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In May 2020 the unthinkable happened at RPM. Due to the effects of the pandemic on our business partners, advertisers and printer network, after 21 years of smoke and gears, RPM stopped printing physical copies . To make a very long story short, as a family owned company staffed by gearheads and driven by a love of fast cars and the need to have a magazine for the “rest of us”, we were devastated. But we pressed on and poured resources into the RPM digital mag (which is exactly like the printed publication, plus digital-only bonuses and NOT a blog style web page) along with revamping the entire RPM website and social media platforms.
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For drag racing, the Mustang and Camaro are obvious picks of the litter, but there are other models such as the Chevelle and Nova that are in close running within the lineup of Bowtie offerings.
For Vince Moore, as long as it was a GM product, any one of the above would work to create the hot rod of his dreams.
Moore started hitting the dragstrip in El Paso,
Texas at the tender age of 11 to watch his mother's boyfriend bracket race. Enjoying his drag racing experience so much, Vince started working the ticket booth and concession stand on Friday nights until he could race independently. At 15 he began working part-time at a repair shop, learning to work on cars, and by 16 he started bracket racing his first car, a 1988 Chevy Camaro.
While working at the shop, he was befriended by a fellow employee who would mentor Vince in replacing the tiny V6 in the ’88 with a small block Chevy. Not groundbreaking power by any means, but to Vince it was night and
day. Once he graduated high school, the Camaro was sold, and this 1967 Chevelle became the replacement. “Believe it or not, I found this car for sale in the classified section of the local newspaper,” Moore explained.
Uncut!
That’s right, this Malibu is virtually unmolested chassis-wise and comes by its slick low-slung stance, with an ever so slight rake, by using the right suspension parts front and rear.
“It was only a roller, all primer and hard to look at. The front bench seat had all of the stuffing falling out of it, no carpet or headliner and the back seat was also all tore up. My plan was to buy a 1967 Camaro, Chevelle or Nova and this is what I found first, so I decided to go with it and picked it up for $1,500!”
Being only 18 years old at the time, money was scarce, but Vince did have time on his side, so at nights and on weekends he'd wrench on the '67.
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Like most gearheads, he became impatient and ended up with a loan to pay for a well-equipped 421ci small block and Muncie fourspeed to get the car running at the local airstrip turned dragstrip. “I remember
taking it to the track for the first time and running an 11.70 all motor. I was excited about that! I later put nitrous on it and raced it for several years at an old airport strip in El Paso called Desert Demons.
Moore shook things up again by going against the grain and mounting the turbos to mate with the outer headlight openings over the more popular inside headlight placement. This car has a definite presence to match its performance.
Despite this nearly all steel ’67 Chevelle being with Vince Moore since he finished high school, he made sure to keep the historic musclecar body updated with high tech suspension and power, enabling mid 7-second passes in the 1/4 mile!
The fact that this is an original 1967 body and frame is pretty cool, but the mile-high hood, cool side dumps built into the top of the fender, along with the rear wing and authentic black vinyl roof really make this Malibu one of a kind.
Lookmom,twins!
A pair of Precision 76/83 turbos were plumbed into the mix by Robert and Eric from G-Tuned Garage. The guys at G-Tuned also did the cage and suspension work and even some body and paint on the bulging Sunoco style composite hood.
Our local racetrack had closed and that was all we had. I remember winning a fastest street car shootout and getting a $1,400 pay day,” he added.
Moore took his winnings and put it
towards a paint job and continued to drive and race the Malibu until 2006, when he hurt the motor. Following that, the car sat for 10 years while Vince worked on his career as an Electrician.
Version two of the car was inspired by a buddy who convinced Moore to bring the car back to life with the “junkyard turbo LS” combo that was becoming very popular for going fast on a budget in the world of street car drags. Moore ran just one season
with an aluminum 5.3 LS and turbo from a boneyard donor and went 8.71 in the quarter, a huge jump from his old nitrous combination. He was hooked once again, built a new race-ready motor the following year and has been tweaking the package ever since.
A whole basket full of trick suspension parts were installed in the back of the Malibu and a braced 9-inch with 40 spline axles and 3.89 gear sends power outward to Billet Specialties wheels wrapped in Mickey T rubber.
Vince Moore Jr.’s Twin Turbo LS 1967 Chevelle Malibu
■ Body & Paint:
Chrysler Surf Blue Pearl paint. Fiberglass hood, bumpers and deck lid from Unlimited Products. Every other body panel is factory steel.
■ Chassis & Suspension/Modifications:
Full factory frame with a 7.50 cert cage. TRZ upper and lower front control arms, TRZ upper rear control arms, upper torque box and TRZ anti roll bar. Menscer shocks on all 4 corners with Racepak shock sensors.
■ Engine:
Dart SHP LS Next Pro engine block, 388ci. Callies Magnum 3.622 stroke crank, Callies LS Ultra Enforcer connecting rods, Diamond LSX 15 degree forged flat top pistons 4.125 bore. Cam Motion custom solid roller camshaft.
■ Cylinder Heads:
Trickflow 245 Hip’d 6 bolt heads. Titanium intake valves and Inconel exhaust valves with a PAC-1225 spring. Crower stainless LSX roller shaft rocker system specific for TFS cathedral ports. BTR 3/8 diameter 8.15” pushrods.
■ Induction & Fuel Delivery:
417 Motorsports 2,000HP billet intake with intercooler, Bosch 210 injectors, Enderle cable drive fuel pump. Aeromotive pre and post filters.
■ Electronics:
Holley Dominator ECU.
■ Power Adder:
Twin Precision 76/85 Gen 2 turbos with 2- 60mm wastegates and 2- 50mm TurboSmart blow off valves.
■ Transmission:
FTI Powerglide 2,500HP rated with a PTC converter and carbon fiber PST driveshaft.
Billet Specialties Win Lite wheels all the way around with Mickey Thompson Radial Pro 275 60’s in the rear 15X10 and Mickey Thompson ET Front 26/4.0X17”.
■ Interior:
Full interior minus the back seat. Holley 12.3 Pro dash fabricated in place by owner. TRZ lightweight steering column and steering wheel with a TRZ manual rack conversion. Twin race seats and harnesses. Factory door panels, carpet, and headliner. 7.50 cert roll cage.
■ ET & MPH:
Car has gone 7.48 at 169 MPH in the ¼ with a 1.15-60’ time.
■ Most Unique Feature(s):
I believe the most unique feature is the age of the car. I am usually the oldest car at the track. Nowadays it seems like there are mostly modern performance cars running true street events, so this 1967 Chevelle always sticks out. The vinyl top always gets a lot of attention as well.
■ Reason For Build:
No special reason other than I wanted a car to race every month. Over the 20+ years I have had this car I have tried to keep up with the times and the changes in the sport.
