2014 SEMA PREVIEW Mustangs, Hellcats & Star Cars

MUSCLE CARS ■ IMPORTS ■ CLASSICS ■ HOT RODS ■ EXOTICS

DREAM AT SPEED:
680 HP

ON
LINGENFELTER

Z/28
TESTED:
STEVEN TYLER’S
1244 HP
HENNESSEY Miata MX-5 Gets a Maximum V-8
VENOM GT Real Story of the “Little Deuce Coupe”
The Big, Bad, Black Muscle Car Suspension
November/December 2014
U.S. $8.99 • Display Until 11/4/14
38

HEMI PLYMOUTH HOW TO GET IT RIGHT 7 25274 01920

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 Official Soft Drink
of NHRA ®
© 2014 The Coca-Cola Company. “M “Mello
ll YYello”
ll ” and
d “M
“Mello
ll YYello
ll Zero”
Z ” are trademarks
d k of The Coca-Cola Company.
NHRA is a registered trademark of National Hot Rod Association and used with permission.
 Issue No. 8 November/December 2014

COLUMNS FEATURES
6 THE LONG PATH OF PERFORMANCE
Just as with electronics and social media,
maximum performance is strong and getting
46 CAMARO TO THE MAX
Stuff a 680-hp Lingenfelter LS7 into
the new Z/28, and “old school” really
stronger.—By John L. Stein rules.—By Thomas Glatch

10 DRIVE LIKE A PRO

You’ve got 500 horses under the hood. Here’s
how to hold the reins.—By Eric Bergenholtz
54
MAXIMUM MIATA
The American tradition of shoehorning big
motors into small cars continues in Mazda’s

12
beloved roadster.—By Phil Berg
SHOP SMARTS
It’s not easy to honor the originality of a
car, but it can be done. But you have to
make the right choices.—By Bob Mosier
60 SOUTHERN STYLE
Deep inside the award-winning Johnson’s Hot
Rod Shop of Alabama.—By Aaron Gold

DEPARTMENTS 66 A WONDERFUL LIFE

The magical life and times of the real “Little
Deuce Coupe.”—By Ken Gross

14 MAXIMUM NEWS
The horsepower heat is on.
—By Thomas Glatch 74 THE BIG, BAD, BLACK, PLYMOUTH HEMI
Inside this plain-Jane-looking 1966 Belve-

22
NEW PRODUCTS
From control arms to clutches, and from
cleaners to chargers, here’s what’s new and
cool in the aftermarket.—By Kevin Aguilar
dere is 750 lb. of cast-iron V-8 that launched
an American legend.—By Phil Berg
80 SEMA PREVIEW
Four great reasons to attend the world’s
best automotive aftermarket show.

COVER STORY —By Christine Eastman

32 SUPER SNAKE
John Hennessey’s Venom GT isn’t
86 THE SUPERCAR ADDICT
Forget Walter Mitty. You want to be like
exotic car nut James DiIorio.—By Phil Berg

92
the first Anglo-American hot rod,
but it’s the fastest.—By Tom Wilson TAIL OF THE DRAGON
11 miles. 318 corners. Do the math.
—By Randy Pobst

96 JUST HANDLE IT
Getting the most out of your classic muscle
car’s suspension.—By John Hotchkis

On The Cover:
Steven Tyler’s Hennessey Venom GT Spyder; Dr. Phil Scheinberg’s
Big, Bad, Black Hemi Plymouth; and Dodge Challenger Hellcat
PHOTOS BY PHIL BERG AND GUY SPANGENBERG
 TECHNOLOGY
100
EDITORIAL
POUR ME A DOUBLE SHOT
E DITORIAL DIRECTOR : Jennifer Degtjarewsky
Banks Power’s water-methanol injection SENIOR CREATIVE DIRECTOR : Eric Knagg
systems deliver 5 to 20 percent more bolt-on
E DITOR-IN-CHIEF : John L. Stein
horsepower.—By Bob Ryder A RT DIRECTOR : Bert Swift

106
TO DYNOLICIOUS AND BEYOND
Six inexpensive data-acquisition apps to track
your car’s performance.—By Jeremy Da Rosa
HISTORY
M ANAGING E DITOR : Cheryl Cooper
Contributors
Kevin Aguilar, Phil Berg, Ed Bergenholtz, Lisa Crigar, Jeremy Da Rosa,
Christine Eastman, Thomas Glatch, Aaron Gold, Ken Gross,
John Hotchkis, Bill Masho, Bob Mosier, Randy Pobst, Bob Ryder,
Guy Spangenberg, Tom Wilson
ADVERTISING

112 THE FIRST QUARTER MILE

Organized drag racing started by design.
But the ¼-mile distance was completely
by chance.—By John L. Stein
A D SALES DIRECTOR : Gabe Frimmel,
(714) 200-1930, GFrimmel@Beckett.com
SENIOR ACCOUNT E XECUTIVE : Brandon Lillie, (714) 276-5279
MOTORSPORTS DIRECTOR : Tom “Mongoose” McEwen,
(714) 200-1936

120 THE WINDS OF CHANGE
Of the 34 dragsters built by Don Garlits from
1956 to 2003, Swamp Rat 13 particularly
altered the course of history.—By John L. Stein
DO IT YOURSELF
ACCOUNT E XECUTIVE : Chris Crispell, (714) 200-1935
ACCOUNT E XECUTIVE : Bob Hulsy, (714) 200-1940
A D T RAFFIC COORDINATOR : Gennifer Merriday
DIRECT MARKETING GROUP
John Bartulin (866) 866-5146, ext. 2746
Paul Caca (866) 866-5146, ext. 4961
Ryan Lauro (866) 866-5146, ext. 2756
Mary Ann Jaca (866) 866-5146, ext. 2716
OPERATIONS

124 PAMPER YOUR PAINT

Maximize your car’s presentation in four
easy steps.—By John L. Stein
FINISH LINE
NEWSSTAND SALES &
M ARKETING M ANAGER : Gus Alonzo
NEWSSTAND A NALYST : Celia Merriday
BUSINESS A NALYTICS M ANAGER : Amit Sharma
NEWSSTAND & P RODUCTION A NALYST : Mohit Patel
SENIOR L OGISTICS &
FACILITIES M ANAGER : Alberto Chavez

130
PASS IT ON
Building a family passion for performance
doesn’t necessarily take money. It just
takes time.—By John L. Stein
CREATIVE GRAPHIC DESIGNER : John Cabral
SUBSCRIPTION M ANAGER : Shailesh Khandelwal
EDITORIAL, PRODUCTION &
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This magazine is purchased by the buyer with the understanding that information
presented is from various sources from which there can be no warranty or responsi-
bility by Beckett Media, LLC as to the legality, completeness or technical accuracy.
 Just as with electronics and social media, the bandwidth
for performance cars is rapidly spreading. Regardless of where it takes us in the future,
it’s pretty staggering right now. Consider the über-exotic Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid, the
electric Tesla Model S and new battleships such as the 707-hp 2015 Dodge Challenger
SRT Hellcat, and it seems clear that maximum performance is strong and getting stronger.
And the big gains are happening quickly.
Only nine years ago, the Corvette Z06 eclipsed the mystical 500-hp threshold, and
now the Hellcat boasts over 200 hp more. While this issue’s cover car, the Hennessey
Venom GT, delivers a claimed 1244 horses. And if those aren’t within budget, you
can always upgrade your current ride. Maybe you’ll install a water-methanol injec-
tion system, as detailed on page 100, or follow Camaro enthusiast Ken Thwaits’ lead
with a 680-hp Lingenfelter upgrade for his new Z/28, as shown on page 46.
Although coming at us quickly, these astonishing gains are long
in the making, in large part thanks to formative men of drag rac-
ing like Bob Joehnck and Don Garlits, both national treasures.
Joehnck, now an energetic 89, spearheaded the fi rst organized drag
races in little Goleta, California, in 1947—coining the term “quar-
ter mile” in the process—and later designed Edelbrock’s original
high-rise 4-barrel manifold. This story begins on page 112.

The Long Path of

Performance
BY JOHN L. STEIN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

6 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

 And Garlits, 82, was nice enough to share the
story of his Swamp Rat 13 slingshot, the car that
changed drag-racing history when a transmission
explosion prompted development of his first rear-
engine dragster. Garlits purposefully built the
simplest cars possible, and his captions on page
120 show just how much can be accomplished with so little. Genius. for the street. His experience ■ From the first orga-
Also genius is Ford’s Mustang, which celebrated its 50th anniver- begins on page 86. nized quarter-mile drags
sary this year. We can hardly wait to see how tuners tweak the latest There’s still more in this is- pictured at bottom to
pony generation for SEMA. And speaking of which, Christine East- sue, including best practices for the tire-boiling, 707-hp
man gives a dynamic preview of the world’s best aftermarket show, managing restorations, smart- 2015 Dodge Challenger
starting on page 80. phone apps that track your car’s SRT Hellcat above, the
As the Brits say, absolute power corrupts absolutely, and so the performance, a pro hot-rod shop long path of performance
newfound horsepower also demands better driving skills. Hence profile, easy paint-care steps, has already climbed
two pro drivers, Ed Bergenholtz and Randy Pobst, offer some use- Maximum News and new prod- incredibly. And it is still
ful advice. Two-time NHRA champion Bergenholtz offers some ucts too. And the issue finishes climbing, as witnessed
personal best practices for driving high-performance cars on page with a parting thought—sharing by exotics like Porsche’s
10, while Pobst, a 10-time sports-car champ, explains how to tame your passion for performance 918 Spyder hybrid and
the 318 corners of the “Tail of the Dragon” on page 92. with the next generation. the 1244-hp Hennessey
A particular challenge of stuffi ng high horsepower into vintage We hope you enjoy the ride. Venom GT below.
muscle cars is that the passenger-car suspension wasn’t exactly
wonderful at the time—and it’s even more dubious today with
higher power and fatter rubber. On page 96, suspension guru John
Hotchkis guides us through the process of getting your vintage
PHOTOS BY BOB JOEHNCK’S COLLECTION AND GUY SPANGENBERG

muscle car to handle as well as it goes.

Also inside is the amazing life of Clarence Catallo’s iconic “Lit-
tle Deuce Coupe” that appeared on The Beach Boys’ eponymous
1963 album, as told by hot-rod authority Ken Gross on page 66.
While on the 50th anniversary of the 426 Hemi, it’s fitting that
we’d include the sleeper of all sleepers, a stealthy black Plymouth
Belvedere, as a profi le on page 74.
This Maximum Drive issue also includes a bit of import action,
and nothing fits better here than Flyin’ Miata, the Colorado com-
pany specializing in squeezing high-output V-8s into Mazda’s little
MX-5. See page 54. But maybe the wildest tale is from a man who
didn’t just dream about it, he jumped feet fi rst into exotic-car own-
ership, ultimately settling on a Ferrari F40 Le Mans conversion—

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014 ■ MAXIMUM DRIVE 7

 Drive Like A Pro

The Philosophy of Speed

ing of which, drink plenty of
water—it’s hot in the car. And
finally, if I’m doing any kind of
high-performance driving, I
always stretch first.

Feel the Car

You’ve got 500 horses under the hood. Here’s how to hold the reins. As much as possible, set your
car up so that you can feel it
By Ed BErgEnholtz working. If you can’t install
a racing seat, minimizing the
Driving cars at the limit is incredibly fun and exciting, but when circumstances get wild padding in the existing seat
it can become overwhelming fast. From street and drag racing to road racing and drifting, can help. Leather-wrapped shift-
and from 100 to 1500 horsepower, I have done a little bit of everything in motorsports er handles can be bothersome,
over the years. Reflecting on that progression today, I realize the skills I learned are trans- so I always try to replace mine
with a simple round cue ball like
ferable to any type of high-performance driving. Here are four of my favorite driving tips.
the classic Hurst shifter. It’s not
Always Be Smooth glamorous, but tells you more
Launching a car its quickest is actually a very aggressive action, about gear engagement. Then
but it needs to be both smooth and aggressive. And when you’re locate essential controls where
cornering, don’t saw at the wheel. Instead, think ahead and choose they’re intuitive. When I ran
■ Regardless of what a cornering line, and then try to complete it with the least amount nitrous, I’d put the button on
you drive—or where of steering corrections possible. Big steering inputs change the the shifter so I’d be able to find
you’re driving—making car’s balance and affect grip. And when braking, squeeze the pedal it instantly. And I always located
various small improve- smoothly. Jumping hard on the brakes can un-weight and desta- gauges and shift lights up high,
ments can help you bilize the rear of the car, and releasing the brakes too fast lets the close to my line of sight.
perform better on the front springs rebound, un-weighting the front of the car.
day. From wearing the Reduce Distractions
right shoes to choosing Be a Machine Whether on the road or track,
a simple shifter handle, A car’s performance is only as good as the driver’s. To give your- before you set out to drive hard
and from staying hy- self an advantage, choose shoes that fit the footwell and interact take all the loose stuff out of
drated to reducing men- with your pedals well. Then before you start any focused drive, get the car. This means everything,
tal distractions, they’re alone somewhere and quiet your mind. Whatever skills you have including Big Gulp cups, loose
all either inexpensive are already in your head. You’ll drive much better calm and focused quarters, garage-door openers,
or completely free. than you will amped up like a monkey on energy drinks. Speak- hockey sticks, and that Nerf
ball under the seat. Same goes
for whatever’s in the trunk.
Also remove the floor mats, as
they can get caught up in fast-
moving feet or pedals. Finally,
turn off the audio system and
empty your pockets so you’re
sitting evenly in the seat. Com-
bined with the few other simple
adjustments above, this puts you
one step closer to driving like
a pro.
Now go prove it.

Ed Bergenholtz is a 2-time
NHRA Pro-FWD champion.

10 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 T his car doesn’t
consume my life.
i have a truck too.

R O D & C U S T O M A S S O C I A T I O N

Forever good.

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 Shop Smarts

Restoration Best Practices

Photo by thinkstock
Nowadays, “perfect” can be a little too good.
By BoB Mosier

I’ve been in the restoration business since 1970, and over the years I’ve seen a lot between one quality level or
another, you simply choose the
of mistakes made on automobiles—including a few of my own. Perhaps the thing
best available, no matter how
I’ve seen most often is a lack of cohesiveness in the finished product, which tells me expensive. Result? Too perfect.
there’s a lack of consistency in decision making along the way. However, if you want to
Before you embark on a full restoration, or for that matter per- re-create a production car’s
form any restoration work at all, decide and commit to the desired original quality and appear-
■ This mostly original end result. Then make every decision along the way to support this ance—by including a little
Packard flathead has vision, resulting in consistent quality and appearance. Nothing’s orange peel in the paint for ex-
received some appro- worse than one part of the job shaming another—survivor chrome ample—it’s essential to keep an
priate cosmetic main- paired with new paint is a classic example. overall image of the finished
tenance that doesn’t Thankfully, achieving an original-quality appearance is now car in mind. This is especially
detract from the appear- taking precedence over the “over-restored” look that ruled for important when working on a
ance of a well-preserved many years, but to achieve it, you must be consistent in your treat- well-preserved original vehi-
older vehicle. Success ment of all fits and finishes. It isn’t so much that you will opt for cle. Nothing makes me crazier
requires knowing what substandard plating or paintwork, but rather that you’ll make sub- than a beautiful original car
the original finishes were tle choices along the way to avoid the jewel-like fit and finish that that has suffered a number of
like, and then having characterizes over-the-top projects. misguided “upgrades!”
the restraint to not take In an ironic twist, it’s actually easier to make decisions if your Whether you’re servicing a
things any further. goal is to over-restore a car. Then each time you need to choose survivor or completely restoring
a car to showroom condition, al-
ways think about this: What did
it look like when it was new? If
you take out the engine for re-
building, don’t finish everything
in high-gloss enamel with every
casting flaw puttied smooth. Ev-
ery decision you make should be
to achieve an appropriate, con-
sistent appearance. I admit that
one of the most difficult things
to do is to honor the originality
of a car, but it can be done, and
many people are doing it beauti-
fully these days.

Los Angeles-based restorer Bob

Mosier’s projects include numerous
Pebble Beach show winners.

12 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

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 Maximum News
The
Heat
Is oN
■ This year marked
several major automo-
tive anniversaries, most
importantly the Ford Mus-
tang’s 50th. In addition,
both Maserati and Dodge
celebrated their Centen-
nials, and Dodge’s iconic
426 Hemi engine cel-
ebrated its 50th. Speed
record efforts by Danny
Thompson and Don Garlits
also helped prove that
history is alive and well.
14 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
BY THOMAS GLATCH
Storming to Showrooms
Dodge started off the season pinned in top gear,
as the announcement of the 2015 Dodge Chal-
lenger SRT Hellcat revealed some staggering num-
bers: 707 hp, and an NHRA-certified 11.2 seconds
at 125 mph in the quarter (improved to 10.8 sec.
at 126 mph on street slicks). Those are stronger
numbers than the Chevy ZL1 Camaro and Ford’s
Shelby GT 500. Chrysler design chief Ralph Gilles
demonstrated what those numbers can do in an epic
burnout at this summer’s Mopar Nationals. Rumor
has it Ford is planning to better these figures in a
2016 Mustang. Until then, consider the bar raised.
Not to be left out, the 2015 Dodge Charger
Without a doubt, 2014 was
one of the hottest summers on record.
But I’m not talking about 128 degrees
in Death Valley—by “hot” I mean more
like the record-breaking horsepower,
hellacious burnouts, multiple speed-
record attempts, and Pony (Ford
Mustang) and Elephant (Hemi engine)
anniversary celebrations that have
turned up the automotive heat all over
the nation. And the best news is
there’s no end to the excite-
ment in sight.
SRT showed some stunning styling updates by
Gilles’ team. The legendary Hemi performance
remains, and there are rumors of a Hellcat ver-
sion for this model in the works as well. What a
way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 426
Hemi and the 100th anniversary of Dodge!
Mitsubishi also revealed the 2015 Lancer Evo-
lution. It’s a bittersweet announcement, since this
is slated to be the fi nal version of one of the best
hot compacts. However, the Evo has aged grace-
fully and still packs unbelievable performance in
a small package, so consider this your last chance
to get a new one. No word yet from Mitsubishi
on a replacement.
 Maximum News

Mustang Golden Show Time Each year Carlisle Promotions

Anniversary Speaking of anniversaries, hosts 11 different shows at the
Back in April, Ford celebrated the Mid America Motorworks, the 150-acre Carlisle Fairgrounds in
50th anniversary of the most popular giant Corvette parts and acces- Pennsylvania. The final event of
American performance car, the Mus- sories company, was scheduled 2014 was set to be the Fall Carl-
tang. But the Mustang Club of America to celebrate its 40th year at their isle Collector Car Swap Meet and
continued those celebrations through- big FunFest bash September Corral on October 1–5, featuring
out the summer and into the fall at 18–21. Founder Mike Yager has a collector and classic-car swap
their regional and national meets, been hosting this event since meet, car corral and auction. Talk
with the last one being held in mid- 1994 as a “thank you” to loyal about big—there were expected
October in beautiful and historic Sa- customers. In recognition of this to be 8100 vending spaces and
vannah, Georgia. Check it out at www. special anniversary, this year’s over 2000 vehicles for sale in the
MustangsInHistoricSavannah.com. FunFest was designed to be the car corral. Founded in 1974, Car-
The Petersen Automotive Museum biggest and best yet, with a huge lisle Events still hosts some of the
in Los Angeles also celebrated the car show, a cruise and live en- best gatherings around. Get up to
Mustang’s anniversary with a special tertainment—all free. FunFest date at www.CarsAtCarlisle.com.
display through mid-October—Mus- is held at the company’s head- It may feel like winter in
tangs Forever: 50 Years of a Legend. quarters in Effingham, Illinois, Chicago in late November,
Other ongoing special collections include Town Cars, Arriving in Style, which about 70 miles from St. Louis. but it’ll be warm and dry at
runs until February 8, 2015. Go to www.Petersen.org for more information. See www.CorvetteFunFest.com the Muscle Car & Corvette
for more info. Nationals. That’s because the
show, scheduled for November
22–23 this year, is held inside
SMASHING RECORDS the Donald E. Stephens Con-
By the time you read this, Danny Thompson may have attempted to break the official land speed record for piston-engine vention Center in Rosemont,
vehicles. His father, the legendary Mickey Thompson, tried a number of times. In 1968, Mickey built the twin-engine Chal- Illinois, near O’Hare Inter-
lenger II to smash the 406-mph mark set in 1965, but bad weather prevented the attempt and Mickey never got to try again. national Airport. Billed as the
This year Danny, in the restored and updated Challenger II, was determined to finish the job. He went 317 mph in July in largest indoor event of its kind,
a test on Bonneville’s short course—without even getting Challenger II into high gear! At press time, the entire 10-mile-long only the fi nest Muscle Cars and
course was scheduled to be available to assault the current 437.183-mph record during the Bonneville Speed Week from Corvettes are invited.
August 9–15 and again at the World of Speed from September 6–9. Find out more at ThompsonLSR.com. Honoring the 50th anniver-
Don Garlits proved speed keeps one young. At 82 years old, “Big sary of the 426 Hemi, special
Daddy” wanted to break the quarter-mile record for electric-powered invitees this year include factory
vehicles, and crack the 200-mph barrier doing it. His “Swamp Rat 37” 426 Hemi-powered Dodge and
dragster silently broke the record in June at 186 mph, but a malfunction Plymouth cars from 1964–1971.
shut down the six GE motors early, and he missed the 200 mph mark. Also lined up is Mustang Mad-
He’ll make another attempt at 200 run next year. If you like Facebook, ness, an anniversary celebration
check out Facebook.com/QuestFor200mphOnBatteries. with the hottest performance
Mustangs from 1964–1971, and
a Pure Stock Muscle Car Drag
Race Display, with 12 of the fast-
est AMC, Buick, Chevy, Ford,
Mopar, Oldsmobile and Mercu-
ry muscle cars that appear exact-
ly as they left the assembly line.
Plus, one lucky ticket holder will
score a 1970 Oldsmobile Pace
Car in the second annual Great
American Muscle Car Giveaway.
Get on it at www.Mcacn.com.

