9 minute read
Road Rumblings
ProCharger Releases Supercharger Kit For C8 Corvette
It’s safe to say the C8 performance aftermarket is picking up steam. At SEMA, buyers saw everything from the suspension upgrades, exhaust systems, headers, wheels, and even wide-body kits for Chevrolet’s mid-engine supercar. Folks even got a glimpse of the new Z06 in Chevy’s booth. And while this highly anticipated car will not be available until 2023, power-hungry C8 owners can rejoice because ProCharger has released and is now shipping their centrifugal supercharger system. Fitting the supercharger on the C8 Corvette was no small task for the gang at ProCharger, but it had to be done because, for over 25-years, the company has supercharged every year Corvette. So when the C8 was introduced, the team went to work, and between the concept, design engineering, and testing, it took over a year for the finished product to hit the shelves. ProCharger’s HO Tuner Kit Plus is available from the company and is now shipping. Thanks to the super-efficient P-1SC -1 head unit, this system produces 180plus horsepower with only 6.5-pounds of boost, bumping the LT2 engine to 675 horsepower when used with 91 or 93 pump gas. The system includes an enormous air-to-water intercooler, CNC billet intake, CNC billet supercharger brackets, stainless steel drive system, polished or black finish options, and optional hand-laid carbon fiber covers. When it comes to the installation, the ProCharger C8 kit takes a much different approach than some of the other systems that we have recently seen. For example, other companies require the removal of the engine and transmission, but that’s not the case here. Instead, ProCharger designed the system to be installed without ever removing the car’s drivetrain, although a lift is recommended for this process. This system is also a 100-percent bolt-in design that doesn’t require any fabrication or modification to the C8. The rear carpet will need to be trimmed for the installation process, but that’s the extent of any changes required. If you ever wanted to return the C8 to stock, remove the ProCharger, replace the carpet, and reinstall the factory panels. 6.5-pounds of boost, 180+ horsepower, Part Number 1KC332-SC* Kit Highlights: ProCharger P-1X or P-1SC-1 head unit, Massive Air to Water intercooler core, CNC Billet intake manifold, CNC Billet supercharger brackets, Stainless steel drive system, Bolt-on installation (no engine removal), Black or polished finish options & Hand-laid carbon fiber covers optional So if you are interested in ordering a system or getting more details on this product and others, be sure to visit www.ProCharger.com.
Petersen Museum Opening Hypercar Exhibit
The Petersen Automotive Museum will be opening a new exhibit that explores the world of hypercars, which is coming to the museum on Dec. 4, the museum announced. Over the next 18 months, the exhibit Hypercars: The Allure of the Extreme will rotate up to 30 vehicles that highlight what hypercars stand for and why they continue to captivate the global automotive community, museum representatives said. Vehicles confirmed to be on display so far will include the Aria FXE concept, Bugatti Veyron 16.4, Caparo T1, Devel Sixteen, Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta, Hennessey Venom F5 (Design Model), Koenigsegg Agera RS Final Edition, Laraki Sahara, McLaren Speedtail, NIO EP9, Delage D12, Pagani Huayra Hermes Edition, RAESR Tachyon Speed and Rimac Concept One. It will also include two motorcycles, including the Lotus C-01 and Aston Martin AMB 001. The Czinger 21C will make occasional, brief appearances, and will be on display for the last two weeks of December 2021. “Hypercars are a glimpse of the future today,” said Petersen Automotive Museum Executive Director Terry L. Karges. “With this extensive exhibit, we want to nail down what a hypercar is while giving guests the opportunity to view some of the rarest and most luxurious vehicles available.” The Petersen Museum defines a “hypercar” as a vehicle that exists at the highest echelon of performance, technological advancement, price and rarity. The exhibit will showcase projects from both well-known marques and smaller startups. Hypercars: The Allure of the Extreme will be located in the Bruce Meyer Family Gallery and the museum lobby. The exhibit will be split into two successive parts, the first of which will be on display from Dec. 4 to Sept. 22, 2022. The second wave of vehicles will arrive on Sept. 17, 2022, and leave on May 14, 2023.
Robert Matranga took home the 2021 SEMA Battle of the Builders title at the SEMA Show last week, the organization announced. Matranga, one of four finalists and the winner of the Hot Rod category, won the annual competition with his 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air build, which was featured in the Keystone Automotive Operations booth at the 2021 SEMA Show.
The four finalists: Sport Compact – Eddie Pettus – 1961 Austin Healey Sprite Truck/Off-Road – Bryan Thompson – 1934 Ford Pickup Young Guns – Dayton Jacobson – 2000 Chevrolet S10 Hot Rod – Robert Matranga – 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air The competition is open to builders with vehicles displayed at the SEMA Show. The 2021 SEMA Battle of the Builders competition received more than 240 applications.
