put a
440 Six Pack and an automatic in it, and some
years later it showed up in an East Coast trader
paper for sale. I have no idea where the car is
today. With that much unique history, a car like
that shouldnt just disappear. Not too many cars
can lay claim to being the quickest car in Detroit
from that era.
John Savanyu
Warren, OH
Very cool, John, thanks. The Lisk Challenger is
one of the most significant street machines
of the 70s. If anyone knows where this car is
today, please let us know.
> The hood blisters in Chuck Watsons 34 roadster provide
valve cover clearance for a four-cam Modular Ford V-8.
bernzomatic.com/quickfire
Check it out today at your local hardware retailer.
2009 BERNZOMATIC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Ross McCurdy sounds like the kind of teacher
all kids should have. The innovative science
instructor at Ponaganset High School in North
Scituate, Rhode Island, has led his students
in a number of cool class projects focused on
alternative energy sources. Theres Protium,
the worlds first rock band powered entirely by
fuel cells; a biodiesel GMC pickup he and his
students drove cross-country in 2008 without
refueling; and here is their latest experiment in
cutting-edge technology: a 23 Ford T-bucket
with hydrogen fuel cell motivation.
A Total Performance T roadster package
chosen for its light weight and simplicity was
stretched 29 inches to accommodate the
powertrain, which includes a Hydrogenics
12-kilowatt fuel cell, a 48-volt Alltrax control-
ler, and two Lincoln Composites 3,600-psi
fuel cylinders. They provide the juice for four
Optima 12-volt batteries to spin an Advanced
DC 9-inch series-wound motor. Ross is
quick to thank all his parent team leaders and
corporate sponsors on the project, which are
too numerous to name here. He is also quick to
credit his studentswho, come to think of it,
sound like the kind of kids all teachers should
have.
HYDROGEN HOT ROD
>With 900 students, Ponaganset High isnt a big school, but it has managed to land sev-
eral energy and education grants for its forward-looking Energy Lab program. Dont you
wish you were doing stuff this cool in high school?
> With 12 kw on tap, the hydrogen T has a cruising
speed of 40 mph and a range of 100 miles. Look for
more info at www.protium.com.
I remember the old 5959 Hollywood Blvd. offices
of Petersen Publishing (Where it all Began, Jan.
10). Its too bad you didnt have an inset photo of
the lot behind the 5959 building showing Petes
dads workshop and the chainfall on a pepper
tree limb. [Former Petersen Vice President] Dick
Day had a phone extension put in at the bar on
the corner of Highland Avenue and Hollywood
Boulevard, and [former secretary] Sunny
Francisco would transfer calls there. When I first
started taking freelance work there, Wally Parks
was still at the company, and I used to eat crap
off the roach coach with the likes of Ray Brock,
Don Prieto, Dick Wells, Alex Xydias, Tom Medley,
and whatever big-name racer happened by
that day.
Dennis Pierce
Via email
Ah, the good old days huh, Dennis?
PHONE IN THE BAR
I just got my Dec. 09 issue of HOT ROD maga-
zine and I noticed there was an article titled
V = D/T (page 36). The statement that fol-
lowed said velocity equals distance divided
by time. I would like to point out that this is
an incorrect statement. The correct state-
ment is: Speed equals distance divided by
time. The following is a definition of the two:
Speed is a scalar quantity. This means it only
has magnitude. The car is going 50 mph. Fifty
is the magnitude of the speed of the car.
Velocity is a vector quantity. This means
it has magnitude and direction. The car is
traveling 50 mph in the direction of due
east. Fifty is the magnitude, and east is the
direction.
You may ask why this is important. The
definition of acceleration is the rate of change
of velocity (not speed) with respect to time. If
a car is traveling down the road at a constant
speed of 50 mph in a straight line, it is not
undergoing acceleration. However, if the car
is going down the road at a constant speed
of 50 mph and goes around a corner that
takes it from traveling due north to due east,
it experienced some definite acceleration.
The magnitude hasnt changed, but the direc-
tion has definitely changed and thus the car
has undergone acceleration, which is what
causes spin-out on tight corners.
Bob Rymer
Via email
Wow, talk about picking nits there, Bob.
V = D/T
Last January my wife and I took our 89 BMW
with more than 300,000 miles and replaced
its running engine with a 99 LS1 (modified
to an LS6). It wasnt easy having to make five
major changes from a hydraulic booster to a
cut and modified new GTO oil panbut what
an upgrade. We finished this project in six
months, and we now have a sleeper four-door
midsize sedan with all the fun of a six-speed
LS6. I recommend it. Find a donor car that can
handle a V-8 and glasspacks and your high-
stress jobs will be no longer.
Angel
Orlando, FL
Sweet engine swap, Angel.
WHAT AN
UPGRADE!
HOT ROD was recently given a crack at the latest
Roush Stage 3 Mustang, top of the line in the
Roush Performance hierarchy. Only 103 units
are scheduled for production in the 10 model
year, so we considered ourselves special. This
years version gets 540 hp, 110 more than the
09 model and an even match for power with the
larger-displacement Shelby GT500. Roush gets
the job done on the 4.6L V-8 with a TVS blower,
an intercooler, forged-aluminum pistons, forged-
steel H-beam rods, and 52-lb/hr injectors on an
upgraded fuel rail. Bad weather canceled the trip
to the dragstrip, but a few runs with the G Tech
performance meter predicted low, low 12s on
street tires. Observed fuel consumption was
a reasonable 18 mpg combined, while Roush
stands behind the package with a three-year,
36,000-mile warranty. BILL MCGUIRE
ROUSH GOES
BIG FOR 2010
> Standard pieces on the latest Stage 3
include chrome 18-inch wheels and the full
complement of Roush body mods.
Congrats to our big boss man Doug Evans,
the senior vice president of the Performance
Automotive Group (HOT ROD, Car Craft, and
a bunch of other car magazines) for being
named SEMAs 2009 Person of the Year
during the SEMA show Industry Awards
Banquet in November. Evans is an active
member of the SEMA board of directors and
has served three consecutive terms on the
Automotive Restoration Market Organiza-
tion (ARMO) Select Committee. He has also
served on the SEMA Political Action Com-
mittee and has been a member of the SEMA
Executive Committee. In other words, hes
involved. ROB KINNAN
LOCAL BOY
DONE GOOD
The budget for Drag Week must be a skys-the-limit kind of deal. On the cover of the Jan. 10
issue, I noticed you guys moved the Muncie Dragway timing tower to the spectator side of the
track. The last time I was there, the timing tower was on the pits side. As an artist myself, I know
its better to have objects point inward in a design if at all possible. Therefore, I understand why
you allowed the creative license for the cover. Still, I did get a chuckle out of it.
Scott Robinson
Tipton, IN
Scott, youre the only one who caught that little Photoshop trick.
MOVED THE TIMING TOWER
I read the C4C Fallout item in the Jan. 09
issues Roddin At Random section about the
governments cash for clunkers program, and
there is more to it than you pointed out. I work
for Chrysler as a contract employee, and the
whole thing couldnt have been more poorly
timed. We went into bankruptcy in May and
didnt build any new cars for four months.
Ditto for GM, but they were a little later than
Chrysler. When they turned on C4C, we at
Chrysler didnt have any cars on the ground to
sell. We had customers but no inventory. So in
large part, taxpayer money went to Korea and
Japan. We didnt get a fighting chance, and
the taxpayer got screwed again. On top of this,
my nephew needed a $2,000 transportation
car recently and there isnt anything out there
that isnt crap. Many cars and trucks that could
have been had for that amount went to the
scrapper for $4,500, and the person without
a lot of money to spend for transportation is
really out of luck. Its one more example of
government gone wild.
Mark Scott
Rickreall, OR
CASH FOR
CLUNKERS
By David Freiburger
SEMA
Look on page 52 and youll see that for the first time in many years,
HOT ROD has coverage of the insider-only SEMA trade show as we
share 26 of the top show cars from the event at the Las Vegas Con-
vention Center. To give you some reflection on how the hot rodding
world has changed over the past 39 years, we dug up this selection of
photos of manufacturer booths from the 71 SEMA show as photo-
graphed for the now-defunct Hot Rod Industry News trade publica-
tion. See how many brands you recognize.
TRAN ZAM
This issues cover story reveals
a long-standing enterprise
that is not dead: the improving
of a factory muscle car into a
specialized edition of same.
Our feature this month is a
Camaro turned into a Trans
Am, but in 1978, the news
was that Dennis Mecham of
Arizonas Mecham Pontiac
was turning new Trans Ams
into Macho TAs. Dave Wal-
lace, still an HRM contributor
today, is seen in the driver seat
in this outtake photo from the
story in the July 78 issue, in
which he led with, Would you
believe a 14.29-second new
car? Yeah, in 2009 we call it a
V-6 Camaro. But 31 years ago,
the Macho took a handful of
speed parts to run 14s, making
it 1 second quicker in the quar-
ter than a stocker.
John Lingenfelter died after a
racing accident in 2003, but
his legacy is still feltso much
so in fact, that his is the name
most often associated with
1989s Sledgehammer Cor-
vette that was street legal with
all the amenities yet ran 254
mph at Ohios Transportation
Research Center after having
been driven 700 miles. The car
was actually a Reeves Callaway
project, though Lingenfelter
is remembered as the builder
of the twin-turbocharged
350 making 880 hp (a huge
number 20 years ago) and for
driving it on the glory run. The
story is in the Apr. 89 issue of
HOT ROD.
SLEDGEHAMMER
The publication of the Mar.
10 issue marks the first from
the publishing companys new
home in El Segundo, Califor-
nia. We just moved away from
a Wilshire Boulevard address
near Beverly Hills where
we had been for 16 years,
but the 8490 Sunset Blvd.
office in West Hollywood is
the one old-timers pine for.
Heres how it looked just after
Petersen Publishing moved
into the former bank build-
ing in 1968. The building has
stood abandoned for many
years and will likely eventually
meet the wrecking ball.
Read this months Roddin at
Random for news about Larry
Larson and his 66 Chevy II
that has won HOT ROD Drag
Week two years in a row and
that just ran in the 6s in Las
Vegas. Then consider this photo
from the 93 HOT ROD Fastest
Street Car Shootout. Back then,
it was huge news when Monte
Berneys blue-and-white Chevy
broke into the 7s. For the sec-
ond running of the Shootout,
we staffers required the racers
to drive 25 miles around the
Memphis Motorsports Park
road course, then shut off their
cars and get them restarted
within 30 seconds. Monte
failed; so did hero Danny Scott
in the Seafoam Green Camaro.
Pete Walshs Nova and Paul
Germanos 67 Nova ran low 9s
but did not make the cut. Today,
cars that can really drive 1,000
miles in a week are in the 6s.
Think about it. Sadly, Memphis
Motorsports Park, site of all
the HRM Shootouts and the
recent Pump Gas Drags, shut
its doors about a month before
press time.
8490
HOW FAR WEVE COME
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Performance wiring harnesses and electrical products for use
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See our complete line of proven electrical components, wiring
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Made With
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Car Owners
Ross and Beth Myers
Welcome to the Hot Rods section of the mag, where all the
car features live. Know of a great ride that should be here?
Got killer photos of cars in action along with details about them?
Tip us off: email HOTROD@hotrod.com or mail to HOT ROD Hot Rods,
831 S. Douglas St. El Segundo, CA 90245.
> Eastbound and down, loaded up and truckin

Hot Rodders Show How
GM Should Have Done It.
By Rob Kinnan
Photography: Wes Allison and Otto Body
W
hen news of the Camaros
rebirth got teeth back in 2006,
the HOT ROD staff was
frothing at the mouth, and it
wasnt long before one of us
asked the question, I wonder if theyll do a
Firebird version of it? Of course, Pontiac still
existed at the time, so it seemed logical. We
then saw designer Kevin Morgans concept
drawing of a new Trans Am (below), using
the Camaro as the base. He hit it out of the
park with the rendering, which appeared in
the May 07 issue, and were not the only ones
to think so.
Tod Warmack at Trans Am Depot in Talla-
hassee, Florida (www.transamdepot.com),
thought the same thing and told his brother
and business partner, Scott, If Pontiac
doesnt build a Trans Am, we can do it based
on Kevins design.
Of course, there werent any cars available
at the time, but thanks to his SEMA mem-
bership, Tod had access to the cad-cam data
on the new Camaro and gathered the infor-
mation needed to make the tooling to turn
the Chevy into a Trans Am. About a year
later, Todd Otto at Otto Body in Lincoln,
Nebraska (www.ottobody.com), was think-
ing the same thing and called Kevin with the
offer to build a one-off TA, just because he
wanted to do it. Kevin contacted Tod (War-
mack) and told him of the plan, and the three
of them hashed out the details. Trans Am
Depot bought a new Camaro and delivered it
to Otto Body, which built the car in a relative
hurry to hit the deadline of making it to the
Trans Am Nationals in Dayton, Ohio, in
August 2009 for its debut.
The first car was built to make it 3-D and
see what worked and what didnt. You know,
so we could step back and look at it and see
how it looked, Tod says. As soon as the first
car was done, the team began refining the
design on a second car.
After seeing the first car at the TA Nats,
Pypes Performance Exhaust called and asked
if it could have it for its 09 SEMA booth. Tod
told Pypes that No. 2 was the better deal and
he was already working on it. The company
said yes, and the mad thrash truly began.
This car was built in a little more than four
weeks. It required literally sleeping at the
shop at times, Tod says.
The Trans Am design cues are everywhere,
but nowhere more evident than in the nose
KEVINS DESIGNS ARE WHAT
GAVE BIRTH TO THE IDEA.
TOD WARMACK
and hood. The Camaro front fascia was
reshaped with urethane for the distinctive
77- and 78-style beak, and an egg-crate
grille insert replaced the Camaros vertical
bar grille. The Shaker scoop is fully func-
tional and made out of two 78 Shakers. And,
of course, one cant miss the defining detail,
the one that smacks you over the head and
insists, Its a Trans Am, dammit!the big
screaming chicken on the hood.
Moving aft, we find the appropriate fender
ducts, and at the tail end lies the general
Camaro shape but with taillights sourced
from another GM car, a big lip spoiler, and a
few other subtle changes. Combine that with
the black and gold paint scheme and the gold
snowflake-ish wheels and the look is undeni-
ably Trans Am. The interior was also given
the touch with a custom dash treatment,
stitching, and sill plates. And it all works
seamlessly, as though Pontiac never left us
and this is its latest offering to the muscle-
hungry masses.
This car was developed by loyal Pontiac
fans, but not just to commemorate the past.
The plan is to build more of them. Otto Body
did the build and all the fabrication off of
Kevin Morgans design, and Trans Am Depot
will sell the conversions. All this is very new,
so there are a lot of details still to iron out, but
complete conversions will be done at Trans
Am Depot in Florida and Otto Body in
Nebraska. Theyre considering selling the
individual parts, but according to Tod, The
numbered, Kevin Morgan Signature Edition
cars will all go through one of the two shops.
Pressed for a ballpark price tag, Tod says,
My best guess is that itll run from the low
20s for the conversion to the high 40s,
depending on options.
Right now, the team is working on two
more cars for one customer while constantly
refining the design. By the time the program
is ready to roll, the car will look a bit different
from this one. Weve been contacted by
quite a few people who want us to build them
a car, but were putting them off until the fin-
ished kit comes out in March or April. Were
working on refinements while not under the
deadline pressure of SEMA, and I think
youll be pleasantly surprised at the changes
were doing from this car, Tod says. And to
add fuel to the fire, he let it slip that theyre
also thinking of working on 69 and 70 ver-
sions of the car.
So there you go, Trans Am lovers. Even
though Pontiac is no more, you can still have
your brand-new, modern Trans Am. And if
youre thinking about a 2011 sequel to
Smokey and the Bandit, well, so are we.
> The tail still has the convex shape of the Camaro, but its currently being refined to
square it off more true to the 77 to 78 Firebird. They wanted to do that originally but
didnt have time to research new taillights and still make the SEMA deadline. The 1-inch-
lowered stance comes from Eibach Springs. Note the 77-era TA quad exhaust tips. Future
examples will likely have the Camaro-esque quarter louvers removed.
1. The engine is the stock LS3, but ProCharger installed one of its
centrifugal blowers on the car. Notice how the Shaker is functional,
feeding cold air to the blower. We dig the Pontiac blue engine cover, too.
2. Though the transmission is a six-speed, the shift knob on top of the
Hurst stick has a vintage four-speed pattern. 3. Designer Kevin Morgan
is fully on board with the project, and all the conversions will be num-
bered and carry special headrest stitching, though future versions will
look a little different from this one. 4. Its the little touches that count.
5. The interior is stock Camaro with Trans Am accents, including a
different treatment to the dash bezels that harkens back to the engine-
turned Trans Am dash of the 70s. The Pontiac steering wheel came from
a G8, a swap that required changing the entire steering column.