■ Build Timeline:
It has seen several different power plants since I first built it in 2002. The current setup took about 1 year to build and 2 years to get dialed in to where it is at today.
■ Most Memorable Experience(s):
That would have to be the Radial Roundup race in Ennis, Tx earlier this year. We were entered in the Extreme Street class which had a 4.96 index cap and there were 54 cars entered. Much more than the promoters anticipated. We ended up going 6 rounds and taking the win at 5:30am. It was a long 18-hour day of racing that ended early in the morning followed up with an 11-hour drive back home. We were exhausted but when we are used to racing with 4 to 8 car fields, taking a win with 54 cars was a great accomplishment!
■ Thanks To:
There are a lot of people that have helped with this build over the years. Jeff Danberry is the reason I know anything about cars, and he helped build this car with me several times over the past 20+ years. Ricky Daniels is the man behind the tuneup and the reason its run so well. Robert and Eric from G-Tuned Garage did all the custom fabrication from the roll cage to turbo piping to some of the suspension work and a little bit of the paint and body on my new hood. Adrian Ortiz originally did the paint and body work. Ben Grigry helped rebuild my transmission on the spot and got me back in the race. Drag racing is a huge industry and all the guys from Motion Raceworks, TRZ, 417 Motorsports, Menscer, Brian Tooley have always answered my calls and any questions I had during this build. I am sure that I am missing some people as well.
The OG musclecar exterior is joined by new age high tech power under the hood. A Dart SHP LS Next Pro block was filled with a Callies Magnum stroker crank, Callies Ultra Enforcer rods, and 4.125-bore Diamond pistons. The 388 cube mill was topped with 245 Trick Flow heads fitted with all the toys and a billet intake manifold with intercooler tops things off
Along with the fresh power, a tall fiberglass hood, bumpers, and deck lid from Unlimited Products were added to the otherwise completely steel musclecar. The Chevelle is known to have the two-tone paint job with a
black vinyl top; Vince retained that but used a Chrysler Surf Blue paint. The grille is factory and had factory style headlights, but two of them have been removed; in their place are turbos giving Ole Blue a very unique presence.
Moore came out swinging with LSX power that started with a Dart SHP LS Next Pro block. No corners were cut on the rotating assembly either, using a Callies Magnum 3.622 stroke crank, Callies Ultra Enforcer rods, and 4.125bore Diamond 15-degree
pistons, bringing the total cubes to 388. Hip'd 245 Trick Flow heads top the stroker and boast Titanium intake and Inconel exhaust valves, PAC springs, and a stainless steel roller shaft rocker system designed specifically for the Trick Flow heads.
As promised, the Chevelle is uncut back here. Yes, those are original wheel tubs and trunk hinges!
417 Motorsports had the perfect 2,000hp-capable billet intake manifold with an intercooler to angle air into the high ports. Massive Precision 76/83 turbos force air into the 388 LSX while two 60mm wastegates help give control and two 50mm blow-off valves relieve pressure.
On the fuel side of things, Bosch 210s take advantage of an Enderle cable-driven fuel pump and a Holley Dominator ECU controls the combination.
An FTI 2500hp rated Powerglide and PTC converter mount behind the twin-turbo beast and power transfers to a built 9-inch with 40 spline axles and 3.89 gear via a custom carbon fiber driveshaft.
All this power deserves a well-
built chassis, and Ole Blue delivers based on the factory frame; it’s virtually uncut! A certified 7.50 cage stiffens the factory frame rails and certifies the car's time and speed. TRZ supplied all the suspension components, from front and rear upper and lower control arms to the torque boxes and anti-roll bar.
Beautiful black and machined Billet Specialties Win Lites are installed on all four corners, 17x4s up front and 15x10s in the rear, with all four being wrapped by Mickey Thompson rubber.
The interior is somewhat unique in the '67; Vince cut out the middle section of the dash to accept Holley's impressive 12.3-inch digital display but kept the factory dash pad.
The rear seat was sacrificed, but not because the car was cut in the back, but rather to shave some weight from the big bodied
Bowtie.
Moore is proud to say that much of the factory style interior equipment remains, including door and rear panels and trim, carpet and headliner. He cut out the middle section of the dash to accept the 12.3-inch digital display but kept the factory dash pad. Although the original torn-to-shreds front seat has been replaced by race seats, there are two of them and both have full harnesses should a passenger want to strap in.
In 1967 a 7.48 1/4 mile hit in a stock-bodied Chevelle wasn’t even a twinkle in a GM Exec’s eye. These elapsed times were reserved for the top tier runners in drag racing of the day, yet here is Vince Moore in 2024 actually doing it!
TRZ components found their way into the interior, too; Vince used their steering wheel, lightweight column and manual steering conversion. Although they are race seats now, there are still two of them and both have full harnesses. Moore is proud to say that much of the factory style interior equipment remains, including door and rear panels and trim, carpet and headliner.
From the time Vince took possession of his 1967 Chevelle Malibu it has seen signif
with a nitrous kit and then 10 years later, under boost, hit the 8-second zone, and now he has been 7.48 at 169mph behind the wheel!
You can find the Chevelle at any number of street car events and these days it’s not hard to pick it out among the crowd of modern builds at the dragstrip, but that’s what makes it special for Moore. After all, we need to preserve the past that led to the technology and advancements we now enjoy in motorsports. And cars like Vince
bo LS powered ’67 Chevelle bring the best of both
Vince Moore’s Chevelle has been with him
Story by Jack DuBois
By Bob Reed
The Fox Body Mustang is iconic, and regardless of your brand affiliation, you simply can’t argue that.
They are used by Ford gearheads for everything and anything and even by the Chevy crew when they slip their LS between the rails with massive amounts of spray or twins pumping out mega boost. Heck, we’ve even seen Mopar mills installed in the platform. In short, a large number of us cut our teeth on the street and strip with one of these cars.
While they are becoming few and far between on the street, they dominate most dragstrips. Whether its test and tune night or events involving street cars at any level, chances are Fox Stangs will have the highest percentage in the lanes, with the coupe version being infamous in drag racing.
Photos
What is rare, though, are people who choose to run the strip with as many factory or factory style parts as possible on their 1979 to 1993 Mustang. That used to be the norm back in the day due to necessity, however, now with so many parts available on the cheap, most people cut and modify the heck out of their Fox Body, but not Kevin Klime.
The body of Kevin’s Coupe is completely unmolested factory steel, except for the 4 inch fiberglass cowl hood and custom air opening in the front bumper cover.
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a dad and grandfather who were always into cars. Since he was just 1 year old, up until he was 18, his summer vacation was his parents taking him and his brother to the NHRA Summer Nationals at Englishtown, NJ. When cool cars, and they were mostly Mustangs. “We would religiously go to the Friday night street races at Island Dragway in NJ. and of course stop at Hot Dog Johnny’s on the way home,” Kevin explained.