16
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 Maximum News
Hot-Rod Culture
Sure, the cars are great, but
it’s the fraternity of rodders that
Farewell, Rockford makes our hot-rod culture so
Finally, we’re saddened by the passing of special. If you’ve never expe-
rienced a major outdoor hot-
James Garner at age 86 on July 19. If anyone
rod event, we suggest check-
in Hollywood understood gearheads, it was ing out one of the 20 shows the
Garner. He played the lead role as driver Pete Goodguys Rod and Custom
Aron in director Jerry Frankheimer’s 1966 film Association produce annually.
“Grand Prix,” and impressed many profes- Goodguys is the world’s larg-
est hot-rodding association with
sionals with his driving talents. He then went
over 70,000 members world-
on to form his own racing team, American wide. Besides hot rods, the
International Racing, with the support from events feature customs, trucks,
Corvette legend Dick Guldstrand and come- muscle cars and classics at mar-
dians Tommy and Dick Smothers, earning a quee locations such as fair-
grounds and super speedways.
second-place finish in the 1969 24 Hours of
Craft shows, activities for ladies,
Daytona. He also personally raced in some live entertainment, vintage drag
of the first Baja off-road events. Over the racing and more broaden the
years, he played everything from cowboys appeal. Other Goodguys events
to astronauts on both TV and the silver include the 25th Autumn Get-
Together, scheduled for No-
screen, but he may be best remembered vember 8–9 at the Alameda
as lovable Firebird-driving private investiga- County Fairgrounds in Pleasan-
tor Jim Rockford in “The Rockford Files.” ton, California. Get up to speed
at www.Good-Guys.com.
This is the second year that
Low Res Phot. Gert
18
the National Hot Rod Asso-
ciation has expanded its Hot
Rod Reunion to three events.
Produced by the Wally Parks
NHRA Motorsports Museum,
the Hot Rod Reunion events
serve the museum’s “living his-
tory” philosophy, which aims to
bring to life the sights, sounds
and people who made history
in the early days of drag racing,
land-speed racing and the gold-
en age of American car culture.
Each Hot Rod Reunion event
features a wide variety of activi-
ties, including NHRA vintage
drag racing starting some of the
sport’s most famous and his-
toric cars and drivers in exhibi-
tion runs. The highlight of each
event is the nighttime “Cackle-
fest,” in which vintage nitro-
fuel cars fire up in a cacophony
of sound and flame. Proceeds
from the Hot Rod Reunion
events benefit the Wally Parks
NHRA Motorsports Museum,
which can be found at www.
Museum.NHRA.com.
PHOTO BY VICTOR BLACKMAN/EXPRESS/GETTY IMAGES
 THE WORLD'S LARGEST
MANUFACTURERS OF

1955-56-57 Chevrolet Parts

Danny and Art Danchuk
circa 1957

Call for a Free Catalog!

(800)261-0296
or find us on the web at www.danchuk.com

Hood Birds Scripts

1955 ................... #472 ...........$159.95/ea. 55-56 Bel Air, Chrome
1956 ................... #484 ...........$159.95/ea. ........................... #538 ............. $68.95/pr.
55-56 Chevrolet, Clock
Premium V8 Fan Shrouds ........................... #1055 ...........$23.95/ea.
55-57 6 Cyl. Core Support 1957 Bel Air, Gold
........................... #16625 .......$109.95/ea. ........................... #539 ............. $68.95/pr.
55-57 Chrome Version 1957 Bel Air, Chrome
........................... #16625C ....$209.95/ea. ........................... #539A........... $64.95/pr.
55-57 Stock Position See catalog for complete list and full descriptions.
........................... #16626A.....$109.95/ea.
55-57 Chrome Version '57 Hood Rockets
........................... #16626C ....$209.95/ea. Complete ........... #467 ...........$269.95/set
See catalog for complete list and full descriptions.
Backing Plates Only
........................... #468 ............. $99.95/pr.
Rockets Only..... #469 ............. $99.95/pr. Emblems
Scoops Only...... #470 ............. $99.95/pr. 1955 Hood ......... #371 .............$72.95/ea.
1956 Hood, V8 .. #373A...........$57.95/ea.
1955 Trunk......... #371A...........$72.95/ea.
1956 Trunk......... #374A...........$57.95/ea.
56-58 Trunk ....... #1492 ...........$99.95/ea.
See catalog for complete list and full descriptions.
Bumper Bullets
1957 Rubber...... #330 ............. $49.95/pr.
1957 Original Style
........................... #330A........... $96.95/pr.
1957 Smoothie Style Outside Rear View Mirror
........................... #330B .......... $96.95/pr. ........................... #531 .............$69.95/ea.
Crest Emblems
55-57 ................. #365 ............. $52.95/pr.
55-57 Chrome ... #365A........... $54.95/pr.
1957 Show Quality, Forged
........................... #2342 ........... $72.95/pr.
Accessory Gas Door Guard Wheel Spinner Assembly See catalog for complete list and full descriptions.
1955 ................... #489 .............$25.95/ea. 57-58 ................. #578 ...........$178.95/set
ÎÓä£Ê-°Ê-/

,Ê
6 1 ]Ê-
/
Ê

]Ê

ʙÓÇäxÊUÊ777°

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" FOLLOW US FOR
*,
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/Ê/"Ê

 Ê7/"1/Ê "/
ÊUÊ
 ,Ê +1, -Ê7 
" NEWS & SPECIALS
TRUST THE NAME THAT'S BEEN IN THE Danny and Art Danchuk circa 2007
TRI-FIVE BUSINESS FOR NEARLY 4 DECADES!
Call for Your
Catalog Today!

Free

Made in the U S A !
WE PRICE MATCH WHEN COMPARING SAME PARTS! PRICES LISTED ARE FOR MADE IN THE USA VERSIONS!!

1957 Bel Air Aluminum Side Panels

1957 2-Dr, HT, SED, CONV, NOM & WGN .......................#573 ..................... $599.95/pr.
1957 4-Dr HT ....................................................................#573A ................... $624.95/pr.
1957 4-Dr SED, WGN .......................................................#573B ................... $624.95/pr.
1957 2-Dr, 573 No Holes ..................................................#573C ................... $574.95/pr.
1957 2-Dr, 573 Chrome Emblem .....................................#573D ................... $614.95/pr.
1957 2-Dr, 573 Forged Emblems .....................................#573S ................... $589.95/pr.
1957 4-Dr, 573A Forged Emblems ..................................#573S1 ................. $614.95/pr.
1957 4-Dr, 573B Forged Emblems ..................................#573S2 ................. $614.95/pr.

#966

Taillight Assemblies
1955 ................... #15512 ....... $229.95/pr.
1956 ................... #1045 .........$479.95/set
1957 ................... #965 ...........$379.95/set
Grille Bar Assembly & Mouldings #1564
Tailight Lenses
1955 Complete Set Mouldings ........................................#1564 .................. $419.95/set
1955 ................... #487 ............. $10.95/pr.
1955 Curved Ends Only ...................................................#1494 ..................... $98.95/pr.
1956 ................... #491A........... $10.95/pr.
1955 Hood Bar Only ........................................................#10141 ................ $205.95/ea.
1957 ................... #495 ............. $10.95/pr.
1955 Lower Bar Only .......................................................#12620 ................ $205.95/ea.
1956 Hood Bar Only ........................................................#461 .................... $209.95/ea. Parklight, Clear
1956 Hood Bar and Extensions.......................................#14791 ................ $334.95/set 1955 ................... #486 ............. $10.95/pr.
1957 Grille Bar Assembly ...............................................#966 .................... $319.95/ea. 1956 ................... #490 ............. $10.95/pr.
See catalog for complete list and full descriptions. 1957 ................... #494 ............. $10.95/pr.

Back-Up Light
#217 1955 ................... #483 ............. $10.95/pr.
1955 Red ........... #483B .......... $16.95/pr.
1956 ................... #488 ............. $10.95/pr.
1956 Red ........... #488B .......... $16.95/pr.
Dash Trim Sets #217B 1957 Glass ........ #492 ............. $18.95/pr.
1955 ..................................................................................#217A .................. $179.95/set 1956 ................... #488 ............. $10.95/pr.
1956 ..................................................................................#217B .................. $179.95/set
1957 ..................................................................................#217 .................... $179.95/set (800)261-0296
1957 ..................................................................................#217C .................. $179.95/set
1957 ..................................................................................#217D .................. $179.95/set www.danchuk.com
 New Products

The Right Stuff

From control arms to clutches, and from cleaners to chargers,
here’s what’s new and cool in the aftermarket.
COMPILED BY KEVIN AGUILAR

PoP, PoUr and go remote

Mr. Gasket’s Cataclean fuel and
exhaust-system cleaner
Carbon buildup can be a hidden per-
formance killer. With years of use, your fuel
injectors, oxygen sensors, cylinder heads and
catalytic converter can get dirty or clogged
with deposits that pile up over time, slowly
robbing your vehicle of power and efficiency.
As a part of preventative maintenance, pre-
treatments like Mr. Gasket’s Cataclean will
help extend the life of your vehicle and some
of its components. It was designed to reduce
total hydrocarbon emissions by up to 50 per-
cent. Cataclean is safe for use in all gasoline,
diesel and hybrid engines. Best of all, you can
get it at most local retailers.
Mr. Gasket Co. ■ (216) 658-6413
www.MR-Gasket.com
control
yoUr ride
Bilstein’s iRC
smartphone-enabled
Ridecontrol suspension
Smartphone control has been
added as a convenient feature to the
tested-and-true Bilstein B16 Ridecon-
trol suspension system. Instead of
using a dashboard button, the damper
adjustment can now be made by
smartphone. You can switch between
the basic Comfort+ and Sport+ modes.
The Comfort+ mode compensates for
bumps in the road, harmoniously and
smoothly, with the renowned Bilstein
precision. The Sport+ mode offers
superb vehicle dynamics and maxi-
mum performance when driving to the
limit. In addition to Comfort+ and
Sport+, an Auto mode offers Comfort,
Normal and Sport settings, each of
which can be custom tuned to the
user’s individual demands.
Bilstein of America ■ (858) 386-5900
www.BilsteinUS.com

22 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 You don’t believe in compromise and

neither do we. We believe cigarettes

should be built by hand—your hands, not

machines—using great quality tobacco,

made in the USA. Roll Bugler® today.

 New Products

steered straight
Power-steering conversion for 1952–1964 Ford full-size cars
Borgeson Universal has developed and is now producing an integral power-
steering conversion box for the 1952–1956 and 1957–1964 Ford full-size cars.
This conversion box is a remanufactured modern quick-ratio power-steering
gearbox that has undergone extensive modifications to be a direct bolt-in for
1952–1964 cars. The Borgeson conversion box will fit with no modifications to
the shock tower or frame. It bolts directly into the factory mounting location and
includes a pitman arm to connect directly to the stock steering linkage. However,
the power-steering conversion box is longer than the stock box, requiring the
steering column to be shortened approximately 3 in.
Borgeson Universal ■ (860) 482-8283 ■ www.Borgeson.com

UPscale tags
Classic Industries replacement
big-block air-cleaner decals
As anyone who enjoys peering into the engine bay of a classic
Chevrolet muscle car can attest, there’s no mistaking a big block.
The unrelentingly powerful Chevrolet big-block engine has never
been known for subtlety, and now, thanks to Classic Industries,
owners can install OER’s new custom big-block air-cleaner emblems.
Based on the design of the classic Chevrolet crossed-flag and
Turbo-Jet decals, they create a bold, three-dimensional look. These
die-cast air cleaner emblems are similar in shape and size to the
crossed-flag decals and Turbo-Jet decals used on the air cleaners of
various big-block-equipped vehicles of the era.
Classic Industries ■ (800) 854-1280 ■ www.ClassicIndustries.com

Pocket Play
PowerAll battery charger
The powerful yet compact PowerAll battery
charger has enough juice to re-power a smart-
phone or even reawaken your car battery, thanks
to an impressive 12,000mAh storage capability.
The built-in LED flashlight provides the option of
constant-on or SOS-signal illumination modes so
you’re never in the dark, and two 5-volt/2.1-amp
USB ports allow it to handle multiple charging
tasks simultaneously. Upon completion of charg-
ing, PowerAll goes into sleep mode to preserve
its battery, and it likewise will not over current,
short circuit, overload, over voltage, or overcharge. Best of all,
you can take this charger with you, as the compact 6.5 x 3 x 1 3/16-in.
device is sized to fit right in the glovebox of your vehicle.
California Car Cover Company Inc. ■ (800) 423-5525 ■

24 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 New Products

armed and not

so dangeroUs
Modernized replacement control
arms for Tri-Five Chevys
For those looking for control arms for 1955–1957 Chevrolet Passenger
cars, Classic Performance Products offers these new stamped replacements.
CPP’s arms come complete with balljoints and cross shafts installed and have a
beautiful black powder-coated finish. Importantly, these newly modernized control arms
have five degrees of additional caster built right into the arm. This provides all the performance
benefits of a modern arm with the classic look of the original. This additional caster is also ideal for
power steering and today’s higher road speeds.
Classic Performance Products Inc. ■ (800) 522-5004 ■ www.ClassicPerform.com

Back in Black
Mothers Trim & Plastic Restorer
Anyone who has a newer car with acres of black plastic pieces will know that
it is extremely difficult to achieve a lasting deep-black sheen. Mothers Back-to-
Black Trim & Plastic Restorer is an all-in-one cleaner and protectant for this
pesky exterior trim challenge. With proper application, it will remove light oxida-
tion, dirt, wax residue and surface film with ease, helping to bring back that
like-new color while also protecting against further deterioration caused by
the sun, smog, ozone, water, chemicals and airborne contaminants.
Mothers Polish ■ (714) 891-3364 ■ www.Mothers.com

Big Power asPirations

Victor intake manifolds for Chevrolet LS3 engines
If you are looking to build a 700-plus hp carbureted or EFI large-displacement racing
engine operating between 3500–7500 rpm, this manifold will help you achieve your goal. Edelbrock’s
Super Victor intake manifolds are designed for use on Chevrolet Gen IV LS series engines equipped with
LS3 cylinder heads. They feature 17-percent larger runners along with a 4500-style plenum. The large
plenum makes these intake manifolds ideal for nitrous and forced-induction applications too. They also
feature tapered runners for increased flow at high rpm. Available with a 4150 or 4500-series flange,
and the 4500-series manifolds can accommodate bores up 2.25 in.
Edelbrock ■ (310) 781-2222 ■ www.Edelbrock.com

26 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 New Products

aUtomagical entry
Viper SmartKey wireless lock control
We’ve seen advanced wireless locking systems on exotic cars that do not require the use of a key or
remote to lock or unlock the doors. Now you can have the same capabilities in your very own car,
as Viper has introduced the SmartKey device that lets you lock and unlock your car with your
smartphone. Using Bluetooth technology, the system provides you with keyless and hands-free
entry and exit. SmartKey creates a wireless perimeter around your car and responds to your
smartphone without requiring you to push any buttons or launch any apps.
Viper ■ www.Viper.com

ram it into gear

Upgraded clutch assemblies for 2014 Corvette C7
The new Chevrolet C7 Corvette is a solid hit with automotive enthu-
siasts with its modern style, horsepower and handling. Although these
monsters are plenty powerful right off the showroom floor, some of
us are hungry for even more performance. Lucky for us, Ram Clutches
has developed two levels of upgraded clutches to fulfill our need for
speed. These 10.5-in. clutches are offered in an organic-disc 300 se-
ries that will handle up to 800 hp. The metallic-disc 900 series takes
capability even further, and can handle up to 1100 hp. Both systems
are supported with urethane-encapsulated springs, which resist four
times the compression rate of uncoated springs.
RAM Automotive Co. ■ (803) 788-6034 ■ www.RamClutches.com

mystical cleaning solUtions

Wizards Products detailing supplies
One company that has developed superior cleaning solutions
for the challenging needs of automotive enthusiasts is Wizards
Products. The company started in 1986 when the founder
wanted to address problems he had encountered at the pro-
fessional level. In doing so, he created a new line of clean-
ing products to help himself and anyone else looking for top
results. Wizards Products has a whole line of other polishes,
compounds and detailers for various needs. Other cool prod-
ucts include Wipe Down Matte Paint Detailer, Black Renew,
Leather Plus, Metal Renew, Power Seal for all metals, and a
full line of compounds and buffers.
RJ Star Inc./Wizards Products ■ (800) 356-7223
www.WizardsProducts.com

28 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 STEERING COLUMNS AND
LS ENGINE KITS ACCESSORIES
FOR CAMARO,
CHEVELLE, TRI-FIVE starting at
$
289/kit
We have the finishing
touches to your LS Stainless
engine. These engine steel adjust-
kits include our brand MINI™ SUB-FRAME KITS ing tilt columns in
new FitRite™ mount kit, Available in black or silver and 30”, 32” and 33” lengths
headers, and oil pan kit. for many popular applications. Standard Kit $
399/kit and plain, chrome and black
Upper & Lower Kit (shown) $699/kit finishes. Key columns also
available.
HUGE
SELECTION!
Starting at $
1195/kit
MANY STYLES TO
CHOOSE FROM!
WILWOOD
NEW! CALIPERS starting at 199/ea
$

AND MASTER CYLINDERS

POWER Sold separately or an upgrade to any kit.
STEERING MAX CLEARANCE Calipers - upgrade starting at
$
199/ea
39/ea
PUMPS AND
$
starting at
POWER STEERING SHAFT Master Cylinders - starting at
$
259/ea
RESERVOIRS Kits - starting at 129/kit
$

Big Block and U-Joints - starting at $49/ea

Small Block Kits starting at 289/ea
$

applications
Pumps - starting at 145/ea
$

NEW C5
available.
Reservoirs - starting at 39/ea SPINDLES!
$

AVAILABLE IN
PLAIN, NICKEL AND
STAINLESS FINISH C5 AND MODULAR™ SPINDLES CALTRACS TRACTION BARS Starting at
ZERO/MINIMAL OFFSET DISC BRAKE
$
339/kit
STEERING
Works with popular C5
Starting at - $
225/pr
This system is made to out perform. WHEEL KIT Most Years - starting at 449/kit $

Corvette brakes.
ACCESSORIES
SWAY BARS KITS UNIVERSAL 22 CIRCUIT
Steering Shafts - starting at $29/ea Available for all popular appli- WIRE HARNESS KITS
Support Bearing - starting at $24/ea cations. Pro-Touring options Contains circuits and wiring
ALL POPULAR Support Bearing Bracket - starting at 19/ea also available. Sold separately
$

for most cars and trucks.

