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Recommendations for engine/trans/rearend combos for 200 MPH Open Road racing.

Chris Gal

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I'm looking for advice and ideas for running 200+ MPH in the Silver State Classic Challenge.
A lot of racers are set up for the 1/4 mile stuff which is awesome! But I'm looking at 90 - 110 miles of open highway.
Does anyone have experience in setting up a B body for this type of racing?
I have a couple 440's that need to be built, a couple 727's but I may have to opt for a 5 speed. What do you think?
Thanks in advance for your input.
 
Troy Trepanier
1966 Plymouth Belvedere
"Northern Bel"

  • Engine:
  • 526 Cubic Inch Keith Black

  • Transmission:
    GM 4L80E

  • look up this car and follow the recipe
 
I'm looking for advice and ideas for running 200+ MPH in the Silver State Classic Challenge.
A lot of racers are set up for the 1/4 mile stuff which is awesome! But I'm looking at 90 - 110 miles of open highway.
Does anyone have experience in setting up a B body for this type of racing?
I have a couple 440's that need to be built, a couple 727's but I may have to opt for a 5 speed. What do you think?
Thanks in advance for your input.
You’re gonna need a transmission with a low first gear and an overdrive final drive ratio so you don’t have to run deep gears to give you the top end speed you need without killing the engine.
Reliable horsepower would be more important than big horsepower and I’d pay close attention to the oiling system as far as capability/capacity/cooling are concerned.
The car is going to need big brakes and a well balanced suspension/steering system and speed rated tires.
Safety is paramount in that race. I’d want a good cage, fire suppression system and a wrap around seat.
 
Does anyone have experience in setting up a B body for this type of racing?


download (14).jpg



https://www.pettys-garage.com/vehicles/84/1972-dodge-charger-race-car
 
Personally I'd avoid an automatic, if you do run one make sure it has a lock up convertor, the heat generated by convertor slippage at high speed will put you out of the race....

I'd probably look at a T-56 6 speed, there are a few ratio options but every time it has a lower first gear it seems to have a lower 6th gear so I don't know if one really has an advantage over another & I don't currently have time to do the math... I'd say see whats available & go from there.... 2.66 1st & .5 seems to be the most common...

Tremec provides a calculator, I inputed this basic info & got this...

Screen Shot 2020-01-19 at 12.29.53 PM.png
 
aero stuff needs to be considered too
smooth air over the car & down-force where it's needed
a spoiler up front,
maybe a slight wing in the rear to not create lift at speed
air into the engine & thru the radiator (extreme cooling),
air going over the car
not so much under the car
lower stance & some ground affects wouldn't hurt
to make a brick go thru the air much better

less hp needed to cut thru the air, more aero affective it is

lightening the car where it needs it too, wouldn't hurt
proper front to rear bias
hp/weight ratios lowered, might be the cheapest way
anyway to lesson the rotating mass
& sprung or un-sprung weights
need to be resourceful & creative

titanium hardware, may help some, but it's pricey

lots of ways to skin that cat

that's just a few off the top of my head
 
I don't think "Big Red" was all that aero and won three times,horsepower/cajones/reliability in the heat are my thoughts!
 
I decided to re-do the gear calls with a numerically higher gear since with a 2.76 the car when allot faster than you need & the engine was only turning 4000 rpms....

So heres a 3.55 ratio & still you have the speed you want without pushing very hard.... And general drivability will be much better..
Screen Shot 2020-01-22 at 8.17.19 AM.png
 
I don't think "Big Red" was all that aero and won three times,horsepower/cajones/reliability in the heat are my thoughts!
If you think Big Red is a backyard home build you are sadly mistaken. Easiest way to do it. Buy an ARCA super speedway roller. Outdated NASCAR motor. NASCAR/ARCA clutch, trans, axle. Local guy here did this. Added a rear wing and ran 220 at Bonneville for around $20k investment. I'll bet Big Red has 10 times that much investment.
Doug
 
I'd sort of envision something along these lines & style
albeit I don't think this car was built for it
it is a B-body with min. aero mods, a cage, scoop, spoilers
specific tires/wheels etc.

IMO it needs to be lower & more ground affects
68 Charger RT Nascar style #1 Front.jpg


68 Charger RT Nascar style #2 Back.jpg
 
Tell Dave Engle that....



Just a few comments about this video clip.. I actually recorded it off the TV back in 96 & supplied it to the man who posted this clip...

The Yellow Camaro that Dave motored by? In the full video they interviewed all the drivers before the timed event, the Camaro driver was planning to run 180 mph & left well before Dave... After the event he had only averaged around 125... Still very cool that he got out there & ran but sometimes not talking a lot but going out on course & putting down a great run is allot more effective than making an impressive claim & missing it by 65 mph...

Oh, the reason he only ran 125? His automatic trans was overheating at higher speeds...

Honestly it's very hard to find possible trouble spots wen theres no way to test under race conditions...
 
that was likely a TH400 with no lockup converter back then,overheat yah!my 4l80E will get hot [170F] if you hold it in third and no lock up!but with lockup it will run down the highway at 75mph 13,500lbs gvw [130F} todays automatics are no problem running highway and the weight is low and centered so of no disadvantage!
I would think twice about a 700lb. torque monster continually running light to light on the street with an auto!
A good friend of mine builds trani's for top alcohol dragsters and race sleds,if he says it will work I'm good with that!
the silver state isn't a weekly event and if I was running down the highway at 200mph I don't want my concentration disrupted by thinking which gear am I in and do I need to downshift at this corner!




View attachment 898948[/QUOTE]
IMO has too much rear tire for a front engine road race car that tire might work on a 917!
 
Wow! A lot of good advice and information here. This is a great forum since there is so much experience here. Here are a couple pics of the start of my project.
Cage 1.jpg
IMG_20170928_115910764.jpg IMG_20190410_114828719.jpg
 
Alright, I'm bored.. So I just threw a 5 Spd option into the calculator...
It's not a great driver as shown, not enough gear coming off the line... But a swap to a 3.55 would be easy & would be a great normal street combo...

And the 5 Spd fits with allot less cutting...

Screen Shot 2020-01-28 at 11.12.23 PM.png
 
Oh, this is what the 3.55 does to the combo..
Screen Shot 2020-01-28 at 11.18.31 PM.png
 
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