The wild Mustang of Kevin Klime launches hard with a wicked wheelie!
Is this a factory original setup? It sure looks like it! You can literally eat off any area of this car, even the engine bay!
A Vortech YSI-B blower pullied for 20lbs boost with an air-to-air intercooler was chosen for boosting the small block Ford to next level of performance.
A Magnafuel 750 pump with Magnafuel pre and post filters sends fuel forward via a -10 AN feed line to Holley fuel rails and 160lph injectors. Custom plumbing from the blower carries pressurized air to an Accufab 90mm throttle body.
Kevin Klime’s Supercharged 1993 Ford Mustang Coupe
■ Body & Paint:
All factory body panels except 4 inch cowl hood. Resprayed factory Ford Vermillion Red.
■ Chassis Modifications:
10 point chromoly cage / welded factory torque boxes.
■ Suspension:
Full UPR front suspension, K-member, tubular lower A-arms, coilover kit, caster/camber plates and travel limiters. Single adjustable struts
■ Rear Suspension:
UPR tubular lower arms, adjustable upper arms, anti-roll bar with stock coil springs and Strange adjustable shocks.
■ Engine:
Ford small block. Dart SHP 9.5 deck block. Final cubic inches is 428. Scat crank, LPC rods, Wiseco pistons.
■ Cylinder Heads:
AFR 205 heads (ported/polished), Jesel shaft mount rocker arms, Comp Cam springs, Comp pushrods.
■ Induction & Fuel Delivery:
Big Stuff 3 EFI (tuned by Frank at PSI Speed). Magnafuel 750 pump, Magnafuel pre & post filters, -10 AN feed, -8 AN return, Holley fuel rails, Holley 160 lph injectors and 90 mm Accufab throttle body.
■ Power Adder:
Vortech YSI-B blower (pullied for 20lbs boost) with air to air intercooler.
■ Transmission: Lentech Terminator Street/Strip AOD, Lentech 9 inch converter and Hurst shifter.
■ Rearend:
Factory 8.8 rear with welded tubes, Strange 35 spline axles & spool and 3.55 Motorsport gears.
■ Brakes:
Aerospace front & rear brakes.
■ Tires & Wheels:
Weld Alumastars with Moroso 17 inch front runners and 275 Mickey Thompson Pro Drag Radials.
■ Interior:
Factory interior including back seat. Race front seats with G-Force 5 point harnesses, stock steering wheel, Hurst Quarter Stick shifter mounted in factory console and Racepak dash.
■ ET & MPH:
Best 1/8 ET to date is 5.35 at 131 mph. Best 60 ft 1.13 off foot brake. Times are in Heavy X class trim. Car has not run full ¼ with this setup.
■ Most Unique Feature(s):
I really like that the car still appears very much like a street car, but is pretty fast. I get a lot of compliments on the appearance of the car with the factory interior. When racing, I still foot brake car and shift the car. No transbrake used or air shifter.
■ Reason For Build:
I was always a fan of the Fox Body and Mustangs in general. My dad had a 67 Mustang fastback 390 4 speed car when I was young and I think that is what got me hooked on Mustangs and racing.
■ Most Memorable Experience(s):
Winning Heavy X class race the night before my son’s birthday with him there in 2022 at Beaver Springs. I will never forget that night.
■ Thanks To:
My wife Christine & son Ethan for letting me spend the time needed for this sport.
Rich Shuleski :
Friend / engine builder. Would not be where I am with this car without him.
Morgantini Racing Engines :
Machine shop used for all of my engines.
Frank Soldridge (PSI Speed):
Best tuner out there hands down & good friend.
Mike Vencak / Brian Smith:
Best body / paint / welder / fabricators a man can have & good friends. (worked with them for over 20 years)
“I have so many great memories of those nights.” Klime was fortunate enough to be able to work at his friend’s family body shop growing up, which lead him into the industry for the past 24 years and eventually to his current position as the Body Shop Manager at MotorWorld. This particular 1993 5.0 Coupe was bought as a roller from one of Kevin’s friends back in 2010. His buddy hurt the engine and trans and pulled them out the car, and Kevin took over from there.
Inside the Mustang is overthe-top clean with most of the factory equipment intact and in near perfect condition. A 10-point chromoly cage has been added and race buckets with G-Force 5 point harnesses replace the originals. A Hurst Quarter Stick shifter is expertly mounted in the factory console and a Racepak display in the factory dash, otherwise most everything else is OEM, including the steering wheel and even the back seat!
With plans on stepping to a different setup, Kevin ended up buying the damaged parts off his friend anyway and about a year and half later he was up and running with a built stock block 351W, 5-speed pump-gas car. The Mustang was a regular street driver and track warrior for Klime, and with the 5-speed it was a lot of fun, and hurt some feelings too. His best ET with that setup was a very respectable 9.86 at 142 in the 1/4 at Cecil County Dragway in MD.
A trick switch panel in the center once reserved for tunes provides easy access to operate various functions of the car and 3 additional gauges are housed in a vent and driver side pillar pods.
In 2019, the stock block decided it was time for a change and when it exited, Kevin decided on a new direction for the car, but one single theme remained –keep the Mustang looking and feeling as factory and as “street car” as possible. And without a doubt, he accomplished that. The body of the car is
completely unmolested factory steel, except for the 4 inch fiberglass cowl hood and has been re-sprayed in the factory Ford Vermillion Red.
Most of the factory equipment remains inside the Mustang as well, aside from the 10-point chromoly cage and select few items related to drag racing.
This combination was created in 2019 with Kevin’s engine builder and friend Rich Shuleski. The 428-cube small block Ford boasts a Dart SHP 9.5 deck block that houses a Scat crank, LPC rods, boost-spec Wiseco pistons and a top secret custom spec blower cam. AFR 205 heads were used and equipped with Jesel
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The best day of Kevin Klime’s life with the Coupe was in 2022 when he won the Heavy X class at Beaver Springs the night before his son Ethan’s birthday, and Ethan was there to share the victory with his dad.
Despite its street car look, make no mistake the Coupe can get the job done. In Heavy X class trim Kevin has gone 5.35 at 131 mph and he continues to tweak the combination for more power and efficiency.
Twin race buckets with G-Force 5 point harnesses were installed in place of the originals, a Hurst Quarter Stick shifter is mounted in the factory console and a Racepak display in the factory dash, otherwise most everything else is OEM, including the steering wheel and even the back seat! Not only is the car mostly original inside, it is detailed to the max, looking like it should be sitting on the dealer showroom floor.