SIZES AVAILABLE Column Drops - starting at $49/ea or as an upgrade to any kit. Starting at
Floor Plate U-Joints - starting at $49/ea 199/kit
NEW BILLET MOUNTS $

Rag Joints - starting at $85/ea NOW AVAILABLE

PRO-TOURING

NEW! Starting at - Front $

149/ea
Starting at - Rear - $139/ea

PERFECT FOR NEW BOOSTER INSTALLS

HEAVY DUTY 31 SPLINE AXLES

CURRIE CRATE REAR ENDS

POWER BRAKE NEW! ASK FOR IT
BY NAME!
BOOSTER INSTALL KIT
A full line of new ready-built rearends are available
Includes a 25” or 50” vac-
with the same high-quality parts used in Currie
custom-built rearends, but at “off-the-shelf” prices. uum hose, vacuum fitting, HYDRASTOP™
Starting at 1129/kit
$
prop valve tool and curved
tip syringe bleeder. Starting at $
27/kit
HYDRAULIC ASSIST SYSTEMS
All New System Puts Out An Amazing
COIL-OVER FOR A LIMITED TIME GET A 1800psi at the Wheels!
CALL FOR CONVERSION FREE SPANNER WRENCH KIT! STREET BEAST™ CPP now offering high-quality direct bolt-in kits designed
to upgrade manual or vacuum-assisted brakes with a
OUR NEW SYSTEM powerful cylinder and hose kit. Show-Stopper™ and
CATALOG Includes aluminum Street Beast™ kits now available for many applications.
body coil-over
TODAY! shocks,
specially
designed
conical
springs and
all mounting #HAHK-S LINE KIT INCLUDED WITH
hardware. SHOW STOPPER KIT

Starting at 439/kit
$
SHOW STOPPER™ starting at $
749/kit
Prices subject to change without notice. Please note that kits and prices may vary between certain applications.

www.classicperform.com
866-882-6882 (714) 522-2000 | Fax: (714) 522-2500
ORIGINAL STYLE EFI FUEL
TANKS AND SENDING UNITS
Classic Performance Products, Inc. now carries
a wide variety of fuel injection ready tanks with built in
trays. These are original-fit tanks and require no modifications to
mount. This is the best choice for adding a fuel injection
ready tank to your classic vehicle! These come as kits and
include all the necessary pieces to mount to your vehicle.
Available for 55-57 Chevy, 62-67 Nova, 64-72 Chevelle,
NEW! Ask for
67-69 Camaro and more!

EFI Sending Units Only Starting at $49/ea

CPP EXCLUSIVE: it by
name!
READY!
#FPK-FI Fuel Pump Kit $220/kit C5 Spindles
Tanks Starting at $229/ea
These spindles are a direct bolt on for Camaro,
ASK FOR IT Chevelle and Nova (Early models use original
BY NAME! or CPP replacement steering arms). This
POWER STEERING spindle utilizes a C5 bearing hub assembly;
by utilizing this type of sealed bearing pack
BOXES AND KITS CAMARO, ÅL_VU[OLMHJ[VY`ZWPUKSLWPU^OPJOJH\ZLZ
Complete power steering CHEVELLE caliper piston push back, is eliminated. This
kit for small block Chevy
AND TRI-FIVE condition is especially a problem on aftermarket multi
Power Steering Kits - piston radial mount style calipers. They also utilize C5
TUBULAR
1962-67
NOVA starting at $599/ea brakes or aftermarket alternatives and provides more
CONTROL tire to fender clearance.
14 TO 1 ARMS
SPORT RATIO The early A, F & X body
ASK FOR IT Upper - starting at 337/pr
$
Lower - starting at 445/pr
$ [HSSZWPUKSLOLSWZ^P[O
BY NAME! CAMARO, improved geometry by giving a better
CHEVELLE, Complete Upper & Lower set - starting at 733/kit
$

NOVA camber change during suspension

1958-64 FULLSIZE
movement and also maintains the drum
C10 Chevy Truck - starting at $379/ea NEW! brake offset. The second generation
spindle is the first of its kind, and
Chevelle, Camaro, Nova - starting at $379/ea
‘55-’57 Chevy Fullsize - starting at $419/ea L_JS\ZP]L[V*77Spindles and kits
‘58-’64 Chevy Fullsize - starting at $379/ea available for 1964-77 Chevelle, 1967-81
Camaro and 1968-79 Nova.
PERFECT FOR POWER STEERING UPGRADES!

Spindles starting at $
269/pair
NEW! 1964-77 CHEVELLE, 1968-79
NOVA, & 1967-81 CAMARO
BEST VALUE! Ask for
ORIGINAL REPLACEMENT ADDITIONAL C5 SPINDLE BEST it by
UPPER CONTROL ARMS 5° WHEEL BRAKE KITS PERFORMANCE!
name!
The original look and feel with an addi-
tional 5° caster built into the arm. Made
CASTER Includes 13” rotors with
dual piston C5 caliper stock
Complete Kit -
Starting at 649/kit
$
Steering
for your 1955-57 full size Chevy’s! starting at $
199/ea height spindle. Spindles only - 269/pr
$

Boxes
LS ENGINE
ASK FOR IT
BY NAME!
NEW! and Kits
This compact and
MOUNT KITS NEW! WV^LYM\SKLZPNUPZPKLHS^OLUZWHJLPZH
concern. This is the case on many rear steer
Our FitRite™ kits allow
application, early trucks and for some vehicles
you to fine tune engine SHOCK ABSORBERS ^P[OOLHKLYZ^P[OP[Z!YH[PV[\YUZSVJR[VSVJRP[
placement for optimal CPP carries RideTech, RCD, QA1, and our ASK FOR IT has the performance handling
clearance and fit. Includes own "Black Magic" nitrogen gas shocks. BY NAME!
POLYPLUS™ mounts.
Starting at $129/kit Starting at - $39/ea
of many rack and pinion
JVU]LYZPVUZ^P[OV\[[OL
L_[LUZP]LTVKPÄJH[PVUZ
Boxes starting at $ 299/each
BETTER
PING
BEST STOP CE! FENDER 400SERIES™ TOTAL
PERFORMAN CLEARANC
STEERING PERFORMANCE
ASK FOR CPP E!
KITS AVAILABLE
IT BY BIG BRAKE KITS
$
NAME! Recommended when using 17”or
larger wheels for increased perfor-
Kits - Starting at 339 /kit
mance. Shown above with optional
upgraded calipers. Available for all
popular applications. Check out more "ShopTalk" at
Front - starting at $799/kit www.classicperform.com
Rear - starting at $699/kit
Front & Rear Complete Kit -
starting at $1498/kit

CLASSIC PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS, I NC.

378 E. Orangethorpe Avenue | Placentia, CA 92870

 Super Snak
John He

BY T O
nn

M WIL e
Anglo-Am essey’s Venom G
erican h
SON ■
PH O T
O
T
ot rod, b isn’t the first
u t it’s the
fastest.
S BY G
U Y SP
AN G E
NBER
G

32 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 John H
ennesse
i s a ca r
t h at w i y’s Ven
how m
any ho
t
ll make
you sw
ea
om GT
so muc r o d s you’v t . No m at
h t h r us e dr ive ter
20 m i n t in a s n, t h is
utes we n ake- o ne has
spr ing. felt as w fast chassis th
We do ound u at after
hours, ubt we p as a g
or may w ould ha a r a ge - d o
be even ve relax or
Ou r d a 2 0 years e d a f
te w ith . A nd w t er 20
Forest, Hennes e loved
Califor sey too it.
outpost n i a , at k place
. C h ap h is new in Lake
m a n be eroned parts-in
h ind th by Dou stallat io
e medi glas Ko n
questio a c overage t t , H e
n is one nnessey
owned of 12 b , the V ’s
by Aero u i lt so far e n om in
W h ile smith f and is fi
Tyler h ront ma ttingly
— even as abso n Steve
when v lutely n n Tyler.
h is Ven isit ing o issues
om GT Southe s t anding
at Hen r n Ca l i out
no wor nessey’s fo r n ia (he
r ies abo shop) — keeps
way. T ut seein he also
hat’s be g h i ms has
i s s l at e d cause t elf com
h e V e ing the
to neve nom G other
pur pos r excee T prod
efully s d 29— uct ion
exclusiv elected a numb run
e t ha n to rema er Hen
its top- in at le nessey
Bugatt i speed s ast one
Vey ron par r ing c ar more
Addit io Super S partner
nally, T port. , the
exclusiv yler’s c
e run o ar
someth f Venom is fi rst in an e
i ng a s p GT Spy ven mo
air-scoo rosaic a ders, so re
ped roo s the st instead
ing defi f, a pad andard of
nes the ded “X Venom
Spyder ” of ro G T’s
It’s Cal cockpit ll bar b
ifor n ia; ’s uppe r a c-
roof pa we don r ter mi
nel, an ’t ask if n u s.
Despite d we’d there’s
be disa a targa
all the p pointed - t y pe
much l pit-rail if there
ike its chatter w as.
Lotus u that it
nder pin looks to
n ings, o
the Ven
om GT
’s

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 33

 visual presence is unique and exciting. Unlike most mid-engine
hyper cars it isn’t huge, but rather thigh-high with just enough
length to telegraph the seriousness contained in the amidships en-
gine room. Indeed, the doors and cockpit are almost purely un-
molested Exige bits, and the front design remains unashamedly
Lotus-like even after being re-rendered over a foot wider. So while
the Venom GT does look Chapman-esque in photos, in person, the
unmistakable rear mass coupled with the dramatically wider stance
instantly stand the Venom GT apart.
So although it does all begin with a Lotus, once all the abbre-
viations are accomplished, the Exige donates little more than its
cockpit, climate control and a few body parts to the final product.
Behind the cockpit is all Hennessey. The wheelbase is lengthened
19.7 in., better to accept a Chevrolet LSX-based engine and Ford
GT transaxle drivetrain. The suspension is custom from Hen- gaskets, CNC-ported aluminum
nessey, as is the twin-turbo dressing the small block receives. cylinder heads and diamond-
Fittingly, the 7.0-liter pushrod engine is built in Texas at the Hen- hard ARP fasteners. For ground
nessey shop. It’s full of high-strength forged-steel pieces, but as a turbo clearance and durability, the en-
mill it doesn’t need some of the more involved treatments that a high- gine is dry-sumped to allow a
compression, naturally aspirated engine would. Instead, the empha- shallow, ground-hugging oil pan
sis is on strength to keep the huge cylinder pressures from sweating and a greater supply of lubricant.
out, plus keeping the highly tasked block square and the cylinders Hennessey rates it at 1244 hp
round. Most tellingly, the aluminum block is sleeved with Darton’s at 6600 rpm and 1155 lb.-ft. of
iron dry-sleeve kit before being buttoned up with Cometic’s best torque at 4400 rpm. Adequate

34
 Hennessey rates tHe engine at 1244 Hp at 6600 rpm and 1155 lb.-ft.
of torque at 4400 rpm. AdequAte for Any need,
as tHe man from rolls-royce used to say.

■ The neatly executed
layout at the Venom GT’s
business end evokes GT
racers with lusty metal
braces and a big V-8. Gold
foil heat shielding adds
a bit of useful spacecraft
tech, while a distinct lack
of plastic vanity panels or
other mainstream cosmet-
ics sets a hot-rod chic tone.
for any need, as the man from Rolls-Royce used to say.
Behind the engine is a Ricardo 6-speed manual transaxle
lifted from the Ford GT. Given the Ford’s similar road speed and
engine rpm range, it’s no surprise that not a single gear ratio was
changed for Venom duty.
Considerably more visible are a pair of art-deco aluminum
Zeppelins masquerading as air-to-water charge coolers. Plus, there’s
a symmetric maze of plumbing associated with the twin turbo-
chargers and bits of artfully rendered tube-frame structure as it rises
from the sea of mechanical hardware. It can’t help but look very
sports racer, as if Hennessey had set out to build something for Se-
bring or Le Mans [not so] but decided to put it on the street instead.
Finally, there is nothing left to do but climb in and see how good

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 35

■ Even at speed the open-topped
Venom GT Spyder’s cockpit is
relatively turbulence-free—unlike
the driver! The crossed overhead
roll-bar tubes pose little trouble
during ingress and egress, and
are scarcely noticed while driving.
Steven Tyler’s star-eyed personal
logo lives between the seats,
and a subwoofer lurks in the
passenger footwell.
you are. The steering wheel de-
taches in race-car fashion but
even with our 6-ft. 2-in. height
and expense-accounted diet, it’s
not necessary. If you’ve had the
pleasure of driving an Elise or
Exige, the minimalist cockpit
is definitely familiar. There’s
an engaging openness com-
pliments of the unobstructed,
center console-less footwell and
large windshield. Surely, a Ven-
om GT coupe would be more
chicken-house than we’d like,
our preferences run toward
open cockpits and formula cars,
so the sky-bright overhead and
breezy feel are naturals.
Hennessey has eschewed rac-
ing harness seatbelts, sticking
with the easily donned 3-point
belts from the Lotus cockpit.
We’re soon strapped in for our
ride. The equally tall Kott is not
so well accommodated. Appar-
ently, a career of rock concerts
has predisposed Tyler toward a
concussion-on-demand sound
system, and the passenger foot-
well is impeded by a large subwoofer. Granted, there is nowhere
else for it, but given the Venom’s live entertainment behind your
head, the stereo seems just too much weight.
Exactly as in a Lotus, the instrument cluster is somewhat out of
sight, with too-small instruments mounted a bit too low for easy
reading. The steering wheel does its best to stay out of the visual
path to the instruments and is a proper racer piece with a solid alu-
minum frame and no airbag. Clad in plush Alcantara, it promises
an honest, feedback-rich report on what the front tires are up to.
Start the engine and there’s a big, loud thump from the exhaust,
highlighted by turbo whir even at idle. Underway, the noise level
is elevated, the exhaust blare is always with you, punctuated by a
sometimes cacophonous and other times motivating mix of turbo
zoom, pop-off valve whoosh and drag-cam stutter. You won’t
sneak this one home at night, but you will have fun making noise
as the open top really lets in the details.
Maneuver number one is getting the Venom out the driveway.
It’s crazy low, so an angled approach is mandatory and still we
get a solid scrape from the front bodywork. Not to worry, advises
a career of rock concerts Has predisposed tyler
toward a concussion-on-demAnd sound system,
and tHe passenger footwell is impeded by a large subwoofer.
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 37
 Kott, it’s designed to take it. Later, we recall the car’s electrically
adjustable ride height designed precisely for such crawling-speed
clearance issues, but not in time to see how much it would help.
Underway the steering is heavy, with the same muscular effort
from center to the locks. It’s quite race-car-like, and weighted
enough to make us question just how fast we could even snap in
opposite lock should it be necessary. Turns out the steering is elec-
trically assisted, with a 6-position rotary knob that goes unseen
and unused during our quick drive. Some at Hennessey prefer the
extra feel from the no-assist position, explaining how we came
to sample that effort. Dialing the knob gives rather noticeable in-
creases in assist, says Kott.
And there is plenty to feel through the Lotus steering. The
front tires lightly nibble, every undulation on the pavement reach-
ing your hands, giving endless feedback on all but billiard-table
smooth highways. It’s all part of the steamroller tire and sports-car
suspension geometry combination. It’s a big player in the Venom
GT’s amped personality.
In contrast, shifting is Lotus-light and a pleasure. A well-weight-
ed steel ball atop the spindle column gives inertia through the

■ The Venom GT sports a

Porsche-esque deployable
wing as part of its aero
package, but we’ll attest
the driver is too busy hold-
ing on to notice when it
deploys. Every bit of down-
force is desirable if one
should attempt to sample
the Venom coupe’s stated
271-mph top speed.

38 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December

 and tHere is plenty to feel tHrougH tHe steering.
every undulation on tHe pavement reacHing your Hands,
giving endless feedbAck on all but billiard-table smootH HigHways.

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 39

 Hennessey History
If the Venom GT is the best street drive you’ve ever known or could even
imagine, that’s because sweat-inducing automotive thrills is what Hennessey
Performance Engineering (HPE) manufactures. Started by a youthful, speed-
addicted John Hennessey in 1991 with a Mitsubishi 3000GT that—like seem-
ingly every car he’s ever met, wasn’t fast enough—Hennessey has built a remark-
able nerve-tingling string of powerful and speedy cars. After modding that first
turbocharged Mitsubishi, he turned to Dodge Vipers. By 1994, Hennessey Viper
engine hardware was racing at Le Mans and people were starting to notice.
Five years on, the modified Vipers were named Venom 800s, with Hennessey-
brewed twin-turbo power good for a finger-snapping 2.9-second 0–60-mph
sprint, 9.9 sec. in the quarter mile and 197 mph in the standing mile.
It was the sort of performance that writes headlines, and Hennessey cars
became regulars on magazine covers. The huge power attracted readers as
well as customers who didn’t seem to mind paying a premium for the most
outrageous tuner cars in North America. By 2004, Hennessey Performance

40 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

had a dozen employees and its own 143-acre Lone Star Motorsports Park,
complete with a drag strip, in Sealy, Texas.
While a dedicated home base was a sure move to stability for HPE, a year later
the most fundamental improvement came when Don Goldman began his relation-
ship with the energetic but somewhat disjoined company. The recently retired
Goldman found he could only play so much golf, and his skills righting foundering
businesses was exactly what the idea-rich but detail-deficient Hennessey needed.
Hennessey Performance more recently added a satellite facility in Lake
Forest, California. Right in the heart of Southern California’s Orange County car
culture, Hennessey West installs and services the hardware developed in Texas.
Today, the numerous cars emerging from the Texas facility range from American
muscle such as Vipers and Dodges, to the entire catalog of GM performance
vehicles, to Ford’s giddy-up stable. In a huge advancement over the learn-by-doing
pathway that hot-rodders have taken since they were rolling up boxes of cigs in
their shirtsleeves, HPE also formed its own proprietary Tuner School (www.Tuner
School.com). It’s a huge head start in hot-rodding for 14 students per semester,
with under-hood wrench sessions backed by structured classroom work. With
tuition, lab and application fees, Tuner School is a $14,650 investment for the
budding power builder. Upon completing the program, grads receive a
certificate, job placement and referral services (more than one
grad is working in Hennessey’s main shop). Future students
might also soon enjoy the financial aid packages
HPE is currently developing.—Tom Wilson
there’s a big, cammy thump
from the exhaust, high-
lighted by turbo whir.
gates, and the throws are perfectly short. Like any good hot rod,
the Venom gearbox crunched into 2nd gear when cold, but proved
unwaveringly slick once warmed.
So we trundle through the usual 35-mph compulsories between
stoplights, getting to know just how feral this beast is. The forward
view is good, save for the windshield header blocking nearby ob-
jects such as traffic signals; rear vision is near nil. The fenders block
the view for the outside mirrors and the fastback’s mesh grilles
make visual hash out of whatever is going on behind. Another
minor distraction is the turn-indicator stalk is a long way from the
steering wheel.
Finally, the road straightens and is four lanes wide. We ease the
Venom through 1st gear, then squeeze the right pedal.
Well, it certainly has some power.
More precisely, the Venom has a 3-step power knob that toggles
the tune from 800 hp to 1000 hp, ultimately claiming 1244 hp.
The first notch is enough, we assure you, and perhaps even more
sacrilegiously, the rig’s drag-racing derived traction control is a
godsend. It allows tire-boiling wheelspin if that’s your thing, but
more realistically, it makes launching hot, straight and reasonably
low effort, something it most assuredly would not be without the
undetectable-to-the-driver electronic aid. In fact, the toughest
part of starting out is the short, slightly high-effort clutch coupled
with a quick-on-the-draw throttle. It takes some technique to get
it just right, and just as realistically, is something Hennessey tuners
can address so your experience may vary.
We hit it again. Sweet.
And again, a few minutes later. You can’t help it, really. The
sound and rush are intense but over far too soon. Heck, it hits
100 mph in 5.6 sec., and in less than that from a roll. Hardly long
enough to enjoy it. Even a quarter mile is over in 9.9 sec. at 163
mph. You could get in trouble with this on the street, but until
then it just makes you giggle.
What sticks is how hard it accelerates long after any normal-
ly over-powered car would be feeling the wind. But we’re only
reaching half of the Venom’s 271 mph demonstrated top speed and
it’s still charging toward escape velocity like it really intends to get
there. And yes, in daily driving, just a whiff of throttle puts the
rabble satisfyingly astern.
We mainly coast down from speed but the brakes are definitely
there for you. Wonderfully, the pedal is straight out of a Trans-
Am race car: rock hard and it moves maybe a millimeter. It de-
mands effort from the driver, a conviction to slow, and then the
carbon-ceramic Brembos do their thing with authority. The effort
is like typical power brakes without the power—in other words,
like 1965 performance brakes in effort, but with a much better
pedal feel and way better results. Impressively, the binders take
little warm up, and best of all, the pedals are perfectly set for heel-
and-toe operation.
Knowing we wouldn’t dare try too hard, we sought out a twisty
canyon to sense what left-right-left zippiness this longer-wheel-
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 41
 base had maintained. Plenty more than we were willing to risk
with this much power underfoot and no stability control. Call us
a bit chicken, but please understand the cornering remains kart
quick—way quicker than any normal human’s ability.
So we hit it again on a straight, but this time the clutch slipped
at the torque peak, so we motored back to the shop. A shame, but
it’s probably why we’re still not scraping together bail instead of
writing this review.
Such operational challenges have always been the nature of hot
rods such as the Venom GT. Although much of the car comes
from established production engineering, plenty also speaks of
late nights in the garage and a strong personality focused on a
go-fast goal. Tuned for glory, this Hennessey exudes an undomes-
ticated pheromone that makes you want to crawl into your No-
mex, sneak outside at 3 a.m., fi re up the Venom GT and go. That
right there is the attraction. It’s the Venom’s deviant mission and
its sharply hewn edges that gouge at the brain, not the slick bits.
It’s the short, moderately heavy clutch. The light shifter. A brake
pedal that barely moves but responds to heavy pressure. A mere
suggestion of any useful rear vision. And Hand of God power.
In the end, these are the gears in the Venom GT’s adrenaline pump,
the stuff that keeps you alive. It’s easy to see why Tyler has one.