SEMA 2021 Tremec’s New TKX Packs A Ton Of Features In A Small Case
Many car enthusiasts have a love-hate relationship with the Tremec T-5 transmission. While it is an incredibly light, compact transmission as it came from the factory, it wasn’t the most robust unit. Only rated for between 230 and 300 lb-ft of torque (based on model year), aftermarket enthusiasts easily eclipse that mark on a regular basis, which inevitably leads to issues. Tremec saw that aftermarket need and came out with the TKO line of compact transmissions with increased torque-holding ability. However, the TKO line hadn’t been updated in quite a while, which led to the creation of the TKX transmission. Retaining the compact size and lightweight the TKO series was known for, the TKX comes in at just 99 pounds dry, and has the T-5 and TKO’s compact length. Additionally, the case has been rounded to be able to fit in just about any transmission tunnel, whether it was designed for a five-speed or not. As far as performance, the TKX enjoys all of the knowledge gained by Tremec throughout its intense OEM-level R&D programs over the decades, providing 600 lbft of torque capacity and the ability to hold up to 7,500 rpm shifts and 8,000 rpm through the traps or the end of the straight. While compact, the entire transmission design, from the gears to the case itself, has been strengthened as well as refined for smooth shifts. Available in both 10- and 26-spline input designs with several single-overdrive gearset options, the new TKX is a no-compromise five-speed transmission — you get big power capacity and smooth, refined operation in a lightweight, compact package, from the people who have been putting manuals in Mustangs since before your author was even born.
Bob Bondurant Passes Away
Bob Bondurant, a class winner at Le Mans, founder of the Bondurant Racing School and inductee of ten motorsports halls of fame, passed away at the age of 88 over the weekend, his family announced. The family provided the following obituary: Friday, Nov. 12, 2021, the world lost an iconic American racing hero, Bob Bondurant. Bondurant passed away at the age of 88 and is survived by his wife, Pat, president and CEO of the Bondurant Racing School, who vows to continue the legacy of Bob’s School. Robert Lewis Bondurant was born on April 27, 1933, to John Roper Bondurant and Ruth Williams Bondurant of Evanston, Illinois. His father owned two luxury car dealerships named “Bondurant Motors.” When Bob turned two years old, the family moved to Westwood Village, CA. Bob began his fascination with speed as a three-year-old on his first tricycle with playing cards clothes pinned on his spokes for the sound of the rush. At age 8, his father introduced him to racing by taking him to Thursday night midget races. By twelve years old, his parents were divorced, and he persuaded his mother to purchase a Whizzer electric bike to deliver his newspapers faster. By 14, he owned his first Indian motorcycle, and after the devastating death of his mother at 16 years old, he started racing flat track and even bigger Indians and Harleys. His mother’s death left him inconsolable, which is where the seed of his fearlessness was realized. Bob was then inducted as the youngest member of the “Galloping Gooses,” which eventually became “Hell’s Angels.” At 23 years old, he discovered that he had more control with four wheels than he did with two, and his racing career began in a Morgan Plus 4. From the age of 23 to 34, Bob became one of the most iconic race car drivers in the world. He won the National Corvette Title, Le Mans GT, the World Championship and the Baja 500. Between 1961 and 1963, he won 30 out of 32 races in Corvettes. Bob is the first and only American to bring the World SportsCar Championship trophy home to America in the legendary Shelby Daytona Coupe #26. He then rose to the highest level in racing with Ferrari in Formula 1 and prototypes.
Bondurant left the Formula 1 race series to race the even faster Can-Am cars with best friend and team driver, Peter Revson, in the Lola T70 Mark II. In 1967, a fateful race at Watkins Glen changed his entire career, and the Bondurant School was born. His steering arm broke at 150mph, and, lying in traction at the hospital, he vividly remembers his conversation with God explaining to Bob that he was needed more on Earth and to start a driving and safety school to save thousands of lives of those otherwise dying on the highways and in motorsports. Answering the call, on February 14, 1968, Bob founded The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving. For 50 years, it earned and held a reputation as the number-one racing school in the world, crediting Bob as “the global expert authority on driver training and safety.” Using his notorious racing skills, he copyrighted “The Bondurant Method.” Personally, he taught his handselected instructors how to educate the world to be better drivers. Bob and the Bondurant team graduated well over 500,000 students at his famous school, including Christian Bale, Paul Newman, Clint Eastwood, Nicolas Cage, and Tom Cruise, to name a few. Bondurant was actively at the track every day, enthusiastically greeting his new students until he was well over 85 years old. He kept racing, too. Bondurant’s last Championship was 1997 for the World Cup Challenge, racing for Steve Saleen. Bondurant retired from racing at 79 after winning his last race at Pomona Raceway in his #72 ERA GT40. Bob Bondurant has had a worldwide impact on the motorsports industry, and his legacy will live on eternally as the Bondurant Racing School moves forward into the future. His wife Pat is the president and CEO of the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving dba/ Bondurant Racing School and is carrying his legacy forward into the future. Bondurant concludes, “My life has been lived in two halves. The first was becoming a World Champion driver. The second was teaching the world to become champions.”