Under the car, you won’t find a mini tub, you won’t find exotic tube frame work or even a coilover suspension, instead Kevin chose to keep things as close to a factory style setup as
possible. The factory subframe sections are tied together via weldin frame connectors and the factory torque boxes have been strengthened. As mentioned, a 10-point chromoly cage was tied into the mix for safety and legality on the dragstrip. A complete lineup of aftermarket bolt-in rear suspension parts were installed including tubular lower arms, adjustable upper arms and an anti-roll bar. But here is where things get interesting, Klime stayed true to the Fox platform stock suspension and runs a custom adjustable race shock separate from the stock coil springs.
Klime's wild red Mustang rips down the track for the win!
Looking under the Coupe you’ll find a number of suspension parts installed front and rear, but shockingly those parts will not include rear coilover shocks. Kevin resisted and kept his Fox Body a true stock suspension setup with the shock separate from the coil spring, and he still uses factory springs! The polished stainless exhaust system going from the headers into an X-Pipe, race mufflers and dumps doesn’t even look like it has been run!
That’s right, no coilovers here! After all, these cars never came with coilovers so how can they be referred to as “stock suspension”.
Up front, a UPR K-member with tubular lower A-arms, coilover kit, caster/camber plates and travel limiters along with single adjustable struts were installed.
Kevin got serious with the motor this time through and eliminated the weak link by choosing a Dart SHP 9.5 deck block as a base for the boosted build. A Scat crank spins LPC rods pinned to boost-spec Wiseco pistons and the package worked out to 428
cubic inches of small block Ford power. A top secret blower cam was chosen for the build by Kevin and his engine builder and friend Rich Shuleski, and ported and polished AFR 205 heads were studded in place and equipped with Jesel shaft mount rocker arms, Comp Cam springs and Comp pushrods. Kevin credits Morgantini Racing Engines for all his machine work.
A Vortech YSI-B blower pullied for 20lbs boost with an air to air intercooler was chosen for boost and Magnafuel commands fuel delivery via their 750 pump along with
Magnafuel pre and post filters. Kevin installed -10 AN feed and -8 return lines, Holley fuel rails, Holley 160lph injectors and an Accufab 90 mm throttle body.
A legendary Lentech Terminator Street/Strip AOD trans was matched to a Lentech 9-inch converter and Hurst shifter. For those not familiar with Lentech, they are the innovators in AOD technology and set the Fox Body world on fire back in the heyday and continue to produce top quality transmissions today. That AOD sends power through a custom driveshaft back to, you guessed it, the original
8.8 rearend with welded tubes, 35 spline axles and 3.55 gears. Mickey Thompson 275 Pro Drag Radials take the hit to the pavement, and to date Klime has run a 5.35 at 131 mph with a best 60-foot of 1.13 off the foot brake in Heavy X class trim. With the car being setup for 1/8 mile action, he has not run the full 1/4 yet, but the math says 8.30s would be a starting point.
Kevin is always refining the combination and as you might guess, his favourite part of his car is how
“street car” it looks and feels and he constantly gets compliments on the factory vibe it sends out. Plus, he leaves off the foot brake and shifts through the Lentech without air, now that’s cool! However, his best time with the Coupe to date isn’t what was posted on the clocks but rather the night he won the Heavy X class. “It was the night before my son Ethan’s birthday in 2022 and he was there at Beaver Springs when I won. I will never forget that night.”
Rick Trunkett has been into cars as far back as he can remember, but Mopars have always been his favorite.
He would religiously read his Mopar Muscle Magazine subscription at the age of ten and his first car memory was of a trip to the car show with his father and cousins in a 1967 Dodge Coronet, which his
dad still owns.
They pulled up alongside his cousin’s 1968 Pontiac GTO for a run, and the Coronet squeaked out the win. “I remember my cousin shouted, ‘Mopar Baby ‘, and it’s been me and my Mopars ever since,” Rick remembered fondly.
Story by Jack DuBois
Photos By Wes Taylor
By the age of 15, Rick was shopping for his first car, grabbing the new Classic Car Trader when it first hit the shelves and employing his dad to drive him all over Ohio to look at potential candidates. It was the year 2000, and even though Trunkett had a fifteen hundred dollar budget – his savings, plus a donation from his grandparents – that didn’t seem to go very far. As they say though, some of the best things are in your own backyard, and a 1972 Plymouth Duster came up just ten miles from his house. “It had faded-green paint, primer and rust spots all over it, it did not run, and needed many parts to run, but I knew then that it was (and still is) the perfect car,” he added. Rick used his entire budget for the purchase and his mom covered the tow home.
Ian Hill Racing
Rick Trunkett has owned his 1972 Duster since 2000. “It has fueled my hot rod passion for over 20 years. This car has taught me so much. It molded me into who I am today. It is my identity and I have managed to build a successful career around what I learned over two decades with it.” – Rick Trunkett
CALTRACS
The Original Patented CalTracs Traction System
Complete bolt on system: no mods, cutting, welding, most applications
Keeps axle from rotating, maintains pinion angle
Eliminates spring wrap up
Pre-load adjustability
Durable powder coated finish
Detailed Illustrated Installation Guide
Custom sets available, call for info
CalTracs, Calvert Mono Leafsprings, Calvert Sliders and Lowering Blocks
RON RHODES 1968 Chevrolet Camaro
You might notice the flat hood. Rick chose to keep the car looking as factory as possible with the flat 340 style hood. He also installed fiberglass fenders and trunk lid. John of Iron and Asphalt Customs did the body work to perfection and the flat ’glass hood opens and stays up just as it would from the factory.
Working on the Duster in his parent’s garage and in high school auto tech class, Rick quickly learned how much work owning a car is and had to buy another driver so he could get to his auto class to work on the Duster. It was in this auto tech class where he
met two close friends that are now his business partners at Big 3 Racing. His graduation gift from his parents was the money to cover a paint job on the car, and from there the evolution of the Duster has been a neverending passion for Rick.
The 340 Wedge decal
is
also displays a number of others on the car, including one that says “0-60 EVENTUALLY” on the rear bumper.
on the hood
iconic and Rick
Once the Duster was up and running, a catastrophic transmission failure injured a buddy and the car sat until Rick towed it to Lima, Ohio where he attended the University of Northwestern Ohio and studied high performance automotive technology. During his time there he upgraded the engine and trans in the car, added nitrous and was running 11s.
When he returned from College, with nowhere to work on their cars, Rick joined forces with his two buddies from his high school auto tech class, rented a 3000 square foot industrial unit and started Big 3 Racing. They would make a name on the streets and the Duster was a fixture at Dragway 42 Friday nights and the street on Saturday nights.
If at first you don’t succeed….. Rick got knocked down more than enough times figuring out the Duster’s wicked small block mill, but got back up and found a solution. There are only a handful of people out there running this level of boosted power using a true small block Mopar, so there’s little to no info to draw on (unlike your SBF and SBC). In the end, a completely custom designed camshaft made from tool steel solved the issues.