Tom Wilson’s first car was a G Production Austin-Healey Sprite that

made almost as much power as the Venom’s starter motor.

Performance 2014 Hennessey Venom GT

0–60 mph 2.7 sec. The Venom GT design is based on the Lotus Elise and Exige, and utilizes com-
0–100 mph 5.6 sec. ponents including the roof, doors, side glass, windscreen, dash, cockpit, floor
0–300 km/h 13.63 sec. – Guinness World Record pan, HVAC system, windshield wipers and headlights.
0–200 mph 14.51 sec. – Hypercar World Record
¼ mile 9.92 sec. @ 163 mph
Standing half-mile 206 mph Chassis
Standing mile 253 mph Layout Mid-longitudinal engine
Verified top speed 270.49 mph Body/frame Carbon fiber and composite/aluminum
Estimated top speed 278 mph hybrid monocoque space frame
Brakes, f & r 15.0 x 1.3-in. carbon-ceramic rotors
Engine with 6-piston Brembo fi xed calipers
Type 90-degree V-8
Wheels Hennessey H10 forged monoblock,
Valvetrain Overhead valve, 2 valves per cylinder 9.5 x 19 front, 12.5 x 20 rear
Block/heads Iron/aluminum
Tires Michelin Pilot Super Sport
Forced induction Twin turbochargers 265/30ZR19 front, 345/30ZR20 rear
Horsepower 1244 hp @ 6600 rpm (cockpit-adjust- Steering Rack & pinion, 6-position variable
able to 800, 1000 and 1244 hp) electric assist
Torque 1155 lb.-ft. @ 4400 rpm Suspension, front and rear Unequal-length tubular A-arms, anti-roll bars
Displacement 427 cu. in./7.0 liters Springs/shocks Penske 2-way adjustable coilover
Compression ratio 9.2:1 Ride height Adjustable over 2.4-in. range
Redline 7200 rpm
Lubrication Dry sump
Fuel injection Electronic sequential multi-port

42 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 Drivetrain Dimensions & Capacities
Drive system Rear-wheel drive Length 183.7 in.
Transmission Ricardo 6-speed manual Width 77.2 in.
Final drive ratio 3.36:1 Height 44.7 in.
1st gear ratio, max speed 2.61:1, 69 mph Wheelbase 110.2 in.
2nd gear ratio, max speed 1.71:1, 105 mph Track, front 63.5 in.
3rd gear ratio, max speed 1.23:1, 146 mph Track, rear 63.2 in.
4th gear ratio, max speed 0.94:1, 191mph Ground clearance 3.5 in. to 5.9 in.
5th gear ratio, max speed 0.77:1, 233 mph Curb weight 2743 lb.
6th gear ratio, max speed 0.63:1, 278 mph Fuel capacity 18.5 gal.
Weight distribution, f/r % 44/56
(with driver & passenger)
Options
■ Michelin Pilot Sport Cup ZP tires
■ Bare carbon-fiber finish
■ Right-hand drive For More Visit:
■ Stefano Ricci interior HennesseyPerformance.com
■ Audio system designed by Steven Tyler of Aerosmith

Note: Hennessey Performance and the Venom

GT are not associated with Lotus Cars.
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 43
 cAmAro ot the

680-hp
L i n g
Stuff a the new Z/28 .

B
o
e

LS7 int ool” really rul

“old sc
h
Y TH
OM
nfelter

H
, and
es

AS G
L ATC
mA X

46 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

It takes a serious performance automobile to break
the top-100 lap times around the famed Nürburgring circuit, even more so the
top 50. Deemed decades ago to be too dangerous for Formula 1, the 14.173-mile
Nürburgring Nordschleife (North Course) undulates around Bavaria’s Black Forest
with a mix of long straightaways, tight turns, and exotic, costly 2-seat supercars, but there amidst
suspension-pounding Flûgplatz (“flying place”) the times of such exotica as the Audi R8 GT,
PHOTOS BY JEFF LONG/THE IMAGE 1

jumps. Three-time F1 champion Jackie Stew-
art called the track the “Green Hell,” and today
manufacturers recognize the ’Ring as the ulti-
mate performance development site as well as a
marketing tool for their hottest cars. No surprise
that most of the vehicles on the top-50 list are
Porsche 911 Carrera S, McLaren Mercedes SLR
and Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 is a con-
spicuous piece of Detroit iron: the 2014 Chevro-
let Camaro Z/28.
The original Z/28 was more road-race bred
than any 4-passenger American automobile at

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 47


■ The late John Lingenfelter
learned the art of horsepower
on the nation’s drag strips, where
he won 13 NHRA national events.
His legacy continues today at
Lingenfelter Performance Engineer-
ing, where they build crate engines,
upgrade customer’s cars, and
provide product development and
engineering services.
2014 Camaro Z/28 vs. Lingenfelter
Factory LS7
Horsepower 505
Torque, lb.-ft. 481
Compression Ratio 11.0:1
Fuel 93 octane
the time. Introduced in 1967,
Regular Production Order Z28
was designed around the SCCA
Trans-Am series. To compete
in that popular series, en-
tries had to be nearly “factory
stock,” with the only safety
equipment, racing tires and
wheels added. Any part needed
to help a vehicle’s performance
required a factory part num-
ber and had to be homolo-
gated with the SCCA. That
was the genesis of the Z/28, a
stripped-down, hardcore road/
track machine. As such, it came
Lingenfelter LS7
680
585
11.5:1
93 octane
stock with heavy-duty suspension, fast-ratio steering and aerody-
namic aids to make it nearly race ready. The original Z/28 also
had a new high-revving 302-cu.-in. V-8 developed just for the
series. However, few people understood the concept, and just 602
Z/28s were sold that first year. Yet in the hands of driver/engineer
Mark Donohue, Roger Penske’s Sunoco-sponsored Z/28s won the
Trans-Am championship in 1968 and 1969, emphatically creating
the legend.
After the 1970 model, the Z/28 model was reduced to all-show-
with-little-go until the mid-1980s, when the performance side of
the equation slowly returned. Even so, Chevrolet refrained from
bringing back the historic model on the fifth-generation Camaro
until this year.
“The new ZL1, originally, was going to be called the Z/28,” admits
Camaro Chief Engineer Al Oppenheimer. “As we got closer to intro-
ducing the car in Chicago, it just didn’t sit well with me. I’m a pur-
ist and Z/28 is an iconic name,
and we promised we wouldn’t
bring that out until the car that
deserved it came out. While the
ZL1 surely could have used that
name, I didn’t think this was
the right marriage between the
name and the car. So instead we
came up with the ZL1 name,
which fits perfectly by tying into
the 1969 high-horsepower, alu-
minum-block car.” Thankfully
though, GM President North
America Mark Reuss challenged
the Camaro group to addition-
ally develop a Z/28 that was
worthy of the legend. “He gave
us two requirements,” adds Op-
penheimer. “One is, you gotta
put it on a diet. And two, you
gotta beat anything, anything,
that Ford puts out on the street.”
Certainly the Mustang GT
500 is a very potent vehicle, but
it’s a bit of a one-trick pony. To
be fair, the ZL1 Camaro is a
similar machine. Both are very
fast indeed, with very good cor-
nering and braking abilities, but
raw power is the focus. On the other hand, Chevrolet went back
to the Z/28’s roots, developing a machine that delivers all aspects
of the driving experience, and takes that experience to yet another
level. Power comes from the normally aspirated 427-cu.-in. (7-liter)
505-hp LS7 engine used in the Z06 Corvette. While that’s 75 hp
less than the supercharged ZL1, the lack of a blower shaved some

48 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 critical weight off the front. A ■ The Lingenfelter LS7
dry-sump system prevents oil Crate engine doesn’t need a
starvation at high lateral g’s. supercharger or other trick-
The only transmission is a ery, just careful component
Tremec TR6060 close-ratio selection, attention to detail,
6-speed manual, driving a and the wisdom of experi-
3.91:1 helical limited-slip dif- ence. Impressively, the 2014
ferential. More weight was Camaro Z/28 is a complete
eliminated by utilizing light, performance automobile that
form-fitting Recaro front needs no upgrades, even
seats with manual adjust- after 175 hp is added.
ments, thinner non-folding
rear seats, minimal sound achieve 1.06g lateral acceleration
deadening and ultra-light rear and 1.5g deceleration.
glass. The resulting Z/28 is As part of the Z/28’s diet, air
300 lb. lighter than the ZL1, conditioning is optional, only a
and 100 lb. less than the Ca- basic radio is available, and the
maro SS with the perform- sole speaker is for the open-door
ance 1LE handling package. chime. Anyone who balks at
Below deck is a race-bred sus- a $75,000 automobile without
pension you’d expect in a car like leather, air, automatic or premi-
this, including stiffer front and um sound just doesn’t understand
rear control-arm bushings, in- the Z/28, and frankly that’s not
creased spring rates and specifically tuned anti-roll bars. But the Z/28 who it’s intended for anyway. There is also no computer-controlled
is also the first and only mass-production automobile to utilize Dy- awd, clutchless transmission or any other technology that removes the
namic Suspension Spool Valve (DSSV) dampers derived directly from driver from the driving experience—the Z/28 is old school, and that’s
Formula 1 racing, with five different settings to meet different per- the beauty of it.
formance and pavement conditions. Then there are the huge Formula For most people, messing with the baked-in performance per-
1-style Brembo brakes, with carbon-ceramic matrix rotors and fixed fection of the new Z/28 would seem crazy, but Ken Thwaits has
monobloc calipers—similar to those used on the Corvette ZR1, Fer- his reasons. A resident of Nashville, Tennessee, Thwaits began rac-
rari California and Lexus LFA. Finishing the package are unique 19- ing Formula Fords in the late 1970s, then was Formula Mazda
in. alloy wheels and Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R tires, helping the Z/28 champion in 1985, one of the steppingstones to professional motor-
sports. But after 1992, marriage, children and growing a business
Nürburgring Nordschleife put any further illusions of professional racing on hold. This year,
Top-100 Lap Records at age 57, Thwaits got back in the game, and the Optima Ultimate
(Outright record holder and places 35-45) Street Car Invitational looked like the place to be. “Our vision is
Place Automobile Time Year to proactively support the growth of the automotive aftermarket
1 Radical SR8LM 6.48.00 2009 through safe, exciting and affordable enthusiast events that feature
35 Audi R8 GT 7:34.00 2010 street vehicles using aftermarket parts,” says Cam Douglass, direc-
36 Nissan GT-R Spec-V 7:34.46 2009 tor of product development for Optima Batteries. “We encourage
37 RUF RT12 7:35.00 2005 participants among all street-legal vehicle makes and models to
38 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 7:37.47 2014 participate in activities that test vehicle design, performance and
39 Porsche 911 Carrera S 7:37.90 2011 driver skill in a fun and safe atmosphere.”
40 Porsche 911 Turbo 7:38.00 2006 Each event consists of five distinct elements: a road course time
41 Lexus LF-A 7:38.00 2010
trial, a road rally, an autocross time trial, a speed-stop time trial,
42 Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 Superleggera 7:38.00 2010
43 Ferrari 430 Scuderia 7:39.00 2007 and design and engineering judging. “I took my son’s 2010 Ca-
44 Lamborghini Murciélago LP640 7:40.00 2006 maro SS to the Texas event earlier this year,” Thwaits explains.
45 McLaren Mercedes SLR 7:40.00 2003 “It quickly became apparent that a stock Camaro didn’t have a
chance against the heavily modified muscle cars from the 1960s
For More Visit: and 1970s that most of the competitors were racing.” Thwaits is
showtimemotorsports.net.com also a Camaro fanatic, and his collection includes a 1969 Z/28

50 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

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 ■ This is the view most automobiles
see of the stock Z/28. Factor in 680
Lingenfelter horsepower, and there
are very few street-legal vehicles,
even exotics, that can keep up.
Lingenfelter LS7 680-hp
Crate Engine includes:
■ GM LS7 7-liter aluminum block
■ JE forged aluminum pistons, high-tensile 2618 T6 alloy
■ Total Seal Premium file-fit rings
■ Callies 4340 forged-steel Dragon Slayer crankshaft
■ Oliver 4340 billet steel 6.125 I-beam connecting rods
■ Clevite heavy-duty HN rod bearings
■ Federal-Mogul Speed-Pro heavy-duty main bearings
■ Lingenfelter LS 3-bolt cam conversion kit (L200175307)
■ GM crank gear and heavy-duty timing chain
■ Lingenfelter GT21 hydraulic roller camshaft (L210146006)
■ GM LS7 dry-sump oil pump
■ GM keyed harmonic balancer
■ GM LS7 lifters and lifter guides
■ Corvette LS7 dry-sump aluminum oil pan
■ C6 Corvette valley cover and valve covers
■ C6 Corvette rear cover
■ Multi-layer steel (MLS) cylinder-head gaskets
■ GM head bolts and crank bolt
■ Lingenfelter CNC ported and polished LS7 cylinder heads
■ LPE Ferrea double-valve spring kit (L230036006)
■ GM LS7 2.205-in. diameter titanium intake valves
■ GM LS7 1.615-in. diameter sodium-filled exhaust valves
■ Competition Cams heavy-duty pushrods
■ GM LS7 roller-rocker arms, rocker-arm stands and bolts
■ LS7 Corvette composite intake manifold and fuel rails
■ 90-mm throttle body, electronic
■ 50-lb/hr at 58 psi (4-bar) fuel injectors
■ LS7 coils
■ Magnacor sparkplug wires
■ LPE logo Koolsox wire protectors
■ LS9 iridium sparkplugs
52 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
equipped with the rare factory Cross Ram intake manifold, and
another 1969 Z/28 with the rare factory JL8 4-wheel disc brake
package, as well as newer Camaros and other Chevys. The 2014 SS
1LE he owned looked like the perfect Camaro to modify for this
series, and he even began stripping the car to begin the work…
until the new 2014 Z/28 he had on order arrived. “I took it for a
quick drive and it was clear the Z/28 was the way to go,” he adds.
“The car is unbelievable. It needed nothing!”
Well, not quite. “I called Lingenfelter and asked them how
quick they could get me an engine,” Thwaits continues. “They
said, ‘How does Friday sound?’” What Lingenfelter Performance
Engineering delivered was a 680-hp version of the Z/28’s LS7
engine, along with a set of American Racing long-tube headers.
Since the Lingenfelter engine is a modified version of the origi-
nal LS7 powerplant, the car’s finely tuned handling characteristics
are not changed. Thwaits understands his first-year Z/28 may be
collectible someday, so the original low-mileage engine is now
wrapped in plastic and can be returned to the Camaro at any time.
So can the factory Trofeo R tires, which are not considered “street
legal” in the Optima series (Thwaits runs Michelin Pilots). “May-
be someday the car will be more valuable with the racing stickers
all over it,” he muses. “It sure looks great like that.”
Thwaits’ assessment of the Z/28’s performance was correct. At
its first Optima Ultimate Street Car event, at Road America in
June 2014, Thwaits’ Z/28 finished second in the road course time
trial and second overall. This earned him a coveted invitation to
the final event to be held in Las Vegas in conjunction with the 2014
SEMA Show in November. However, Thwaits’ great performance
also went viral. He spun 180 degrees and smacked the Z/28 against
a concrete barrier exiting Road America’s Turn 5. An on-board
camera recorded the mishap, including the deployment of both
airbags and the triggering of OnStar’s crash detection system. The
exchange with the OnStar advisor is unforgettable:
OnStar: “Are you injured?”
Thwaits: “I’m okay.”
OnStar: “I’ll call 9-1-1...where are you located?”
Thwaits: “I’m on a racetrack.”
OnStar: “You’re on a racetrack?”
Just search for “Ken Thwaits” on YouTube and join well over a
million viewers.
Since he now has the coveted invitation to the Optima Ultimate
Street Car finals, Thwaits will continue competing in the remainder
of the events with his 1LE Camaro. Then in Las Vegas, he will bring
back his Z/28 for the finals, repaired and prepared by Raymond’s
business, Showtime Motorsports. So will Ken Thwaits’ Lingenfelter
Z/28 Camaro be crowned the “Ultimate Street Car?” We’ll find
out soon enough. But regardless, one thing is for sure—the mass-
produced 4-seat automobile that took on the “Green Hell” and beat
some of the world’s greatest supercars has already earned real respect.
The Z/28 legend returns.
Tom Glatch has been contributing to automotive publications since 1983.
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 maximum
miata
America’s hot-rod tradition of shoehorning a big motor
in a small car continues in Mazda’s beloved roadster.
By Phil Berg

Unleashed in 1989 as a reliable and modernized interpretation of the

1967–1975 Lotus Elan, Mazda’s Miata roadster entered an automotive environment
filled with front-drive econoboxes and floppy convertibles. A bold gamble at the time,
perhaps, but it worked sensationally, and total sales of the 2-seat roadster have now
edged toward nearly 1 million, substantially more than any other sports car ever made.
Besides generating such impressive sales numbers, though, the car has also inspired a
new generation of hot-rodders following that purely American tradition of squeezing
a big V-8 engine into a lightweight car. A modern-day AC Cobra? Essentially, yes.
Four companies, including Racing Beat, V-8 Roadsters, Mon-
■ This 2006 Miata shown here at the Bonneville Salt Flats was ster Miata and Flyin’ Miata, have supplied the most fanatical Miata
created for the Targa Newfoundland 1400-mile rally, with a fans with high-horsepower V-8 engine conversions to make their
supercharger adding 90 hp over stock, and a suspension that’s cars quicker. Yet, Porsche fanatic Bill Cardell’s Flyin’ Miata folks
race-ready, yet able to coddle driver and co-driver. in Colorado have produced a car so sublime and well refined that

