Some alternative bodystyles for the Silver State Classic......

A while back I wrote about a guy asking what combination would be best for running in the unlimited-200 mph class in The Silver State Classic. I suggested that the most cost-effective would be 1982-90 Trans Am with a big-block Chevy. I said this because aerodynamics are as important as power and these T/A's had a drag coeffiecient as low as .028-.032. An aerodynamic car can go faster with less power than a non-aerodynamic one with more power. That's just physics. I suggested a Big-block Chevy because, like it or not-nothing makes more power for less money than a Rat. A Chrysler Hemi or Boss-Nine Ford can make as much or more power-but at double or triple the cost. That aside-I keep getting inqurirys from people asking about other body / engine combos that could do it. People don't realize-it's pretty easy to make just about anything go 150. A boxy little Subaru WRX Turbo goes over 140 with only 265 hp. The 380 hp Supercharged F150 Lightning went something like 143 a few years ago, and a boxy Ford pickup doesn't exactly slice through the wind. It's that 50 mph from 150-200 that's hard. Hot Rod featured a couple of guys trying it in a '68 Charger a few years ago-and even with a 650 hp 440 they "only" averaged about 185. Which is a helluva acheivement in a boxy '60s Charger. That's why I recommended the combo that I did. So without further adieu-here's som alternative bodys that you could do it in. # 1. 1976-77 Olds Cutlass. Richard Petty won a bunch of NASCAR races in this body after his legendary 1974 Charger was outlawed for 1980. ( Bodys couldn't be more than 5 years old, so '79 was the last years it was legal ) The Petty Team figured out that the fastback, slope nosed Cutlass was more aerodynamic and thus much faster on the Superspeedways-( Daytona, Darlington and Talledega ) with the same amount of power than the square nose, notchback windowed Monte Carlos that a lot of other GM teams were running. The other teams protested because Petty was running the ubiquitous Chevy engine and not a 350 Olds. NASCAR ruled that since GM was playing musical engines with their production cars-that it was perfectly legal for racers to run any GM engine in any GM body. Several other teams quickly switched to Cutlasses after the ruling. If they were going 200 in 1980 with a 366 cubic inch limit-one should be able to do it today with a big-block. Again-I'd use a 454 Chevy. If you want a "Real" Olds engine then you'll need a 455. And you'll need Edelbrock Aluminum heads and a serious cam, and some serious bottom end work. Mondello Performance would be your best source. Yes, it's POSSIBLE to build a 700 hp Olds engine, but it's going to cost way more than a 700 hp Chevy.  # 2. 1974-77 AMC Matador Coupe. These fastback coupes had moderate success in NASCAR in the late '70's winning a few big races. Since AMCs use Chrysler bolt pattern bellhousings ( The "Torque-Command" automatic is a Torqueflite ) I'd recommend a Mopar Performance crate Hemi or a stompin' 440 or 440 based 505 stroker. Again, bang for the buck-it's a lot easier to get 600+ hp out of a 426 Hemi or 440 Mopar than it is a 360 or 401 AMC. You could do it-Edelbrock offers aluminum heads and guys have competed in the 'Engine Masters Challenge" with AMCs and made 550+ hp reliably-but the Mopar path would be the one of least resisitance. # 3. 1979-93 Fox Mustang. The last "5.0" tested by Hot Rod in 1993 hit 144 mph with only 225 hp; 200 should be attainable with 500+, which should be easily attainable with a 347 SVT crate motor and a blower. SVT makes a kit to swap in a 429 / 460-but thats a lot of money-and probably not much more power than the blown 302/ 347. These are your best chances-dollar-versus-performance wise. Fantasies of 429 Torinos, or 440 Road Runners are just that-fantasies. Mastermind.