1.
2. 3.
4.
5.
I
t happened on our last trip to South
America. After visiting the Lost City of
Machu Picchu in Peru, we ventured
through the mountains and down the
Amazon into Brazil. In an old village we
met a merchant with an impressive collec-
tion of spectacular, iridescent emeralds.
Each gem was tumbled smooth and
glistened like a perfect rain forest dew
drop. But the price was so unbelievable, I
was sure our interpreter had made a mistake.
But there was no mistake. And after return-
ing home, I had 20 carats of these exquisite
emeralds strung up in 14k gold and
wrapped as a gift for my wifes birthday.
Thats when my trouble began. She loved
it. Absolutely adored it. In fact, she rarely
goes anywhere without the necklace and
has basked in compliments from total
strangers for months now.
So whats the problem? Im never
going to find an emerald deal this good
again. In giving her such a perfect gift, Ive
made it impossible to top myself.
To make matters worse, my wifes become
obsessed with emeralds. She cant stop
sharing stories about how Cleopatra
cherished the
green gem above
all others and how
emeralds were
worshiped by the
Incas and Mayans
and prized by
Spanish conquis-
tadors and Indian
maharajahs. Shes
even buying into
ancient beliefs
that emeralds
bring intelligence,
well-being and
good luck to anyone who wears them.
I dont have the heart to tell her that Im
never going to find another deal this lucky.
Our elegant Emeralds in 14K Gold
Necklace features 20 carats of smooth,
round emerald beads, hand-wired
together with delicate 14K gold links.
Each bead is unique in both size and color,
ranging from transparent to translucent.
The 18" necklace fastens with a spring ring
clasp. If you are not thrilled at this rare
find, send it back within 30 days for a full
refund of the purchase price. But remember,
we have only found enough emeralds to
make a small limited number of necklaces
and earrings at this low price.
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20 carats of genuine
mined emeralds.
Enlarged to show details
1.
2.
4.
3.
5.
1. Shown sitting next to a Camaro, you can see the changes to the front
end. 2. Heres a graphic look at the modifications to the front fascia. 3.
This is the finished fascia. 4. The upper grille insert is actually from a
truck, cut to fit, and the lower is from a G8. The team is now working with
a company that makes grilles to improve on this one and put a nice bor-
der or frame around it. 5. Here are the fender ducts being crated.
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THE LTA
> HOT ROD gave you a sneak peek at LPEs next-gen phantom Firebird a few months ago when the prototype was still under construction.
Here it is in its finished form. Honeycomb wheels make quite a statement when theyre 20 inches in diameter.
> The LS-based 455ci motor features a forged Lunati stroker crank,
11.5:1 Diamond pistons, and a FAST intake manifold, coupled with a
Corvette LS9 twin-disc clutch.
> Carpeting and upholstery are electric blue, just like the 71 Trans Am
the LTA emulates.
L
ingenfelter Performance Engineer-
ing also has a new Camaro
reworked as a Firebird tribute. Its
called the LTA, which you can take
as licensing-sensitive shorthand
for Lingenfelter Trans Am. Given the compa-
nys proven expertise at wringing big power
from GMs LS engine family, the LTA arrives
on the scene with serious street performance
cred. Under its hood is an RHS (Racing Head
Service) aluminum block punched out to a
nostalgic 455 ci and kitted out with the full
complement of Lingenfelter muscle mods.
LPE confidently rates the combination at 655
hp and 610 lb-ft.
The functional Shaker hood, front fender
vents, and other design features are all care-
fully intended to mirror the look of the 71
Trans Am. The second-gen Firebird flavor
also carries into the interior, where youll find
period-correct, neon-blue vinyl everywhere
(one of our favorite touches) and engine-
turned aluminum on the dash. Spokespeople
at LPE say that due to the encouraging
response to the prototype LTA at SEMA and
elsewhere, the company is already at work
developing a second concept car to explore
the reborn Firebird theme. So if you like the
early 70s birds better than the Bandit years,
here ya go.
Lingenfelter Builds A Modern Trans Am
Based On The 71 Model.
By Bill McGuire
Photography: Bill McGuire
DISCLAIMER: DONATION NOT REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE AND WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR ODDS OF WINNING. Void where prohibited by law.
Winner need not be present to win. Winner responsible for all applicable taxes. See ofcial rules for details at www.winthemustangs.com.
*Ford Oval and Mustang are registered trademarks owned and licensed to Dream Giveaways by Ford Motor Co.
Healing Heroes Network
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Legendary Icon or High-Tech Supercar?
By Mark Breiner, gearhead
Yes, I want to help the troops and win both cars!

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AsyouknowImagearheadandachild
oIthe60s.InhighschoolIpassedon
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CorvetteIwaswrenchingon.
Passion for a Cause
LiIehashappenedovertheensuing
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Iorhorsepower.ThatsoneoIthe
mainreasonsIgotinvolvedinDream
GiveDwDys to beneft chDrities. I get to
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passion.
Creating the dream
0y frst proiect wDs the 2008 Corvette
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Helping out another great charity!
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Mark is a licensed drag racer, restorer and
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> The HPP Daytona employs a
pointed prow and fender blisters
(here mounted on the hood) to re-
create the NASCAR aero warrior look.
> The Daytonas body mods are an interesting mash-up of old-school
and cutting-edge aero styling, with a big, old NASCAR wing overhead and
a fenced diffuser in the rear fascia.
> The front end treatment is also a blend of old and new: the original
Daytonas rocket nose cone combined with a functional splitter at pave-
ment level. The blackout treatment is more Superbird than Daytona.
T
urning Camaros into Pontiacs is not
todays only trick. In Moparland,
Heide Performance Products (HPP)
has re-created another muscle leg-
end. HPP is a relatively new player
on the OE performance scene but is led by
two Motor City veterans: Gordon Heidacker,
who spent several decades in Chryslers rac-
ing and performance programs, including
Viper and Prowler; and Jack Pennington, ex-
Saleen and ASC lead designer. Though built
on the ponycar-flavored Challenger plat-
form, the HPP Daytona is styled to evoke the
wild aerodynamic look of the winged Char-
ger Daytona and Plymouth Superbird
B-Bodies that terrorized NASCAR four
decades ago. The premise might not be as
far-fetched as it seems. The Challengers
wheelbase is 116 inchesthe same as the 70
Superbird.
The transformation, if you will, from
contemporary ponycar to NASCAR retro
racer is achieved via radically redesigned
front and rear fasciae, rocker panels, an alu-
minum hood, and, of course, a skyscraper
rear wing just like the one on Chryslers origi-
nal aero warriors, the first NASCAR racers to
exceed 200 mph. HPP added a Vortech
supercharger to bump the 5.7L Hemi up to
an estimated 600 hp, while a KW suspension
package with adjustable coilovers dumps
the ride height a full 3.5 inches to complete
the look.
HPP Builds A Modern Winged Warrior
From A Challenger.
By Bill McGuire
Photography: HPP
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J
im Mayberry pur-
chased this 31 Ford
roadster from a
friend whod picked
it up on eBay. It was
rough, and Jim knew it, but
he could see the potential so
he hauled it to rod builder
Johnny Morris and told him,
I like the way it looks now,
but I want it nice. Easier said
than done.
Johnny lifted the body off,
looked over the terminally
hacked chassis, and immedi-
ately rolled it over to the
scrap heap. A new frame was
crafted from 1x3-inch tube
with new suspension front
and rear, then he called Pro
Street legend Scott Sullivan to
tackle the body.
Scott realized right away
there was much less car than
met the eye. The roadster
began as a four-door sedan
that someone shortened into
a two-door with an altered
rear that looked more like a
Vicky and cut-off roof. There
was more mud than steel,
and the body was so badly
out of square he could stick
his finger in the door gaps.
Off to the blaster it went to
reveal the ugly truth.
Thanks to a deadly combi-
nation of rust and poor
workmanship, nearly every-
thing needed serious work or
replacement. The doors were
so bad that Scott built new
ones from scratch. The cus-
tom body line along the bot-
tom that hides the frame was
necessary since the bottom 8
inches of the car were left
behind in the blasters booth.
The wheeltubs were remade,
as well as the dash, quarters,
firewall . . . the list goes on.
So whats actually left of
the original car? Scott
thought for a moment and
then replied, Well, most of
the beltline up. So in the end,
the original car basically
served as a rough sketch for
what would become this
unique golden roadster.
What started as a good idea
actually became a great car;
all they had to do was replace
everything.
1.
2.
PEOPLE THINK I ONLY BUILD A CERTAIN KIND OF
CAR. ID LIKE TO CHANGE THAT IDEA. SCOTT SULLIVAN
THE TEMPLATE
Sometimes a Project Car Is Simply Inspiration.
By Christopher Campbell
Photography: Wes Allison
1. The dash was hand-shaped by Scott as a better version of the one the car had when delivered. Classic Instruments curved-glass gauges are
mounted in an engine-turned panel made by machinist Malcolm Berry. Custom door panels, carpet, and the severely cut-down early Mustang
seats were done by upholsterer Dennis Gambill. 2. While he was re-creating the body, Scott stretched the original doors 5 inches to create bet-
ter overall proportions. The removable top is a fiberglass copy of the ridiculously heavy steel one that came with the car. 3. Jims a big flathead
fan; all three of his rods have one. The 53 Merc flathead in this one is a mild build paired with a 40 Ford three-speed Top Loader from a truck. The
hard-to-find Eddie Meyer speed equipment has been hanging out in Jims garage for the past 20 years or so just waiting for the right project.
3.

GENERATIONAL
SHIFT
Heres Our Kind of Hybrid:
Equal Parts First-Gen Camaro
and C5 and C6 Corvette
By Bill McGuire
Photography: David Freers
L
> Finding a location for this photo shoot was
easywe used Ken Lingenfelters garage.
His collection features more than 120 cars,
including the latest from Ferrari, Lamborghini,
and Bugatti. But as you can see, he also has a
thing for Corvettes and Camaros.
> Except for the MOMO wheel, Pioneer audio, and
Corbeau racing belts, the cabin is C6 Corvette. The
dash had to be widened about an inch at the front
to match the F-bodys cowl contour.
> Corsa Performance of Berea, Ohio, built
the Corvette-esque exhaust system in
stainless tubing with quad outlets through a
unique fiberglass valance. The torque tube
was lengthened 3.5 inches.
> Baer calipers and rotors ride on all four cor-
ners. The Corvette front and rear cradles were
narrowed 3 inches each to keep the tires inside
the Camaro fenders.
W
eve all been there. Often, a
car build starts with a clear
objective in mind, but by the
time the project nears com-
pletion, the plan has headed
off in a new direction. Thats just what hap-
pened here. Ken Lingenfelter commissioned
Kustom Creations of Sterling Heights, Michi-
gan, to build this 68 Camaro as his personal
killer road machine. But just as the finish line
was coming into view, a new set of priorities
took hold.
In August 2008, Ken bought Lingenfelter
Performance Engineering (LPE), the com-
pany founded by legendary engine guy John
Lingenfelter. Tragically, the automotive world
lost John on Christmas Day in 2003, the
result of injuries suffered in a racing crash the
year before. While Ken and John share the
same last name, I consider myself a friend, a
customer, and a distant cousin, in that order,
Ken says. His goal is to keep Lingenfelter Per-
formance on the cutting edge of the street
performance market.
LPE made its bones offering extreme
performance upgrades for Corvettes and
other late-model GM products, including
F-bodies, GTOs, and Cadillac CTS-Vs.
However, Ken would like to expand that per-
ception. He wants you to think of Lingen-
felter Performance for your go-fast needs no
matter what generation of vehicle you drive.
What better marketing device for putting
that message across than the car you see
here? Its 68 Camaro on the outside; C5 Cor-
vette running gear underneath; and inside, a
transplanted C6 Corvette cabin. The Camaro
is a rolling bullet point.
Dave Ross of Busta Design performed the
design work, integrating late-model Corvette
styling details into the early Camaros body
lines, while Harvey Ledesma and Don Rob-
erts of Kustom Creations performed the
build. The engine is, of course, a Lingenfelter
LS7 with the full deluxe treatment, including
a Harrop blower and a custom-grind LPE
camshaft. Earlier in the process, the Camaro
was given the name RS06, and Z06-style
fender and interior badges were designed to
signify 640 hp. However, once Lingenfelter
Performance became part of the program,
that number started moving up to some-
where around 700 hp at last report. Looks
like they need to mill up a new set of badges.
But thats how it goes as a build project
evolves. Its always something.
> The petite spoiler and shaved rear bumper and tail panel are all the work of Kustom Creations.
The Rushforth wheels wear P245/40ZR18 and P285/35ZR19 Goodyears. The unique side-mirror
treatment is a signature of Dave Ross. Note the Corvette-style coves and door handles.
> The block is a dry-sump LS7
thoroughly rubbed on by LPE
and topped with CNC-ported L92
heads and a TVS 2300 blower
from Harrop.
Classic Jeep Looks With Modern Mopar Performance
Photography: Tavis Highlander
WILLYS SRT8
> Too low would be wrong for a Jeep, but the
slightly dropped stance on U.S. Wheel chrome
smoothies with BFG Long Trail T/As works well.
The faux wood is from lots of custom-blended
hues, but the rest of the body is Sherwin-
Williams Pyrite Mica.
> The stock seat frames were re-covered with distressed vinyl cov-
ers designed by Tavis. The pedals and accompanying brakes are
from Wilwood. The big single gauge is a custom Haneline 5-in-1.
> The stock Mopar Perfor-
mance 6.1 Hemi crate engine
is tucked into the engine bay
with surprisingly little drama.
Behind it is a Viper-spec T56
six-speed.
T
he original premise of the Jeep was function over flash, so when Tavis High-
lander of Highlander Concept Rendering (www.tavishighlander.com) decided
to build a 53 Willys wagon as a useful hot rod, the plan was to make it better
all around but without losing the Willys sensibility. These things just arent
supposed to be too nice.
Beginning with a neglected specimen that cost next to nothing, Tavis offset the price of
new parts by performing all the work himself and with the aid of his dad. It was a rusty
POS, Tavis explains. We replaced the cowl sides, firewall, front floor, rockers, rocker
braces, rear quarters, inner rear fenders, and lower tailgate hinge area and sectioned the
grille 1.5 inches. And that doesnt even get into the subtle custom work.
Chassiswise, Tavis went junkyard raiding and swapped in an S-10 front clip with Belltech
2-inch drop spindles and an Explorer 8.8 rearend complete with stock leaves and sway bar.
The rest of the frame was boxed for strength, since the one major departure for the Willys
was swapping the teeny four-banger for a 6.1L Hemi.
To keep the subtle appearance of a clean restoration, Tavis took a page from Willys own
design book and devised a faux woody treatment reminiscent of designer Brooks Stevens
original concept. All in all, it didnt turn out too bad considering this was his first paint job
and was sprayed inside an old boat shop next to a river.
One Mans Response to
Anothers Ribbing
Photography: Robert McGaffin
F
or three years, Mike Holleman attended
the HOT ROD Top Speed Challenge at the
Maxton Mile (in North Carolina) as a spec-
tator and took lots of abuse from ECTA Race
Director Keith Turk for never bringing anything to
run. In retaliation, he decided to turn his 65 El Camino into a top-
speed and road course machine. The Elky was done in only eight months.
Mike turned to Schwartz Extreme Performance for one of its G-Machine chas-
sis for suspension geometry thats not dependent on stock pickup points. Also, after
the chassis was completed and the rollbar was installed, the Elky boasted an
impressive 50.50/49.50 front to rear weight bias.
Following an uneventful three-hour drive to Maxton for the 09 HOT ROD Top
Speed Challenge, Mike got a big thumbs up from Keith and the HOT ROD staff
and then proceeded to whip up four warm-up runs in the mid-130-mph range.
Once he was confident in the Elkys handling, Mike planted the pedal for the fifth
try and ripped off a 158-mph pass. Theres still more in it, since he lifted before the
end of the mile so as not to exceed the safety-techd speed.
Since the autocross-friendly 3.73s required Fifth gear from the T56 on the top
end, the plan is to return next time with 3.00 cogs that should let him cross the line
in Fourth and hopefully in the 165- to 170-mph range. Thats especially remarkable
considering the mild attitude of the near-stock LS2 pushing the flat-nosed Elky.
Between now and then, however, hes got a lot of track days planned and promises
the Elky will never see a trailer. In fact, hes already racked up more than 7,000 miles
on it.
> The LS2 has ported GM L92 heads; a 0.591/0.600-lift, 232/236-duration
Livernois hydraulic roller cam; a set of Stainless Works polished long tubes
connected to Spintech mufflers; and a little custom tuning by RPM Perfor-
mance in Garner, North Carolina, to put 445 hp and 395 lb-ft to the wheels.
> The basic black interior features a set of Corbeau Racing seats paired
with a five-point harness attached to a custom-built rollbar to keep Mike in
place. The gauges in the carbon-fiber dash insert are Stewart Warner Max
Performance, and the steering wheel is from Budnik.
> Since only a little more wheelwell was needed to clear the
10-inch wheels and 285/40 BFGs, rather than mini-tubs, Mike
opted for a discreet stretch and flare to the quarters. Even the
most sharp-eyed Chevelle buff is likely to miss it.
> Though the sticky Goodyears arent
spinning much here, the Tiger has no
problem getting loose.
> On the cars first day out at Gingerman
Raceway (South Haven, Michigan), it worked
fantastically. Thats Johnny Miller, Vintages
engine man, driving. The bodywork was done
by Don Ingram and the paint came from Rich
Thiel, both at Vintage Performance.
> The 427 came from a
69 Mach 1 drag car that
looked like someone had
stored it underwater for
five years. It was fresh-
ened by Miller and backed
by a Top Loader four-
speed and a radically nar-
rowed 9-inch rear.
> The interior was stitched by Bryce Perry.
The trans tunnel and interior sheetmetal were
fabricated by Rich Thiel. The notched tunnel
is required to fit the seats and make the Hurst
shifter fall into your hand. The Sprint Car steering
wheel is the perfect size for this car. The ped-
als are a little close together, but what can you
expect when you squeeze a 427 into a car this
size. You wear this car instead of sitting in it.
Doing What Shelby Didnt Have Time To Do.
By Mike Yoksich Photography: Mike Yoksich
A
fter seeing what Carroll Shelby
had done to the diminutive AC
Ace (you know, sticking a small-
block Ford in it and calling it the
Cobra), the powers that be at
Rootes American Motors looked at the
English Sunbeam Alpine they were selling
and thought, Why not? So they commis-
sioned Shelby to build a prototype with a
260ci Ford V-8, called it the Sunbeam
Tiger, and then had Jensen (in England)
build the limited-production cars. There
was room under the hood to wedge in a
427 big-block, la Cobra, but Shelby got
embroiled in the legendary Ford versus
Ferrari battle and didnt have time to do
that, so all 7,085 Tigers had small-blocks.
Thats where Dr. Mike Frielander stepped
in to take care of the final evolution. He
had his crew at Vintage Performance (VP)
in Ypsilanti, Michigan, build a 427 dual-
quad, side-oiler version of the 289 Tiger.
The base car was a wrecked Alpine
(thankfully, not a real Tiger). To handle the
power and keep the massive tires under
stock, unflared fenders, VPs Rich Thiel
built a full chassis. Mike also wanted the
427 to fit under the hood and to make sure
the rollcage was tall enough for him to fit
under with his helmet on. Since he wanted
a track day car he could drive to the track,
all the street-required equipment is func-
tional. The final product looks like an
extension of Shelbys original idea taken to
the next generation, and Mike tells us its
an absolute riot to drive.
HOT ROD Suggests That 26 of SEMAs
Top Show Cars Get Out There and Drive.
By David Freiburger and Rob Kinnan
Photography: David Freiburger and Rob Kinnan
Presented by
32 Ford roadster, Dave Schaub
We didnt invite this car because it was the nicest
roadster at SEMA. No, we invited it because of the
journey it had just been onDave drove his
Brizio-built Deuce through 49 states in just under
nine days. He started in California and ended in
Alaska, traveling 9,856 miles and generating
money for the Ronald McDonald House in Stan-
ford, California. To learn more about the trip, go to
Daves website, www.49in9.com, or better yet,
come on the HOT ROD Power Tour and ask him in
person.
64 Ford Fairlane, Ken and Ev Smith
Ringbrothers wowed the SEMA crowd again with
its latest project for the Smith family. This 64 Fair-
lane is named Afterburner and sports more of the
insane level of detail that has made Ringbrothers
one of todays top street machine builders. A
Roush 427 individual-runner engine and a Bowler
AOD transmission mean it should run like a
champ . . . so will they bring it on Tour?
T
he idea hit us with that last splash of
margarita. The staff of HOT ROD
was drinking its dinner one night at
the start of the 09 SEMA show in
Las Vegas and doing plenty of grip-
ing about how guys with top-end show cars
are, now as ever, afraid to actually drive the
things. We were bemoaning the fact that the
really killer cars dont show up on HOT
RODs Power Tour anymore. So we came up
with a plan to flex our powers of influence
and amplify our self-righteous notion that
cars should be built to be driven while also
sharing with you some photos of the greatest
cars of SEMA. Since the crew at Ridetech also
appreciates thrashing pristine cars, they
stepped up as the presenting sponsor of HOT
RODs first-ever Power Tour Challenge.
The morning after our fateful brain-
storming, we printed a stack of strongly
worded invitations make that challenges
asking owners to prove that their SEMA dis-
play cars are more than just booth beauties
by driving them the full 1,100-mile route of
the 10 HOT ROD Power Tour under their
own power and without a chase trailer. We
also leveraged peer pressure to our advan-
tage, informing the owners that the cars wed
invited had already been filmed for an epi-
sode of HOT ROD TV all about the Power
Tour Challenge and that they had already
been photographed for the story you happen
to be reading this very moment.
The invitation was extended to 26 cars
handpicked by the HOT ROD editors. While
many of the owners will have perfectly good
reasons why they cant make the drive, were
taking the stance that they are all just excuses.
An easy road trip. Its a small price to pay to
be a hero, and were dedicated to making
these guys heroes if they accept our chal-
lenge. To help with that, each of the Power
Tour Challenge cars that accepts the invita-
tion will be judged during Power Tour for
style and lack of whining; bonus points will
be added for those that participate in the
dragstrip, the Ridetech autocross, and chas-
sis-dyno events during the week. Well also
have a crowd-appeal contest with the Long
Haulers during the last-day ceremonies, and
a single winner will be named and vaunted to
new heights with a feature story in HOT
ROD magazine.
At SEMA, we gave an RSVP deadline of
February 2. As of press time, only six car
owners have accepted our challenge. There-
fore, assuming this published outing will rat-
tle some cages, were extending the deadline
to March 2. If you are the owner of one of
these 26 cars, email us soon at HOTROD@
hotrod.com and let us know your intentions.
For the rest of you, just come along for
Power Tour June 5-11, 2010, from Newton,
Iowa, to Mobile, Alabama. You never know
who may show up. See details at
www.HOTROD.com.
67 Chevrolet Chevelle, Josh Henning
Joshs car was invited to the Optima Invita-
tional after the organizers saw it outside
SEMA, the same place it caught our eye. We
were thrilled to see that such a nice car was
hitting the track, until the cars engine let go.
Hes told us hes coming on Power Tour, so
lets hope he has it running again by June.

