What to do with my motor?

[85burb]

So we have diecided to drag race with the wifes 85 long bed. It has a 350 in it now. She would like to have a big block in it. My question is what should i do with current motor. I do not trust it at all. I was told it was rebuilt not too long ago but from what it looks like it was not. It does not make any noise or anything. Should i just pull it and put big block in when i get one or pull this one and open it up and see what it looks like and put it back in?

[raceman6135]

Happy wife = happy life

Yank the mouse and toss a rat in there!

I'm always curious about engines, so if it was me, I'd tear down the small block once you've removed it from the truck. Have a look at it. Then you can decide if you want to keep it for another project or sell it.

[Captainfab]

Do you or your wife have experience with drag racing?. If not, I would just start out with what you have. I don't think you necessarily need to pull the engine just yet. How is the oil pressure? Have you done a compression and a leak down test? That will tell you a bit about the condition of the engine. Once that is determined, you can choose a cam to upgrade to. You can also gradually upgrade things like intake manifold, carb, ignition, etc. while you are gaining some experience on the track. You don't have to go all out right at first.

[85burb]

Never race on a track befor no. The 350 has a cam in it now. Not sure how big. But i do have a friend that is gona ride with me a few time to tell me what i need to be doing. He has a massive mopar 330 that runs 9.90s. I guess i can run a leak down test on the motor. I really dont want to buy upgrades for it knowing it will be removed. One of the reasons i was gona remove it is it leaks oil. It has an edelbrock intake and holley carb and long tube headers.

[Marv D]

[quote] But i do have a friend that is gona ride with me a few time to tell me what i need to be doing. He has a massive mopar 330 that runs 9.90s[quote]

You would be well advised to forget how fast someone else is, and remember there will ALWAYS be someone much faster. The quicker the car, the bigger the money pit it becomes.


I am 1000% with the Captian . Forget about 'fast' and make what you have safe and reliable, and track worthy (meaning clean it up and get it ready for tech, toss the AC box, straighten up the wiring etc...)
Get some seat time in the 14's with what you have to learn the tree, the track and track etiquite. There is a LOT more to drag racing than just going balz-out fast.

[85burb]

I know that there will always be someone faster then me. I just mentioned cause he knows what he is doing. I have been to lots of races and I don't want to be the idiot on the line. I need to redo the trans first thing cause it shifts amazingly slow between 1-2. So I may pull motor and clean it and seal it up. A th400 is a pretty good trans for a big block right?
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[Marv D]

It doesn't take a big block to make gobs of power and ET so your question is kind of misleading. eg. my 64 shoebox runs 9.13 @ 149,, normally aspirated, single carb smallblock. My racing partners 74 Nova runs 10.teens at 133 on a 9.5" slick at3 200 pounds with a Hughes Street-Strip TH350 ordered straight out of Summits cataloge and a Jeggs $350 converter,, also a n/a small block car.

Traction and torque looks for the weak link. If it's your trans, differential, u-joints, motor mounts ,, whatever the weak link... you will find it. Point I'm getting at is the Faster Faster Faster bug seems to be an affliction for which only poverty seems to be the cure. Be cautious how deep the waters before you jump in head first LOL

Here's a long winded tutorial onthe first trip out onto the track... worth a read.

First time to the track

Getting the car ready...

First, empty the car of all the un-necessary items you have been storing in the trunk. Added weight is your enemy. You will probably only burn 2 or 3 gallons of fuel at the track. Unless you feel you need the extra balast of a full tank of fuel (for traction or the trip back home) try to arrive with less than a 1/2 tank of gas. Check all the vitals (oil, trans fluid, brake fluid, battery electrolite level, radiator,, everything) and bring them to the proper level.

Get to the track early. Give the car plenty time to cool off. Underhood temps can make a HUGE difference in ET, you don't want to abuse you motor when stone cold,, but you don't want the residual heat from it just coming off the express way either. I assume you have gone over all the safety items and will get past tech, if not you might want to review the rules at the bottom of this page as it has some of the more common tech items listed

http://www.firebirdraceway.com/06web...reetdrags.html

Ok, assuming you got through tech...

First things first. Go up into the stands and familarize your self with the track, you want to get a perspective of every interval from the waterbox through the turnout roads. Pay close attention to where the starting line is (staging beams) and the finish line. Don't laugh,, I've watched a number of inexperienced racers that didn't know when to let off and slow down. You might ask tech if the scales are open. This is a perfect opprotunity to find out what the car weighs with driver and fuel on board,,, ready to race.

Time to get into the staging lanes...