54 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

one enthusiast called it, “The best car we’ve driven all year.” And
it’s important to mention that he had also driven a Ferrari Enzo, a
McLaren F1 and Lamborghini’s new Huracán LP 610-4.
Flyin’ Miata is an evolution of the commercial garage Cardell
opened in 1983. The company now sells kits to turbocharge and
supercharge Mazda’s roadster darling, as well as a wide variety of
suspension and brake upgrades—many of which he has developed
and tested himself. Why? “To answer the question, ‘How much is
too much?’” Cardell laughs. And true to hot-rod form, he has not
yet completely answered this riddle.
Thankfully, the rear-drive, independently sprung 167-hp Miata
is a solid base for improvements, from wildly increasing power
levels to fully reinforcing the unibody to absorb heavy pavement
punishment. The pinnacle of Cardell’s work is found in today’s
$43,000 installation of a 430-hp aluminum Corvette V-8 into a
Miata. That price, incidentally, is just for the conversion work. If
you add in the cost of a new Miata, the entire package costs $8000
more than a Corvette convertible. If you have to ask why not just
buy the Corvette in the first place, you’re missing the concept of
Yankee creativity. Plus, the Miata is more nimble and just plain
more fun. As proof, independent testing showed a new 480-hp
Flyin’ Miata V-8 conversion (Flyin’ Miata also offers a 430-hp and
a 525-hp version of the V-8 engine with its kit) matched the Cor-
vette’s 0–60 mph time of 3.8 seconds. A stock Miata takes more
than 6 sec. to reach the same speed.
In truth, the Flyin’ Miata “Habu” (the Japanese word for venom-
ous snake, which the company nicknamed its V-8 car), was not the
first to the killer Miata party. Although it was born in 2002, in the
desolate, wide-open suburb of Palisade, Colorado, just outside of
Grand Junction, other Monster Miatas with Ford V-8s preceded it.
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 55
 The first appeared about three years after the roadster debuted in the Miata’s stock unit, and the shifter is not the
1989, but driveability wasn’t as faultless as in the stock sports car, light little Mazda-tuned stocker that is a favorite.
and the losses in balance created by adding the heavy Ford 302 en- But that’s about all you give up for the power.
gine sometimes outweighed the gains in brute power. Also, Flyin’ The most modern Miata unibody, introduced
Miata doesn’t limit itself to the V-8s; it has always sold many more in 2005, is larger and stiffer than the two pre-
turbo and supercharger kits to Miata owners who are starved for vious generations, and it gives up some of the
power but don’t want to go completely berserk. light-feeling delicacy of the early cars, which
Lowered springs and larger tires and wheels give away that the need to be modified by welded chassis braces—
big power V-8 conversion is aboard. So does the sound of the cus- essential according to Cardell. The late-model
tom stainless-steel exhaust system (with emissions-friendly cata- Miatas also weigh more than 2800 lb. with the
lytic converters), which adds a low rumble that you feel more than V-8 conversion (a new Corvette convertible
hear. The clutch that attaches to the GM V-8 is very stiff, unlike weighs about 3500 lb.). Because the Chevy en-
gine is aluminum, it doesn’t
affect the weight distribu-
tion much, which preserves
the excellent Miata balance.
■ Frog Arms beef up the Cardell explains that even
unibody frame of early with the GM V-8 and a new
model year Miatas, keep- 6-speed manual transmission,
ing reinforcing the struc- the weight distribution of the
ture under the forces Miata remains at nearly 52
of a high-torque V-8 percent over the front wheels.
engine. The all-aluminum Creeping along with the tall
GM LS3 V-8, available final drive ratio on the highway
from 430 to 525 hp, fits means you can nearly achieve
inside the Miata engine the 30 mpg that a Corvette
bay almost as if it was is tuned to deliver, but when
designed for it. you use all the power, the fuel
economy drops to the level of
a much heavier car. Blazing
speed is never a free lunch.
Hot-rod V-8 Miatas are fair-
ly rare, Cardell admits, and in
the past decade the company
has sold only 30 ready-to-run
converted cars; although, they
have a steady little stream of or-
ders to build more. In contrast,
the company has sold more
than 100 kits for do-it-yourself
customers, with a few going to
Europe and Australia.
Building a hot-rod V-8 Miata
the right way is not a task for
the typical weekend mechan-
ic. “Most customers select our
optional seam welding, where
we MIG-weld critical unibody
seams that are only spot-weld-
ed from the factory,” Cardell
notes. “This makes a substan-

56 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 tial difference in solidity. We
also use Frog Arm braces un-
der the front fenders. The kits
come with frame rail reinforce-
ments, and we additionally of-
fer bulkhead reinforcements to
weld into the fi rewall area.”
The V-8 engines require
changes to their control com-
puters for timing and air/
fuel ratios to get them to run
smoothly in the Miata, and the
stock Mazda fuel pump must
be replaced with a higher-flow
GM unit so it won’t starve the Mazda frame; it supports the engine as well as the front suspension
engine when it’s working hard. and steering rack. Cardell credits V-8 Roadster’s founder Steve
Flyin’ Miata’ kits include Leonard with producing good pieces.
parts built by V-8 Roadsters in
CREEPING ALONG WITH THE Flyin’ Miata then adds engine-mounted heat shields, new fuel
Tennessee. These include spe- TALL FINAL DRIVE RATIO ON lines and a complete exhaust system to make their kit thorough.
cial half-shafts and a 1-piece The kits include steel braces that must be welded between the
driveshaft, which are necessary
THE HIGHWAY MEANS YOU fi rewall and the front frame rails, as well as a brace that is bolted
to attach the new transmission CAN NEARLY ACHIEVE THE between the front shock absorber upper mounting towers. Ear-
and rear differential to the ex- ly models of the cars that Flyin’ Miata converted for customers
isting wheel hubs on the Miata.
30 MPG THAT A CORVETTE additionally had their front frame sections cut and widened, says
A tubular steel front subframe, IS TUNED TO DELIVER. Cardell, and then seam-welded and painted.
also made by V-8 Roadsters, The V-8 Miata that most recently impressed the experts includ-
must be added to the existing ed upgraded brakes—6-piston Brembo calipers—that Cardell says

58 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 most customers now insist on. In addition, all of the ready-to-run For More Visit:
V-8 Miata conversions have their suspensions upgraded with firmer
FlyinMiata.com
springs and more controlled shock absorbers.
“The beauty of this conversion is that the car remains a Miata
with all the great attributes that implies, including excellent bal-
ance, great handling, light weight and reliability,” Cardell says.
“And then turns it up to 11.”

Phil Berg owns a 1990 Mazda Miata with 132,000 miles on the clock.
It’s begging for a V-8!

■ Custom stainless exhaust

system fits tightly from the
tubular steel subframe added
to hold the V-8 all the way to
the rear. An aluminum-bodied
Cadillac CTS rear differential
is necessary to handle the V-8
torque and mate to a larger
1-piece driveshaft (not shown)
and upgraded 2/25/14
MD-1407-Wheelsmith halfshafts.
1:16 PM Page 1
 Southern
60
How Johnson’s Hot Rod Shop
became one of the country’s
premier hot-rod builders.
BY AARON GOLD

MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

Style
 When Alan Johnson was 13 years old
in 1984, his father bought him a busted-up Volkswagen Beetle,
saying that if he wanted something to drive when he got his li-
cense, he was going to have to fix it up himself. Where to do this
wasn’t a problem, as Johnson’s parents owned a collision shop where
he already worked after school. But if they expected Alan to do
a simple dent-and-paint repair on the little car, they were in for a
surprise. “I wasn’t sure what it was going to look like, but I knew it
wasn’t going to be stock,” Johnson recalls.
Influenced by magazines highlighting the West Coast VW scene,
Johnson set about making the Bug his own. He changed the hood,
decklid, turn signals, taillights and bumpers, then lowered the car

PHOTO BY STEVE COONAN/THE RODDERS JOURNAL

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 61

 ■ The G-Force Barracuda illustrates Johnson’s design philosophy:
Ditch the adornments and emphasize the original shape, focusing
on the bare stylistic essence of the car. At bottom, the front bum-
per on this 1969 Camaro looks stock, but isn’t. Johnson crafted
an all-new bumper that better fits the contours of the body.

“My goal is something

that looks good and can function.
But the catch is that
and fitted bigger wheels and tires. These alterations would become
hallmarks of his future work, although the custom candy-orange something that looks simple,
paint and 1980’s-chic tape stripes did not. Finally, six months before
is not necessarily siMple.”
his 16th birthday, Alan had a real California-style Beetle, something
virtually unheard of in his hometown of Gadsden, Alabama.
Johnson’s passion for custom work continued to build, and when he
became a full-time employee at his parents’ shop after high school, he
began working on a 1937 Ford. “When I started that car I had zero
fabrication experience, and it needed a lot of fabrication,” he explains. of the Year at SEMA.
“For one thing, it was a coupe and I was going to make it into a cabrio!” To date, one of Johnson’s
Working on the Ford taught Johnson an important rule that most notable creations is the
would serve him well as his career developed: Don’t get ahead 1971 G-Force Barracuda, which
of yourself. “I probably spent 150 hours on the roof before I’d real- nabbed the Goodguys Street
ized I didn’t like it,” he remembers. “And I re-did it three times Machine of the Year award in
before I was 100 percent happy.” 2006. Soon after, Mattel ap-
However, this “perfect-at-any-cost” attitude eventually paid off. proached him about doing a
When he brought the bright yellow Ford to the 1993 NSRA Street Hot Wheels model of the car.
Rod Nationals, it attracted a lot more attention than he expect- “Seeing a Hot Wheels model of
ed—and a Pro’s Pick award. “The car did well, and a lot of people something that I built—and that
asked me about doing work for them,” Johnson says. “Right after also had the shop’s name on it—
that, I started working on cars for other folks.” That was the begin- was the coolest thing that could
ning of Johnson’s Hot Rod Shop. happen,” he says.
Photos by Josh Misler

Johnson’s unique style steadily put him on the map, and his 1933 Simply put, the G-Force
Ford Cabriolet Highboy debuted at the Detroit Autorama in 1997. The ’Cuda illustrates Johnson’s de-
car was a runner-up for the Ridler Award, and it won 1997 Goodguys sign philosophy, which is to
Street Rod of the Year as well as Best In Show at the SRA’s Shades of emphasize the shape of the car
the Past event. Topping it all was being named Street Rod Builder and concentrate on form rather

62 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

than adornment. “I want to
make cars that aren’t going to
be out of style in the future,”
he explains. “My goal is some-
thing that looks good and can
function. But the catch is that
something that looks simple, is
not necessarily simple.”
A great example of this ap-
proach is his orange 1969 Ca-
maro. At first glance the bum-
pers look like stock units, but
they are actually all-new parts
designed to close up the gaps
to the body and better fit the
shape of the car.
In 2009, Johnson’s Hot Rod
Shop finally won the prize that
had eluded him 12 years be-
fore—the Detroit Autorama Ridler Award. This time, Johnson’s win- ■ This 1955 Chevy 210
ning effort was a 1932 Ford B-400 called the “Deucenberg V8.” In- pillared coupe was a
spired by classic Deusies of the era, Johnson and his employees spent low-mileage survivor.
four years re-working every bit of sheet metal on the Ford and creat- Johnson combined the
ing a cloth-covered aluminum liftoff roof. car’s original look with
Ironically, entering it in Autorama wasn’t even on their minds. his signature stance.
“Once 95 percent of the fabrication on that car was done, every- Inside it looks nearly
one who saw it kept talking about Autorama, which was only three stock, but underneath is
months away. Doug Cooper, the car’s owner, and I were talking a modern chassis and a
one night, and he said, ‘What would it take to get this car to De- big-block Chevy engine.
troit?’ I said, ‘Doug, I don’t know if we can do it in three months,
and if we can, it’ll take everything we can do.’ If we were going to
go, I wanted us to go with a car we knew could win.”
After some soul-searching, Johnson’s Hot Rod Shop shifted into high
gear, putting other work on hold to concentrate on the Deucenberg. For
the last four weeks, Johnson and his crew literally worked around the
clock. A day and a half before the car was set to leave—a Monday at
around 2 a.m.—the car came off the jack stands. It started and ran, but
would not move. Johnson awoke his transmission builder, who diagnosed
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 63
 a broken pump and offered to
drive eight hours to fix it. Johnson
told him to stay in bed, as he and
his crew could replace the pump.
Twenty-four hours later, the car
was moving. “We got six hours of
sleep, then loaded it onto the trail-
er and headed for Detroit,” he
remembers. Winning the Ridler
Award made it all worthwhile.
In a repeat of his parents’ les-
son to him as a teen, when Alan’s
wife Angie wanted to learn more
about the business, he thought
the best way would be to have
her build a 1932 Ford Roadster
of her own. “It was going to be
just an everyday driver for her,”
Johnson explains. “But as the his builders are a mix of experienced professionals and young local ■ This 1932 Ford B-400 won
project evolved, I started see- talent—as well as Johnson’s father, who works in the shop periodi- the Ridler Award in 2009.
ing things I wanted to do with cally. Although Johnson has final say in most decisions, he believes
the car.” Many of the parts Alan in letting his builders have design-process input. “Their ideas and Johnson and his team used
created for his wife’s Ford, in- influences come into play in everything we do,” he explains. “I’ve CAD to model the car, which
cluding the radius rods, steering got talented guys in the shop, and if I don’t use their talent to its allowed them to find the best fit
wheel and shifter, formed the ba- fullest, then I’m not giving the customer 100 percent.” for suspension and chassis com-
sis of Johnson’s Perfection Hot Despite his love of historic designs, Johnson maintains a keen ponents before they started to cut
Rod Parts series. Angie enjoyed focus on the future and enjoys the challenge of embracing new metal. “When we put the car in
the process, but the finished technology. A great example is the “Stupidbaker,” a 1953 Stude- the wind tunnel, the actual per-
product turned out to be a bit too baker pillar coupe built to run at Bonneville. Class rules say formance was better than we
far from her original vision. “We the front end can be completely reshaped, but Johnson want- expected,” he reports. “No way
ultimately had to build another ed the car to maintain its unmistakable Studebaker look. “We we could have done that proj-
one to get her what she wanted,” did the aerodynamics with Total Sim in Columbus, Ohio,” he ect to such a high level in such
Johnson laughs. says. “Their customers are IndyCar, NASCAR and Formula 1 a short time without using that
Today, Johnson’s Hot Rod teams, so working with them and bringing this technology into technology.” Today, Johnson’s
Shop employs 15 people, and our build was pretty awesome.” Hot Rod Shop makes exten-
sive use of CAD/CAM, which
allows them to design and ma-
chine parts in-house. They now
make virtually all of the parts for
their cars except for engines and
transmissions.
One thing that hasn’t changed Photos by AlAn Johnson And Josh Misler

over the years is Alan Johnson’s

love for the business. “Some
days I work 18 or 20 hours, and
I still look forward to coming to
work the next day,” he says. “I
think that if you’ve got the pas-
sion and desire, you can do any-
■ Bonneville-bound 1953 Studebaker was developed using computer-modeled aerodynamics, and yet it thing you want. But of course, I
retains its unmistakable Studie profile. Building on the original shape is a hallmark of Johnson’s cars. might be a little biased.”
Find Them Online:
64 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
JohnsonsHotRodshop.com
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 Of course you know
this car—it’s the outrageous chrome-
plated and scallop-painted 1932 Ford
coupe that first appeared on the
July 1961 cover of Hot Rod maga-
zine. And later, Eric Rickman’s lead
photo from that story (minus the
car owner’s head and shoulders!)
also defined a best-selling Beach
Boys album, appropriately titled
Little Deuce Coupe. To most listen-
ers of this quintessential car-song
album, it mattered little that the
1932 in the catchy cover tune ac-
tually boasted “a flathead mill”
while the album-cover car was
powered by a blown Olds. Even
so, this radical three-window
will always be the quintessential
“Little Deuce Coupe.”

■ The unmistakable stance

of Chili Catallo’s “Little Deuce
Coupe” is etched in our collective
memories. Before it became a
show pony, the coupe ran sub-13
second quarters at 112 mph.

66 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

A Wonderful Li
fe
The magical life
and times of The
Beach Boys albu
m’s
actual “Little De
BY K E N G R
u ce Coupe.”
O
SS ■ PH O T OS B
Y RO B E R T
G ENAT

67
 ■ “The A Brothers,” Clarence Catallo of Dear-
Mike and Larry Alexan- born, Michigan, who pur-
der—Detroit’s custom chased the basic car that would
kings—sectioned the become the “Little Deuce
body 6 in., fabbed a Coupe” for just $75 in 1956,
grille shell with horizon- could never have predicted it
tal bars and quad Flame- would rank among the most fa-
thrower headlamps. mous rods in history. When he
Three sweeping exhausts found it, the coupe was sitting
flowed from the engine in a gas station across from his
compartment, the lower parents’ grocery store in near-
door edges were raised by Allen Park. A friend had to
above the frame rails, drive it home for him because
and sculpted aluminum 15-year-old Catallo didn’t yet
strakes simulated mod- have his driver’s license. But
ern running boards. Chili he got right to working on his
first showed the car un- new wheels.
chopped, then worked at He channeled the coupe six
Barris Brothers in SoCal inches, painted it dark blue
to pay for the chop, plus and dropped in the carbureted
a sizzling Junior Conway Oldsmobile V-8. By 1958, at
paint job. Detroit Dragway, a McCulloch
supercharger hunkered on top
of the Olds, which looked as
though it had been forced into
the engine compartment with a
whip and a chair. Catallo con-
tinuously fine-tuned the bored-
68 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
out, 344-cu.-in. engine built by Bill Wanderer, and the coupe ran
sub-13-second quarters, turning a best speed of 112 mph. More
importantly, it championed a minimalist look that soon appeared
across the country. To further this, Catallo also modified the rear
fenderwells to follow the outline of its 8:20 x 15 Inglewood slicks,
accenting the car’s lowness and making it even racier.
Catallo became known as “Chili,” a period euphemism for
“cool.” His car was becoming even cooler. Detroit’s reigning cus-
tomizers, Mike and Larry Alexander—together known as the “A
Brothers”—sectioned the body six inches, fabricated a grille shell
with a mesh insert and eight horizontal grille bars, and added then-
fashionable quad headlights using Lucas Flamethrower firepower.
Three aluminum strakes flowed from the engine headers rearward,
evoking modernistic running boards while also emulating the flow
of exhaust gasses along the body sides.
Echoing its drag-racing days, the polished engine received a hot
Clay Smith camshaft, Chrysler intake and GMC truck exhaust
valves, and Jahns blower pistons. But the pièce de résistance was a new
GMC 6-71 blower topped with three Strombergs. The firewall was
polished, so from the right angle, the engine looked even bigger
than it was. Also, nearly everything up front was chromed includ-
ing the 1937 Ford tubular front axle, Monroe shocks, leaf spring,
split wishbones and Kinmont brakes.
The Alexander Brothers installed their trademark twin Frenched
antennas, which ingeniously doubled as the electric door-solenoid
switches. Big slicks, wild blue metallic paint and, of course, the
beaucoup chrome were all popular period modifications. At the
1959 Detroit Autorama, Chili’s coupe had the extreme visual im-
 AT THE 1959 DETROIT AUTORAMA,
CHILI’S COUPE HAD THE EXTREME
VISUAL IMPACT THAT ALL
THE BIG SHOW ENTRANTS SOUGHT.
THIS CAR’S COMBINATION OF
MODERN MODS ON A TRADITIONAL
SHAPE WAS WELL EXECUTED AND
EVERYTHING WORKED TOGETHER.
CATALLO’S COUPE WAS A STAR.
pact that all the big show entrants sought. This car’s combination
of modern (for the time) mods on a traditional shape was well ex-
ecuted and everything worked together. Catallo’s coupe was a star.
That was all cool, but Chili was just getting started. Now done
with high school, he convinced his parents that he should attend
college in California. After leaving Detroit and towing his coupe
west for classes at Long Beach Community College in California,
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 he soon exchanged his labor as a shop helper at
Barris Kustom, in nearby Lynwood, for a 3-in.
top chop. Here Chili worked with Herschel “Ju-
nior” Conway, who was also responsible for a new
Pearl and translucent Oriental Blue finish, applied
just before the car graced Hot Rod’s famous cover.
The car’s rooftop now rode 15 in. lower than a
stocker, with virtually perfect proportions.
Larsen Upholstery trimmed the tufted white
Naugahyde interior with blue accents, and for
seating, twin bucket seatbacks joined two seat-
cushion pads attached directly to the floor. Ad-
ditional gauges and switches were added to the
ceiling, and the steering wheel was a big, dished
unit from a 1959 Lincoln Continental.
Not long after its Beach Boys album appear-
ance, Catallo sold the car for around $5500,
reportedly because he had done everything he
wanted to it. The coupe appeared in several ma-
jor shows before being acquired by a Canadian
buyer. Around 1965, the coupe found its way
to Ray Woloszak of Long Island, New York,
who later modernized it with a 1969 MoPar
440-cu.-in. engine, Torqueflite automatic and
Dana 60 rear end.
“I owned that car for 32 years,” Woloszak says.
“Once the chassis was sorted out, I drove it ev-
erywhere.” When Woloszak bought a place in
Florida in the 1980s, the coupe headed south with
him. “I rebuilt it three times, including a new
frame and chassis parts,” he adds. “I did it right.”
Woloszak later rented the coupe to Bob Larivee
Sr. and his son Bob Jr. to appear in their Interna-
tional Show Car Association shows. “They paid
me $10,000 for six months.” Woloszak recalls. “I
told them: ‘Don’t bring the car back. Once you
take that car, I won’t miss it.’”
This brings the story into the late 1990s, when

■ Tufted white Naugahyde interior with

blue accent trim by Larsen Upholstery
featured twin bucket seats, with two seat
cushion-pads attached to the flat floor. No
real seats in a channeled car! Additional
dials and switches, including a red-ball
Sun tach, supplemented the in-dash units
on an overhead panel. The dished steering
wheel was borrowed from a 1959 Lincoln
Continental. Fifty years ago, winning top
awards required changing everything.