C
H
A
L
L
E
N
G
E
!
26 T roadster, Bruce Wanta
It if looks familiar, that might be
because you may have built a
model of it when you were a kid.
Troy Ladd at Hollywood Hot
Rods built The Black Widow as a
running, driving version of the
old Monogram model kit, and its
sweet.
65 Pontiac GTO, Josiah Coy
This car is subtle. Unlike so
many others at SEMA, it doesnt
hit you upside the head with its
outrageousness. But look a little
while longer and the level of
attention to detail is superb, the
stance is spot-on, and the
amount of work that went into it
is unreal. Then you learn that
Josiah Coy is only 21, and its
that much neater. Josiah was
also one of the first invitees to
accept the challenge, so go
check out this thing in June.
69 Dodge Charger, Tom Boldry
Rocks Rod & Custom in Kansas
City, Missouri, built this Charger
with beauty beyond a first
impression. Endless body mods
include a custom grille, a gor-
geous grille surround , and 68
taillights. The detailed Indy-
headed 472 Hemi should make
it a fun Power Tour ride.

> 68 Chevrolet truck, David Neal
In the weeds is the best way to describe this
pickup. Airbags and a seriously modified bed
get it on the ground while the custom body-
work and interior grab attention. Its neat and
needs to be driven.
70 Chevrolet Chevelle, Mike Racke
Its a diesela 6.6L GM Duramax that makes
stupid torque, like 1,700 lb-ft of the stuff. We
challenged Mikes Chevelle because of the
absurdity of it but also to further drive home
the point to Power Tour regulars to not be
afraid to be different.
36 Auburn Boattail Speedster,
James Hetfield
There are several reasons we challenged this
car, named Slowburn. For one, builder Rick Dore
floored us with the choice of color (the photo
doesnt do this car justice; the paint is a beauti-
ful root beer color). Two, it looks way too nice to
drive. Three, were Metallica fans and think it
would be double-throw-down bitchin if James
(the bands singer and guitar player) would
come mix it up on Power Tour.
68 Plymouth Belvedere GTX, Ken and Kirk Jansen
The Jansen family has owned this GTX since 1972, transforming it into a Pro Street show car
in the mid-80s with an alcohol Hemi under the hood. The latest incarnation was finished a
few months before SEMA and now sports a 572ci, tunnel-rammed Ray Barton Hemi and
33x22-inch rear rubber. Were predicting this one is too much of a showpiece to accept our
invitation, but, Ken . . . prove us wrong.
56 Chevrolet convertible, Don and Karen Blacksmith
Watch for a feature on this car soon. Its the sano 56 ragtop designed and built by Jason Hulst
(www.hulstcustoms.com) in Merlin, Oregon. The slammed, full-custom Tri-Five received our invita-
tion. Now its time to see if itll make the Tour kickoff in Newton, Iowa.
40 Mercury Custom, Teds Rod Shop
We dont get very many true customs on Power Tour, so were really hoping this one accepts the
challenge. If youre into automotive TV shows, this might look familiar as it was featured on Chop Cut
Rebuild. Built at Teds Rod Shop in Riverside, California, it was pinned to the carpet at SEMA.
57 Oldsmobile
Unknown
We dug this Olds
ragtop so much
that we invited
it. Problem is,
we have no
information on
the car, so if its
yours, or you
know the owner,
have him con-
tact us.
The Peterbilt Rod,
Randy Grubb
The Pissd Off Pete is the lat-
est piece of automotive art
from Randy Grubbs Blasto-
lene shop. This is the same
guy who built the Blastolene
Special (the tank car Jay
Leno now owns) and the
B-702 featured in the July
08 issue. The Pete features a
12-cylinder Detroit Diesel
with two 6-71 blowers and
acres of attitude. It found a
new owner at SEMA, who has
given Randy the go-ahead to
wow the Power Tour crowds.
Check it out in person.
70 Dodge Dart, Mr. Norms Garage
You can buy this car, and it has a Hemi (of course). Built by Time Machines in Hudson, Florida,
through its Mr. Norms Garage line, the Dart has a 528ci, Hilborn-injected Hemi and modern, Pro Tour-
ingish suspension and brakes, air conditioning, a stereo . . . you get the idea. We figured this one is a
shoo-in to accept our challenge, since bringing it on Power Tour allows for free advertising.
32 Ford Tudor, Pinkees Rod Shop
The Hemrod is the latest from the metal mas-
ters at Pinkees in Windsor, Colorado, and its
one youre going to want to see in person. The
fabrication and attention to detail are second
to none, and if Pinkees Eric Peratt accepts
our invitation, this car will have a crowd
around it 100 percent of the time.
69 Camaro con-
vertible, Tom Farrell
The RK-1 Camaro is
representative of
todays typical muscle car buildlots of
engine (in this case a 582ci Dart big-block),
road race suspension (Art Morrison Max-G
chassis), a cushy leather interior, bright paint,
and big wheels (Colorado Custom 18s and
20s). Tom has already confirmed that hes
accepting the challenge, so get to Newton
this June and see it in person.
62 Chevrolet Corvette, Barry Blomquist
The C1RS Vette was built by The Roadster
Shop and won the Goodguys Street Machine
of the Year title. You saw it in the Jan. 09 issue
of HOT ROD. This car is no stranger to the auto-
cross, so theres no reason it shouldnt do just
fine on the Power Tour, right?
p
57 Chevrolet convertible, Bill Perry
The second Roadster Shop car we invited is this bitchin 57 convertible. It uses a brand-new EMI
body and a Roadster Shop chassis with an injected GM 572 crate motor under hood. The satin grille
and wheels make it stand out from the sea of chromed-out Tri-Fives that make the Tour every year.
70 Ford Mustang, Philip Koenen
We shouldnt admit it in public, but the Trans-Cammer (built by Grand Touring Garage in North Bend,
Oregon) was our favorite car of the whole SEMA show. This thing is just 100 percent badass. It is a
street car built to be capable of going really, really fast at open track events and runs a legit 427
SOHC motor under the hood. There is way more detail in this thing to explain, so watch for a full fea-
ture on it in a future issue.
35 Ford three-window coupe,
Harold and Rhea Schrader
This car sat near the Meguiars tent outside and
knocked us over with its beauty. Sinuous uses a
Mike Adams tube chassis, RideTech bags, one-off
Greening Auto custom wheels, and todays hot-
test color, root beer brown, to impale your senses.
We really hope it accepts the challenge because
we want to ride in it.
60 Ford Starliner, Bodie Stroud
Bodie Stroud at BS Industries in North Hollywood,
California, built this barge, called the Scarliner, to
handle, and it packs a blown DOHC Cobra motor
under the enormous hood. Bodie said its a runner
and is not afraid to drive it, so lets hope he
accepts the challenge.
The Truckster, Dennis Overholser
Dennis of Painless Performance Products just fin-
ished this little hottie. Look closelythe body is the
cab from a 70s Ford pickup with a T bed mounted
behind it, and the grille is from a tractor. The flathead
has one of Painless new EFI systems made to look
like old two-pot carbs. Since his company is a big
Power Tour sponsor, we goaded Dennis into bring-
ing it and he said yes, so look for this one on the road
in June.
69 Pontiac GTO, Big 3 Performance
Pontiac fans know Jim Wangers as the market-
ing genius who propelled the GTO into the lime-
light and has tirelessly promoted the car ever
since. Enter the Jim Wangers Signature Edition
GTO. Custom front and rear treatments, interior
appointments, engine dress, and wheels are all
part of a package you can buy to transform
your GTO into a JWSE version. There is also
a complete chassis available. Check out
www.big3performance.com for more.
57 Chevrolet Pickup
Parked right next to the Oldsmobile that we
didnt have information on was this neat
Chevy truck with 57 Bel Air trim. Again, if this
is your truck, youve officially been chal-
lenged to bring it on Power Tour.
32 Ford roadster, Jerry Magnuson
We have a hundred dollar bill that says
Jerry Magnuson wont drive his 32
roadster on the Power Tour. Why?
Because its obviously a very high-dollar
show car built by Chip Foose from a
Marcel body (1 of 10) that features
unique pop-up headlights. Its really,
really nice, and the paint was still wet
when they rolled it into SEMA. It has
an LS2 with, of course, a Magnuson
supercharger. HRM
Keeping the Candles Lit With Chris
The Golden Greek Karamesines
By Cole Coonce
Photography: Cole Coonce and Ron Lewis
> The Greek at Pomona, November 2009
I
n the staging lanes during the National Hot Rod Associations season
finale, a gray-eyed, silver-haired, salt-and-pepper-mustachioed race
car driver is methodically gathering up his safety garb and preparing
himself for an imminent nitro-powered blast down the Pomona, Cali-
fornia, raceway in his 8,000hp Top Fuel car. The man is Chris Socrates
Karamesines, and he has been going through variations of this dragstrip rit-
ual for almost 60 years.
It is a tepid, dark-blue Thursday evening in mid-Novemberthe day
after Chris birthdayand Sandy, his lovely, fair-haired wife has a dilemma.
After this afternoons qualifying attempt, she wants to host an intimate party
and serve birthday cake to the Greeks crewmembers and friends, but if she
wants to present an accurate representation of Chris age during the celebra-
tion, there isnt enough room on the dessert for all the candles. If official
reports are to be believed, the man was born in 1928. Thus the ceremony will
require the lighting of 81 candlesat least.
That is to be dealt with after todays attempt at seeking entry into this weekends
Top Fuel Eliminator. Before any birthday cake is to be spooned into anybodys mug,
Chris must merely keep a paltry eight candles litproverbially speaking, that is one
for each cylinder and corresponding exhaust pipeif he is to show the assembled
he can manhandle a modern nitro-burning dragster and be quick enough to race
on Sunday among the elite, fastest teams. As the shimmering sun continues its slow
descent westward, pair after pair of dragsters rocket down the track, and now it is
finally Chris turn. To be blunt, because of his privateer statusi.e., no real corpo-
rate patronage in a sport where top dollar equals top dawgnone of the drag racing
players, patrons, or punditocracy expect much out of the man who began racing as
The Golden Greek in Aurora, Illinois, back before America had color television or
even an interstate highway system.
His presence here is basically symbolic, if not rather quaint. And with no expecta-
tions, that is what he delivers: The light turns green, and right off the starting line
the ferocious engine puffs fire and the supercharger disintegrates, an automatic
safety system shuts off the fuel, and sparks and parachutes blossom like parasols in a
wet parade. He may not have even made it to the finish line.
Hes been 81 for three years, laughs one member of the press core after the
aborted run.
We went through all his tech cards from the early days, and even then we got
conflicting years for his date of birth, one NHRA representative says.
Ahh, conflicting numbers and controversynothing new for Chris Kara-
mesines. Probably the most memorable (and contentious) clocking in the history of
drag racing was perpetrated by The Greek in April 1960 at Alton, Illinois. That
weekend his Chizler AA/Fuel Dragster, tuned by ace mechanic Don Maynard,
tripped the top end timers at a reported 204 mph.
The drag racing world was stunnedthis speed was nearly 10 miles an hour
faster than anything remotely considered legitimate. Pulp fiction or fact, popcorn or
gospel, it was the stuff of immediateand enduringlegend. At Pomona, almost
half a century later, Chris remembers that infamous day thusly: A bunch of us were
O
> Despite minimal financing, The Greek continues to go quicker and faster in his Strange
Engineering Chizler: At Pomona in 2009, he recorded a top end speed of 308 mph.
there: [Don] Garlits, Setto Postoian, all the
different cars. The first run we made down
the track was 204 mph. The second one was
201. The closest onetruthfully or notwas
Garlits with a 196.
In writer Jeff Burks editorial from 1987 in
Drag Racing Magazine, Chris drolly remi-
nisced about the run: It definitely felt faster
to me than any previous pass.
Veteran dragstrip journalist Dave Wal-
lacelike Chris, a member of the Interna-
tional Drag Racing Hall of Famesays bull
butter. When the subject was broached
recently, he wrote and said: Do everybody a
favor and express appropriate skepticism
about the popcorn 204 from Alton in 1960,
will ya? No f*&#ing way did anybody break
the barrier until Frank Cannon, late-July
1964, [at] Lions [Drag Strip]. I suspect The
Greek has had to sustain [sponsor] Iskys ad
campaign of that time all these yearsbut
even he surely knows better.
So was Chris the first guy to turn 200 mph
in a Top Fuel car at a dragstrip? Arguable.
How old is he? Who knows? He saysand
the party line at Pomona ishe is 81.
When asked about Chris return to
Pomona after an extended hiatus, NHRA
Museum VP Steve Gibbs shared his appreci-
ation for the moment this way: Greek has
always been a hero of mine and is more so
every passing day, he wrote. There will
never be another one like him.
Later that week, Chris said of his start in
racing: I went in the service in the 40s, got
out in the 50s, and got interested in cars and
> Although he has cemented his reputation as a bold dragster driver, Chris has competed in sundry types of machinery, including
Stock Cars and the occasional Funny Car. Note the prominent nod to longtime patron Isky Cams. Here he is at Carlsbad in 1965.
Back in the olden days, wed run 50 dates a
year. Lately, we are up to 15 races with the new
cars. Chris Karamesines
FOOTNOTE:
(Chris Karamesines returns to Pomona for NHRAs 50th Winternationals in February.
He is the only Top Fuel driver entered who is older than the sanctioning body itself.)
started racing Model As. I did about three
months of Stock Car racing and got tired of
fixin em and crashing em. I decided I
wanted to go drag racing.
Although Chris dabbled in Stock Cars
briefly, it could be argued that he borrowed
from the circle track its ethos and applied
some of the same techniques to straight-line
racing. Early in his career, his reputation was
that of a driver who would never say die, yet
unlike many dragstrip daredevils who
pushed their thundering steeds too far and
yanked on their steering yokes too hard, The
Greek never found a way to actually die.
Back then it was new, is how Chris
demurely explains his flair for his death-
defying theatrics. They had all these race-
tracks that had never had a Fuel car before.
People wanted to see something different.
And boy was The Greek different . . . and
terrifying.
After provoking fistfights among Fuel fans
with the 204-mph shot across the bow of his-
tory, his gonzo driving style expanded his
legend like a belly dancer gorging on baklava.
In 1961 at Georgias Yellow River Dragstrip,
his parachutes failed and he drove into the
trees, but he survived and barely scratched
the dragster; in 1962 at San Gabriel, he went
off the track, into the dirt, applied full rudder
back onto the pavement, and plowed past TV
Tommy Ivo to claim victory (Steve Gibbs
then the San Gabe track operatoronce
recalled: I was at the race and couldnt
believe what I was seeing); in 1963 at Lions
Drag Strip, at 190 mph, The Greek was per-
pendicular to his competition, Don Prud-
homme, and he gave er enough steering
input to correct his trajectory 90 degrees
while taking the win.
But besides all the banzai, hellzapoppin
histrionics, for better or worse, the run that
keeps giving is the 204-mph moon shot. I
cringe every time Burk reinforces this myth,
Wallace says. Its so unfair to Cannon and
engine builder Dave Zeuschel.
> Here he is popping the blower at Indy in the mid-80s. Racing Top Fuel cars can be catastrophic and expensive.
The Greek continues to persevere when many others have parked it.
What did happen that day in Illinois? The
rumor and conventional wisdom are that
tuner Don Maynard concocted an exotic
witches brew of nitromethane and hydrazine,
a highly volatile monopropellant and exciter
favored by Third Reich aerospace engineers
as an efficient way to launch the Luftwaffes
rocket-propelled bombers during the blitz on
London. Of all that, Chris says, Maynard, yes;
hydrazine, no.
Don Maynard was the one who got me
started on fuel, Chris remembers. He was a
good mechanic and he had good ideas.
But according to The Greek, it wasnt May-
nards rocket science that propelled their
potent Chrysler into the pantheon of leg-
endit was a cock-up from Chris himself.
We made a mistake, he admits. I set the
springs wrong. What it did, instead of float-
ing the valves on the way down, it kept the
power up because it didnt float the valves.
We didnt realize what we did at the moment.
After a while, me and Maynard started look-
ing at different things. We found out that is
what we did. Then Iskenderian found out
about it and he made better springs. Thats
how it started.
About his history with experimental fuels,
The Greek downplays its impact: In later
years, we ran hydrazine and stuff like that at
higher-altitude [tracks], he acknowledges.
It had a different effect on it, but not as
much as youd think.
He is more adamant about the contribu-
tion of Maynard. We did good for about
three or four years and then he got hurthe
got killed in Phoenix.
Yes, tragically, while en route to a drag
race, Maynard was fatally wounded. Besides
his precious life essence and any future con-
tributions to drag racing perishing that day,
the secret of Alton, Illinois, also died with
Maynard.
The day after the 2009 birthday cake
dilemma and the blower blowup, Chris and
(After Alton), we went to Kansas City and ran
213. They said, Its the body on the carall
kinds of weird stuff. Then we went in Garlits
backyard and went 200. From that time,
we kept running 200 around the country.
Chris Karamesines
his minions tuned up his privately
funded Chizler Top Fuel dragsterand
dropped the jaws of everybody on the
premises. On Pomonas 1,000-foot
course, he set a career-best elapsed time
of 3.89 speeds at an excoriating 308
mph, numbers that ensured he was qual-
ified into Sundays Auto Club Finals Top
Fuel Eliminator.
Steve Gibbs put that feat and those fig-
ures in perspective thusly: The first time
I ever saw Chris Karamesines race was in
1959, when I was barely out of high
school. Fifty years later, Im collecting
Social Security and on Medicare, my old-
est granddaughter is 25 years old, and The
Greek is still going strong. He just ran 308
mph and the equivalent to a 4.59 quarter-
mile time. Unbelievable!
After that mind-boggling blast, we asked
Chris if we had just witnessed his greatest
accomplishment. My greatest achievement
is doing what I am doingenjoying
myself, he answers. I enjoy doing some-
thing and that people still recognize what
youve done. But I enjoy all my runs. I cant
say this was the best onetheyre all good.
He then explains his longevity. Every-
body can sit in a rocking chair and watch
TV all night long, he says, like a dragstrip
Jack LaLanne. The most important thing is
keeping yourself occupied and dont give up
when you get older.
Chris makes us question what is possible,
what is wisdom, and what we think we
know. He doesnt care if people doubt he was
the first man to crack the 200-mph barrier
in a wheel-driven car in the quarter-mile. Or
if he did, whether he did or didnt do it with
an assist from a Third Reich rocket fuel. Or
if he is the worlds fastest septuagenarian or
octogenarian or whatever.
Steve put it in perspective: His age has
always been questioned, and they are now
saying hes 81, although I have heard 83 from
a couple of sources. It doesnt matter . . . hes
ageless. HRM
I think the greatest thing that ever happened to
the sport is that young people are interested in
itit keeps them off the street. They got some-
thing to look forward to if they want to go fast.
Its good for everybody. Chris Karamesines
> At an age when many senior citizens are ready to recline and decline in their
easy chairs, Chris Karamesines stays busy driving and prepping his potent and
competitive Top Fuel dragster, along with his crew chief, Tim Finley, and long-
suffering clutch guy, Larry Jones.
> This is an early adaptation of the rear-
engined dragster configuration that became
de rigueur. The pipe is by Don Garlits, who revo-
lutionized the form. This is from Orange County
International Raceway, 1973.
> In the 70s, 80s, and 90s, Chris was a fixture on AHRA, IHRA,
and NHRA circuits. Although he puts in fewer miles these days,
he seems to always make marquee events like Indy.
64 MARCH 2010 HOT ROD 64 MARCH 2010 HOT ROD
We Convert the GM LS7 from Dry-Sump to Wet and Dyno-Test It.
By Will Handzel
Photography: Will Handzel
The 427ci LS7 V-8 from the 06-
up Z06 Corvette is an amazing
engine, but packaging one into a
traditional hot rod can be diffi-
cult with its external oil tank and
hoses. And there seems to be a
lot of chatter as to whether the
factory dry-sump oiling system
is even needed on a traditional
hot rod. Wouldnt it be great if
you could use an LS7 without
the external oil tank? We
thought so, too, so we found
someone who knows how to
convert the LS7 to a traditional
wet-sump design and tested to
see if there was a power differ-
ence. Luckily, we found out
Scoggin-Dickey Parts Center
(SDPC) in Lubbock, Texas, has a
really easy conversion kit avail-
able, and Livernois Motorsports
in Dearborn Heights, Michigan,
was in the process of installing a
wet-sump LS7 into a 10 Cam-
aro. We were surprised at the
power outcome and how easy
the conversion was to perform.
THE SETUP
The stock LS7 oiling system has
been called a dry-sump since it
was released, but many perfor-
mance enthusiasts define it more
as a dret system (combining the
words dry and wet together).
Thats because most of the after-
market defines a dry-sump sys-
tem as having one pressure stage
pumping oil into the engine and
at least three suction stages
drawing oil and air out of the
engine. Testing has shown that
three suction stages are needed
because each stage only draws
about 30 percent oilthe rest is
air (suction is good because it
creates a vacuum in the crank-
case, helping ring sealing and
minimizing windage power
losses).
That brings us back to the dret
definition: The LS7 oiling system
has one pressure stage and one
suction stage. Also, the stock oil
pan and pickup on the LS7 are
> Converting a dry-sump LS7
engine to a wet-sump is relatively
easy when you know the tricks.
65 HOT ROD 65
7
situated like a wet-sump pan
with the oil pickup spaced off the
bottom of the pan in an open
area (unlike true dry-sump pans,
which have distinct scrapers and
suction stages). This is not to say
the LS7 oiling system is not wor-
thy. The LS7 external oil tank
provides oil to the engine during
sustained high-G-loading situa-
tions, which the LS7-powered
ZO6 Corvette is capable of
attaining. That is the real advan-
tage of the LS7 oiling system.
The LS7 in something other
than a ZO6 (like a somewhat
heavy, high-center-of-gravity 10
Camaro) is also the reason you
dont need the external oil
tankthus minimizing the
complexity and packaging issues
that come with the tank and
lines.
BIG
HORSEPOWER
LOSSES?
There have been rumors of big
power losses in converting from
the stock dret-sump oiling sys-
tem to a true wet-sump system
(like that on an LS3), so we
dyno-tested the LS7 before and
after this conversion (and reran
the entire dry- versus wet-sump
test a second time to confirm our
numbers) and can say with con-
fidence that a wet-sump LS7
makes just a little more power
over almost the entire power-
band than the dret-sump LS7;
see the dyno chart (next page),
which shows the wet setup mak-
ing 3 to 4 more horsepower at
many rpm points. This surprised
us at first, but after talking to
some knowledgeable people
about this engine, we stand by
these numbers. The minimal
power gain makes sense, as the
engine sees very little difference
between the two systemsmost
of the 8 quarts of oil in both sys-
tems resides in the engine during
operation, and the wet-sump
version operates with consider-
ably less oil pressure and pump-
ing losses.
THE PARTS
There has been a lot of confusion in the industry as to what parts were needed to convert an LS7 to
wet-sump oiling. This story lists the parts and process steps needed. Doing this conversion is some-
thing an LS V-8 engine builder could do with mostly handtools and a few custom tools.
Order these wet-sump LS7 parts from Scoggin-Dickey Parts Center to do this swap on a 10-and-later
Camaro:
DESCRIPTION PN
LS7 crate engine 19211710
LS3 front cover 12600325
LS3 oil pump kit 12586665
LS3 crank sprocket 12556582
Crank spacer to use LS3 balancer on LS7 crank SDLS7SPCR
LS7 balancer bolt 12557840
LS3 balancer, 10 Camaro 12617538
LS3 oil pan, 10 Camaro 12622559
LS3 oil filter, ACDelco 89017524
LS3 oil pan pickup, 10 Camaro 12611904
LS3 oil pan pickup seal, 10 Camaro 12557752
LS3 oil pan pickup bolt (1), 10 Camaro 11516521
LS3 oil pan pickup nut (1), 10 Camaro 12511129
LS3 windage tray screen, 10 Camaro 12611129
LS3 windage tray nuts (10), 10 Camaro 12511129
LS3 oil dipstick tube, 10 Camaro 12625031
LS3 oil dipstick tube bolt, 10 Camaro 11515765
LS3 oil dipstick, 10 Camaro 12634547
> The main parts needed to perform the wet-sump conversion are the appropriate wet-sump oil pan (this
is a mid-sump pan used on the LS3 V-8 in the 10-and-up Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac G8) and match-
ing windage tray and oil pan pickup. Youll also need the LS3 oil pump and front engine cover, appropriate
harmonic balancer (in this case, for a 10 Camaro/G8), and the innovative LS7 wet-sump conversion crank
spacer (arrow) from Scoggin-Dickey Parts Center (SDPC).
MARCH 2010
THE WET-SUMP LS7
POWER-TESTING THE FINAL PRODUCT
Livernois Motorsports is experienced at building all kinds of LS engines for street
and racing applications. The company likes the LS7 as a wet-sump engine
because it makes just as much power throughout the rpm band as the stock
dret-sump, installs anywhere a normal LS V-8 engine would go, and has incredi-
ble street cred. The wet-sump LS7 is not for customers wanting a track-ready Pro
Touring carin that case, the dry-sump version of the LS7 is ideal.
Note: Power numbers are all corrected using correctionf factor SAE J607 (29.92
Hg, 60 degrees F, dry air) and testing was performed with the GM Performance
Parts controller (GM PN 19166567) handling fuel and ignition.