Always listen to the announcer, they will give any special instructions for that particular track / event and tell you which lane has right of way at the top end of the track. More on that later.

The announcer will say which lanes are for street tires, for slicks, for pro tree, full tree, test and tune of the pro cars, etc.,, pay attention and ask questions if you need to. You will find most everyone at the track is very helpfull if you just ask. It's when you don't ask and do something dumb that you get into trouble.

Don't play monkey see monkey do and drop the air pressure in your rear tires to a rediculous psi. Most street tires will cup in the center at low psi and give less traction than when normally inflated. Besides, too low of a psi will very likely get you in trouble with control. Obviously Drag radials and DOT 'cheater' slicks are designed for a low psi, but NOT your street tires. Your front tires should be checked and brought to proper inflation,, it will help reaction times if you bring them up a few psi higher than normal. But don't go krazy and don't exceed the MAX inflation listed on the tire.

In the staging lanes try to keep the motor off as much as possible. You don't want to build unnecessary underhood heat. When youare the 2nd or 3rd car in line, put your seat belt on and start the car and let it warm up. I bring my car to the water box with a water temp <150 degrees, but that's just where I get the best performance. Just look at what temp your car is at when the lane director sends you out. You want to remember this and write the water temp on the back of the time slip for future reference. (if you plan to go to the track much at all there is no limit to how much info you record on your time slip,, every detail is helpfull to find better performance)

Your ready, the lane director sends you out...

DRIVE AROUND THE WATER DO NOT drive through the damn water. Your street tires up front will drag water to the starting line and you will just blow the rear tires off in wheel spin,, as will every car behind you. I can't stress this enough. Street tires are designed to disperse water, that water goes up into the tread and get's carried to the starting line,,, both front and rear.
Drive around the water and back up to the moist pavement just in front of the area they are wetting down. Put the car in low gear and wait for the race director / starter to signal you to do your burnout and stage. Here again,,, your street tires will NOT benifit from a huge, long, smokey John Force burnout. Just spin them enough to clean them off (count 1,, 2,, 3 in your mind) and let off the brake until the car starts to roll out. GET GENTLY ON THE BRAKES AND STOP WELL BEFORE THE STAGING BEAMS. Now if you want to look like a rookie,, roll through the staging beams with your front tires and attempt to stage with your rear tires. The race starter, the crowd and everybody will be laughing their ass off. (Now you know why I said to familarize yourself with the track from the stands).

After your burn out, roll gently up to the box that holds the staging beams. Don't doddle, just get your butt up there and turn on that top bulb. As you get close CREAP that last 4 or 5 feet. No gas, just ease up till your "pre stage" comes on.

Ready to race...

DO NOT roll in and turn on the second stage bulb until the other lane has lit his top bulb. This is a courtesy amongst racers and you will be better received if you follow it. While you are waiting for the other lane,,, this is time to clear your head and get ready to race. Don't roll in and go to full stage if you are not ready. As soon as you are full staged that is the signal to the starter you are ready to race. If your arent,, shame on you. Again CREAP forward ever so slightly (only 7" between pre-stage and full staged) till you turn on the second stage bulb. Now it's just you, the tree and the track. Focus on the third yellow bulb. Pay no attention to anything but that third yellow. (or the starter if he waves you off) I've written a lot here to get to what you asked in the first place, but, as SOON as that third yellow glows,, off the brake and go wide open.

On a pass....

Time to use your head and driving skills. If the car spins hard, you have to make the decision if you are going to east out of the throttle some or drive through it. ABOVE ALL ELSE if you start to get in trouble, drift out towards the centerline or the wall, ease out of the throttle and gently get on the brakes. An aborted pass is a safe pass, a reckless pass will get you tossed off the track. No one laughs at anyone who lifts and races another day. Should something go wrong and you feel something in the drive train let go,, again lift and get on the brakes. As soon as you have slowed to a controlable speed get out of the groove. Pull as far to the side of the track as you can (up close to the wall) and get stoped as quickly as you can. The track officials and all other racers will thank you for making the cleanup as brief as possible. I doubt you will have a problem,, just wanted to let you know what to do 'in case'.

The finish line and shutdown...

Most tracks are clearly marked at the finish line,, and the two cones in the center of the track that time the car for a MPH are the clue. Again you know this because you famalirized your self with the track before you ever got in the staging lanes,, right! As you cross the finish line,, don't snap the throttle shut and jam on the brakes. The SBC rods are tough dudes, but they are designed to take pressure from above,,, when you go from power to decell is when they are most vulnerable. As you cross the finish line lift out of the throttle with a steady motion, not a snap. Then ease into the brakes. Most tracks have AMPLE runout room and numerous turnouts. Bringing our car down from trap MPH is to be done SAFELY,, that's why they give you all that room.