The 436 inch Mopar small block was built by Bob Hess of BIG 3 Racing in Hinckley, Ohio. The Ritter Racing block was blue printed by Harsman Automotive and finish machined by RPM Machine. Nick Evdos of BTR spec’d the solid roller cam that was ground by Charlie Wescott of Militia Racing Products out of tool steel since no cores are available. The Brett Miller Racing heads started off as HIP’d Edelbrock Victor bare castings and a custom one-off intake holds 220lb injectors and a custom owner-designed billet lid.
By 2008 the duster was running low 10s with its nitrous small block, and at the end of the 2010 season the engine suffered damage and the car once again went under the knife. At the same time Big 3 was growing and Rick went full-time at it.
Cashing in what little 401K he had, Trunkett purchased one of Mopar’s last race small blocks to start their first turbo motor build. The learning curve was sharp and by 2012 they had a 9-second car which, after applying their newfound knowledge, would turn into
a 1,200 wheel horsepower, 8-second ride by 2016 with EFI, a better turbo, transbrake and Powerglide transmission. Rick found that he enjoyed drag and drive events and has been running them ever since, and he also met his wife Maha in his “date night Duster”.
Next up was the move to twin turbos and Rick built a completely new turbo system on the small block that threw down 1,500 horsepower on the chassis dyno and started their chase towards a 7-second time slip.
Front suspension consists of OEM k-member and torsion bars with QA1 control arms, custom valved Santhuff shocks from Afterwerks Shocks. Rear suspension is stock location leaf springs. CalTrac bars and mono leafs, MAK gap brackets custom ARB and custom valved Santhuff socks from Afterwerks. Everything is stock location including shocks.
■ Engine:
Mopar LA Small block 436 inch built by Bob Hess of BIG 3 Racing Hinckley Ohio.
Ritter Racing block blue printed by Harsman Automotive in Cascade Maryland and finish machined by RPM Machine in Medina Ohio. Nick Evdos of BTR spec’d the solid roller cam that was ground by Charlie Wescott of Militia Racing Products out of tool steel.
■ Rotating Assembly:
Rotating assembly was Spec’d and designed by Goodwin Competition in Omro Wisconsin. Bryant Billet 4 inch stoke crank, GRP 6.200 rods, custom Wiseco pistons 4.160 bore.
■ Cylinder Heads:
Custom Brett Miller Racing HIP’d Edlebrock Victor castings. Brett got heads as bare casting; no finished chambers, ports or spark plug holes. He made every part of these heads using his port design. Heads flow in the 400cfm range and have Titanium intake valves and Inconel exhaust vales, Copper Berluimn seats and steel exhaust guides, PSI springs, Manton pushrods and T&D rockers.
■ Induction & Fuel Delivery:
Holley 220lb injectors . Custom 1 off surge intake using a cast tunnel ram, billet lid designed and built by owner.
■ Electronics:
Holley Dominator EFI with all the sensors from Low Dollar and Holley. Jolt Systems custom wiring throughout car.
■ Power Adder:
Twin HPT 8280 turbos with Shearer Fabrications 2000hp air to water intercooler.
■ Transmission:
Brian Tiffie built Powerglide, 501 Performance custom bolt-together torque converter.
■ Rearend:
Moser Fab 9 bolt-in rear housing and 35 spline axles. Moser aluminum center, spool and 3.75 gears.
■ Wheels:
RC Comp front wheels, 17x4, Champion billet rears, 15x8.
■ Interior:
All original unrestored with twin race seats added and 25.5 roll cage. M&M shifter, Holley Pro dash.
■ ET & MPH:
Best 8th mile et is a 4.89 at 149
Best quarter mile is a 7.66 at 182
■ Most Unique Feature(s):
I believe it is the fastest stock suspension Mopar in the USA.
Everything is bolt-on nothing moved and it even uses alt of the factory original mounting hardware.
Car is also heavy, over 3700lbs!
■ Reason For Build:
It’s my first car, I do not know anything else. I have focused on drag and drive events. This a street car and gets used as such.
■ Build Timeline:
23 years and counting , never done!
■ Most Memorable Experience(s):
Every Drag and Drive we do it is where it is at, driving in and around the country with your best friends in your hot rods.
■ Thanks To:
There have been so many people that helped throughout the years.
• My 2 best friends and buiness partners Chuck Stefanski and Bob Hess. Everything on the car was a brainstorm from the 3 of us and we push each other to be better.
• John Coates for paint.
• Darin Kravic at Tank Fab for the original 8.50 cages and Dennis at Chassis Fab for the 25.5 upgrade.
• Jimmy Muntain my crew chief and co pilot at all the drag and drives.
• William Masters and Kenny Feathers, Micheal Slowey for always crewing for the car and helping.
• Brett Miller for kickass heads and sound advice while building the engine.
• Josh King for all the help and advice.
• Rick Anderson at Holley for the best customer service in EFI.
• Todd Goodwin for always taking my calls and giving me his expert advice and the best parts I could get.
• All the guys at Big 3 Racing.
• Ron and Maryanne Matchem at Dragway 422 for a killer test surface.
• My Wife Maha Trunkett for supporting my nonsense.
Unfortunately, during that chase the rare race block took an unrepairable hit. “I licked my wounds and took a season off to rebuild,” Trunkett said of the ordeal. “By 2017 the Ritter Racing block became available and I moved to a billet crank and rods too.”
Armed with a strong new mill for 2017, Rick won enough races to help pay for an engagement ring he was saving for, but at the end of that year another weak link was found, however this time the block and heads were salvageable. Enter 2018 and Rick was paying for a wedding and a motor build at the same time, and settled for getting married as “an 8-second guy”, as he puts it.
After another connecting rod failure, the mill was equipped with aluminum rods and Rick finally got his 7-second ticket in 2019! At the end of that year he had the chance to buy some new head castings that Brett Miller told him about, but to do so he would have to fund it by selling off his old parts, and unfortunately this was all happening just as covid hit! Delays, shortages and closures all plagued his efforts and the car sat in 2020, the same year Rick and his wife found out they were having twins.
This IS OG! The interior is original and unrestored with twin race seats and a 25.5 roll cage added. Rick shifts the Brian Tiffie-built Powerglide with 501 Performance custom bolt-together torque converter through an M&M shifter and receives vital signs via a Holley Pro dash. That wonderful green plaid rear seat remains as a testament to the fashion of the 1970s.
Rick Trunkett’s true stock suspension street driven 3,700lb+ Duster runs 4s in the 1/8 and mid 7s in the 1/4 and he hasn’t stopped looking for ways to improve…now that commands respect!
Nonetheless, his wife and business partners pushed him to get the car out for 2021 Drag Week.