ENGINE SPEED DRY-SUMP WET-SUMP
RPM LB-FT HP LB-FT HP
2,800 438.5 233.8 439.3 234.2
2,900 434.9 240.1 437.9 241.8
3,000 431.4 246.4 438.1 250.3
3,100 437.2 258.0 441.8 260.8
3,200 444.0 270.5 447.9 272.9
3,300 450.1 282.8 454.0 285.3
3,400 452.0 292.6 456.6 295.6
3,500 454.6 302.9 457.8 305.1
3,600 457.0 313.3 460.5 315.6
3,700 464.3 327.1 468.8 330.2
3,800 469.6 339.7 473.1 342.3
3,900 475.2 352.9 483.0 358.6
4,000 480.6 366.0 486.6 370.6
4,100 490.5 382.9 490.3 382.7
4,200 493.4 394.6 498.5 398.7
4,300 495.0 405.3 499.7 409.1
4,400 502.0 421.0 506.9 424.6
4,500 506.6 434.1 508.0 435.3
4,600 509.7 446.4 514.8 450.9
4,700 513.5 459.5 519.5 464.9
4,800 511.5 467.5 518.0 473.4
4,900 514.7 480.2 520.6 485.7
5,000 514.3 489.6 515.5 490.8
5,100 513.8 499.0 520.6 505.0
5,200 510.1 505.1 514.5 509.4
5,300 511.9 516.6 509.0 513.6
5,400 505.2 519.5 508.6 522.9
5,500 506.9 530.8 508.6 532.7
5,600 504.4 537.8 508.7 537.0
5,700 497.9 540.4 501.3 544.0
5,800 493.9 545.5 493.2 544.7
5,900 487.3 547.5 483.6 543.2
6,000 481.3 549.8 485.3 554.4
6,100 477.9 555.0 473.8 550.3
6,200 465.7 549.8 467.3 551.7
6,300 461.8 554.0 460.8 552.7
6,400 450.7 549.3 453.6 552.7
6,500 443.1 548.4 444.0 549.5
6,600 435.1 546.8 435.1 546.8
6,700 426.0 543.5 425.3 542.6
6,800 417.0 539.8 417.8 541.0
6,900 403.8 530.5 407.7 535.6
7,000 395.8 527.5 404.3 538.9
REMOVING DRY-SUMP
OILING COMPONENTS
> The first step the Livernois team performs is to unthread the
crank bolt from the center of the crank and remove the LS7 Cor-
vette harmonic balancer with a balancer puller. The team uses
this compact Mac puller (PN hdpp9740b) with a 0.850-inch-
deep spacer on it.
> Next, Livernois removes the stock LS7 oil pan by unthreading
the 14 10mm bolts holding it on the engine. The reusable oil pan
gasket is riveted to the pan, so carefully separate it from the
engine to avoid damaging the gasket. They drain the oil from the
engine first to avoid a mess, then remove the eight 10mm bolts
holding the front cover in place and carefully pull it off.
> The stock LS7 two-stage oil pump is then removed by
unthreading the four 10mm bolts and pulling the pump off
the front of the crank. Livernois removes the stock LS7 wind-
age tray at this time, also by unthreading the 10 13mm nuts
(be careful not to drop any of these fasteners in the engine).
This and the rest of the LS7 dry-sump oiling system will not be
reused.
> This engine is for a 10 Camaro, so the Livernois crew needed to drill
a hole in the LS7 block for the stock LS3 wet-sump dipstick. To do this,
they used this cool drill guide, available from TechAFX, which bolts to the
oil pan flange of the engine and makes it very easy to drill the dipstick
hole in the correct location. They always drill the hole with the engine
upright and a vacuum sucking the chips out of the engine while drilling.
1.
2.
3.
> With the No. 1 piston set on TDC, Livernois removes the stock LS7 tim-
ing chain (three 10mm bolts) and crank gear (use a large crank puller to
remove this), then presses the LS3 crank gear on the crank and installs
the timing chain set (shown here) with the crank and cam gear dots
lining up (arrow). They follow factory specs, torquing the three 10mm
bolts to 104 in-lb.
> It is a good idea to use a -inch countersink drill bit to chamfer
the outer edge of the new dipstick hole (this will allow the dipstick
to slide into the engine smoothly) and continue sucking chips out of
the hole with the vacuum while you drill.
THE WET-SUMP LS7
> Livernois has found the best way to install the wet-sump oil pump is to center the oil pump body on the
crank with a 0.002-inch feeler gauge, then tighten the four 10mm bolts to 18 ft-lb. They wipe down all the
components with oil and reassemble the pump with high-pressure lube packed into the gerotor cavities
(to shorten start-up pump priming). The cover is then installed and the bolts torqued to 104 in-lb.
> The LS3 windage tray is then installed on the LS7, but washers need to be placed on the tray studs to space the tray about 0.100
inch away from the crank throws (otherwise the crank throws will hit the tray). The nuts are then torqued to 18 in-lb in a radial pattern.
> For increased oil flow, Livernois
disassembles the LS3 oil pump
(remove seven 10mm bolts),
cleans all the parts, and installs a
0.070-inch aluminum shim under
the spring in the pop-off valve to
add about 10 psi of oil pressure
across the rpm band.
4.
5.
6.
> On the oil pump pickup tube, Livernois always wipes a light coat of oil
on the O-ring so it slides into the oil pump easily. The final step to closing
the engine is to install the oil pan and the front cover, torquing the bolts
before flipping the engine over for the final assembly steps.
> A quick wipe of oil is applied to the Scoggin-Dickey LS7 wet-sump
crank spacer before it is placed in the center of the balancer (its a good
idea to check that the inside diameter of this spacer is 0.003 inch bigger
than the crank outside diameter to avoid scuffing the crank surface).
Next the balancer installation tool is used to press the balancer on
until it bottoms out on the crank gear (which you cant see because it is
inside the front cover).
> The last step is to hand-start a crank bolt (it is a good idea to buy
a new one) in the crank. A neat trick the Livernois team showed us
was looping the serpentine belt over the water pump pulley and dou-
bling the belt on the crank pulley (arrow)this holds the crank in
position while you apply the 140 ft-lb, then 70 degrees of rotation.
SOURCES
LIVERNOIS MOTORSPORTS; Dearborn
Heights, MI; 313/561-5500;
www.livernoismotorsports.com
SCOGGIN-DICKEY PARTS CENTER;
800/456-0211;
www.sdparts.com
TECHAFX; West Bloomfield, MI;
248/925-8314;
www.techafx.com
> The LS3 wet-sump pan
(background) is only about
2.5 inches deeper than the
LS7 dry-sump pan (fore-
ground). HRM
> The newly converted wet-sump LS7 was reinstalled on the Liver-
nois Motorsports engine dyno and multiple pulls were made. As the
dyno chart shows, the power difference is not what most expect
when thinking of converting to a wet-sump oiling system: It actually
made more power.
> The first part of the two-step harmonic balancer installation (in
this case an LS3 balancer for a 10 Camaro front drive) is pressing it
on until the installer tool bottoms.
7.
9. 10.
11.
8.
70 70
The NANO System Uses Nitrogen To Maintain
Nitrous Oxide Bottle Pressure, but Dont Call
It a Push System.
By Jefferson Bryant
Photography: Jefferson Bryant
SPEED PARTS TESTING
MARCH 2010 HOT ROD
71 71
In a typical nitrous oxide system,
as the nitrous releases, the bottle
pressure drops, which reduces
the amount of nitrous delivered
to the engine. That also changes
the nitrous-to-fuel ratio, chang-
ing the tune-up and power out-
put as the car goes down the
track. There are fixes, such as
bottle heaters (the higher the
temperature, the higher the bot-
tle pressure) and whats known
as a push system that raises bot-
tle pressure by injecting nitrogen
into it. But a heater is only mar-
ginally effective, and push sys-
tems come with their own sets of
problems. They are uncontrolla-
ble because they use regulator
valves that are set to a singular
release rate, have a small orifice,
and are not rated for constant
flow. All these factors lead to
lean/rich spikes that can be
deadly to your engine, and pres-
sure in the bottle can reach dan-
gerous levels. The bottles used
for these systems are not DOT
approved and not large enough
to be efficient.
Theres a chemical problem
with pusher systems, too. The
nitrogen injected into the nitrous
bottle is intended as a capping
gas, which is a gas that lies on top
of a liquid and forms a boundary
layer between the two so the gas
and liquid do not mix. A push
systems main duty is to raise
bottle pressure to push nitrous
out. The problem with that is the
elevated pressure from the air or
nitrogen is often higher than the
nitrous oxides equilibrium pres-
sure, which contaminates the
liquid nitrous and reduces its
density. That means the system
does not deliver pure nitrous
oxide to the engine, and since
the density of the nitrous has
been reduced, the volume flow
may remain consistent, but the
mass flow (weight/second) will
vary dramatically. Thats not
good when trying to tune a car
to the nth degree. In essence, a
push system overenergizes the
nitrous system by overpressuriz-
ing the nitrous bottle.
The new solution is the
NANO system, which stands for
nitrogen-assisted nitrous oxide.
NANOs Tom Darnell Sr. says,
The primary objective of a
NANO system is to achieve con-
sistent mass flow of nitrous oxide
exiting the nitrous bottle. Instead
of elevating the nitrous bottle
pressure to push nitrous out of
the bottle, the NANO changes
the effective size of the nitrous
bottle by injecting a bubble of
capping gas into the dome of the
bottle at a regulated pressure.
The regulator adjusts pressure
> Consistent nitrous delivery
means more performance
and is the goal of the NANO
system.
> This is the universal NANO system, which is good to 550 hp of nitrous boost. The system uses nitrogen gas
stored under pressure in a separate reserve tank that must be installed within 60 inches of the nitrous bottle.
The basic kit comes with a 12-inch line, but NANO keeps 18- and 24-inch lines on hand and can make custom
lengths on request. The kit comes with bottle brackets that allow you to piggyback the nitrogen bottle to the
nitrous bottle, or you can mount the nitrogen bottle to the rollbar/cage or to the floor.
HOT ROD MARCH 2010
> Troy Scotts 70 Opel GT is a force to be reckoned with. In 10 head-to-head alcohol
Funny Car versus Opel matchups, Troy has won 9.
> The Opels weapon of choice is a 592ci behemoth that makes 1,000 hp before the 500 shot of nitrous.
Troy builds these engines for a living, but unlike at 05 Drag Week, he usually builds them in a shop.
and rate of airflow to achieve this
objective. The result is a steady
flow of uncontaminated nitrous,
as if the bottle is always full.
The NANO system is a bolt-
on kit added to an existing setup,
and it uses nitrogen gas (or air)
stored under pressure in a sepa-
rate reserve tank. There are three
basic kits: Universal, Sport, and
Competition. Using your nitrous
bottle, the original valve is
replaced with a special valve with
an additional fitting for the
nitrogen gas. This valve is based
on an NOS SuperHiFlo valve.
Rated at a sustained flow of 0.45
lb/sec of liquid nitrous oxide, the
valve is capable of delivering 550
hp worth of spray.
A typical 10-pound nitrous
bottle plumbed to a 180hp sys-
tem yields about 40 seconds of
full-power nitrous. That means
you are likely to get about three
quarter-mile runs in a 10-second
car before you have to swap bot-
tles. With the NANO kit, the
nitrous sprays at a consistent
level for 80 seconds. That is twice
as much time with the same bot-
tle and should be good for at
least six runs on a single bottle,
with full power all the way down
the track.
In addition to the ability to get
the most out of the bottle, the
NANO potentially provides
more power. As the standard
bottle is used, the initial hit of
nitrous is full power, but as the
bottle empties, the pressure
drops and lessens nitrous deliv-
ery. That means as the car goes
down the track, the power
increase from the nitrous is con-
stantly decreasing. You might
start off with a 180hp hit and end
with only a 100hp hit. A bottle
heater has no effectiveness dur-
ing a pass.
NANO nitrous, however, is
only used while the system is
actively spraying. There is no
waiting for the bottle pressure to
come up, and it works regardless
of actual bottle temperature. As
you make a pass with the NANO
engaged, the bottle pressure is
maintained at a preset static rate
of 1,050 psi, which provides a
dynamic pressure of approxi-
mately 950 psi in the bottle.
Other than the half-second
NITROUS HELPER
NITROUS HELPER
reaction time (for the nitrogen
valve to react, open, and release
the gas), the nitrous system has
perfect bottle pressure through
the entire run. In most cases, you
will want to rejet the nitrous sys-
tem 20 percent lower than nor-
mal to put it back to the same
performance as the non-NANO
system. There are a couple of
things to keep in mind with the
NANO. Swapping bottles at the
track would require having
two or more nitrous bottles
fitted with modified NANO
valves. And anytime you swap
the nitrous bottle, it is a good
idea to top off the nitrogen
bottle.
The last caveat for the NANO
is the nitrogen itself. While
nitrogen is an inert safe gas, the
pressures required for use in this
system are quite high. The nitro-
gen bottle is an HPA (high-pres-
sure air) device and must be
filled to 4,500 psi. If you live in a
small town, finding a shop that
can fill to that pressure may
prove difficult, as most welding
supply shops do not have that
kind of capability on-site. How-
ever, they should be able to
deliver large HPA cylinders (for
purchase or rent) that you can
use to fill the smaller NANO cyl-
inder. Scuba diving and paint-
ball supply shops use similar
HPA equipment and should
have the ability to fill the nitro-
gen bottle. Furthermore, the
local fire station and fire equip-
ment refill stations will be able to
fill your bottle.
Nitrogen-assist systems are
DOT legal, and according to our
research, NANO systems have
been approved by the NHRA,
and when properly installed,
they pass inspection for NMRA,
NMCA, PSCA, and IHRA sanc-
tioning bodies. You should check
your class rules to see if there will
be any issues with running a
NANO in your car.
To test the effectiveness of the
SOURCES
NANO NITROUS; Lawrence, KS; 785/331-2390;
www.nanonitrous.com
TROY SCOTT RACING ENGINES; Stillwater, OK; 405/743-1352
NANO, we hooked up with Troy
Scott of Troy Scott Racing
Engines. This is the same Troy
Scott who won the 05 HOT
ROD Drag Week, along with
brother Carl. For this article, we
are featuring Troys real race car,
a 70 Opel GT that he runs in
Outlaw, Pro Mod, and Sports-
man classes. The car is powered
by a 592ci Chevy big-block
making 1,000 hp, assisted
with a 500 shot of squeeze for a
total of 1,500 hp. Running a
single-stage nitrous system,
the Opel consistently runs a
4.750 eighth-mile at around
149 mph.
After installing the NANO
kit, we took the Opel to Mid-
America Dragway in Arkansas
City, Kansas, for a test-and-tune
session. On the first run, using
the standard nitrous system, the
Opel ran a 4.739 at 149.95 with a
1.119 60-foot time. Troy rolled
the valve open on the nitrogen
bottle and made another pass.
The Opel ran down the strip at
4.439 at 158.73 mph. Not only is
this faster, but the real news is
the 60-foot times were not that
different. The NANO pass
showed a 60-foot time of 1.115.
What we derive from that result
is the NANO system is providing
the full 500hp shot all the way
through the run, whereas the
standard system loses power
along the way. That is exactly
three tenths and a 9-mph
increase with the turn of a
handlenot bad for a $700,
30-minute add-on.
> The static nitrous pressure at room temperature for the N
2
O bottle
was a little more than 800 psi. By simply rolling the valve open
on the nitrogen bottle, the empty space in the nitrous bottle was
filled up, allowing the nitrous to react to a smaller space, instantly
pushing the pressure up to more than 950 psi. This pressure will be
maintained until the nitrous bottle is empty.
> Installing the system is simple. The biggest issue is removing the original valve from the nitrous
bottle; to solve that, you can purchase a brand-new NANO-equipped bottle from NANO Nitrous. The
nitrogen bottle was mounted to the door bar using a pair of stainless steel ring clamps. The nitrogen
bottle needs to be removed, just like the nitrous bottle, for refilling. Thats it: no electrical, no plumbing.
The entire process takes less than 30 minutes.
> The fitting at the bottom of the
valve (arrow) is for the nitrogen
assist. The second bottle was
installed for future use with a sec-
ond stage of nitrous.
> The nitrogen bottle needs a
high-pressure charge to the tune
of 4,500 psi. If you cant find a
local nitrogen filling station, you
can buy one for just a few hun-
dred dollars. HRM
76 76
Testing Trick Flows New, Fast, As-Cast, Small-Block
Ford Heads Versus Its CNC Versions