Getting off the track...

EXTREAMLY IMPORTANT! NEVER just turn across an adjoining lane. Always let the lane with the turn out roads have the right of way,,, even if you are WAY ahead. He could have had a problem at the starting line and be bearing down on you at 130MPH. KNOW where you opponent is and what he is doing before you ever turn across his lane. It's best to slow down and let him pass you and follow him off the track if the turnout is on his side. Likewise if the turnouts are on your side of the track, Never assume the idiot in the other lane is going to give you the right of way. As you approach the turnouts be cautious ,,, you never know if the other lane has been paying attention.
Got a time slip...

Time to do some data logging. As I said earlier, there is no end to the usefull info you can jot down on the back of your time slip.
Just a few things to keep track of,,,
Engine temp at the water box
Engine temp at the pre-stage bulb
Engine temp at the end of the pass
Trans temp (same intervals)
Length of burnout (1,2,3 count etc)
Tire pressure (front and rear)
Shock settings
Air cleaner on or off
Jet's in the carb (primary / secondary/ powervalve)
Ignition timing
mufflers on / off
Launch rpm
Shift rpm
rpm at the end of the pass
(and one of the things you will find EVERY serious racer tracking,,, enviornmental)
Air temp
humidity
barrometric pressure
corrected altitude
wind (head wind, tail wind etc)

If you track every detail of the pass and track results with any change,, the trends of what your car likes and dislikes will come to light real quick.


One last thing….

Safety in the pits. EVERY track has a pit speed limit. You can drive as fast as your little heart desires on the track, but in the pits, KEEP IT NICE AND SLOW. At my home track, if you are caught driving over 5MPH in the pits, you are warned once, and banned the second time. They don’t play any games. 5MPH in the pits or you find someplace else to race. Observe whatever rules the track has as far as speed on the return road and in the pits.

Drag racing, and especially the test&tune nights has become a family event. If you have children, you know it’s impossible to keep an eye on them 1000% of the time., especially with the loud commotion of dozens of race cars all around. And with the ever growing popularity of Jr Dragsters, many families have small children at the track. Toddlers in the pits and access lanes are a fact of racing. Keep your eyes open, and don’t be the one that has to say “I’m sorry, I didn’t see him”.

If you have a small fire extinguisher, it can be a handy thing in the pits. Tech will NOT allow fire extinguishers inside the car unless it is bolted rigid to the chassis. (There is a VERY valid reason for this) . If you have a small extinguisher it can be invaluable in the pits if you have a problem, or even if someone near you has a small fire. But it can NOT be taken onto the track in the car, not even in one of those ‘over center’ clamps. NHRA’s thought is that in the event of an accident, the bottle ‘could’ come loose. If your smacking the wall, or rolling and flipping at 100+ MPH, that extinguisher would become a one pound projectile flying around the cabin that easily smashes helmets and skulls. The same applies to ANY item in the car (speaker boxes, etc). Play it safe. If it’s not bolted down solid, remove it from the car before heading to the track.

Above all else
Remember, your there to have some fun, and test and tune your car. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment of having a car beside you on the track, or to get disappointed in a car that isn’t nearly as fast as the ‘other guy’. I can promise you,,, no matter how fast you are, there will ALWAYS be someone faster. Your there to make some passes, tune your car, and hone your driving skills. Don’t let someone with a faster car sway you from that task. Just keep in mind, EVERYONE on the track is racing the same clock, and that’s all drag racing is. A race against the clock. So pay close attention to every interval shown on the time slip. If you change something and it shows improvement in one interval, at the cost of another, it may well be a tuning aid for future reference. When you find all of the little things that work for your combination and your driving style, you will be amazed at how much improvement you have found in your car.

Good luck, and have fun!

[85burb]

That is a ton of good info. Thanks for it. I do understand that a smallblock can and do go fast. We just want a big block cause we have had a smallblock. My burb has a ls motor and we want something different. I figure with a mild big block it will be pretty fast and we wont have to rev the crap out of it to go fast. So it should be better to drive around town. Not looking to go 10 flat on first pass but that is the end goal. Far far down the road.

[85burb]

I have actually ben to firebird race way in arizona. I went to uti 05-07. Loved arizone except the hole disapeaing car issues thay have. Wife 67 got broken in to 4 times and my bug was stole from our appartment. If that whould have not happend i would probaly still be there today.