“Since we were running the new cylinder heads everything was different and I had two months after the new engine was done to build a custom in-
take manifold, custom headers, and custom turbo kit,” Trunkett explained. “Oh, and I also had to tear all the old wiring out of the car to rewire it. All while I had 3 month old twins at home. I thought there was no way this could happen, but it did.
I have no quit in me...this car has taught me so much...
RICK TRUNKETT
The stance on the Duster looks a bit higher than most heavily modified “stock type” suspension 7-second cars for a reason. Rick insisted on sticking to as true a stock suspension as possible on the build, including torsion bars and factory mounting locations for all critical suspension parts front and rear. A Moser Fab 9 bolt-in rear housing is equipped with a Moser aluminum center, 35 spline axles and spool and 3.75 gears.
I would get up for the 4am feedings and go to the shop to work on the car every day afterwards, and also stayed late every day and worked on the weekends. Ryan from Jolt Systems drove out from Illinois to wire the car while I cut, welded, formed and made everything new, from the turbo system to cooling system.”
Rick and his team managed to get the car
running the day before the event only to find a transmission issue. With 6 hours to event check-in, knowing that 4 hours of that was driving there, Rick stayed behind with some help to fix the problem. With just 15 minutes to spare, after averaging 90mph on the way and doing a NASCAR pit stop style fuel stop on the tow rig, he was in line for his first big drive and drag event!
The original trunk is pretty full, with a large fuel cell for drag and drive events taking up most of the room.
“The 4 hour wait in line gave us a chance to finish the car and the first time we drove it was to the hotel! We guessed on the tune and ran an 8.30 the next day during Drag Week. We packed it up and drove to the next stop, turned it up and went 8.15, packed it up, went to the next track and went a 7.77! The good news was this put me in first place, but the bad news was that we killed the engine on that pass.”
After a similar experience during his next event, Rick knew there had to be an inherent defect in the package and set out to find it. As it turned out, the cam design needed to be changed, so he had a one-off tool steel cam made to his specs. “We swapped out the cam and all my engine problems went away.”
These days, Rick and his true stock suspension 3,700lb Duster can be found at most drag and drive events and any other local races he can be at, given he has a business and young family. The Duster goes in the 4s in the 1/8 and mid 7s in the 1/4 and he hasn’t stopped looking for ways to improve on it. “I keep licking my wounds and getting back out there,”
he added. “It's just a 1972 Plymouth Duster, but it has fueled my hot rod passion for over 20 years. I have no quit in me and this car has taught me so much. It molded me into who I am today. It is my identity and I have managed to build a successful career around what I learned over two decades with it.”
Story by George Pich
Photos By Sean Chartier
One of the most exciting parts of being a gearhead is that we have so many choices to make as we work through our builds.
While many of us will use the same basic platform, the end result between two similar builds is usually quite different, not to mention that each of us puts our own personality into building our pride and joy.
For Dave Hintemeyer, his 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray 3LT Z51 is definitely special – it blasts 9.50 ¼-mile hits at near 150mph in full weight street trim with no power adder!
We’ll give you a second to process that… yes, we said no power adder! For Dave, a Computer Science and software development professional, building this car was all about applying the skills he’d learned throughout his career to racing, and getting the
most power possible out of the C7 GenV platform.
With a lifelong interest in horsepower, at an early age Dave could be found hotrodding his dirt bikes, ATVs and eventually cars.
“Looking back, I can honestly say I drove my parents crazy
The Corvette stance has always been low and sleek and Dave used stock suspension components aside from adding Viking Crusader double adjustable smooth body shocks all around.
Dave and his wife found the Torch Red
at a dealership back in 2015 with just 1,800 miles on the odometer. Initially it was a date night/cruiser but soon parts were added to enhance capabilities and eventually a full-on engine build was underway.
Vette
2014 C7 N/A Corvette Stingray of Dave Hintemeyer –Street Car Braggin' Rights 2024
when I was younger as I was modifying everything I had. Sometimes for better and sometimes for worse!
In the 90s, I street raced just about every weekend. A passion for cars has stayed with me throughout my life, modifying anything with an engine,” Dave explained.
2015 was when Dave and his wife stumbled across a rather
unique Torch Red 2014 Corvette Stingray. The car was sitting inside a Pittsburgh Chevy dealership showroom with 1,800 miles on the odometer.
“It looked and smelled like a brand new car,” Dave added. “After agreeing to a price, we finished the paperwork and discovered the car was originally owned by Chip
Ganassi, who was involved in NASCAR and Indycar.”
While the little red Corvette started out as a fun street cruiser, when Hintemeyer returned to the drag strip, he was instantly bit by the racing bug again. Once the car started seeing more track duty than date nights, Dave started to ad parts to improve performance.
Things like headers, a new intake and throttle body and tune made their way onto the Vette and before long the parts became harder core with a set of heads, cam and converter, eventually leading to an all-out naturally aspirated build.
The goal was to make serious power and still use the car as a street car, with full options. Heated/cooled leather seats, XM satellite radio, full factory interior; these types of creature comforts are what Dave considers to be part of his car and part of the reason for buying it in the first place.
Technology has been the biggest push for builds to reach potentials never thought possible using stock parts even just a decade ago.
This is where the fun starts! Driven by modifying anything with an engine throughout his life, Dave came to a point where bolt-on mods were just not enough and a full engine build was required to satisfy his need for speed, and being a technical guy, his goal was to pull every ounce of power out of a naturally aspirated LT1 platform.
And for Hintemeyer, this fits into his plan perfectly – keep the factory street car vibe but research each and every part chosen for the build to ensure a total package max performance result.
The body of the car is all original and the hood has been expertly hand-cut and trimmed by Kilkeary Customs for the Holley Hi Ram intake clearance.
Under the Corvette, you’ll find an OEM chassis and front and rear suspension setup with Viking Crusader double adjustable smooth body shocks on all four corners.
Dave Hintemeyer’s All Motor 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray 3LT Z51
■ Body & Paint:
Factory GM Torch Red, all factory body components.
Front: 18x6 Billet Specialties WinLites with Mickey Thompson 26” radials.
Rear: 15x10 Billet Specialties WinLites with 28x10.5 Mickey Thompson Pro Bracket Radials.
■ Interior:
Factory gauges, Ballenger Motorsports AFR500v3CAN wideband, full factory interior, RPM 6-pt roll bar, G-FORCE 5-pt harness.
■ ET & MPH:
¼ mile 9.50s @ 144 mph
■ Most Unique Feature(s):
The car is heavy with full factory interior, heated/cooled factory seats, factory glass, etc and runs 9s on motor. To me, it’s a true street car and it’s been competitive with race cars. That’s pretty unique to me and has been a lot of fun.
■ Reason For Build:
I just didn’t see many C7 corvettes at the drag strip, let alone naturally aspirated C7s.