By Richard Holdener
Photography: Richard Holdener
The right set of 5.0L heads can make all the difference in the world, or at least an extra 36 hp.
SPEED PARTS TESTING
MARCH 2010 HOT ROD
>
77 77
> The test motor consisted of a 347 short-block from Coast High Performance that uses a forged crank,
rods, and flat-top pistons. We also installed Fel-Pro 1011-2 head gaskets and
7
16-inch ARP head studs.
> Trick Flow Specialties supplied one of
its Stage 3 cams (PN TFS-51402002).
The hydraulic roller cam offered a
0.574/0.595 lift split, a 236/248 duration
split (at 0.050), and a 110-degree lobe-
separation angle. > To ensure adequate
lubrication, the bottom end featured a
Milodon windage tray, oil pan, and pickup.
AIRFLOW DATA: FAST AS-CAST
VS. CNC-PORTED TFS TW
INTAKE EXHAUST
CAST CNC CAST CNC
LIFT
0.100 63 70 53 56
0.200 141 146 107 112
0.300 205 216 144 150
0.400 233 258 171 192
0.500 251 287 187 220
0.600 251 301 193 231
Note: Flow numbers are with a 4.150-inch bore and with
a flow tube on the exhaust.
It is safe to say the original, as-
cast Twisted Wedge street head
from Trick Flow Specialties
(TFS)now called Twisted
Wedge Track Heat 170 Cylinder
Head Fast As-Castall but revo-
lutionized the Ford 5.0L indus-
try, providing an affordable alu-
minum performance head to the
Mustang market when no such
animal existed. The as-cast port
dimensions (170cc intake and
66cc exhaust) generated peak
intake flow near 250 cfm and
peak exhaust flow of 193 cfm (at
a 4.150 bore, larger than our
347s 4.030), and the rotated
valve locations not only
improved the flow and power
potential but also the all-impor-
tant piston-to-valve clearance
issues associated with running
wilder cams with the factory pis-
tons. According to TFS, it is pos-
sible to run cams with as much
as 0.540 lift and 224 degrees of
duration using the stock flat-top
pistons, despite the use of larger
2.02-inch intake valves (stock
5.0L heads relied on a 1.74/1.46
valve combo). And lets not for-
get that the Twisted Wedge street
heads achieved full 50-state
emissions status for 1996-and-
earlier 289, 302, and 351W
Fords.
While the 5.0L crowd
embraced the Twisted Wedge
design, time, technology, and the
competition marched on. To
keep pace with the more than 30
different aftermarket small Ford
heads, TFS has applied CNC
porting to its already impressive
Track Heat Heads (as well as its
original High Port and R-series
heads).
The test seen here involves a
comparison of the latest Fast As-
Cast Twisted Wedge Track Heat
170 heads and the CNC-ported
Track Heat 185 heads. This will
help you decide if the up-price
for CNC porting is worth it for
your small-block Ford project.
The As-Cast heads cost $1,249
per pair and the CNC-ported
versions are $1,759 from Sum-
mit Racing.
The intake port volume
increase of 15 cc, along with the
CNC port shaping, netted a gain
of 50 cfm, upping the peak flow
figures (at 0.600 lift) from 251

HOT ROD MARCH 2010
SLICK AND TWISTED DYNO DUEL
> We started the test with FAST As-Cast Twisted Wedge Track Heat heads. The 170cc intake ports
flowed right at 250 cfm at 0.600-inch valve lift, a significant gain in airflow over production 5.0L heads.
The flow rate of the 66cc exhaust ports was equally impressive at 193 cfm. These numbers are on a
4.150 bore and with an exhaust flow tube.
cfm on the As-Cast head to 301
cfm. Thus, a 9 percent increase in
port volume netted a 20 percent
jump in peak airflow. Even from
an average airflow standpoint
(tested from 0.100 lift to 0.600 lift),
the porting improved the average
flow rate by nearly 11 percent.
Even more impressive is the fact
that these gains came with no
change in valve sizing. Gains of
this magnitude came from exten-
sive work on the airflow bench
and dyno, as man does not live by
flow numbers alone.
To properly test the merits of
the CNC-ported heads, we assem-
bled a 347 test motor. The short-
block came from Coast High Per-
formance and featured a 3.4-inch
stroker crank, forged-steel rods,
and aluminum flat-top pistons.
The Probe Racing pistons featured
dedicated valve reliefs for the
Twisted Wedge valve orientation.
The short-block was stuffed with a
TFS Stage 3 hydraulic roller cam
that offered a 0.574/0.595 lift split,
a 236/248 duration split (at 0.050),
and a 110-degree lobe-separation
angle. The 347 was also equipped
with a full Milodon oiling system,
including pump, windage tray,
and oil pan. Fel-Pro supplied the
1011-2 head gaskets that we
secured with ARP head studs.
Topping the long-block was an
Edelbrock Performer RPM Air-
Gap intake and Holley 750 HP
carburetor. Both heads were run
with a set of 1.6:1-ratio TFS roller
rockers and 1-inch Hooker
Super Comp headers feeding
18-inch collector extensions (no
mufflers). Prior to running, the
motor was treated to a 20-minute,
computer-controlled break-in
procedure using Lucas 5W-30
conventional oil.
Run with the FAST As-Cast 170
heads, the 347 produced peak
numbers of 455 hp and 416 lb-ft.
The numbers jumped to 482 hp
and 424 lb-ft once we installed the
CNC-ported heads. Making these
power gains even more impressive
was the fact that the ported heads
featured CNC-shaped combus-
tion chambers, which actually
lowered the compression ratio by
3
10 of a point. In Trick Flows own
testing on a slightly more powerful
347 combination, the 185 heads
were worth as much as 40 hp.
> The FAST As-Cast heads fea-
tured 61cc combustion chambers
equipped with a 2.02/1.60 valve
combination. The compression
ratio on our motor with these
chambers came in at 10.41:1.
> The TFS-headed stroker was
topped off with an Edelbrock
Performer RPM Air-Gap. We tried a
single-plane intake on the combi-
nation, but the dual-plane offered
equal peak and superior average
power.
> Trick Flow Specialties also supplied a set of its 1.6-ratio roller rock-
ers and 6.70-inch chrome-moly pushrods. Both sets of heads fea-
tured valvespring packages that allowed us to safely rev the engine
past 6,500 rpm.
> The 347 was fed by a Holley 750 HP-series carburetor with a
Percys Adjust-a-Jet system that allowed us to quickly dial in the air/
fuel mixture without having to remove the float bowls.
> After a proper break-in procedure, the 347 produced 455 hp at 6,600
rpm and 416 lb-ft at 4,700 rpm with the 170cc As-Cast heads.
> The flow improvements came solely from the CNC porting, as the
valve sizes remained at 2.02/1.60. The combustion chambers also
received attention, though the chamber work increased the cham-
ber volume by 3 to 4 cc (dropping the static compression to 10.1:1).
> The second set of heads tested was the Trick Flow Twisted Wedge
Track Heat 185 CNCs. The porting improved the intake flow rate from
251 cfm to 301 cfm and from 193 to 231 on the exhaust side. These
heads will support 600 hp on the right combination.
SLICK AND TWISTED DYNO DUEL
TFS TWISTED WEDGE HEAD TEST: AS-CAST VS. CNC-PORTED
The CNC porting not only improved
the peak power output, but the
additional airflow raised the power
throughout the rpm range. A sure
sign the R&D department at Trick
Flow Specialties understands it
takes more than just bigger to
make it better: The 185cc ported
heads picked up power down at
3,000 rpm on this combination.
The optimum port is one that
maximizes flow while minimiz-
ing port volume. The CNC heads
improved the power output of the
347 by as much as 36 hp over the
already powerful FAST As-Cast 170
heads. Had the CNC heads been
milled to replicate the compres-
sion ratio of the as-cast heads, the
gains would have been even more
substantial. The airflow offered by
the CNC-ported heads will support
more than 600 hp on the right
combination.
> Once the CNC-ported heads
were torqued in place, the 347
responded with peak numbers
of 482 hp at 6,600 rpm and 424
lb-ft at 4,900 rpm. The CNC-ported
heads improved power produc-
tion throughout the rev range and
offered as much as 36 additional
horsepower over the as-cast
heads. HRM
SOURCES
COAST HIGH PERFORMANCE;
310/784-1010; Torrance, CA;
www.coasthigh.com
HOLLEY/HOOKER; Bowling Green, KY;
270/782-2900; www.holley.com
MILODON; Simi Valley, CA; 805/577-5950;
www.milodon.com
TRICK FLOW SPECIALTIES; Tallmadge, OH;
330/630-1555; www.trickflow.com
WESTECH PERFORMANCE GROUP; Mira
Loma, CA; 951/685-4767;
www.westechperformance.com
82 82
> Just as an engine must be built
with an optimum torque curve for the
rpm range in which it will operate, a
brake pad must be designed to gen-
erate maximum friction efficiency
and response in its normal tempera-
ture operating range. As they do with
engines, major brake companies
test their designs on a dyno, as
seen here at Ferodo.
Disc Brake Pad Technology Helps
Your Brake System Pull Out All the Stops.
By Marlan Davis
Photos by the manufacturers

