• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Hemi vs L88

My best friend had a 70 Roadrunner, 383, 4 speed, 3.90 R&P 8¾ rear axle. Aluminum intake, Purple Stripe cam ("Hemi grind" which was around 284°/.480" lift), springs, headers, pinion snubber...That should have put him in the 400 some horsepower range.
He was pretty consistent on the street back in 79-82 and ran mid 13s. First gear and the resulting cacophony of various noises was the opening act, the beginning of moving the car forward, and once 2nd gear took charge that was usually when the trend of leaving the car next to him behind would begin. By the shift into 4th gear, the conclusion of who was going to cross the finish line first was apparent.
One of the funniest things was watching him race was the "indication" that he had hit 2nd gear: the turn signal detent was worn and 10 years old, and the impact of the shift into 2nd was harsh, so the weight of the metal turn signal lever would cause the lever to drop and his left turn signal light would come on! That's how we could always tell when he had hit 2nd gear!
So the point is that on the street, back in that era, with the cars that we would typically encounter, his mid 13 second Roadrunner was a contender, and THAT made for a LOT of fun times on the cruise circuit in New Orleans.
I just wish that he still had that car and I could line up next to him in my 70 440+6bbl Roadrunner! I raced his SRT Jeep 3 times at the track, and he lost 0-3.
BWA-HA-HAAAAA...
 
Auto Transport Service
Back
Top