■ Build Timeline:
The car has been through several iterations, but the latest build was approx. 6-8 months due to supply chain issues from COVID.
■ Most Memorable Experience:
Setting the All-Motor C7 record two years in a row! Also, meeting great people in this industry and making some really cool friends at all the race tracks we visit.
■ Thanks To:
Brett Stewart at Pray Performance: tuning and research & development. His commitment to extensive research and development of the GenV LT1/LT4 platform allows us to continuously push this car further and harder.
Steel City Performance in New Stanton, PA
Bobby Stipkovic at Steel City Performance: Is a crucial partner along this journey as well, handling all the various build iterations we’ve gone through over the years.
Josh at Totally-Baked Powder Coating: Powder coating.
Jesse at Octane Customs, LLC: Window tint.
Kilkeary Customs: Hand-cutting & trimming of factory hood for the Holley Hi Ram clearance.
Brady at Circle D: Badass converters.
Clifford at Viking Performance: C7 shock development. We may have the first set of their C7 Crusader shocks!
These combined efforts have pushed this car to set and hold the C7 All Motor record the past two years.
A GenV LT1 aluminum block was bored and stroked to 427 inches and filled with a TSP forged crankshaft, forged Callies rods and forged Wiseco pistons and a Pray Performance spec’d camshaft. Hand-ported GM CNC LT1 heads were studded in place and a ported and modified Holley Hi Ram intake mated to a Katech 103mm throttle body top things off.
Interior wise, well we already mentioned that this car is full weight and Dave likes his options, so as expected you are surrounded by Corvette appointments with a few race goodies added to the mix.
The factory gauges remain and a Ballenger Motorsports AFR500v3CAN
wideband has been added as well as an RPM 6-pt roll bar (currently being swapped to an 8.50-legal cage) and a G-FORCE 5-point harness.
The heart of the project started with a GenV LT1 aluminum block, bored and stroked to 427 inches with Darton sleeves.
Dave believes that a true street car should maintain as much OEM equipment as possible and he also likes that his Corvette still has the factory interior and options including heated/cooled seats and full sound system. A Ballenger Motorsports AFR500v3CAN wideband and G-FORCE 5-point harness have been added and the RPM 6-pt roll bar shown is currently being upgraded to an 8.50-legal cage.
Chassis Engineering
The body of Dave’s Corvette is all original and the hood has been expertly handcut and trimmed by Kilkeary Customs to clear the towering Holley Hi Ram intake.
A TSP forged crankshaft, forged Callies rods and forged Wiseco pistons rotate inside while a pair of GM CNC-machined LT1 heads were hand-ported by
Pray Performance and equipped with GM rockers, Pray Performance spec’d springs, Victory titanium intake & exhaust valves and Texas Speed pushrods.
Cruising the streets or racing the strip, Dave Hintemeyer is in C7 heaven when he’s behind the wheel of his Stingray!
Dave Hintemeyer (right) with his brother-in-law
John Richard
Dave (on the scooter in the foreground) takes in some action with fellow Pray Performance racer Steve Baucom and John Richard (background on scooter)
The Torch Red heavyweight street car stops the quarter-mile clocks consistently in the 9.50s, making it the fastest naturally aspirated C7 in the country two years in a row. And Dave can still use the Corvette on date night!
Pray also spec’d the top secret camshaft for the high-winding 427.
In spring of 2024, Dave ditched the 6L80 transmission and swapped in an 8L90 created by Fisher Built with a custom CircleD converter by Pray Performance. Power is received by a GM electronic limited slip rear diff equipped with DSS axles, and a pair of Billet Specialties WinLites with 28x10.5 Mickey Thompson Pro Bracket Radials put the power to the pavement.
Brett Stewart of Pray Performance handles tuning and the full weight Chevy stops the quarter-mile clocks consistently in the 9.50s, making it the fastest naturally aspirated C7 in the country two years in a row. And Dave can still use the Corvette for date night!
feature CAR
Article first appeared in the June 2020 digital issue.
RPM MAGAZINE Reprint IN Print! RPM MAG’s commitment to features that appeared digital-only since June 2020.
QUITE THE OPERATION
during competition a few years back.
and rebuilt it in his own garage. August 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
bought the
Pierre-Luc Mallet’s 1991 Mustang Coupe Grudge car was previously a show-stopping small tire Super Street class car that was rolled several times
Mallet
wreck
...EVEN WHEN THERE ARE NONE!
Grudge no-time drag racing has grown from the roots of both street racing and organized street car style class drag racing. Add in the component of not having time clocks telling everybody what a car is capable of (that’s why it’s called “NO TIME”) and you just managed to level the playing field to almost flat! Almost…
Grudge cars and racers are a different breed. For the racers, it’s still about the rush of heads-up, even start (none of that TV head-start BS), first to the finish line, on-theedge racing. But these guys
and girls also gotta know how to play the “Grudge Game.” By game, we mean how to beat the car beside you when you have no idea what it can run. In martial arts there is a saying: “when you’re weak pretend your strong, and when you’re strong pretend you’re weak.” This is the single rule that the grudge no-time racer must understand before they enter the ring.
story by AndrewRadiotis
photos by
POWER UNDER ’GLASS
The dual-scooped fiberglass hood is not just for show as the 509 big block towers over the fenderline of the Fox Body.
Because there are not a lot of rules in grudge racing, if you’re the type who loves social media attention by posting your ET and the new parts you just installed last week online, then you suck at this game. On the other hand, if you doctored up your time slip to be, say, 3 tenths slower (by the way we can help with that), then you are on the right track. If you took photos of your parts installed and happen to mention the
1050 cfm carb as an 850, you’re learning. If you took photos of a buddy’s street driver parts as being installed on your car, you’re actually getting really good at this game. There’s a lot more to it, but you get the gist.
It’s the equivalent of poker and never showing all the cards or letting your potential rivals know what you have, or don’t have. You have to find your poker face. To quote Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry
feature CAR
HUNNA DOLLA BILLS, Y’ALL
LAUNCH SEQUENCE
Mallet has the Mustang’s launch down to a science. The left front wheel just scrapes the ground as the car leaves the line.
This handful of Canadian “Queens” after a big win is proof that Mallet knows how to play the Grudge Race game!
LIT AND READY
The narrower class legal tires need some heat to hook the big nitrous combination.
Character “If you wanna play the game, you better know the rules…” Ontario, Canada’s Pierre-Luc Mallet knows the rules of this game and has the mitt full of hundreds to prove it!
Before his foray into heads-up and
subsequently grudge/ no-time drags with this car, though, Mallet was your average young car guy who drove his hot rods to the local car shows and nearby tracks in the Ottawa, Ontario area. All this innocence would soon come to an end when he and his father were
invited to the OSCA (Ontario Street Car Association) weekend with the Chove Racing team and their ’69 EZ Street Camaro. Once they got a taste of competitive headsup racing, the rest was history. In fact, it was mere months later that Pierre-Luc, with the support
GET ON UP...