70 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 Curt Catallo, Clarence’s son,
persuaded his father to find
and repurchase his old coupe.
“As a kid, I knew the trophies
before I knew the car,” Curt
says. “Many of them were my
height, and it seemed like we
had acres of them. I thought
it was great my dad had a cool
car that won a lot of trophies,
but he sold it before he met my
mother. I really got under my
dad’s skin about it. I thought
of the coupe like a family heir-
loom that should be preserved.
Fortunately, the late Bob Lari-
vee Jr. helped us find it. With-
out him, we never would have
gotten it back.”
However, there was a prob-
lem with the Catallos’ plan.
Woloszak didn’t want to sell
the car back to them, because
he was sure they’d restore it to
MD-1409-Rev Wheels 6/4/14 12:09 PM Page 1
 the way it was first built. So instead, Woloszak sold the coupe in paint scallops, and standing
1999 to Larivee—who initially planned to feature it in his family’s proud with its gleaming blown
car shows—for about $40,000. Eventually though, the Larivees did Olds motor, this once-upon-a-
sell the coupe back to Catallo, who immediately started collecting time $75 gas-station-hand-me-
parts to restore it to its cover-car form. down has wonderfully come full
Sadly, before his objective to restore the car could be completed, circle. With a righteous pedi-
Clarence Catallo passed away. Curt Catallo subsequently took over gree including the A Broth-
the project, delivering the car to Wheel to Wheel, in Troy, Michigan, ers, Barris and Conway, and
for restoration. During this process, Mike Alexander dropped by to its starring role in the quint-
help restorers do the work correctly, drawing upon essential car-music album of
■ A blown Olds with tri-power, his accurate memories of the now-historic coupe. all time, this 1932 is a proud
finned valve covers, zoomie The original aluminum side strakes were located part of hot-rod history as well
headers, chrome-reverse and repaired, new rear nerf bars and taillights as an enduring tribute to the
wheels with drag slicks, double were fabricated, and finding a proper 1959 Lincoln boyhood vision of Clarence
whitewalls, paint by Junior, chop steering wheel completed the interior. “Chili” Catallo.
by Barris, section and channel Today, the “Little Deuce Coupe” perfectly
job by the “A Brothers,” even a defines its era. The emphatic grille, unusual quad Ken Gross ranks among the
tufted and trimmed roof panel… headlights and side strakes, never duplicated, are world’s top hot-rod historians and
no wonder this rockin’ coupe the car’s signature elements. Now rejuvenated in judges, and is the author of the
made the cover of Hot Rod ! brilliant electric blue, re-lathered in chrome and book, “The Art of the Hot Rod.”
74 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
The, big,,
baD black
PlymouTh
hemi
Inside this plain-Jane-looking 1966 Belvedere is 750 lb.
of cast-iron V-8 that launched an American legend.
By Phil Berg ■ Photos By the Author

What actually appeals the most to Dr. Phil

Scheinberg about his demure-looking tuxedo-black 1966
Plymouth was that it was originally white. Not that he
wanted a white car, but because he thinks it was the only
white Belvedere Satellite built that year that had both a
4-speed manual transmission and just one special, expen-
sive option: An excessively large new engine with two
giant 4-barrel carburetors and uniquely designed hemi-
spherical combustion chambers.
It was known as a “Hemi.”
“To me, the Hemi is the rock star of muscle cars because
it had such a fearsome reputation,” says Scheinberg,

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 75

 a retired surgeon and lifelong car nut. “This car was originally one
of one, but an owner later had it painted black. Personally, I love
the black; it’s something evil-looking that fits with my personal-
ity.” This history is important to Scheinberg as a collector, because
it represents how America used to build custom cars on a mass-
production assembly line.

76 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 For 1966, Plymouth built just a total of 844 Belvederes equipped gic appreciation of American ■ At 750 lb., the Hemi
with the 426-cu.-in. Hemi, the first street-legal homologation of the cars and history. “I thought, in Phil Scheinberg’s
racing engine that swept the Daytona 500 in 1964, with a record speed ‘Wouldn’t it have been fun to Plymouth is a mon-
set by winner Richard Petty. Although Petty’s race engine is estimated have had a Hemi when I was in ster, making 425 gross
to have made more than 700 hp, the 750-lb. street motor in Schein- college?’ I grew up in Florida. horsepower thanks to
berg’s car was rated at 425 gross hp. (In comparison, a modern alu- Muscle cars were just making two 4-barrel carburetors
minum Chevy small-block LS3 an appearance—guys had rods tucked underneath the
weighs 400 lb. and makes 430 net and we had the surf culture, huge chrome air cleaner.
hp.) The street engine was pro- but not the whole car culture The only upgrade he’s
duced for eight years, although like California had. I wanted a made is a dry-cell battery
production-based top-fuel drag- 427 Chevy Nova, but my dad wrapped in a period-
racing classes are still dominated wisely thought that was a bad correct plastic shell.
by exotic versions of the same
basic design.
The original base price of
Scheinberg’s Hemi-equipped car
was $3850, which today would
be about $27,000, adjusted for
inflation. Classic car insurance
company Hagerty lists average
values of coupes trading today
at approximately $71,000, and
more for convertibles, of which
only 27 were made.
“I just thought it was fun—
there are lots of Chevys and
Fords, but you just don’t see a
lot of Hemis,” he says. “The
Hemi really was a most un-
usual thing—a very imprac-
tical motor with terrible fuel
economy. It’s just a big thug.”
In 1966, the Hemi option cost
a heavy $1000, which translates
into $7000 today, again adjust-
ing for inflation. And the fuel
economy? About 10 mpg.
Scheinberg’s Hemi has its
original engine, gearbox and
differential, rare now because
in the day drag racers often
modified and broke such parts.
“It has what you’d call ‘match-
ing numbers’, which seem to be
very important to muscle car
collectors,” he adds.
Scheinberg bought the Hemi
from a collector three years
ago, part of his personal evolu-
tion from classic European cars
to a simpler and more nostal-

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 77

 idea, and so he stood in the way
of me ever getting a muscle car.
He said, ‘Son, that ain’t gonna
happen. Live in my house, live
by my rules.’” So Scheinberg
“It never seems to fall spent his high school and col-
off Its power band, lege years in a 1962 Volkswa-
gen Beetle. “I honed my driv-
so you better shift ing skills in that car, in Florida
before it goes on wet roads—it was a lot of
oversteer fun.
too fast—there’s a “You quickly learn when you
lot of InertIa In those try to steer the Hemi why they
call it a ‘muscle car,’ because
bIg engIne parts. ” power steering was not origi-
nally offered. I drive it every
week, but it would be impracti-
cal for daily use. The steering is

■ Polished aluminum slow, and while the heavy-duty
trim is the only thing drum brakes don’t fade in nor-
flashy about the Hemi mal street driving, I would not
Plymouth Satellite, the expect much from them with
top trim level for the repeated heavy usage.”
Belvedere model in Scheinberg chose to slightly
1966. A sportier-looking retard the timing and use a fuel
GTX model, also offer- additive to prevent detonation
ing the Hemi option, in light of California’s marginal
arrived for 1967. fuel quality. “It feels way more
ferocious on race gas,” he notes.
“Hemis were made basically to
get up to 2500 rpm and then really take off. This is a motor that you’re
going to hammer for an entire a quarter mile, not a shorter drag race.”
Plymouth advertised a quarter-mile time of 13.8 seconds at 104
mph for the Hemi in 1966, which corroborates Scheinberg’s esti-
mates. “With the right driver and no regard to breaking anything,
it will do a 13-sec. quarter, and with slicks and headers 12 sec.,”
he says. For contemporary reference, Car and Driver tested a stock
$63,000, 662-hp Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 in 2013 at 11.9 sec.
in the quarter mile.
Peak horsepower comes at 5000 rpm, where the engine feels
strong, although Scheinberg cautions that it will hit 7000 rpm eas-
ily. “It never seems to fall off its power band, so you better shift
before it goes too fast—there’s a lot of inertia in those big engine
parts,” he warns. And the engine lets you know when it’s working
hard. “Two sets of interesting-looking shaft rocker arms under each
valve cover mean there’s plenty of monkey motion going on under
there,” he adds. ”There’s also a lot of intake and exhaust racket.”
Scheinberg once drove the Plymouth on a tour he arranged for
a Ferrari club. “There were some pretty good straights where you
can act like a hooligan,” he admits. “It shocked the Ferrari guys
trying to keep up with us—I saw 120 mph on the speedo. And
while it’s a big floaty car that’s clearly a dinosaur by current stan-
dards, it does corner fairly flat. And thank God it’s got a vacuum
booster on the brakes, or it would never stop. I understand how the

78 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 variety of other things: Mase-
rati 4-cams, turbos, a Sunbeam
Tiger, Jags, Alfas, Lamborghi-
nis and a Lotus Elan.” And now
a big, black Plymouth Hemi.
Through it all, Scheinberg dis-
tinctly remembers two American
cars as making early impressions
that eventually led him to buy
the Plymouth. “My dad bought
a new 1959 Corvette and I used
to abuse the hell out of it,” he
admits. His father’s co-worker
also had a 1964 Ford Galaxie
427. “He was a laboratory engi-
neer and a hot-rodder and made
a monster out of that car. That’s
how the seed got planted in my
■ The steering column-
mounted tachometer
and the three engine
gauges under the dash
were added by one of
the car’s previous owners.
There is no air condition-
ing nor power steering,
which Scheinberg says
is good reason to call
it a “muscle” car.

captain of the USS Enterprise felt. The Belvedere looks like you
could park a Harrier on the hood or on the trunk. It’s got a lot of
sheet metal, but despite this, some full-size cars today are consider-
ably heavier than this. I think it’s under 4000 lb.”
The Hemi was a long time in coming for Scheinberg, who was
exposed to a variety of exotic European cars as a youth, “There was a
kid at my high school whose dad dropped him off every day in a va-
riety of exotics,” he recalls. “He had an E-type roadster—it was just
gorgeous—and a 300SL, and a BMW 507. That lit off my interest.”
After college Scheinberg bought a BMW 2002, and wound up
putting 300,000 miles on it. “That car cemented my love of au-
tomobiles and quasi-sports cars,” he says. Once his medical career
took off, he bought a 300SL, then four 280 SE convertibles in a
row. Then he moved to a succession of Porsche 911s and 356s;
and then Ferraris, starting with a 365 GTC. “We’ve had a whole
head. So today, this is what I really like—my primary interest. I’m in
an American stage. Like when you’re a young man: so many women,
so little time. Same with cars.”
An enthusiastic mechanic and fabricator, at the time of this inter-
view Scheinberg was in the midst of a complete 1965 Corvette 396
restoration while also fixing crash damage from a shunt in his vintage
Sting Ray race car. “I broke a couple of ribs in that crash,” he admits.
“But vintage racing is what I really like. If you like cars, you’ve got
to do it. The more mechanical, the greater the appeal. New cars are
of course much better, but in comparison to the early Sting Rays and
most especially that big Plymouth Hemi, they’re soul-less.”

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 79

 build It,
2014 SEMA
PREVIEW

We WILL come Four great reasons to attend the world’s best

automotive aftermarket show, coming to Las Vegas
November 4–7, 2014.

BY CHRISTINE EASTMAN

What do you get when you combine the world’s

top automotive aftermarket manufacturers and 130,000 people for 96 hours inside
735,000 sq. ft. of floor space dedicated to hot rods and Hollywood royalty, muscle cars
and mobile electronics, resto rods and off-roaders, drifters and tuners, paint and power-
sports, lighting and audio, UTVs and SUVs, tools and car care, motorcycles, trucks and
wheels—and anything else we’ve forgotten to include in this epic rant of a sentence?

80 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

■ The sheer volume of The world-renowned Specialty 1. SCore BaJa 1000 eXPerienCe
aftermarket products, Equipment Marketing Associa- This year the SEMA Show is bringing a little bit of the leg-
talent and energy at tion (SEMA) Show at the Las Ve- endary Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 race to Las Vegas. Jumpstarting
SEMA is truly staggering. gas Convention Center. Forget the week’s festivities is the 2014 Trophy Truck qualifying event at
Nearly three quarters about that Hawaiian beach con- nearby Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The 3.6-mile-long, specially
of a million square feet do, this is the automotive enthu- designed course will incorporate dirt, asphalt and two different
of floor space and an siast’s idea of a tropical vacation. off-road loops with daytime and nighttime sessions.
expected 130,000 at- And here are four good reasons After the qualifying event, keep the adrenaline pumping by getting
tendees makes it similar to go to this year’s event if you’re up close and personal with the some of the world’s best desert and off-
to a small, thriving city. into all things horsepower. road racers, an enormous 70,000-sq.-ft. desert racing exhibit, dozens
 of Baja 1000 Trophy Trucks and
Class 1 race vehicles, and your fa-
vorite off-road companies. Look
for the current series points lead-
ers including off-road champs
B.J. Baldwin, Rob MacCachren,
Tavo Vildolsola, Clyde Stacy and
Juan Carlos Lopez—they’ll most
likely be there tearing up the dirt
during Trophy Truck qualifying.
MD-1405-Pertronix 1/23/14 3:38 PM Page 1
(/(&7521,&,*1,7,21

ZZZSHUWURQL[FRP
2. MaSSive aFterMarKet
The 2014 SEMA show is your first look at how the aftermarket
will make 2015’s hottest new vehicles even cooler. From the much
talked-about new all-aluminum Ford F-150 pickup to Chevy’s
redesigned Silverado and its new little brother, the Chevy Colorado,
there will be plenty of aftermarket parts aboard. Likewise, expect
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 plenty of gawking over the
über-sexy new Ford Mustang,
the accessory-friendlier-than-
ever Chevy Tahoe and Dodge’s
urbanized Ram EcoDiesel
hero truck. And speaking
of Dodge, get ready for the
supercharged beast that is the
2015 Challenger Hellcat as
well. We also can’t wait to see
what kind of accessories appear
for one of the industry’s favorite
aftermarket darlings—the Ford
GettinG in
Now for the sobering reality. Although
SEMA is truly the magic kingdom for
aftermarket performance, there’s a
figurative guard at the gate—and the show
is not open to the public. So how do you
get in? That’s a challenge unless you’re
an aftermarket manufacturer, wholesaler,
retailer or member of the press. If you are,
go to www.SEMAShow.com for credential
information. Otherwise, stay tuned
to Maximum drive and we’ll do all the
delightful dirty work to bring you the best
of the 2014 SEMA Show in a future issue.
84 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
Raptor pickup—and its rumored new archrival,
the Chevy Reaper. A steady stream of news is
starting to hit the airwaves about how all these
monsters are going to get dressed up, so stay
tuned for more.
3. Behold the Star CarS
Another SEMA strong suit is the cars of the
stars, and all the cool stuff that goes into building
them. In fact, at SEMA there’s always some type of
build-off going on, plus TV crews, celebrities and
the endless posse of exquisitely airbrushed girls
that tend to follow. If you’re into people watching,
the SEMA Show never, ever disappoints.
As far as stars and cars go, you’re almost
guaranteed to see some one-upmanship coming
from favorites like Chip Foose and Chris Jacobs
of Discovery Channel’s Overhaulin’ fame, the
gifted crew from Pete Chapouris’ legendary
So-Cal Speed Shop and Hollywood Hot Rods’
hipster Troy Ladd, just to name a few. At the shipping date for this
issue, these million-dollar builders were being quite tight-lipped
about what they’re bringing to Las Vegas, but we’re keeping our
eyes and ears open and will learn all about it soon enough.
In a novel social-media exercise, at the show check out Rhino
Linings and Doetsch Off-Road’s “Run My Build”—a social
design exercise where enthusiasts vote on how to best accessorize
a shiny new Jeep Wrangler JK “Trail Reaper” hunting rig, the
theme already chosen by fans online. Follow along at www.Rhino
 4. HigH-Octane
envirOnment
Besides cars and products,
SEMA offers plenty more to
see and do including network-
ing, conducting your own com-
petitive product analysis and
attending seminars. It can get
noisy too, when you’re watch-
ing million-dollar hot rods fire
up or tires going up in smoke at
the drifting exhibitions. There’s
so much here, your interests
will be covered no matter what
you’re in to—American muscle,
hot rods, hybrids, trucks, tun-
ers, Jeeps, street rods, imports or
green technology—it’s all going
to be there in one high-octane
martini.
Linings.com/Tough to bench race, watch the build, enter to win
one of the monthly $500 credits for whatever accessories you want Christine Eastman is a
and, of course, witness the big reveal. This is just one example of motorsports marketing consultant,
the many cool interactive events happening at SEMA. writer and enthusiast.
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 The Supercar Forget Walter Mitty. You
want to be like exotic

Addict
car nut James DiIorio.
BY PHIL BERG
■ PHOTOS BY

GUY SPANGENBERG

86 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

All car nuts remember when they re-
alized that they are not normal people, and
for James DiIorio it was in 1964 when he read
a story of the new Shelby Cobra 427 in Car
and Driver that appeared when he was 10 years
old. “I was hooked for life,” says the Southern
California-based racer, collector and real es-
tate businessman.
Born in Boston but raised in San Francis-
co, DiIorio’s first car was a 1964 Oldsmo-
bile 98 hand-me-down from his older
brother, intended to be a daily driver for
school. However, at 15 years old, DiIorio
turned it into a drag racer and promptly
blew up the motor and transmission. “Back
then, I was young and crazy,” he admits.
“Now I’m just crazy.” He fi xed the Olds,
teaching himself mechanics with Chilton
manuals and the new tools he bought. “My
father wasn’t happy with any of this,” Di-
Iorio says. “The first real money I made, I
went out and bought a new Corvette. My
father fl ipped a gasket.”
Since then DiIorio has owned more than
100 cars. “I got older, and prior to 2008
made a ton of money—and I’m not married,
so I have no kids. I had a massive car collec-
tion, completely bonkers.” That collection

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 87

 included a Ferrari Enzo, a Day-
tona, a Lamborghini Miura and
a Corvette Z06 modified to 650
hp. He says his Lotus Exige was
the best-handling car he’s had,
and his Lamborghini Espada
with a Countach 12-cylinder
was his favorite hot rod. “I
■ “Mad Max” is what went through a 1957 Cadil-
James DiIorio’s friends lac phase, had a 1965 Pontiac
call the Ferrari F40 GTO, five Corvettes, Alfas,
he’s owned for three Jaguars, all the early XKEs,”
years. The car has been he adds. A 1966 Aston Martin
upgraded to Le Mans DB6 was his fi rst move out of
racing specs with a muscle cars and into supercars.
lighter carbon-fiber body Supercar love led DiIorio to
and thorough engine, Italy, the birthplace of the genre.
suspension and brake About eight years ago, he was
improvements. He esti- drawn to Italy to tour the Lam-
mates to have chopped borghini and Ferrari factories
out 600 lb. of equipment and inspect a Lamborghini For-
that was required to mula 1 car he wanted to buy.
import the 1992 model While in the Modena neighbor-
into the United States. hood of those famous makers he
discovered Horacio Pagani, a car
nut with humble beginnings in
Argentina who has been building Mercedes V-12-powered $1 million
supercars since 1993. Pagani’s Zonda caught DiIorio’s eye, especially
a red roadster. “I was completely head-over-heels in love with it—the
best car I have ever driven in my life,” he recalls. “It was only about
$500,000, but they told me they wouldn’t sell it to me because they
can’t ship cars to the U.S. Now they’re $1.3 to $1.4 million, priced out
of the ballpark.”
DiIorio was also drawn to the Zonda’s handmade design and con-
struction. “Near Modena, you
drive up a real long driveway
to Pagani’s house,” he explains.
“Essentially the living room is
the showroom, and downstairs
in the basement is where he
makes these cars.” Not being
able to bring a Pagani home to
the U.S. put DiIorio into what
he calls a clinical depression. “I
was really, really, really in bad
shape,” he admits.
Luckily, DiIorio knew a possi-
ble cure for unrequited car lust.
When he left Italy, he stopped
at a friend’s home in Belgium.
The friend was busy traveling
and hadn’t driven his Ferrari
F40, so he asked DiIorio to spend a few days driving it. “The car
had been sitting, and my friend was starting to worry,” DiIorio says.
“So we had a mechanic go over it, and then I had the car for three
days. I fell completely in love with it.” “I had the car for three days.
When he returned to California, DiIorio bought a 1992 F40 with I fell completely In love wIth It.”
low miles, but it wasn’t the wonderful creature he drove in Bel-
gium: “I drive the thing, and it’s a pig,” he says bluntly. Three times
he sent it to his mechanic, who told him the car was in perfect run-