LATEST TECH
MARCH 2010 HOT ROD
83 HOT ROD 83
Disc brake pads are to brakes
what a camshaft is to an engine.
Where a cam is critical for defin-
ing an engines power potential,
brake pads are vital for success-
fully and repeatedly decelerating
a vehicle. Experienced hot rod-
ders know there are a ton of vari-
ables when it comes to cam
selection, with no one grind
being the best for every situation.
Likewise, brake engineers must
juggle system wear characteris-
tics, operating temperature
range, harshness, dust, noise,
environmental factors, material
and manufacturing costs, and
even individual driver prefer-
ences. For the serious racer,
brake pad choice is a continually
evolving process, changing on a
nearly monthly basis.
A WORK OF FRICTION
The higher a brake pads coeffi-
cient of friction (expressed by
the Greek letter , pronounced
mu), the more aggressive the pad
and the greater its stopping
potential (the same amount of
pedal force provides more stop-
ping power). In theory, ranges
from 0 (full lubricity, no friction
at all) to 1.0 (solid, no molecules
moving). Fifteen to 20 years ago,
Baer brakes says, street brake
pads were lucky to see the high
0.20s. Today, even OEM pads are
well into the 0.30s, top-tier per-
formance street pads in the 0.40
to 0.45 range, and some race cars
in the high 0.60s.
A pads friction is not con-
stant, varying due to changes in
temperature, humidity, wear,
age, and many other factors. Pad
designers strive to develop more
stable pad compounds that
maintain consistency over a
wide range of operating condi-
tions. But as compounds become
more exotic, they also become
more expensive. And more
aggressive (higher ) com-
pounds may increase rotor wear.
Theres no free lunch.
The friction performance of
pads intended for typical street
temperatures is classified under
SAE Standard J866, expressed
as a two-letter code where the
first letter designates the low-
temperature (0 to 200 degrees
F) friction performance and
the second letter the high-
temperature (200 to 600 degrees
F) performance. The letters gen-
erally appear on the backing
plate as a prefix or suffix to the
part number. If the first letter is
lower than the second, the pad
works better at high tempera-
tures and needs a warm-up; if
the second letter is lower than
the first, the pad may fade at
high temperatures. The best
street pads have good friction at
both high and low temperatures
(ideally, both letters would be the
same, as in FF).
FRICTION COEFFICIENT CODE
Up to 0.15 C
Over 0.15 up to 0.25 D
Over 0.25 up to 0.35 E
Over 0.35 up to 0.45 F
Over 0.45 up to 0.55 G
Over 0.55 H
Unclassified Z
Not all pads are marked this
way. Full-race pads may operate
at high temperature ranges out-
side of the classification range.
And some manufacturers use
proprietary classifications, such
as color-coding the pads or their
own numbering schemes.
Friction and operating tem-
perature differences are achieved
by varying pad material. Todays
commonly available pad com-
pounds can be broadly divided
into three categories: organic,
sintered metal, and exotics.
Manufacturers even blend mate-
rials and characteristics from
different pad types to achieve
specific performance goals, but
be aware that some may use vari-
ous proprietary trade names for
marketing purposes that confuse
the materials issue.
ORGANICS
Organic compounds are lining
materials that are bonded with
an organic resin. They are com-
patible with common cast-iron
discs or (as used on some motor-
cycles) steel discs. Organic pads
can be further subdivided into
semimetallic, NAO (nonasbestos
organic), ceramic, or low steel
compounds.
When asbestos was phased
out in the 70s and 80s for health
reasons, it was initially replaced
by semimetallic compounds.
Semimets contain a high per-
centage of ferrous materials like
iron or steel powder that are
relatively stable at elevated tem-
peratures with good wear char-
acteristics. Depending on the
specific compound, semimets
> Like other major compa-
nies, Raybestos thoroughly
tests its brake designs in
major racing venues. Whats
learned in major-league rac-
ing helps improve Sportsman
and road-car brake tech-
nology. Here, a Raybestos
integrated caliper-rotor-pad
system for NASCAR cup racing
is installed on a Joe Gibbs car.
MARCH 2010
WHATS NEW IN BRAKE PADS
ANATOMY OF A PAD
1 FRICTION MATERIAL
Bonded together by various resins, the friction compound on this
Raybestos pad is most commonly a semimetallic or NAO ceramic
formula tailored for the specific application and temperature range.
The best high-perf street friction materials generate about 0.040 to
0.045 at operating temperature.
2 SLOTS
Slots offer an escape route to prevent dust from accumulating
between the pad and rotor face, reduce stress crack formation by
allowing thermal expansion of the friction pack at elevated tempera-
tures, and increase by providing redundant leading edges across
the pad face.
3 CHAMFERS
Standard and compound chamfer angles help the pad tune out cer-
tain noise frequencies. You may also see chamfers in some high-perf
pads: By reducing the initial surface area, they increase the temp
rise during initial brake application, providing a more stable . As the
pad wears, the chamfer will, too. Thats OK, because a thinner pad is
inherently more stable, as its now-reduced thermal mass gets up to
temperature quicker.
4 BACKING PLATE WITH NRS HOOKS
Pad backing plates are usually low-carbon steel or high-tensile alu-
minum. No one rivets or glues pads to the backing plates any longer.
Instead, theyre bonded and securedusing a high-temp molding
process. The latest evolution is NRS (Nucap retention system), hun-
dreds of J-shaped steel hooks that lock the extruded pad to the plate,
providing even wear characteristics across the entire pad surface
and preventing any delamination or edge lift. NRS is very effective at
high race-pad temps.
> One noise-reduction strategy for aggressive friction pads is
attaching thin stainless steel plates (sometimes with a thin layer of
rubber) to the backing plate for damping out squeal. Shims can also
serve as an additional thermal barrier. Shims may be clipped, spring-
locked, orbitally riveted, or (as with this Raybestos shim) thermally-
bonded to the plate.
3
1
2
4
can develop significantly higher
friction than old-school organic
compounds. But like steel wool,
semimets are abrasive, so-
although the pads are long-
livedthey tend to increase
rotor wear on street cars, pro-
mote brake squeal, and even lead
to judder and roughness issues.
More recently, NAO com-
pounds were introduced. Instead
of asbestos, their formulation is
based on carbon, Kevlar, aramid
or Twaron fibers, sometimes
with nonferrous particulates like
copper added for lubricity. They
may be reinforced with fiber-
glass. The OEMs love NAO
compounds because theyre
easy on brake rotors and have
great resistance to noise and
vibration. But the NAO pads
themselves usually wear at a
faster rate than semimets and
arent as stable at high tempera-
tures. Friction characteristics
vary depending on specific com-
pounds; is generally (but not
always) lower than the semimets.
Brake dust buildup can be an
issue with some (but not all)
NAO formulations.
Yet another branch of the
organic family tree are so-called
ceramic brake pads. These
are not true, exotic ceramic-
composite pads (well get to
those later); instead they are
conventional pads with some
amount of ceramic dust added to
replace the traditional NAO
compounds. Ceramic pads may
or may not contain ferrous or
steel elements. If they do, some
manufacturers refer to this varia-
tion as a low-metallic or low-
steel pad. Because of such widely
varying characteristics, its hard
to make a blanket statement as to
where these compounds fit in
the overall scheme of things.
Generally, in the absence of fer-
rous elements, a ceramic pad
should generate higher friction
values and longer wear rates with
better temperature resistance
than other NAO formulations.
According to Wilwood, the wear
dust is very clean with minimal
discoloring of alloy wheels. If the
ceramic pad contains ferrous
elements, the result is, says Fer-
odo, a high-friction pad with
excellent performance modula-
tion and good life at elevated
temperaturesbut at the cost of
increased noise.
Beyond ceramics, some brake
padsincluding Performance
Frictions Carbon Metallic pads
or Hawk Performances HP Plus
Ferro-carbon padshave added
carbon to semimetallic pad com-
pounds. If properly imple-
mented, carbon can greatly
enhance a semimetallic brake
pads mechanical strength while
improving fade resistance. In a
high-perf or racing application,
this translates to increased pad
life as well as an extended ther-
mal operating range.
SINTERED METAL
Sintering is a process where
metal powders are pressed
together at high temperatures,
rather than being bonded
together by a resin like organics.
Sintered materials are almost
always based on copper, which
during the process alloys with tin
(to form bronze) or zinc (to form
brass). Less commonly, iron is
used as the base material. Graph-
ite and ceramic components
may also be added to moderate
friction performance. Compared
with organic materials, sintered
pads exhibit higher durability
and longer life under racing con-
ditions. They have a very high
friction coefficient, but friction
modulationa measure of
A brake system is a motor in
reverse. Instead of turning heat
into energy, it turns energy into
heat. William Gilliland,
The Brake Man
> Pad materials are always a
compromise. This graph summa-
rizes ECS tests on standard parts-
store NAO/ceramic and semime-
tallic pads versus an upper-tier,
high-perf, semimet. Different
characteristics are ranked on a
1 to 10 scalehigher numbers
mean better performance in each
category (for example, greater
friction or less squeal garners a
higher score).
> NRS is gaining traction, but on
most pads the friction material
is still extruded through backing
plate holes and integrally molded
to the backing plate with a high-
temp chemical agent, as on this
Wilwood intermediate-level pad.
This method is vastly stronger
with higher shear resistance than
the relatively primitive glues used
10 or 15 years ago.
> For hard-core rodders, Ray-
bestos Advanced Technology
pads are widely available at
retail outlets. Extensively tested,
theyre offered in ceramic (with
a P suffix at the end of the basic
part number) or semimetallic
(M suffix). Available for selected
vehicles, the ultimate upgrade is
its semimet, certified police pads
(P suffix) with improved pedal feel
and high-temp performance.
> Used in high-end drag racing, The Brake Mans
full carbon-fiber pads cost $200 to $300 per
rotor set; the matching carbon rotors start at
$1,100 each and go up from there. Carbon brakes
have a linear and predictable friction increase
over a wide temperature range. Top Fuelers now
get by with just one (instead of two) calipers
per wheel, yet still stop the car safely even if the
parachute fails.
> Pad materials have a graph for friction and heat that looks like an
engine dyno curve. Designed to work at moderate temperatures,
these Wilwood pads are for high-perf street, street/strip, and
selected competition apps. BP-10 and BP-20 are Smart Pads that
combine a ceramics low noise and dust characteristics with the
higher temperature ranges normally found in ferrous metallics.
Compounds E and Q are PolyMatrix formulations.
consistent, linear response to
increasing brake-pedal input
can be poor. Sintered metal is
tough on discs, which often must
be made from stainless steel to
have any chance of long-term
survival. Low-temp response
may be poor with significant
noise and dust levels. At present,
this material class is generally
best left to motorcycles or hard-
core auto racers.
EXOTICS
There are also specialized exotic
compounds and materials that at
present remain too costly for
common use. They may even be
banned by some race sanction-
ing bodies because of their
expense. Exotics include real
ceramic-composite brakes. Not
just an enhanced NAO or semi-
metallic compound, these brakes
have true ceramic-infused rotors
and pads. The advantage is
greatly increased heat capacity,
ultralight weight, and virtually
no corrosion tendencies. They
have exceptional fade resistance
and good friction coefficients.
The lighter weight offers the
potential for improved handling
and fuel economy benefits. Wear
characteristics are exceptional
as well. The downside is the
manufacturing cost. So far,
theyve been seen mainly on
high-end sports cars, including
some Porsches and the 09
ZR1 Corvette.
Ultimately, there are carbon/
carbon-fiber brakes as used
on Formula I cars, Top Fuel
dragsters, and Funny Cars
Carbon-fiber pads must mate to
compatible carbon-fiber rotors
or carbon inserts in metallic
rotors.
BACKING PLATES
Pads are attached to backing
plates. Steel remains the material
of choice for most applications,
except weight-critical apps such
as Sprint Cars, where aluminum
is preferred. Steel isnt very good
at insulating the caliper pistons
from heat. Some high-end race
pads add a thermal barrier (usu-
ally a ceramic puck or a woven
matt) sandwiched between the
friction material and backing
plate to resolve this problem.
C
R
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P

G
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A
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TYPICAL STREET PAD PERFORMANCE TRADE-OFFS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
REPLACEMENT NAO CERAMIC
REPLACEMENT SEMIMETALLIC
HIGH-PERFORMANCE SEMIMETALLIC
0.70
0.60
0.50
0.40
0.30
0.20
0
1
0
0
2
0
0
3
0
0
4
0
0
5
0
0
6
0
0
7
0
0
8
0
0
9
0
0
1
,
0
0
0
1
,
1
0
0
1
,
2
0
0
1
,
3
0
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TEMPERATURE (F)
WILWOOD DUAL-PURPOSE PADS
F
R
I
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T
I
O
N

(
)
BP-10
BP-20
E
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PAD/ROTOR
INTERFACE
The pad material and rotor con-
figuration must be compatible at
operating temperatures. Rotors
act like radiators when it comes
to brake system heat absorption,
so it is important to match rotor
characteristics to friction mate-
rial characteristics. For example,
radically increasing rotor size
might require a less aggressive,
lower-temperature friction com-
pound, because the huge rotors
are so efficient in radiating heat
that the original friction com-
pound never reaches proper
operating temperature.
Friction can be generated by
forcing the brake pads mechani-
cally against the spinning rotor
(abrasive friction) as well as via
the transferring of a thin layer of
brake pad material to the rotor
face as temperatures rise (adher-
ent friction). Depending on the
pad and rotor formulation, the
resulting transfer layer can
greatly improve overall . Race
pads are often specifically
designed to maximize the effects
of this transfer film technology,
generating higher friction and a
lower wear rate. If your race pads
are generating significant adher-
ent friction, the rotors actually
get thicker with use.
Most street pads can also
establish a transfer layer, but to
gain maximum benefit if chang-
ing pad compounds, first lightly
burnish (or wear-mate) the
rotors to wipe away the original
(and likely incompatible) trans-
fer layer. Drive your car around
town at moderate speeds while
braking moderately. Most manu-
facturers strongly caution against
turning new or used rotors in a
brake latheit does more harm
than good.
BEDDING
Beyond burnishing, there is bed-
ding: a systematic process of
repeatedly heating the brakes to
the compounds designed oper-
ating temperature range under
controlled (and increasingly
severe) stopping conditions to
form a proper transfer layer.
Most brake companies claim sig-
nificantly better race brake per-
formance after bedding-in a set
of new rotors and pads or (after
initial burnishing to remove the
previous layer) with used rotors.
The specific bedding process
differs for street and track use as
well as with different materials
and operating temperatures.
Consult your brake friction
compound manufacturer for
the instructions that apply to a
specific product. Some high-
end street performance pads
and race pads are said to be pre-
burnished and/or prebedded at
the factory. Prebedded pads are
usually intended for use in
combination with a specific
rotor package; they could prove
advantageous for long-distance
racers who need to change pads
during an endurance race.
SELECTION
Realistically, no one brake pad
can do everything for every-
body, but broadly speaking, dif-
ferent brake usage scenarios
require a different selection of
pad materials. For high-perfor-
mance street use, a compound
that works at low to moderate
temperatures with good wear
characteristics, low noise, and
minimal dust is recommended.
Depending on the car and pad
material, this generally points
toward a quality semimetallic, a
semimetallic with carbon, or an
improved NAO pad with
ceramic content. There are
some racing compounds that
still perform well at low tem-
peratures that in theory could
be used on a street car, but be
prepared for significantly
increased rotor and pad wear. A
relatively cost-effective solution
thats widely available at retail
outlets is Raybestos Advanced
Technology line.
According to recognized
brake expert Fred Callahan,
road cars with ABS (antiskid
brake systems) sometimes had
problems if a pad with signifi-
cantly different friction charac-
teristics from the original OEM
compound was used at the
front or rear of the vehicle.
Older systems could sometimes
activate under normal stopping
conditions or become overpow-
ered and cause wheel lockup.
But now, as the ABS systems
> Baer DecelaPads are an example of todays cutting-edge street-
perf brake pads. Baer terms them a ceramic matrix pad that deliv-
ers smooth, progressive torque. Note the FF suffix at the end of the
pad application number (close-up): This means the pad should gen-
erate high friction (between 0.35 and 0.45 ) for a street pad over a
wide temperature range.
> Cobalt Friction XR-series carbon-ceramic/sintered-metal hybrid
race pads have an exceptionally wide temperature range. Thermally
stable under extreme temperatures, they work without bedding in.
Claimed rotor wear is 50 percent better than competitors at a given
friction level and temperature range. Street versions could be avail-
able by mid-year.
Even if you dont mind the noise
and dust generated by race
compounds while driving on the
street, race pads built for
high-temperature use can be
damaging to rotors at sustained
low-temperature use.
Carl Bush, Wilwood
become more sophisticated and
onboard computers play a larger
role in braking performance and
bias, these factors have been
practically mitigated, Callahan
says. If youre concerned, Hawk
Performance ceramic pads fea-
ture a linear friction profile thats
claimed to allow ABS systems to
work more effectively.
When it comes to racing, its
best to consult the manufacturer
for specific advice for your car,
driving style, and type of racing.
However, broadly speaking, for
drags, obviously there is a huge
difference between a heavy door-
slammer and a Top Fuel car. But
one common factor is the fric-
tion material must work cold
with no warm-up time. Drag
racers will trade off high-temp
friction and temperature perfor-
mance for instant bite and good
all without wheel lockup. For
bracket and many Sportsman
cars, Stainless Steel Brakes points
out, Generally a good perfor-
mance street pad . . . will provide
the low-temperature perfor-
mance needed to stage the car
while still providing the fade-free
high-temperature performance
needed to stop the car at the end
of the run.
For oval tracks, friction char-
acteristics and high-temperature
performance are important
selection factors, but so is vehicle
weight, brake balance to set the
car going into a corner, the over-
all track length, and even driver
preference. Race semimetallic or
low-metal compounds, often
with added ceramic and carbon
content, hold sway here. Long-
distance road racing must bal-
ance achieving high friction with
good wear rates. Generally,
endurance cars will trade off ulti-
mate friction for longevity.
Brake pedal feel or bite is also
important. Most street drivers
and some racers prefer constant
friction: At operating tempera-
ture, as more pedal pressure is
applied, remains constant or
slightly tapers off. You must
press the pedal harder to bring
the car to a full stop. On the
other hand, many road racers
like rising friction: At operating
temperature, as the brakes are
applied, friction gradually
increases, so the driver doesnt
have to press down on the pedal
harder to generate more braking
as the car goes through a corner.
INSPECTION
You can see if your pads are get-
ting the job done by periodically
inspecting them. The Brake
Mans William Gilliland says if
the pad shows normal wear with
no discoloration, its operating
properly. Taper or uneven wear
can indicate a pad alignment
problem and/or the caliper is
overheating (consider upgrad-
ing the calipers). A white-lip
mustache near the rotor or
cracking indicates youre push-
ing the pads limits. If the pad is
entirely discolored, completely
white, or crumbling, youve
pushed the pad beyond its ther-
mal limit. For all forms of rac-
ing, you should use temperature
paint on the rotors and tempera-
ture decals on the calipers, Cal-
lahan adds. Also use an inexpen-
sive infrared heat gun to record
temperature values as you come
off the track. That would be very
useful when discussing pad
choices with a brake rep.
THE FUTURE
Expect existing compounds to
continue to evolve with ever-
wider operating temperature
ranges and longer lives. You will
see increased use of improved
NAO ceramic pads, true ceramic
pads, and other exotics as costs
come down. On the street,
increasingly sophisticated
ABS computers will permit
more aggressive pad materials
without the traditional dust
and wear penalties previously
associated with them. Phenol-
formaldehyde, the current
bonding resin for pad materials,
may be superseded by silicon-
based resins with increased
high-temperature stability.
Regenerative brakingwherein
brake energy is used to help
recharge the electrical system
on electric cars or hybridsmay
cause radical changes in future
brake systems as manufacturers
pull out all the stops in a quest to
perfect the longest-lasting, best-
stopping, widest-temperature
compounds.
> Ferodos DSPF pad series is marketed for street use. The low-
steel formulation is a close cousin of Ferodos DS2500 compounds
designed for track day usage. The DSPF series is quieter but at the
expense of a slightly longer pedal when hot. These compounds
(under a different name) are OE on many late-model Vettes.
> Wilwoods PolyMatrix racing pad series combines attributes
from a variety of friction elements, allowing incremental changes
in friction and temperature to suit driver preference and track
condition. Theyre said to yield a full metallic compounds extreme
high friction and fade resistance while still providing excellent cool
temperature response. HRM
SOURCES
BAER INC.; Phoenix, AZ; 602/233-1411; www.baer.com
COBALT FRICTION TECHNOLOGIES; Coral Springs, FL; 954/340-2701 (general)
or 877/562-9237 (sales/tech); www.cobaltfriction.com
ECS (FRED CALLAHAN); Statesville, NC; 704/883-0729; kfcallahan@bellsouth.net
FERODO RACING (FEDERAL MOGUL ITALY SRL); Mondovi, Italy; +39 0174-560511;
www.ferodoracing.com
HAWK PERFORMANCE, WELLMAN PRODUCTS GROUP; Solon, OH; 800/542-0972
or 440/528-4000; www.hawkperformance.com
NUCAP INDUSTRIES INC.; Toronto, ON, Canada; 416/494-1444; www.nucap.com
PERFORMANCE FRICTION CORP.; Clover, SC; 800/521-8874;
www.performancefriction.com
RAYBESTOS (AFFINIA UNDER-CHASSIS GROUP); McHenry, IL; 800/323-0354
or 900/733-8355; www.raybestos.com
STAINLESS STEEL BRAKES CORP. (SSBC); Clarence, NY; 800/448-7722
or 716/759-8666; www.ssbrakes.com
THE BRAKE MAN; Camarillo, CA; 805/987-STOP; www.thebrakeman.com
WILWOOD ENGINEERING; Camarillo, CA; 805/388-1188; www.wilwood.com
TUNGSTEN GRINDER
DOUBLE-DECKER
Weldcraft
800/752-7620
www.weldcraft.com
To further enhance the performance of its versatile Triad tungsten
grinder used to prepare tungsten for welding, Weldcraft has cre-
ated the double-decker kit that eliminates the need for additional
equipment by allowing a second, rough-nish grinding wheel to
be attached to the grinder. This second wheel is ideal for scrubbing
or preparing larger-diameter tungsten (
3
32 or
1
8 inch). The double-
decker kit also features an additional grinding head with precision-
drilled entries that accommodate six different tungsten electrode
diameters0.040,
1
16,
5
64,
3
32,
1
8, and
5
32 inchand includes four
different grinding angles: 15, 18, 22.5, and 30 degrees.
Price: $450.00
MORE-AFFORDABLE CAM
BELTDRIVE
Jesel
732/901-1800
www.jesel.com
By using a one-piece upper pulley in place of its traditional pulley/spider
arrangement, Jesel was able to cut its manufacturing cost and create an
easier-to-use beltdrive system that still retains all the good points, such
as quick cam timing adjustments and easy cam swaps through the front
cover. The one-piece upper pulley beltdrives are available for small- and
big-block Chevys, small-block Fords, and big-block Chryslers. Accessories
are available to run distributor drives and fuel or oil pumps off the front of
the cam.
Price: Starting at $695.00
7-INCH, ROUND
LED HEADLIGHTS
Truck-Lite
800/562-5012
www.truck-lite.com
Looking for way to increase nighttime visibility on your muscle car or
hot rod? Truck-Lite has the easy answer with its DOT-approved, 7-inch,
LED headlights. Ten high-output LEDs produce a 5,000K white beam
far brighter than traditional incandescent headlights. Plus, while a
standard headlamp may last as little as 1,200 hours, Truck-Lite LED
headlights should exceed that by roughly 50 times. The LED headlights
will replace any standard 7-inch, round headlight. Look for them at your
local NAPA.
Price: $245.00 per pair
THE ULTIMATE TRACK TOY
Griggs Racing Products
707/939-2244
www.gr40.com
Theres nothing more fun than blowing past full-on race cars at the track in your daily driver, and thats exactly what the GR40 Track Toy is designed to do. The
supercharged 4.6 3V pumps out 547 hp at 6,500 rpm and 463 lb-ft at 5,700, but its the Griggs Racing SLA suspension, Koni coilovers, heavy-duty torque arm,
adjustable Watts link, Griggs four-on-four competition brake system, and other race-engineered components that combine with 315/30ZR18s on all corners
to make this Mustang a 1.5-lateral-g-pulling Porsche slayer. Not only can you drive it away at the end of the track day, but you can still turn on the air condi-
tioner and blast the stereo. You can also just buy all the parts and build up your own Mustang, but to be a serialized GR40, Griggs Racing must build it.
Price: Call for quote on a tailored package
DISHED
STROKER
PISTONS FOR
CLEVELANDS
Diamond Pistons
877/552-2112
www.diamondracing.net
To help your Cleveland grow, Diamonds dished
stroker pistons are cut to t all original Ford
heads and popular aftermarket variants and are
available for stroke lengths of 3.750, 3.850, and
4.000 inches using either Ford OEM connecting
rods (5.596 inches with a 0.912-inch wristpin)
or Chevy 6.000-inch connecting rods with 0.927
wristpins. Bore sizes begin at 4.000 inches and
extend in small increments up to 4.060 inches.
Pistons are supplied with a conventional ring
stack:
1
16-inch top,
1
16-inch second, and
3
16-inch
oil ring. Wristpins are available in uncoated H13
tool steel or coated in DLC Casidiam with single-
or double-spiral locks.
Price: $853.36
FORD FE OILING
Aviaid
818/998-8991
www.aviaid.com
The fabled Ford FE engine has enjoyed a resurgence in popular-
ity of late thanks to a plethora of new components from block to
rockers, and now there are advanced oiling systems as well. Avi-
aid offers ve oil pans for the FE covering wet- and dry-sump ap-
plications for various chassis congurations and HTD beltdrive
four-stage dry-sump pumps (three scavenge and one pressure
section) in Series 1 and 2 models. Of course, full systems com-
plete with dry-sump tanks, lter adapters, and all necessary
hoses and ttings tailored for your application are available.
Price: Call for package quote

