Tech feature: Reg takes on the world

Chasing 550

THE CMR TEAM IS GEARING UP FOR ITS BIGGEST CHALLENGE TO DATE: AN ATTEMPT TO BECOME THE FASTEST WHEELDRIVEN, PISTON-POWERED CAR ON THE PLANET, AND WE’LL BE FOLLOWING THIS KIWI TEAM AS THEY PUSH THE BIG BLOCK CHEV WELL OUTSIDE ITS COMFORT ZONE

WORDS: MARCUS GIBSON PHOTOS: CMR

At the age of 75, you could say Reg Cook has achieved a ton in his lifetime; his south Auckland race shop is littered with memorabilia from past championships, engine programmes, and recordsetting runs. While some might think he’d be at the age of winding down his programme, or aspirations, nothing could be further from the truth. For Reg and his Cook Motor Racing (CMR) team, there is one big challenge they are currently throwing all their power, energy, and resources towards: building a streamliner capable of running over 550mph (885kph) to claim the world record for a wheel-driven, piston-powered car. To further complicate the situation, this is for an FIA record, which is different to a Bonneville (Southern California Timing Association [SCTA]) record — but more on the differences later. Land-speed racing is nothing new to Reg and the CMR team; they have been completing at Bonneville for the past decade — which you could say has been an apprenticeship leading up to this ultimate goal — each year building the team’s skills and knowledge in what is the most demanding motorsport on the planet. First it was with a Nissan NX coupé, then with the first streamliner, ‘Wairua 1’; both now hold multiple SCTA records. They would have been on the water right now, headed back for another crack, had it not been for current travel restrictions. However, the silver lining is that it meant Reg could focus on the ‘Wairua 2’ programme, with the goal of making an attempt in only a couple of years.

The location, although not set in stone, will most likely be in Bolivia. To give you a sense of the scale of this operation, Reg is gearing up to take a 70-strong team with him.

The basic configuration for the Wairua 2 streamliner is an evolution of the first. It’s a little bigger proportionally, but, like Wairua 1, it will run the engine right up in the nose of the car, ahead of the front wheels, which are the drive wheels. The new car has four driving front wheels, with a bespoke 12-speed transaxle currently being built at Weismann Transmissions in the US, the same company that built the eight-speed in the first car.

The theory behind running 12 speeds is that it will minimise the rpm drop between shifts. For instance, this would be 500rpm in the shift from 11th to 12th, keeping the rpm (and power) in a specific window, and not at peak torque, reducing the load on the engine. Like many of the components, this type of box currently does not exist, so a lot of faith lies on Sam Weismann that it will work.

Over the years, the team has run all manner of engine configurations, from Nissan and Honda four-cylinders, to diesels, and even a bespoke twolitre V8 it built in conjunction with Simon Longdill from Synergy Power. But this project will take considerably more capacity, and it is not a decision taken lightly.

Reg explains, “We’ve been on a long journey to decide on the power plant. We had A, B, C, D, and E options. The big block Chev was E, and, because of time, money, and other things, we’ve landed on the Chev. Everyone is going to assume that, because we’re using the big block, it’s got to be the best thing in the world, but I do not believe that; it’s just the only option left open to us.”

The team’s goal is to make 2500bhp (1864kW), a figure that no one reading this will think is out of the question for a modern twin-turbo big block in this day and age, but this is land-speed racing, and the engine has to withstand wide-open throttle for a continuous run of three minutes and then make a return run within an hour, which is the big difference between FIA and SCTA records. That is a big ask for any engine, and one that is forcing those involved with the programme to go back to the drawing board on almost everything.

“We’re going to test past what has been done; we’re going to go past what has been done; and while, yes, we’re going to repeat a lot of what has been done, a lot of it is going to be changed. The way the counterweights on the crank are done, the way the rods are done, the way the piston shape is done, the way the cylinder heads are done — all that is going to change. What we need to do is get 2500 brake horsepower, and be reliable on full power for three minutes, and do 50 dyno runs on full power for three minutes,” states Reg.

The team is hoping to have the mule engine — a complete replica of the actual engine — on the dyno later this year making pulls. In preparation for this, Reg has sold his trusty old SuperFlow 902S engine dyno and a new SuperFlow Powermark capable of handling 2500hp is being installed in the dyno cell, along with a 30,000-litre water tank to keep it cool. He estimates about $50K will be spent on fuel and dyno time to get the big block in a position where it’s ready to make a pass, but, before that can happen, a massive amount of R&D will need to take place, and plenty of bespoke components built. This will be unlike any big block Chev we’ve seen before.

Unlike the more traditional style of tuning, which focuses on achieving a desired air–fuel ratio, there is a major tool in the tuning arsenal that the team has been using to great success with the 1000hp (745kW) SR20 they are currently running in Wairua 1. This is the Pectel cylinder-pressure sensor system. These sensors read the pressure inside each cylinder, giving the team an insight into the combustion cycle. This means the team can optimise the tune based on the peak cylinder pressure. A simple way to explain it — and we will go into more detail in later instalments — is that they are trying to achieve the maximum power with the least amount of cylinder pressure, while also ensuring that the peak is happening at the correct amount of timing after top dead centre (TDC) so as

to avoid pre-ignition. There is a ton more to it, but we’ll cover that once the big block is bolted onto the SuperFlow and screaming.

While the engine programme is well under way, the chassis is also making great progress at the hands of Grant Downing, who has also just received the carbon body panels to mount. These were built here in New Zealand by Bruce Beca of Fast Fibres. Once this is complete, the car will return to CMR’s Auckland shop for final fit-out and testing.

We’re not talking about some runs down a backcountry road or an airstrip. The team is actually building what is known as the ‘CMR LSR’ compound; this is the compound they will pack up and ship to the eventual record-attempt location. It will be set up in situ at the shop as a simulation, and will be 100 per cent self-sufficient, even with its own 4WD dyno, so that all cars can be tuned before making runs. It will also allow the team to test all the systems before leaving New Zealand, which is something it has not been able to do previously.

As you can tell, there is a lot of work to be done before a record can be attempted. But if this team’s track record over the past 10 years is anything to go by, it’s going to be very interesting to follow CMR’s journey as these Kiwis try to take on the world once more. We will be keeping track of progress, so keep an eye out in an upcoming issue for part two.