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 89

 ning order. Finally, he found a
Ferrari club member who ex-
plained that conforming to U.S.
emissions and safety regulations
■ When DiIorio first pur- added 600 lb. to the supercar.
chased his Ferrari F40, “I’m clinically depressed, I can’t
he couldn’t lift the rear have a Pagani, and now I have
bodywork to expose the a F40 that drives bad,” DiIorio
engine, as heavy struc- says. “The only way to get the
tural elements had been weight down is to re-body the
added for the car to pass car. At this point I’m on suicide
U.S. crash requirements. watch. I hated the car.”
Now it’s back down to However, another friend had
fighting weight of about been racing a Le Mans track
2000 lb., and he drives it version of the F40, and he had
regularly on the street. replacement parts made of car-
bon fiber. “So we re-bodied my car, went through the motor, and
now it looks like a race car,” DiIorio says. “We upgraded to race sus-
pension and added titanium Brembo brakes. It’s at 650 hp now and
weighs just over 2000 lb. Old Ferraristi are shocked; they say it’s not
original anymore. But the young chargers think it’s the coolest car.
The original U.S. car is an abomination created by the U.S. govern-
ment. This is now what Enzo envisioned when he commissioned the
car.” DiIorio and his friends have nicknamed the F40 “Mad Max.”
He says, “I just drove it last Sunday, and it runs beautifully.”
Attending races planted seeds in DiIorio’s mind too. In 1991 he
watched Minardi Formula 1 cars race in Phoenix, and the follow-
ing year the team switched to large 3.5-liter V-12 Lamborghini
racing motors. About seven years ago, he found one of the cars in
Italy. “The car had been sitting, and we had to do a whole sorting-
out process,” he recalls. “We started it, and the car made such a
racket—the sound was such glory. We emptied the whole town;
everyone came to see what was making the noise. The police even
had to come. Naturally, we bought the car.”
Back in the U.S., DiIorio took the 800-hp, 15,000-rpm Lambor-
ghini to the road course at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Although
it was 6 a.m. when DiIorio started the engine, it drew a crowd of
about 150 people. “I thought, ‘Please don’t let me kill this thing in
front of all these people,’” he grins. “The first five laps the motor
started cutting out. So instinctively I floored it. The tach shoots up
to 12,000 rpm. All of a sudden this thing just explodes. I’m flying
down the straight, shifting as fast as I can, it’s like being shot out of
a cannon. I’m flying down the straight, and up comes this corner. I
hit the brakes—luckily I had warmed them up. The car went from
maybe 170 mph to 20 mph instantly. It braked so hard, it threw my
neck out. After that I had to go to the chiropractor—that’s how
violent it decelerated. This thing was so mind-boggling.”
These days DiIorio is fascinated by the relatively accessible price of
used Ferrari 599 production cars,
while the wilder GTO based on
the 599 is valued through the
roof. “I did a lot of research on
this,” he says. “It’s not that hard
to convert a 599 into a GTO,
and it’s the best-sounding car on
the street these days.” DiIorio’s
new plan is to create a custom,
hot-rod GTO in the typical
American sense, and take it to
Nürburgring with some friends
to lap the famous German track
for a month’s vacation.
That may seem crazy to most of
us, but when you’re already crazy
it’s just normal. Anyway, DiIorio
says, “What else are you going to
do with your life?”
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 Tail of the
Dragon
11 miles. 318 corners. Do the math.
BY RANDY POBST ■ PHOTOS BY GUY SPANGENBERG

92 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

MAXIMUM DRIVE 93
 On that blessed day when I first got my driver’s license, and for Dragon is truly like the Disney
the next 30 years of frustration after that, I lived in central Florida, World of winding mountain
the Land of Flat, Straight Roads. To feed my powerful craving roads, attracting adventurers
for lateral g’s, I would venture 500 miles to the nearest mountain from all over the world. I’ve
roads, the Appalachians of eastern Tennessee, western North Car- seen sweaty palms and shaky
olina and northern Georgia, in whatever I could get my desperate hands on those who are about
teenage hands on. This motley array included my big sister’s Re- to take it on. This strikes me as
nault R16, a 1967 Dodge van with a V-8 between the seats, slotted funny because as entertaining
mags and dual exhausts, and even a girlfriend’s AMC Pacer. as it is, in essence, it’s a perfect-
I’ve been to the Tail of the Dragon—arguably the best driving ly safe little road.
road in the region—50 times since. Its 318 curves over 11 miles The Tail of the Dragon
have lost none of their allure over the years, except for burgeon- crosses the spine of an ancient
ing summer weekend crowds and that universal safety Band-Aid, mountain range on the Ten-
lower speed limits. To avoid the former, go on a weekday during nessee-North Carolina border.
spring, fall or even winter. It will be all yours. No tourists, no It overlays an old forest path,
cops—a pavement playground paradise. along which the Cherokee In-
■ To have the Tail of the Formerly known as Deal’s Gap, this section of U.S. 129 is quite dians were driven when they
Dragon to yourself, go on isolated, a good 20 miles from any human settlement and bordered were “removed” and sent to
a weekday during spring, by The Great Smoky Mountains National Park on one side and Oklahoma. The road was de-
fall or winter. Staying Alcoa Aluminum land on the other. A funky old hotel called The veloped along with the dams
relaxed and focused, Crossroads of Time, and before that an Esso gas station and gift on nearby Little Tennessee
and practicing smooth shop, clung to life for years on the North Carolina end, but since River, but because of the tiny
control inputs, is key to the Tail of the Dragon became more famous, it’s now Deal’s Gap amount of traffic it handled, it
a good drive experience. Motorcycle Resort. But there’s a good reason for this because The was never straightened, flat-

tened or civilized like so many
others. So while the pavement
is kept in excellent shape, the
curves are raw. They do not
make them like this anymore.
Tight, relentless and seemingly
endless, most of the Tail of the
Dragon is run low in 2nd or
3rd gear, which keeps veloci-
ties reasonable.
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To drive it well, approach the road relaxed and focused. After all,
it is a public highway, not a racetrack. Keep your eyes up, crank
your head in and watch the inside edge of the road, often
through the side windows. Smoothly apply the power be-
cause your car will dig hard in the lower gears, and then
watch and wait for the road to open up before you
use much throttle. Treat that double yellow line
like a concrete wall—don’t even touch it.
The rigorous onslaught can toast your brakes,
so have mercy on your pedal pressure, but stay on
them the whole time if the turn is getting tighter. Ac-
tually, be wary of all decreasing radius turns, for it’s here
that The Dragon will bite you. Brake lightly into the curves
to help your car turn in, and also to keep your lead foot from
going to the gas too soon. Finally, be patient with your horse-
power. Instead, feel the harmony of opposites: More steering equals
less throttle; less steering equals more throttle.
In the final analysis, the Tail of the Dragon’s constant curves are
more about the driver than the car, simply because they require such
a commitment to focus and reading the road. It takes work, thought
and desire, but when you get it right, the feeling is divine.
Randy Pobst is a 10-time National Sports Car Racing champion and
currently drives in the Continental Sports Car Challenge.
y Wa y
M
1934 Ford
5 Window Coupe
“Iron Orchid”
Owner: Beau Boeckmann
Builder: Dave Shuten
Photos: Tim Sutton
 Just
HANDLE
ItGetting the most out
of your classic muscle
car’s suspension.
BY JOHN HOTCHKIS JR.

The factory crate-motor phenomenon has

swept our industry at warp speed. With mega horsepower
long way in the last 40-plus years
and now, just about any rental
car—even a minivan!— will
being just a phone call or website order away, many enthu- drive circles around a vintage
siasts simply buy the big power and neglect upgrading their muscle car with stock suspension.
stock suspension to handle the increase. I see this quite of- An easy fi x is more rubber on
the pavement, right? Actually
ten at car shows where, upon talking to the owner, I learn
no. It may seem counterintui-
their beloved project is plenty fast, but not enjoyable to drive. tive, but handling issues are ex-
Suspension design, engineering and technology have come a aggerated when new high-per-

96 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

formance tires and larger wheels
are installed. The reason why is
that stock muscle-car suspen-
sions were not designed for to-
day’s stiff-sidewall radial tires,
or to cope with the increased
cornering loads they create.
These increased loads will cause
the factory rubber bushings and
control arms to flex, altering
wheel alignment and degrading steering accuracy. The additional ■ If you’re wondering why
grip can also overload the power steering pump, causing a white- read this article, first study
knuckle driving experience during sudden or extreme maneuvers. the small inset photo of the
Radial tires need entirely different suspension geometry with ample Mustang struggling through
negative camber and positive caster to work correctly. the pylons with stock sus-
Obviously, the best results are obtained by replacing the entire pension—and then the main
stock suspension with a well-engineered and tested performance photo of the same car after
suspension package. If doing so isn’t possible for budgetary reasons, suspension upgrades.
then a good start is replacing worn steering components includ-
ing the ball joints, idler arm, center link, tie rods and related parts.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014 ■ MAXIMUM DRIVE 97

■ More power and rubber on
the ground always sounds good,
but these additions can actually
amplify the limited handling
capabilities of classic muscle
cars. Changing to geometry-
correcting A-arms, in addition
to specially calibrated springs,
shocks, sway bars, links and
bushings, offers the most
comprehensive solution. This
all-in-one Hotchkis Extreme
Sport TVS Lowering Kit fits
1978–1988 GM G-body cars
such as the Chevrolet Malibu.
98 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014
Once these basic components dampen spring energy to main-
are renewed, the next step is to tain the tires’ optimum contact
add a matched front and rear patches. While many premium
sport sway bar and performance double- and even triple-adjust-
shock package. These upgrades able shocks allow further fine-
will give you immediately no- tuning of handling and ride
ticeable improvements in han- quality, single-adjustable shocks
dling, control and ride comfort. allowing only rebound-damp-
Next I recommend a perform- ing adjustment are highly effec-
ance spring package featuring tive and yet affordable solutions.
shorter springs with a higher Throughout my racing career,
spring rate. These lower the the car issue most talked about
car for increased control and a was handling. Rarely would a
modern, aggressive look. driver say, “I would have won if
By this point your muscle car will be handling much better, but the car had more power”—it was
the issue of the factory suspension geometry still hasn’t been ad- always about the handling. Many
dressed. That is why I would follow the spring, shock and sway-bar years later, the same challenge
upgrades with geometry-corrected front upper and lower A-arms, exists with today’s high-pow-
a bump-steer control kit (where applicable) and a performance ered street machines, where big
rear-suspension package with adjustable upper trailing arms. These power without commensurate
modifications will add the needed positive front caster, the ability handling can also create an un-
to adjust static camber settings and optimize your driveshaft pinion satisfying motoring experience.
angle, all of which enhance grip and control. Fortunately, muscle-car owners
Finally, adding chassis bracing will stiffen and support the shock can now fix that as easily as they
towers, front subframe, suspension pickup points and unibody struc- can add horsepower. You just
ture, allowing the body and chassis combination to adequately deal need to know how.
with the increased cornering loads your car is now able to generate.
For those drivers looking to unlock every last bit of handling po- John Hotchkis Jr. is a former
tential, adjustability is the key. Adjustable sway bars allow tailoring Sebring, Daytona and Le Mans
roll stiffness to match the driver’s preference for understeer, oversteer competitor and the founder of
or neutral handling. As well, properly tuned performance shocks Hotchkis Sport Suspension.
 No matter what kind of
high-performance vehicle you
drive, sooner or later you’re
probably going to want more
power. And that immediately
begs the question, how to get
it? Naturally you can change
cars, or rebuild or even swap
engines, but there are easier
ways too. The usual solutions
include retuning the engine
to utilize street-legal race gas,
bolting on a turbocharger or
supercharger kit, or adding a
sneaky nitrous-oxide system.
But there is another way—
water-methanol injection.
This unexpected fuel cock-
tail carries twin benefits that
enhance performance. First is
100 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
Pour Me a that the cooling effect of water
vaporization in the intake ports
and combustion chambers al-
DoUbLe
lows advancing the engine tim-
ing without detonation, and
second is that methanol, a high-
octane fuel in its own right,
further raises the detonation
threshold. Cooler combustion
temperatures, more ignition ad-
SHoT
vance and more potent fuel all
combine to give more power.
Add a turbocharger or super-
charger and you’ve got all the
fireworks you want.
As a side benefit, the rapid
water vaporization (i.e., wa-
ter changing into steam) helps
clean the valves and valve
Banks Power’s water-methanol injection systems seats, and reduce carbon
deliver 5–20 percent more bolt-on horsepower.
BY BOB RYDER
PHOTOS BY BOB RYDER, GALE BANKS ENGINEERING AND HOLLYWOOD HOT RODS
TWO is better than One
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 ■ Under the hood of Troy Ladd’s 2014 Mustang GT “Full Metal
Jacket” is a Ford Racing Coyote 5.0-Liter equipped with a Whipple
roots-style supercharger and Ford Racing intercooler, throttle body
and cold-air intake. The exhaust gases exit via a pair of factory
headers, then flow into an oval stainless-steel side exhaust.

buildup on the piston tops.

Expected power gains from the water-metha-
nol injection system depend significantly on the
engine’s ignition timing, which typically can be
advanced up to 10 degrees or more. In normally
aspirated engines, this nets horsepower gains in
the 5–10 percent range. For supercharged or tur-
bocharged engines, the system can allow boost ■ The Banks Double-Shot system can use the vehicle’s windshield-
increases of five or more psi, enabling further washer reservoir as the water-methanol tank to save space and cost.
increases in horsepower—up to 20 percent. And Ladd did not want to lose the function of the factory windshield-
even more impressive, adding an intercooler into washer reservoir, and so fabricated an aluminum 2-gal. reservoir lo-
the water-methanol delivery system allows dialing cated behind the driver’s side front bumper and brake air-vent grille.
the boost up to or even past 30 psi with pump gas.
Many American hot rod and muscle car enthu-
siasts will recognize the names Gale Banks of Gale Banks engine applications for more than 50 years. And Holly-
Engineering and Troy Ladd of Hollywood Hot Rods. As wood Hot Rods’ Ladd has won numerous prestigious cus-
the Gale Banks Engineering founder, Banks has been an tom-car honors, including two “America’s Most Beautiful
innovator and leader in developing cutting-edge after- Roadster” awards and a Grand National Roadster Show
market performance technology for gasoline and diesel “Builder of the Year” award.

102 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 ■ After threading the straight
Push-Lock fittings into both
ports of the solenoid, Erick
Palma mounts the solenoid and
connects the ¼-in. nylon tubing
into the Push-Lock fittings.

■ The check valve is inserted ■ Erick presses the ¼-in. nylon lines into the 90-degree injector
into the water-methanol line nozzle’s Push-Lock fittings, located underneath the cold-air
from the pump and solenoid. intake tube.
MD-1411-Blower Drive 8/8/14 2:10 PM Page 1

■ The dyno chart tells the tale
for water-methanol injection
with an almost 9-percent gain
in horsepower and a 15-percent
increase in torque on 91-octane
pump gas for this particular car.
Using Banks engineering, Ladd built the 2014 Mustang shown observed the installation of the
here—aptly named “Full Metal Jacket”—for the 2013 SEMA Double-Shot water-methanol
Show. Starting with a stock Mustang GT convertible, Ladd and injection system, along with
his crew literally transformed it into a coupe with a hand-formed its dyno tuning and testing, at
aluminum lift-off top. As you can see, nearly every component is the Gale Banks facility in Azu-
either heavily modified or a new innovation. sa, California.
Under the hood lurks a Ford Coyote 5.0-liter V-8, capped with The dyno test was performed
a Ford Racing Whipple 2.3L twin-screw style supercharger. We with a Ford Racing factory tune
and California 91-octane pump
gas. As delivered, the vehicle
wasn’t running optimally on this
grade of gasoline, with evidence
of timing retard of up to four de-
grees due to knock activity. To
generate a repeatable baseline,
global timing was reduced using
the Ford Racing calibration tool
to prevent detonation. At this
point, we observed a peak of 409
hp at 6900 rpm and 324 lb.-ft. of
torque at 5400 rpm.
Activating the Double-Shot
system eliminated the knock
activity, which allowed the
timing to be re-advanced. It
also permitted raising boost
pressure through the installa-
tion of a smaller supercharger
pulley to further increase en-

■ Troy Ladd-built “Full Metal Jacket” SEMA Mustang started life as a
convertible, now sports a lift-off hardtop to go with its newfound power.
MD-1411-Steele Rubber 8/4/14 7:26 AM Page 1
gine output. The final readings
were 445 hp at 6900 rpm and
373 lb.-ft. of torque at 4800
rpm, with data indicating that
still greater gains could be
achieved with more timing ad-
vance and higher boost.
Water-Methanol
InjectIon 101
Here are the key factors that make water-methanol injection work:
1. Water readily absorbs heat and provides an addition-
al cooling effect as it vaporizes inside the engine.
2. Methanol also absorbs heat out of the air by a pro-
cess known as latent heat of vaporization.
3. The combined water-methanol mixture (H2O-CH3OH) atom-
izes as it is injected into the engine, helping to cool combustion.
4. The water-methanol mix promotes a denser intake
charge, which reduces the chances of detonation.
5. The cooler and denser intake charge increases the en-
gine’s horsepower and performance.
 To
Dynolicious
and Beyond
Six inexpensive data-acquisition apps to track
your car’s performance.
N
T EI
L. S
YJ OHN BY JEREMY DA ROSA ■ PHOTOS BY BERT SWIFT
T OB
PH O

106 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 That smartphone in your pocket
has ridiculous capabilities. It can auto-dial your office, map your
route, find sushi, and with the addition of an inexpensive app, it
can also measure your Mustang’s acceleration, record your rat rod’s
braking performance, and even post your Porsche’s cornering g’s to
your favorite social media site as bragging rights. Available as easy
downloads for just $3 to $13, such car-specific apps open up an
entirely new dimension for enjoying high performance.
We took a trek through various app stores and found six that
measure performance, efficiency and fuel consumption—or
some combination thereof—for both Apple and Android phones.
So before investing in a traditional in-car data acquisition sys-
tem, try downloading one of these inexpensive apps instead.

Digital Editions of
MAXIMUM DRIVE Available Now

Maximum Drive
Maximum Drive is now available on Apple
Newsstand, Google Play and Kindle.
Maximum Performance | Maximum Enthusiasm | Maximum Fun
Maximum Drive is power stamped onto pavement, that dramatic gut-wrenching force that
accelerates a car from zero to the horizon and back again. It’s the stuff dreams are made of.
Committed to delivering these values with magnificent muscle cars, heinous hot rods, inspiring
classics, and exhilarating exotics Maximum Drive is the car lover’s maximum reading experience.