LS1 INSTALLATION
KIT FOR TRI-FIVES
Classic Performance Products (CPP)
714/522-2000
www.classicperform.com
This new LS1 complete installation kit by Classic
Performance Products packs everything you need
to drop an LS1, 2, 3, 6, or 00-and-newer Vortec
engine into a Tri-Five Chevy. The kit includes an oil
pan, a windage tray, a dipstick tube, a dipstick, an
oil pickup tube, an engine side-mount kit, polished
engine-side mount adapters, silver ceramic-coated
headers, a transmission crossmember kit, and all
mounting hardware. The kit is the same for an auto
or stick trans.
Price: $1,099.00
55-57 CHEVY TRIANGULATED FOUR-LINK
Heidts
800/841-8188
www.heidts.com
Creating a simple bolt-in four-link was the goal for Heidts when the company was designing its 55 to 57 Chevy triangulated four-link kit, and since no cutting
or oor modications are needed and a Panhard rod is not required, wed say it succeeded. The kit comes with chassis and axle brackets, adjustable links,
a full upper coilover crossmember, adjustable Heidts coilovers, and all hardware. Suspension tuning is via adjustable four-link mounts. Optionally, a 9-inch
housing with third member, axles, and rear disc brakes can be added to the four-link kit for a full rearend upgrade.
Price: $1,395.00 basic kit
PONTIAC G8
CHASSIS
BOLT-ONS
BMR Fabrication
813/986-9302
www.bmrfabrication.com
Theres a whole new line of bolt-in chassis and sus-
pension parts for the G8 from BMR. To get the tub
rigid, the company has developed rectangular-tube
subframe connectors with
3
16-inch, CNC-lasercut
steel plates that bolt in using preexisting boltholes.
Pair that with the driveshaft tunnel brace that re-
places the factory stamped-steel piece to increase
the rigidity of the tunnel where the driveshaft car-
rier bearing is located, then add BMRs bolt-in strut
tower brace, and youve virtually eliminated chassis
ex without drilling a single hole. After that, throw
on a set of BMRs polyurethane-bushed G8 trailing
arms to stabilize caster settings and minimize
wheelhop and youll have a far more responsive G8
ready to surprise the unwary. All parts are available
in black hammer-tone or red powdercoat nishes.
Price: $229.95 subframe connectors, $89.95
tunnel brace, $189.95 strut tower brace, $139.95
rear trailing arms
SUREFIT GEN-IV
A/C FOR 68-72
CHEVELLES
Vintage Air
800/862-6658
www.vintageair.com
The Gen-IV is Vintage Airs most intelligent
climate control system, as it uses a micro-
processor control system to eliminate cables
and vacuum connections. That not only cre-
ates a system that functions like OE new car
equipment with variable blower speed and
dash/floor/defrost blend, it also simplifies
installation. The new Chevelle SureFit system
includes a factory-looking, backlit, three-
lever control panel that bolts in the stock
dash location. The SureFit boxes are practi-
cally bolt-in as well, since they are designed
specifically for each vehicle and require mini-
mal alteration for installation.
Price: Evaporator kit, $750.00; Complete
kit, $1,299.00
QUICK SHIP PUSHRODS
Trend Pushrods
586-447-0400
www.trendperform.com
When building an engine, the pushrods are usually the last things ordered, since their
exact length is not known until everythings together and the valvetrain geometry is
checked. That means youre usually waiting for pushrods to be made and shipped instead
of playing with your new engine. But Trend Performance just introduced a quick-ship
program called QSP that aims to ship custom pushrods within 24 hours. Just select your
pushrod length (6.000 inches to 12.000 inches), diameter (
3
8-,
7
16-, -, or
9
16- inch and
wall thickness), end taper (standard
5
8- inch or 1
5
8 inch), overall taper (single taper or
double taper), a ball end or a radius cup end, and youll probably have those Trend push-
rods within 48 hours.
Price: Varies depending on pushrods ordered.
CHEVY HIGH
PERFORMANCE is
the automotive source
for all Chevy aficionados
whose interests entail
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and modifying high-performance
Chevrolet vehicles.
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all other foreign orders add $24 per year.
(plus $3 postage & handling)
CHEVY 350-SCPI
HOP-UP
If I use a 96 to 02 truck and van engine (its
a roller motor), can I swap in a roller cam with
the same or similar profile as the one you used
in lasts years Cheap 350 buildup (May and
June 09), then use this setup in a 96 pickup
that has TBI (throttle-body injection) instead
of the carb used in the original buildup article?
I plan on using an Edelbrock TBI intake instead
of a stock one, along with ignition and exhaust
upgrades. The goal is to build a strong daily
driver on a fairly tight budget.
Charlie Fischer
Edgewater, MD
Unfortunately, your situation is not ideal due
to the late-model fuel-injection system. The
cams ground for our carbureted Cheap 350
engine just have too much duration at 0.050
(around 235 degrees intake with 245 to 249
degrees exhaust) and excessively tight lobe
separation (107 or 108, depending on the
cam). This kills intake manifold vacuum and
makes the idle too rough to keep the fuel
injection and factory computer happy.
Further complicating the issue for you is
the type of fuel-injection system used by
GM on the 96 to 99 305 and 350 pickups.
Starting in 96 with the introduction of Vortec
heads, GM instituted a weird hybrid system
known as sequential central port injection,
or SCPI. The new system sports a redesigned,
big, single-barrel, round throttle body with a
different bolt pattern that no longer contains
any fuel injectors like the Generals earlier
pure TBI systems. Instead, a separate fuel
meter body assembly was installed behind
the throttle body on the upper (plastic half) of
the Vortecs two-piece inlet manifold. The
new assembly had an integral fuel pressure
regulator plus eight centrally mounted
injectors firing into eight nylon hoses with
downstream poppet valves leading to
each intake port. This system was neither
By Marlan Davis
pure TBI nor pure direct-port injection.
The original SCPI poppet valves proved
problematic. Deposit buildup on the valves
ball and seat would cause the valve to stick
open or closed, resulting in a misfueled cylin-
der and consequent misfire. The problem was
usually most apparent under cold start-up
conditions after sitting overnight. Initially, GM
recommended an injector-cleaning process,
but it was only a temporary fixeventually
the problem would recur. According to
Burt Chevrolet, GM finally issued a service
MFI (multiport flexible injection) kit (PN
93441235) that includes a new fuel meter
body, a regulator, eight drivers, eight Multec-
2-style injectors, electrical connectors, and
lines to connect the drivers in the fuel meter
body to the injectors. Also required is a seal
kit, upper-to-lower intake (PN 17113206),
and a new fuel meter body bracket (PN
93442096). The kit moves the injectors out
of the original fuel meter, relocating them
downstream in place of the troublesome pop-
pet valves. However, these injectors are still
not a standard direct-port fuel injector
configuration, so they cannot be upgraded
with higher-capacity units. In fact, GM does
not even service the injectors separately.
Still, the kit does seem to solve the driveabil-
ity problems seen on some SCPI stockers.
SEND STUFF IN: EMAIL: PITSTOP@HOTROD.com MAIL: HOT ROD, 831 S. Douglas St., El Segundo, CA 90245
PHOTO REQUIREMENTS: Minimum size 1,600 x 1,200 pixels MESSAGE BOARD: HOTROD.com
> Factory throttle-body injection
(TBI) systems wont support cams
as radical as those used on our origi-
nal carbureted Cheap 350 proj-
ect. In the TBI line, youll
need a system such
as FASTSs new self-
tuning EZ-EFI setup
or the Avenger EFI
(shown) coming from
Holley in Spring 2010.
Holley will also intro-
duce a self-learning
port-injection setup.
HOTROD.COM
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> Assuming the engine and its management system are
capable of supporting it, a roller cam profile should not be a
slavish copy of a flat-tappet, but instead optimized to realize
the full benefits of the roller-tappet configuration.
PIT STOP
Note that the Edelbrock Performer TBI intake
(PN 3704) you want to use fits only original
87 to 95 5.0L/5.7L V-8 cylinder heads and
pure TBI setups with the injectors located
inside the throttle body. It wont bolt up to
Vortec cylinder heads, nor can it accept SCPI
parts. GM Performance Parts does offer
an intake capable of adopting a classic GM
TBI throttle body to Vortec heads (GM PN
12496821), but it still wont accept the SCPI
parts. Besides, downgrading your system to
an earlier pure TBI setup requires lots of other
changes including a different computer,
wiring harness, distributor, ignition coil, fuel
pump, and miscellaneous sensorsand isnt
worth the effort because you still wont have
a system thats versatile enough to make
serious power.
In fact, arguably the original pure-TBI setup
has less performance flexibility than your
SCPI setup upgraded with the previously
referenced service fix. Pure TBIs used a
MAP (manifold air pressure) sensor that
correlated to preprogrammed fuel maps in
the computer. At least with SCPI, you have
a mass airflow (MAF) sensor thats a little
more tolerant of modifications. With SCPI, the
limiting factor for performance improvement
is more on the fuel and fuel supply end of the
system, as opposed to actual metering and
calibration.
Keeping all this in mind, with a conven-
tional, MAP-based, pure-TBI system, at least
15 to 16 inches of idle vacuum is needed. In
terms of camshaft duration at 0.050, that
comes out to only about 196 degrees on the
intake side with an 8.5:1-compression-ratio
engine, about 210 degrees on a 9 to 9.5:1
engine, and about 216 to 218 degrees at 10 to
10.5:1. The exhaust duration should be about
8 to 10 degrees more, with an overall intake/
exhaust lobe-separation angle (LSA) of 113
to 114 degrees. A typical cam for the pure-TBI
combo would be Comp Cams Xtreme Fuel
Injection 252XFI HR113 (see table). With the
96 to 00 SCPI or MFI, you can go about 4 to
6 degrees larger than the preceding recom-
mendations, such as Comps 260XFI HR13 or
268XFI HR13.
Computer recalibration is mandatory with
COMP CAMS HYDRAULIC ROLLER CAMS FOR FISCHERS GM 5.7
See the text for specic application guidelines. All values are in crankshaft degrees unless otherwise noted, except for lobe-separation angle (LSA), which is in cam degrees.
GRIND NO. PART NO.*
LIFT (INCHES) DURATION AT TAPPET VALVE TIMING (0.006-INCH TAPPET LIFT)
LOBE
CENTERLINE LSA LOBE VALVE (1.5:1 ROCKERS) 0.006-INCH LIFT 0.050-INCH LIFT INTAKE EXHAUST
Intake Exhaust Intake Exhaust Intake Exhaust Intake Exhaust Opens Closes Opens Closes Intake Exhaust
252XFI HR13 08-464-8 0.345 0.342 0.518 0.513 252 264 202 212 17 BTDC 55 ABDC 69 BBDC 15 ATDC 109 117 113
291THR7 08-601-8 0.348 0.339 0.522 0.509 291 311 235 249 42 BTDC 69 ABDC 82 BBDC 49 ATDC 102 112 107
Listed part numbers replace 87-and-up OE hydraulic roller cams with the late-style front thrust plate and timing chain. For retrot cams that t early (no thrust plate) blocks, replace the prex 08 with 12. *
HOTROD.COM
these cams. If going the pure-TBI conversion
route, Turbo City is one source for custom
computer recalibration and larger throttle
body upgrades. Turning up the fuel pressure
from the pure-TBI fuel pumps stock 10-to-
13-psi setting to 16 to 18 psi via a bigger,
pure-TBI-compatible fuel pump is highly
recommended. Turbo City can rework SCPI
computers as well.
No matter what you do with either setup,
even on a perfect day youre probably only
looking at 340 to 350 hp. Making 400 hp like
we did on the Cheap 350 requires an alterna-
tive approach. One solution is to convert the
SCPI system to a true direct multiport fuel-
injection (MPFI) system with real port injec-
tors attached to fuel rails. The SCPI already
uses a high-pressure fuel supply system. In
fact, GM installed real port fuel injection on
marine versions of the L31 Vortec engines.
The marine port-injection intake manifold
accepts the stock Vortec throttle body and
smog equipment. The throttle body sits in the
same place as the stock truck L31 intake, so
most aftermarket superchargers and cold-air
intakes bolt on. You can keep the stock com-
puter, reflashing it with available aftermarket
software. As the late computer also runs the
trans, this approach may be preferable to
going to a complete aftermarket setup. The
Marine swap is discussed in detail on the
Pacific Performance Engineering forums. Id
still hold cam durations under the mid-230s
with fairly wide lobe separation if using it,
though (such as Comps 280XFI HR13).
Running a hydraulic roller with a narrow
LSA and 235/249-degree duration (like Cheap
350s original flat-tappet grinds) mandates
either returning to a carburetor orif you
want a relatively simple to use and install
EFI system thats tolerant out of the box for
traditional hot rodstyle camsconsider
FASTs new EZ-EFI or Holleys new Avenger EFI,
both self-tuning TBI setups that use a big four-
barrel throttle body with a Holley flange thats
compatible with serious performance intakes
like Edelbrocks Performer RPM. See the Dec.
09 issue of HOT ROD for details and tests on
the EZ-EFI system.
Those new systems may tolerate a larger-
duration, tight LSA cam like the Thumpr
hydraulic roller 291THR7 grind. The cams
0.050 duration is on par with the original
flat-tappet setup, but with more valve lift.
The ignition will no longer be computer
controlled, requiring an older large-cap HEI
with conventional centrifugal and vacuum
advance. A stand-alone, programmable FAST
controller (PN 301002) will be needed for the
trans. Obviously, these radical mods wont be
emissions-legal.
SOURCES
BURT CHEVROLET; Englewood, CO; 800/585-4604;
303/761-5161; www.burtchevrolet.com
COMP CAMS; Memphis, TN; 800/999-0853 (tech) or
901/795-2400 (general); www.compcams.com
EDELBROCK CORP.; Torrance, CA; 310/781-2222 (gen-
eral) or 800/416-8628 (tech); www.edelbrock.com
FUEL AIR SPARK TECHNOLOGY (FAST); Memphis, TN;
877/334-8355 or 901/260-3278; www.fuelairspark.com
HOLLEY PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS; Bowling Green, KY;
270/781-9741; www.holley.com
PACIFIC PERFORMANCE ENGINEERING; Fullerton, CA;
714/985-4825; main website: www.pacificp.com; L31
Marine MFI conversion: www.pacificp.com/forum/view
topic.php?t=317
TURBO CITY; Orange, CA; 714/639-4933;
www.turbocity.com
MORE ON THE
FIRST BURNOUT
Ron Marshs letter The First Burnout (Pit
Stop, Nov. 09) generated some lively and
entertaining reader responses. Among the
most salient was the following letter, which
maintains that burnouts originated in the
Southeastern states far earlier than histori-
cally recognized:
Your response from drag historian Dave Wal-
lace is interesting but a bit off as to correct-
ness. This is understandable, since Dave and
many others during that time were engrossed
in strictly NHRA drag racing activity and most
never paid a whole lot of attention to the drag-
strip activity in the Southeast.
I operated Concord Drag Strip just out of
Concord, North Carolina, between its opening
in 1958 and 1964. I and several other strip
operators in the early 60s saw the potential
for spectator interest in the high-horsepower
Fords and Chevrolets of that time and began to
seek ways to create a new drag racing interest
with these Ford-versus-Chevy promotions.
Up until then, we had kept with the NHRA
general rules, which included that competing
cars could not cross the starting line before
the flag man dropped the flag or else be dis-
qualified. Hence, all tire prep was done way
back behind the line. At my strip, several of
these cars that we called Super Stock began
using plain old bleach behind the line to clean
their tires. This was in late 1960. By 1961,
people such as Don Nicholson had developed
some not-before-seen horsepower with stock
cars. I started a new separate class for these
factory hot rods in September 1961 and for
the first time paid cash money for winning the
class. This brought out more cars and conse-
quentially more paying spectators.
But we kept the rule of no spinning past the
starting line. At our first race in March 1962,
Nicholson rolled in from Atlanta with his cham-
pionship bubbletop 61 Chevy and fully lit the
fire under everyone. Next race, we had Richard
Broome, Jake King, Hosea Wilson, and a host
of others. My strip was known for poor traction
off the starting line. Soon, another car rolled in
from Atlanta in the form of Hubert Platt (Hue
Baby), and he was very vocal about our poor
traction. The next week he showed up with a
cardboard barrel containing Georgia powdered
pine rosin he had bought. Hed also made
some small containers with a top and holes
cut in it so the rosin could be sprinkled evenly.
We had no rule that said he could not use it.
Soon our contingent of drivers had bought
rosin from Hubert and were asking about
shaking it on the strip beyond the starting line.
THUMPRD
In the Oct. 09 Pit Stop, in the answer to Brian
Dugles letter on the 283 build and camshaft
selection (Small-Block Chevy Generational
Battle), you indicate that the recommended
custom Comp cams early exhaust closing and
increased overlap tend to stretch the power-
band higher. It seems to me the Thumpr-type
cams have an early exhaust opening (which
helps prevent detonation as stated), and they
have a later exhaust closing (which adds over-
lap). Otherwise, great article.
Greg Williams
Wabasha, MN
Good catch . . . and better late than never.
We agreed. The crowd went wild seeing the
dust boil up and hearing the tires start chirp-
ing as the traction increased. My son, who
worked on the starting line and also handled
timecards, told me the rosin had brought new
excitement to the racing.
Huberts car was soon lettered up profes-
sionally with the name Georgia Shaker (as in
rosin shaker). Crowds picked up even more,
and Southern-style Super Stock racing was
officially born.
So the use of rosin and the resulting advent
of spin-throughs, burn-throughs, or burnouts
came out of Atlanta and was born and devel-
oped at my Concord Drag Strip in about
May 1962.
Bill Garland
Albemarle, NC
FALCON DISC BRAKE
CONVERSION
Will a 78 Maverick disc brake setup fit on a 63
Falcon Futura? If not, is there any car I can use
as a donor? I would buy a conversion kit but
cant afford the $500-plus for it.
Mike Emerick Jr.
Utica, MI
For the record, there were no 78 Mavericks or
Comets built in or sold for the North American
market. The last year for North American Mav-
erick sales and production was 1977.
Googling Falcon disc brakes yields tons
of links to Falcon disc brake do-it-yourself
conversions, many with complete step-by-
step instructions and photos. Some sites I
found helpful include JamesWs Mustang
Site, Kellys Hotrod Page, Mustang Steve, and
the New Millennium Falcon (see Sources for
complete URLs).
Generally, you can directly install the front
disc brakes from a 75 to 77 Maverick/Comet
or 75 to 80 Granada/Monarch on 63 to 70
V-8 and most 66 to 70 L-6 Mustangs and
Falcons. You can also use similar-vintage
Versailles parts, except the Versailles steer-
ing knuckles have a larger-diameter lower ball
joint and wont bolt directly to the existing
Falcon lower control arms without an adapter
(available from Mustang Steve).
Installing the later brakes on 63 to 65 L-6
cars using stock or salvage yard parts ide-
ally requires converting them to V-8 steering
linkage (including the centerlink, the inner
tie rods, and possibly the idler arm). Alterna-
tively, Mustang Steve sells adapter bushings
that let you retain the original tie rod ends
with the late steering knuckles.
From the donor car, grab the steering
knuckles (aka spindles, Hollander Salvage
Yard Interchange No. 745) and everything
> Ford Maverick/Granada front disc spindles
and brakes adapt easily to many 60s Ford
products. Here, theyre installed on Mark
Hamiltons 64 Falcon Ranchero pickup.
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outboard of the knuckles, including the dust
shields, caliper brackets, calipers (Hollander
185 or 190), brake rotors (Hollander 1457),
brake hoses, wheel seals, bearing parts, dust
shield retainers, caliper keys, caliper tension
springs, and pads. You must also use the
donor cars outer tie rod ends (due to differ-
ent ball joint tapers, thread sizes, and stud
lengths). Assuming your 63 Falcon is a V-8
car, its existing outer tie rod to inner tie rod
adjusting sleeve should have the same
11
16-
18 threads as the Maverick/Granada tie rod
end. To achieve correct toe-in, it may be nec-
essary to shorten the inner and outer tie-rod
end threads that go into the adjusting sleeves
as well as the adjusting sleeves themselves.
Due to possible model year variations, if
possible, all these parts should come from
the same model year donor. If available, parts
store equivalents for the correct model year
can, of course, be substituted for any of the
preceding salvage yard parts.
Brake line fabrication is required. For exam-
ple, the original brake lines come in from the
rear, while the fittings for the new disc brake
calipers are located more toward the front.
Alternatively, custom brake hoses can be fab-
ricated from braided stainless steel Teflon line
as used on race cars. It also helps to grab the
various retaining clips, mounting brackets,
and brake line flare nuts from the donor car.
The existing strut rodmounted steering
stops may need trimming to achieve full lock-
to-lock turning radius (trial-fit and check).
Some original wheels may hit the caliper, and/
or not fit over the late knuckles larger-od hub.
A disc brakecompatible master cylinder
and proportioning valve are needed. The prop
valve can be the stock unit from the donor car
or an aftermarket adjustable unit (such as
Summit Racing PN SUM-G3910). Ford master
cylinder bolt patterns are pretty much all the
same, so just about any 74 to 80 unit should
work. Choose one from a car with front discs
and rear drums. Usually, a power brake
compatible master cylinder has larger-diam-
eter bores than a manual unit; it sometimes
is hard to develop sufficient pedal pressure
using the power master cylinder in a manual
brake application, so the general rule is to use
a manual master with manual disc brakes
and one set up for power brakes with a power
booster. One exception is the popular unit
out of a 74 Maverick/Comet/Mustang II with
manual disc brakes (Hollander 536), which
reportedly works well with a manual system,
as well as with many compact aftermarket
power boosters.
> The welded-in corner support brace found
on many 60s Ford products really crowds
the installation of a typical large-production
dual-diaphragm vacuum power booster. If
power brakes are desired, it will be neces-
sary to go to a compact aftermarket booster
and/or use an aftermarket kit with offset
mounts.
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www. arp-bol t s. com 1-800-826-3045
1863 Eastman Ave., Ventura, CA 93003 Local: 805-339-2200 Fax: 805-650-0742
Look for the ARP
name stamped
on each fastener
as your assurance
of performance and
long-term reliability
Only premium grade materials used
All manufacturing operations done
in-house (forging, thread rolling,
heat-treat, finishing)
Made to tough ISO 9001 & AS 9100
quality control standards
The industrys largest selection
of cataloged high-performance
fasteners, plus custom
Used by leading professional
engine builders and competitors
in all forms of racing
NEW ARP ULTRA-TORQUE
FASTENER ASSEMBLY LUBE!

