While Russia is preparing for the New Year holidays and conserves sports cars for the winter, New Zealand wakes up from hibernation and prepares for the new racing season.
Actually the season never ends here because the temperature is always above zero (at least on the North Island). This is useful for all disciplines, except drag racing, which is not only the fastest type of motorsports, but also the most critical to the weather. Rain and cold are not suitable for drag racing at all. So, all weather conditions below 20 degrees, are not suitable.
Do you think that the approach to sports car preparation can be different from Russian? You are right. In this country, in order to go fast, people usually choose proven and inexpensive solutions.
For example, in New Zealand nobody will build a Japanese engine and visit garage after every finish. It's too expensive. Swap to old good cheap V8 and go to start 10, 9, 8, 7... 6. Of course, there are few enthusiasts who make «the Japanese surprise” every year, competing for hundredths and thousandths of a second, but they have specific commercial objectives or can be considered as absolute enthusiasts of this kind of sport.
From such fans I can only mention Rod Harvey, who recently set a new world record on his Toyota Celica with 2JZ-GTE engine, his time was 6,12 seconds. Which, by the way, was broken only a week ago with Ekanoo Toyota Supra from Titan Motorsport with the time 6,05 sec.
So, there is a little more than two weeks before opening of the drag season and work goes days and nights in New Zealand garages. In one of these garages the engine will be removed from one of the drag monsters, and I went there to learn more.
Meet Paul Hammond. My good friend, the owner and a driver of a Dodge and an owner of a muscle car I plan to drive this season in Zealand — Plymouth «cuda.
It is a long story how it all happened and we became a team. In short words we met during a drag racing, I had a great desire to participate in the New Zealand competitions. Paul desired to revive his' cuda, which spent 10 years without a motor in the garage.
Six months later a plan how to revive the ca was ready, and six months later it made a new roar with 700-horsepower engine, made on basis of the big-block.
Another six months we had tests and fixed technical problems. It was strange to think that the car will have no surprises after 10 years in the garage. You can’t just pick it up and go to competition, just as soon as the car is assembled. This does not happen even in New Zealand, where the history of muscle cars tuning has decades of history.
And now, when I came back to kiwi land, «cuda again is ready for the tests. What had to do Paul nobody knows. For example, when I went into the garage, he immediately gave me a gift — a worn camshaft from the „cuda.
It is good when you have similar car standing next to yours, so you can use it parts. The main «cuda problem was the ingress of water into one of the cylinders, and it damaged the camshaft, crankshaft and piston.
All this has been replaced, including the bearings and rings. Also, the water damaged the oil pump, it also had to be changed. Paul also installed stall-converter from his Dodge in «cuda, so it could start more effectively.
What's this? — There are two carburetors in the floor. The big one and the very big one.
These are Dodge carburetors. The big one, of 1,025 cfm is used by Rebel (nickname of Dodge) usually. Proven option that works like a clock, and does not require additional configuration for several years. The very big one of 1295 cfm is an experimental option that Paul plans to try out this season and see if Rebel goes faster with it.
Couple of words more about Dodge. As I said its name is Rebel and it is considered to be a girl. This brutal car with a stockade in the cabin and a toothy front is a girl.
In fact, it is Australian Chrysler Valiant Coupe. The body was made as Dodge in the US, but the front end and grille were modified by Australians for better sales in our region.
This was in original. Now we see a kevlar front of the car. It is a single piece, which is a modified cocoon covering the modified front part of the machine. But “modified” is not correct word, it is better to say “cut off”
This «cocoon» is an experimental product. It was produced by some guys before they built using the same technology as for the KZ7 racing yacht and they nearly won the America's Cup in the eighties on it.
Initially, Rebel was prepared as a pro-stock. But the plans changed after one team started cheating with their Mustang and participated with technical violations, driving faster than anyone. By the time the Mustang was disqualified, Rebel had been refashioned to super-gas class.
According to requirements, the car must have the original floor and the body should stay in the original. Excluding the front part of the car. Therefore, everything behind the seats is redone. Rear suspension is modified with ladder bar, 9-inch diff from Ford with spool and hubs was mounted, custom axles with 35 slots, instead of the regular 28, and adjustable coilovers complete the picture of the rear suspension.
Paul uses Mopar 727 Torqueflite transmission, but it has only the original body, all the stuff was redone and has nothing common with the original.
Eight-point rollcage reinforces the body. The Rebel, despite its age, has regular power loads that are provided by 740 hp Indymaxx engine, built with aluminum Chrysler 400 block.
With weight of just 1260 kg together with the pilot, the Rebel passes first 20 meters on the rear wheels lifting its nose to the angle of 45 degrees. And it is racing without breakdowns for at least four years. And Paul wins the competitions. Maybe it is not because of its speed but because of its reliability. Its one of the most reliable cars.
And perhaps because Paul is preparing his car in advance. For example, he negotiates with the sponsors to have a new set of slicks by the first stage.
Scheduled maintenance between seasons contains polishing the crankshaft, changing the bearings, replacement of fluids. Paul is proceeding with this during long winter evenings in the garage.
The agenda for today, for example, is to pull the motor to install torque converter from «cuda. Not everything is very good. The detail is not fully suitable. It need to be modified a bit with a file. Who said that the professionals do not use it? File can finish everything and everywhere with accuracy and patience.
And whiskey is in every garage. Especially if everything is going well.
For now everything seems to be good. «cuda started up immediately and without complaints. Who knows, maybe this season it will accept me as its driver and will stop to so its mood every time.
Rebel, according to the latest news from the garage, is getting its usual form, and soon, it will enter a new drag season in the rear wheels with a new set up.