Download the FREE App and get a 1-year subscription (6 issues) for only $15.99 and save 70%
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 APPLE & ANDROID
Car Performance
This cross-platform app is proclaimed as the
“ultimate tool for car enthusiasts.” Functions in-
clude timed runs (1/8 - and ¼-mile distances, 0–60
and 0–100-mph acceleration), top speed, decel-
eration and the ability to create custom tests.
Dynamic measurements are taken using your
phone’s GPS, so no calibration is needed. The
user interface is more func-
tional than aesthetic looking.
Data can be displayed in Eng-
lish or metric units. A pared-
down Android version is free.
Cost: $3.99 Apple (iTunes
App Store); $4 Android
(play.google.com)
Requires: iOS 6.1 or later;
Android 1.6 and up
APPLE
Dynolicious
This is the gorilla in the
room. If its friendly price
tag and sparkly user re-
views aren’t enough, then
lateral g’s, horsepower display, elapsed time and accel-
eration tools should be. And that’s just for the Classic
app. The Fusion version adds Dynolicious Connect,
a social network app for Dynolicious enthusiasts,
which claims to have improved analysis technology.
The user interface looks great. Overall, this is the
most popular product on the market. It’s not plug-
and-go though, so
prepare to input
your vehicle’s info
before using.
Cost: $8.99 Clas-
sic; $12.99 Fusion
(iTunes App Store)
Requires: iOS 4.3 or
later; Fusion/Connect
require iOS 6.0 or later

FYI Mileage
This app tracks and re-
cords mileage for whatever
purposes you want, and it
can interface with iXpenselt
(a personal finance app) for
expense recording. To totally
Find us on vanquish pen and paper, FYI
Mileage syncs with Wi-Fi for
email use, graphs reports, and it even tracks expenses
and trips. The user interface is classic Apple—intui-
tive and stylish.
Cost: $2.99
(iTunes App Store)
Requires: iOS 4.3 or later

A unique perspective on the

fastest accelerating vehicles
on the planet.

www.facebook.com/dragracermagazine

108 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 TripAlyzer
Instead of acceleration rates,
TripAlyzer lets you measure
trip efficiency by analyzing
your speed, number of stops
and idle time to determine
the cost of the trip and CO2
emissions. Text-to-speech technology uses your
iPhone speaker to announce these stats, helping
to save money by monitoring and improving
driving habits. Trip-
Alyzer is wrapped
in a neat, intuitive
Apple user inter-
face that purportedly
makes monitoring
your driving habits
that much easier.
Cost: $5.99 (iTunes
App Store)
Requires: iOS
2.0 or later

D-1411-Sanderson 8/6/14 2:27 PM Page 1

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MD-FALL13-AM HotRod 7/10/13 11:27 AM Page 1
ANDROID
Dynomaster
Dynomaster measures 1/8 - and
¼-mile times, and offers graphic
analysis and a variety of “trigger
modes” for starting. No calibra-
tion is necessary, and the app is
linkable to social media, Google
Earth and Excel. Various custom
options are listed, and the user in-
terface is intuitive. No-
tably, this app also offers
a street view, voice re-
ports, and both English
and metric units.
Cost: $2.99 (play.google.com)
Requires: Android
2.0 and up

110 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014


Torque Pro
(OBD 2 & Car)
Torque Pro combines per-
formance metrics with diag-
nostics and maintenance tools
to provide live data on your
car’s behavior. In addition to
customization options, Torque
MD-1407-SPAL 4/8/14 1:26 PM Page 1
Pro features include a dyna-
mometer, CO2 emissions read-
out, speed readings, an OBD
II Bluetooth adapter that plugs
into your vehicle, and even a
fault-code database. The user in-
terface favors accessibility more
than style, but that’s fine with us.
Cost: $4.95 (play.google.com)
Requires: Android 1.6 and up
Jeremy Da Rosa is a writer and
educator living on the West Coast.
 The
FIrST
QUArTer mile Organized drag racing started by design.
But the ¼-mile distance was completely by chance.
BY JOHN L. STEIN ■ PHOTOS FROM THE BOB JOEHNCK ARCHIVES

112 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014


■ The first known organized drag races were held on the Marine
Corps Air Station in Goleta, California, in 1947. A reporter asked
organizer Bob Joehnck how far the cars went. “I had to give him
some dimension, so I said, ‘It’s a quarter mile,’” he notes.
In all of American motor-
sports, there is no more hard-hitting,
gut-wrenching, louder, quicker and
dramatic event than drag racing. Every-
body’s heard of the quarter mile, and
musicians from Jan & Dean to Kenny
Chesney have been writing it into song
lyrics for a half-century. The mighty
NHRA was founded on the simplicity
of this 1320-ft. sprint over 60 years ago,
and since then, drag racing’s influence
on the development of muscle and per-
formance cars has been incalculable.
But where and when did organized
quarter-mile drags begin, exactly? As it
turns out, it was near the beach in little
Goleta, California, in 1947. Local hot
rodder Bob Joehnck was recently out of
the service at the time. “After the war,
there was a lot of street racing going on
in Southern California,” he explains. “It
came naturally for thousands of young
men coming home, because they had
several years to think about getting this
Model A or that V-8 or whatever, and
the first thing they’d want to know was,
how fast will it go?
“We were tearing around, and a lot
of us gravitated to running our cars at
El Mirage Dry Lake in San Bernardino
Country, California. I was 21 years old
the first time I ran my roadster there in
late 1946. I had a cloth helmet, some gog-
gles and an old Army surplus seatbelt—
that was it. The interest was so high,
there were 51 cars just in my class. It was
huge. They had a couple of sealed beams
and pylons, and you’d go down there and
just try to keep between them. Everyone
wanted to say that they had gone 100 mph.
“At the same time, a local group of us
also used to go out to the municipal
November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 113
“There was one liTTle sTraighTaway There, jusT a narrow little 2-lane road
on some losT land, and we decided we could race side by side there.”

114 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

airport in Goleta. The west
end of the airport used to be
a Marine Corps Air Station,
and there were a bunch of
little revetments where they
stored munitions. We used to
go out there on Sunday and
roar around the buildings one
at a time. There was one little
straightaway there, just a nar-
row little 2-lane road on some
lost land, and we decided we
could race side by side there.
No one had adopted any stand-
ard length for acceleration
runs—the distance was typi-
cally whatever the available
road permitted.
“At the time there was a
gentleman who was the air-
port manager. So we went to
him and asked, ‘Can we go
over there and run our cars?’
And he said, ‘Yeah, I don’t see MD-1405-Flex-A-Lite 1/23/14 10:52 AM Page 1
why not.’ Then he said to me,
‘Do you think you could get
some kind of insurance?’
“I said, ‘Yeah, I think so. Let
me try.’” So I went to a nice

■ In the immediate post-

war years, “Time was cheap
and technology was expen-
sive,” recounts drag-racing
pioneer Bob Joehnck. As a
result, competitors at the
Santa Barbara Acceleration
Association meets were defi-
nitely a hands-on group. They
favored lightweight prewar
roadsters—preferably V-8
Fords—and often dispensed
with bumpers, lighting,
hoods, fenders and running
boards before racing. Rolling
starts characterized the early
races to help preserve the
sometimes-fragile drivelines.

November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 115


i went to a nice GentleMan
who was in The insurance Business
and Told him whaT we wanTed To
do and asKed iF we coUld Get
soMe insUrance. as i rememBer
iT was QUite cheaP, somewhere
around $50 For The whole year,
and iT was wiTh lloyd’s oF london.
116 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
gentleman who was in the in-
surance business and told him
what we wanted to do and asked
if we could get some insurance.
As I remember it was quite
cheap, somewhere around $50
for the whole year, and it was
with Lloyd’s of London. So in
1947, we formed this little thing
called the Santa Barbara Accel-
eration Association. And that’s
how it got started.
“We didn’t advertise it, we just
went and did it. We didn’t have
many classes, and there wasn’t
much to it. We passed the hat
so we could buy the trophies.
There was no rent, and the in-

MD-1407-RAM Clutches 2/27/14 10:42 AM Page 1
surance was next to nothing.” ■ Now approaching 70
That explains the setup, but years old, these Bob
not the distance. “The reason Joehnck archive photos
why the drag-racing distance show that the essence of
became a quarter mile is that the hot-rod builder’s art
a fellow came up from Disney was set in stone early.
Studios to write a little arti- Twin carbs, check. Lake
cle,” Joehnck continues. “He pipes, check. Dropped,
liked cars and wanted to take chopped and chan-
some pictures. He interviewed neled, check. And while
me because I was kind of the everyone wanted a V-8,
‘chief cook and bottle washer’ 4-cylinders worked too.
for the club. He said, ‘What do
you do?’ And I said, ‘Well, we
kind of come down here’—
there was a start line with a
fl agman—‘and we take a roll-
ing start and race down to that
bridge.’ There was a bump at
the bridge, and we could tell
who won by seeing which
car hit it fi rst. And he asked,
‘Well, how far is that?’ I had
to give him some dimension,
 ■ The starting line for
the original ¼-mile drags
was as simple as a white
stripe. “Chief cook and
bottle washer” Joehnck
is shown below with his
roadster. Competitors
often used white shoe
polish for their racing
numbers—easily attain-
able from mom, it would
wash right off later!
118 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014
so I said, ‘It’s a quarter mile.’ That was it. From then on we raced Bonneville Salt Flats, includ-
for a quarter mile.” ing a 227.336-mph record in
After staging the first organized drags, Joehnck spent a ca- 1991. Now 89 years young,
reer building engines for drag, road, circle-track, land speed- Joehnck still goes to the shop
record and boat racing, helping drivers such as Bob Bondurant every day.
make their names in the process. He also designed Edelbrock’s
original 4-barrel high-rise intake manifold and built a highboy John L. Stein is the Editor-in-
roadster that claimed B, C and D gas roadster records at the Chief of Maximum Drive.
 The
Winds of
CHANGE In March 1970, Don Garlits’ Swamp Rat 13 slingshot altered drag racing forever.
BY JOHN L. STEIN ■ PHOTOS BY LISA CRIGAR

■ Engine produced about 2500

hp on 85 percent nitro and 15
percent methanol at 7500 rpm.
Redline was 8500 rpm.

■ Magnesium Halibrand 11
x 16 rear wheels and the
largest available M&H or
Goodyear rear tires.
■ Body panels were kept to
a minimum for light weight.
■ Fuel tank carried only 5 gal.
of 85 percent nitromethane—no
long burnouts were done and
not a lot of time was wasted
during staging.
■ With a 215-in. wheelbase,
SR13 was the longest Swamp
Rat to date.

120 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014

Of the 34 dragsters built by Don Garlits
and his team from 1956 to 2003, Swamp Rat 13 partic-
ularly altered the course of history. “It was a high-tech
slingshot for the time,” Garlits explains. “Our motive
was to get down the quarter mile with the fewest num-
ber of parts possible, so the cars had to be lightweight
and simple. We were getting away from direct drive
and using a 2-speed transmission of my own design,
which worked really well until it blew my foot off!”
That disaster occurred in Long Beach, Cali-
fornia, in 1970, and prompted Garlits to design
Swamp Rat 14, his first rear-engine dragster, while
recuperating in the hospital. Today all top-fuel
dragsters are rear engine, putting the potential
for such explosions and fire behind drivers, instead
of in their laps. And the danger really had been in
their laps with the front-engine slingshot designs.
“The driver sat right on top of the rear end with
the transmission between both feet and the clutch
just about a foot away, inside an aluminum bell-
housing—not good, to say the least,” Garlits adds.
Follow along with Garlits for some of the tech-
nologies in Swamp Rat 13, now restored to how it
looked on the fateful day before Top Fuel went to
rear engines. If you want to see the car in person
or learn more about the other Swamp Rat drag-
sters, visit the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Rac-
ing in Ocala, Florida, or go to www.Garlits.com.

■ Performance was ■ Frame is 1.25-in. diameter, ■ Traditional motorcycle wire-

240 mph in 6.5 seconds. 0.049-in. wall thickness 4130 spoke front wheels and tires.
chrome-moly tubing.

■ All welds on the car are ■ The suspension was essen-

heli-arced with an Airco- tially the “flexie frame,” plus
Miller welder, which Garlits two rubber biscuits from a
still owns today. small-block Chevrolet engine
mount in front.
 ■ Crower “Bug Catcher” ■ Rebuilt for racing
Injector is very rare, as only a by Don Hampton, the
few were built. Most people GMC 6-71 blower was
ran Enderles back then. The hard anodized inside
fuel pump is a Crower 110. and out for longevity.

■ Jack Cotton Magnetos of ■ Blower drive by Keith

Texas souped up the magneto. Black and Cragar.

■ Traditional 1965 Dodge ■ Engine used Kendall

426 Hemi engine with stock Nitro SAE 70 oil.
bore and stroke, Crower roller
cam, aluminum rods and
Mickey Thompson pistons.
■ Rollcage top hoop
is 1.375-in. diameter,
0.058-in. wall 4130
chrome-moly.

■ Three-point rollcage is 1.5-

in. diameter, 0.065-in. wall
4130 chrome-moly.

■ “GarlitsDrive” 2-speed
transmission was designed
with Quarter Master Indus-
tries’ Ed Stoffels of Chicago.

■ Dodge 8¾ rear end

has 3.90:1 gears.
122 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014
 PamPer
What do a slammed 1950 Merc
and a 2015 Mustang have in common? Besides four
wheels, a steering wheel and a loud pedal, not much—
except their paint. Ah, paint. Aside from a nice set of

Your Paint
wheels, nothing announces your arrival better than a
well-manicured topcoat. Although the old lacquers and
modern base-coat/clear-coat finishes are miles apart in
technology, maximizing their brilliance is actually a
fairly common process. Whichever type you have,
here is Maximum Drive’s four-step guide to pampering
Maximize your car’s presentation in four easy steps. the finish on your car.
By John L. Stein

124 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 MD-1407-NHRA_event 3/27/14 8:16 AM Page 1

EVENT
SCHEDULE
2014
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Wash
O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals If you have access to soft water, use it. Start with a gentle spray-
*UNE s#HICAGO down to float loose contaminants away, and then prepare a carwash
Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
*ULY s.ORWALK/HIO solution in a bucket. Whether to use a specialty carwash product or
Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals a liquid dish detergent is your call, but know that detergents will
*ULY s$ENVER
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*ULY s3ONOMA#ALIF soaked in your bucket, and wash from the top down. Rinse the
O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Northwest Nationals
!UG s3EATTLE mitt frequently and take care to not scratch the paint in dirty areas
Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals like behind wheel openings and along rocker panels. Dry with a
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!UG 3EPTs)NDIANAPOLIS for best control and results.
THE COUNTDOWN TO
THE CHAMPIONSHIP Clay
NHRA Carolina Nationals After washing your car, ensuring that the paint surface is smooth
3EPT s#HARLOTTE.#
AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals is essential. To determine if it is, run your hand gently along the
3EPT s$ALLAS body surfaces after washing.
AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals
3EPT s3T,OUIS If there is noticeable drag, the
NHRA Nationals paint needs to be clayed. This
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this process may sound, it takes
just minutes. And the benefit
is dramatic.

126 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

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 16 GREAT PAMPER
PRODUCTS
The 1-2-3-4-step paint-care process really
Polish
Here is where the choice of
works, particularly if you remember to do it
products really counts. Old-
away from harsh, hot sunlight. Having a big
school polishing compounds
supply of clean microfiber towels is a huge
can nicely remedy oxidized
asset here. All the companies below sell them,
non-clear-coat paint, but for
or they can be purchased in bulk at some retail
modern clear-coat fi nishes, all
stores. Shake out, refold and replace as needed
the “cutting” is done chemical-
while working, then throw in the washing
ly. In this case, for best results
machine (not with your good clothes!) to get
use a modern dual-action buf-
ready for next time.
fer and light pressure. Such ma-
WASH chine polishing of clear coats
Mothers California Gold Car Wash, $5.74 demands special attention, as
Meguiar’s Deep Crystal Car Wash, $6.99 these fi nishes are abrasion sensitive. And here’s a pro tip for detect-
Griot’s Garage Car Wash, $8.99 ing swirl marks that can appear in your paint from improper buffer
CLAY use: Stand on the opposite side of your car from the sun and look at
Griot’s Garage Speed Shine, $13.99 the sun’s reflection in the paint. Swirl marks will present as ellipti-
(lubricates surface for claying) cal scratches around the reflection.
Griot’s Garage Paint Cleaning Clay, $19.99
Mothers California Gold Wax
Clay Bar System, $20.74
After the polishing is complete, your ride should be close to hav-
Meguiar’s Smooth Surface Clay Kit, $22.99
ing a great shine. The fi nal step of waxing can be done either by
POLISH hand or by using a dual-action buffer. For best results, apply the
Mothers California Gold wax to one paint section at a time—such as the hood, trunk lid,
Pure Polish Step 1, $7.99 one fender or door. Then fold either a deep-pile cotton terrycloth
Mothers California Gold towel or a clean microfiber towel into four sections. Once the wax
Micro-Polishing Glaze Step 2, $8.83
has dried to a haze, wipe it off with the fi rst cloth surface, then turn
Meguiar’s Ultimate Polish, $10.99
Griot’s Garage
to a new cloth panel and make a second pass.
Machine Polish 1–4, $14.99 to $16.99 You’re done—now go enjoy.
WAX
Griot’s Garage Cleaner Wax, $12.99
(combines polishing and waxing)
Mothers California Gold Pure
Brazilian Carnauba Wax, $14.81 (liquid)
Meguiar’s Gold Class Carnauba Plus
Paste Wax, $14.99
Mothers California Gold Pure
Brazilian Carnauba Wax, $21.48 (paste)
Griot’s Garage Premium Carnauba
Paste Wax, $39.99

TOWELS
Meguiar’s Supreme Shine
Microfiber Towel 3-Pack, $7.99
Mothers Multi-Purpose
Microfiber Towel 12-Pack, $25
Griot’s Garage 6-Piece Micro Fiber
Cloth Set, $29.99 —John L. Stein

128 MaxiMuM Drive ■ November/December 2014

 MD-WIN13-Secure Medical 10/2/13 2:39 PM Page
MD-1308-Custom Autosound 5/3/13 3:11 PM Pa

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NHRA Marketing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2, 3, 119, 126 USA-630 iPOD, MP3 & CD Controller
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Original Parts Group Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
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November/December 2014 ■ MaxiMuM Drive 129

 Finish Line
B oosting your passion for performance
doesn’t necessarily take money. It
just takes time. Such as, inviting your
kid—or your mate, sister, uncle, cousin, dad
or granddaughter—into sharing the experience
with you. To non-car people, the inner work-
ings of the mechanical beasts we love can
be perplexing, daunting and even a bit scary.
But the beauty is that they’re purely physical
beings—often with all the working parts visible.
The air goes in here, the linkage works like this,
this lumpy looking thing spins the engine and
130 MAXIMUM DRIVE ■ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014
PASS it ON
PASS
the electricity goes here and here and here.
People learn in different ways, but there’s
no better learning tool than, well, operating a
shop tool for the first time. In this photo, Ted
Deffenbaugh shows his son Diego how to use
an old-school Sears Penske timing light on the
265-cid Corvette engine in their cousin Scott
Young’s survivor 1932 Ford Tudor hot rod.
PHOTO BY BILL MASHO
Whether brief or in-depth, such instruction
imparts real working knowledge, encourages
communication and hopefully builds a common
interest that will last a lifetime.—John L. Stein
 John Force,
16-Time Funny Car Champion
Courtney Force, Brittany Force,
Funny Car driver Top Fuel driver

“I NEVER REALIZED THE EFFECT MY DRIVING

HABITS HAD ON MY DAUGHTERS.
As a parent it’s your responsibility to drive safely, and with any luck
your kids may grow up to be better drivers than you!”

Teens are eager to get behind the wheel and learn the basics of driving. And there’s no better
role model than you. So set the example and always practice safe driving habits in front of
your teen. Make sure you talk to your teen and agree on the rules and consequences that
come with driving. Because driving is a privilege everyone should take seriously.You and your
teen working together make for a great driving team.

Your teens have their whole lives ahead of them.

So visit teendriving.AAA.com

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You know
it’s gonna
happen...

No matter what life dumps

on you, Waterless Wash & Shine™
keeps your ride clean.
Waterless Wash & Shine™
by Prolong Super Lubricants
Without using water, this amazing product – complete with bug and tar
YLTV]LY¶JSLHUZZOPULZHUKWYV[LJ[Z`V\YJHY»ZÄUPZOI`LUJHWZ\SH[PUN
“dirt” particles (you know what we mean) so you can easily lift them away
without scratching your car’s surface.
SAVE TIME.
Clean your entire car in about 15 minutes while avoiding long lines at the car wash.
SAVE MONEY.
One bottle will clean an entire car or truck 4-5 times for $2.00 or less per wash!
SAVE WATER.
No water required! Environmentally friendly and great for water conservation!
ALSO GREAT FOR TOUCH-UPS!

Get Waterless Wash & Shine™ Today!

A Brand of

Made in the U.S.A

PROLONG.COM
Always Free Shipping! (800) 540-5823 facebook.com/GoProlong