This remarkable new compound ensures that you get efficient
application of torque and eliminates preload scatter. You can
be assured of obtaining within 5% of the desired preload on
the first pull. Accurate preload on all adjacent fasteners
eliminates bore distortion and uneven bearing loading, too!
by Wellcraft (sic). Who are they? Can they
change the backspacing on a set of two-piece
wheels I already have?
Ross
Independence, MO
With apologies to the Microsoft Bing TV com-
mercial: Wellcraft (your bad) builds pleasure
boats, fishing boats, and yachts; Well Craft
(our bad, as spelled in the original caption)
brings up a Web page explaining how to build
a wishing well using craft sticks, and Weld-
craft (the correct company) specializes in
widening aluminum wheels.
SOURCE
WELDCRAFT WHEELS; Plymouth, MI; 734/420-2211;
www.weldcraftwheels.com
Typical Ford master cylinders are set up
with the brake lines exiting toward the engine.
If theres a clearance problem, an alternative
is a
7
8-inch-bore unit from a 76 to 80 GM
H-body (Monza and clones, Hollander 624),
whose brake lines exit toward the fender.
Reportedly, these units are also compatible
with manual and power brakes. When remov-
ing any master cylinder and prop valve from
the donor car, be sure to note which cavities/
lines feed the front brakes and which feed the
rear (they can vary by year and model).
There wont be room for the typical large-
diameter factory-style power booster. ABS
Power Brakes is one source for a matched,
compact, space-saving master cylinder/
power-booster combo (PN 9783 PB2 for front
disc/rear drum combos). For those who have
the budget, ABS also has a full line of com-
plete aftermarket conversion kits, including
bolt-on kits for original L-6 cars, so you wont
have to convert to a V-8 suspension or use
adapter bushings.
Although most who have done this swap are
satisfied with the results, it is not a perfect
solution because the suspension geometry is
slightly altered, yielding undesirable bump-
steer characteristics that can cause the car
to wander on uneven pavement (not exactly
unknown in Michigan). The ultimate disc
brake conversion that solves the bumpsteer
problem once and for all is being developed
by Global West. It uses the Granada brakes
but also includes a complete bolt-in power
rack-and-pinion steering setup and new sus-
pension components. Standard and extreme
max-handling, negative-roll versions will be
offered.
SOURCES
ABS POWER BRAKE INC.; Orange, CA; 714/771-6549;
www.abspowerbrake.com
GLOBAL WEST SUSPENSION COMPONENTS INC.; San Ber-
nardino, CA; 877/470-2975; www.globalwest.net
JAMESWS MUSTANG SITE; www.midnightdsigns.com/
james/Disc%20Brakes.htm
KELLYS HOTROD PAGE; http://raceabilene.com/kelly/
hotrod/diskbrakes.html
MUSTANG STEVE; Ovilla, TX; 972/515-8389;
www.mustangsteve.com
NEW MILLENNIUM FALCON; www.fordfalcon2000.com/
restoration/diskbrakes.htm
SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT; Akron, OH; 800/230-3030
(orders) or 330/630-0240 (tech); www.summit
racing.com
WHEEL WIDENER
In the story The HOT ROD Magazine Drags
(Dec. 09, page 50), the caption for the photo
of Jeff Schmells 08 Mustang says the car
is running stock wheels that were widened
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Its time to get ready for the biggest tour of them all. The 10 HOT ROD Power Tour presented by GM
Performance Division, kicks off at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa, on its way to Mobile, Alabama, and
a special opportunity for only Long Haulers to be photographed at the U.S.S. Alabama.
Just announced, Mid America Motorworks will be hosting a lunch stop at the famed purveyor
of Corvette performance products at its sprawling facility in Effingham, Illinois, on Monday, June
7. Host Mike Yager will roll out the red carpet and offer tours of the My Garage Museum. Check
them out online at www.mamotorworks.com.
Heres the route:
Saturday, June 5 Newton, IA Iowa Speedway
Kick-Off Cruise Night presented by Painless Performance Products
Sunday, June 6 Springfield, IL Downtown Springfield
Monday, June 7 Du Quoin, IL Du Quoin State Fairgrounds
Tuesday, June 8 Bowling Green, KY Warren County Airport
Cruise Night presented by Holley Performance Products
Wednesday, June 9 Chattanooga, TN Chattanooga State Community College
Cruise Night presented by Coker Tire
Thursday, June 10 Birmingham, AL Regions Park Stadium
Friday, June 11 Mobile, AL Downtown Mobile
Saturday, June 12 Mobile, AL Long Haulers Only, U.S.S. Alabama
Participants can register now by visiting HOTROD.com or by calling 877/413-6515. Hotel reservations
can be made by visiting www.powertourhotels.com or calling 866/914-8922. See you in Newton.
10 HOT ROD POWER TOUR
HOT ROD FLEX
AT BVILLE
Weve racked up more than 10,000 miles this
year with the HOT ROD Flex, and among the ven-
ues we traveled to was the 61
st
annual Speed
Week at Bonneville. While Freiburger would have
much rather been racing and protecting his SCTA
records, he did get to travel in comfort with Sirius
XM satellite radio, which made the trip from SoCal
bearable. Visit www.fordvehicles.com/cross
overs/flex to check out how you can deck out
your Flex. Copying our red suede look will have to
be a custom effort, though.
TOT ROD BY
ROADSTERS
ONLINE
Roadsters Online has developed this all-steel-
bodied pedal car emulating the early roadster
hot rods of the 50s and 60s. With chrome
wheels and flames, the product lineup from
Roadsters Online features pedals that adjust to
five settings so your child can grow with the
car. Order yours today for only $299.99 at
www.roadstersonline.com.
Kick-Off Cruise Night,
Newton, IA
Cruise Night,
Bowling Green, KY
Cruise Night,
Chattanooga, TN
Ofcial Exhaust
Main Stage Sponsor Ofcial Charity
Dyno Challenge
Event Level Sponsor
COMING NEXT MONTH
TERRACUDA
Thanks to his former television show Overhaulin, Chip Foose has gone
from being known as a street rod builder to a master designer and crafts-
man of everything automotive, including muscle cars. The Apr. 10 issue
will feature quite possibly his best street machine yet, a radical Cuda
you dont want to miss. Its even painted in the hottest color going today:
brown. Thats right, brown. The next issue also has a big section on how to
make money in hot rodding. Dont miss it.
SEE THIS AND MUCH MORE IN THE
APR. 10 HOT ROD MAGAZINE
On Sale February 16, 2010
Meanwhile, Get Your Car Fix at HOTROD.com
Photo: Randy Lorentzen

HOT ROD (ISSN 0018-6031), March 2010; Vol. 63, No. 3. Copyright 2010 by Source Interlink Magazines, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Published monthly by Source Interlink Media, LLC, 261 Madison Ave., 5th Floor, New
York, NY 10016. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and at additional mailing ofces. Canada Publications Mail Sales Agreement No. 40612608. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to Bleuchip Interna-
tional, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2 Canada. Subscription rates for 1 year (12 issues): U.S., APO, FPO and U.S. Possessions $20.00. Canada $32.00 (price includes surface mail postage to Canada and GST-Reg.
# 87209 3125 RT0001). All other countries $44.00. *Trademark registered. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to HOT ROD, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235.
2010 YearOne
HR010
1.800.932.7663
17 version of the 5-Spoke Rally or Z28
wheel that came on 1970-81 Z28 and 1971-72
Chevelle models
17x9 with 5 backspacing and machined lip
Accepts original center caps
Available in Gunmetal Gray or polished aluminum
New 17 Cast Aluminum 5-Spoke Rally Wheel
Visit our Web site for
larger custom billet
wheels and wheel sets,
complete with center
caps and lug nuts.
17 Cast Aluminum Snowflake
Gunmetal Gray single wheel
#ZW179GUN only $199.
Polished aluminum
single wheel
#ZW179POL
starting at $239.
New 4
th
Gen F-Body Backspacing
Update your m
uscle car with
YearOnes oversize
cast-alum
inum
classic wheels at
an affordable price!
Gold single wheel #SFW179 only $199
Use Special Pricing Code:
ADS2010
Reproduction Snowflake wheel
that came on 1978-81 Trans Am
models with the WS6 package
15x8 with 4-
1
/4 backspacing
Single wheel #SFW158 only $179
Reproduction 15 Snowflake
17 version of the Snowflake
wheel with backspacing for 4th
generation F-bodies
17x9 with 6-
1
/2 backspacing
Single wheel #SFW1794GUN only $199
Online Only Catalogs
Camaro (2010)
Challenger (2008-10)
GM A-/G-Body (1978-88)
Impala (1991-96)
Mustang (1979-Present)
LeMans/GTO (1964-72)
Mopar A-/B-/E-Body (1962-74)
Mustang (1964
1/
2 -73)
Nova/Chevy II (1962-74)
Skylark/GS (1964-72)
Truck Chevrolet/GMC (1967-87)
YearOne SpeedShop
Printed Catalogs
Bel Air/Nomad/150/210 (1955-57)
Camaro (1967-81) (1982-02)
Chevelle (1964-72)
Corvette (1953-82)
Cutlass 442 (1964-72)
Firebird (1967-81) (1982-02)
Impala (1958-72)
17 version of the Snowflake
wheel that came on 1978-81
Trans Am models with the
WS6 package
17x9 with 4-
7
/
8
backspacing
Accepts original center caps
Available in gold, silver, or
black powder coated recesses

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Series from COMP

is a new lineup of hydraulic roller camshafts featuring

Series will jump start

SHORT TRAVEL LIFTERS

Name: ___________________ Phone: _

Look for the ARP

FASTENER ASSEMBLY LUBE!

114 MARCH 2010 HOT ROD

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