Hooked up and wadding sidewall... what could be better?
of MS Roofing (his father’s roofing company), contacted Auto 500, who maintained the Chove Camaro, and started a plan to enter the world of heads-up drags.
To start with, the
team purchased an all-motor ’95 Mustang which was raced for a few months then switched to a small block nitrous convertible that they campaigned in True 10.5 events at Napierville Dragway for two seasons. At this point,
the fast-growing and big purse payouts of Quebec Grudge Wars began to make some serious noise in Canada and the NM-sponsored team got bit by the bug of N/T Grudge Racing.
Now let’s talk about the typical
grudge car: more often than not, the grudge or no-time car is a working man’s passion. On an average, or even an above-average income, you can only do so much, and this is where the second rule of grudge racing comes into
play; horsepower first. Hey, if you got more cash and can make it a “show stopper” grudge car that wins, then all the power to you. But if you want to win at any cost, then that “cost” has to be dedicated to where it creates a win.
What’s Old Is New if you haven’t read it yet!
Over the coming months we will be hosting some of our past issues of RPM Magazine in this section. If you haven’t read them yet, they are new to you! If you have, maybe there’s a favourite car/story you want to read again….here they are!
PIERRE-LUC MALLET’S 1991 MUSTANG COUPE GRUDGE CAR
Chassis Type & Mods: 6.0 certified chassis/cage.
Suspension & Brakes: FRONT: Front coilover conversion kit with Strange two-way shocks. Tubular K-member and manual rack. Aerospace brakes. REAR: 4-link with wishbone pro modstyle suspension with Strange double-adjustable coilover shocks. Aerospace disc brakes.
Body & Paint: White body color spayed by owner, custom rear wing, Lexan windows. Fiberglass doors, hood, trunk and front bumper.
Engine: 509 cubic inch built by Auto 500 based out of Montreal, Laval, Quebec. Dart aluminum block, Sonny Bryant crank, GRP aluminum connecting rods and JE custom gas ported nitrous pistons. 55mm Cam, ISKY Red Zone solid bushing 937 lifters. ProFiler Hitman spread port 12-degree cylinder heads and intake ported by Auto 500.
Jesel rockers and pushrods, titanium retainers and PSI Springs. MLS head gaskets.
Differential: 8.8 rear diff with Bear’s 31 spline axles, Bear’s spool and C-clip eliminator, and S&W rear housing brace.
Other info: Owner-built and painted in his home garage from wrecked to ready in 8 months. Owner driven in Grudge and No-Time drags.
Generally, you build the car to look good but not give away too much. At the same time, though, you don’t want the car that looks so beaten up that it raises eyebrows as soon as you fire it up in the pits. Let’s face it, when a beat-tocrap “looking” car comes to the line that sounds like an F22 on steroids and has more chromoly cage bars than the local jail, something’s up.
A grudge racer has to find that balance between done and overdone, and Mallet has that, too.
This Mustang was originally the pristine ex-Super Street (True 10.5) Mustang that was driven by Sandra Grella in OSCA and QSCA competition on the north side of the border.
After that, the ’91 coupe was purchased by Montreal-based Leo Rea who updated the car and raced it for a few years.
Unfortunately, in 2013 at Napierville Dragway during the Outlaw 10.5 finals, driver Steve Argiropoulos lost control after a wishbone failure caused the car to violently turn into
both walls after the eighth. This was followed by multiple rolls, leaving the car as nothing but a beaten up cage that saved a life. When most considered the shell to be garbage, Pierre-Luc saw something different and purchased the bruised and bashed remains for a few thousand bucks.
He slowly began the resurrection of bringing it back to its former glory, and with lots of cash and time later, Mallet pretty much singlehandedly did the near-impossible
GETCHUR NOSE OFF
The removable front clip is a necessity to access the big block from all corners.
feature CAR RPM
HIGH CARB
This pony isn’t keto friendly! With the pin-on hood removed, you can see the towering single Quick Fuel carb and the copious plumbing necessary to feed the two-stage nitrous system.
SMALL TIRE FRYER
A Ford 8.8 rear diff with Bears 31-spline axles, Bears spool and C-clip eliminator and S&W rear housing brace is suspended by a 4-link with wishbone and Strange double adjustable coilovers
and had the shell ready for duty once again. “I built it and painted it in eight months in a small garage in my backyard,” he said.
Along with adding some fiberglass and Lexan to the body mix, with
a 6.0-certified chassis, 4-link pro mod-style rear suspension, Strange double-adjustable coilovers front and rear, and a tubular front K-member, the reborn Mustang was just waiting for some motivation.
To power the Fox Body Ford, Mallet looked no further than his tuner and engine builder for his previous racecars, Stef Koutis, owner of Auto 500 Performance. Koutis put together an alumi-
num-based 510ci BBC short block topped with a pair of Auto 500 hand ported 12-degree ProFiler spread-port Hitman series cylinder heads and intake, two stages of direct port nitrous and a Quick Fuel Technology
carb. Inside the mill, a Bryant crank swings GRP aluminum connecting rods and custom JE nitrous pistons. The heads are equipped with Jesel rockers and PSI springs with titanium retainers.
Backing the heavily-juiced big block is a near indestructible Bassi Automatic (based out of Ottawa) 2 speed Powerglide with
JUICY DOUBLE
The big block is fed extra muscle via a two-stage/16-nozzle direct port nitrous system. Carburetion comes from a nitrous calibrated Quick Fuel Technology Dominator-style carburetor.
POWERED UP
An Auto 500-built 509-cube big block Chevy powers the mighty Mustang. A DART block houses a Bryant forged crank, GRP aluminum connecting rods and JE custom gas ported nitrous pistons as a rotating assembly. The ProFiler Hitman spread port 12-degree cylinder heads and intake were ported by Auto 500. A set of Jesel rockers and pushrods, titanium retainers and PSI springs were used.
feature CAR RPM CUT QUARTERS
A grudge build focuses on power over pretty, so elongating the wheelwells to fit bigger tires is just a necessary part of the equation.
FINE INSIDES
The cockpit is clean and well thought out, but all go. Aside from a stock style dash everything else is meant to help Mallet beat the guy in the other lane, period.
Reid case, FTI billet pump, and converter.
A Ford 8.8 with Bears 31-spline axles and spool take the abuse out back.
Of course, being a grudge car we have absolutely no horsepower, dyno or elapsed time info because those are cards that Mallet holds close to his chest. What we can say is that Mallet wins on race day with the Mustang and both he and his car fit the grudge racer MO perfectly; run hard and don’t show your hand to anyone! So take some advice from us, when you pull to the line beside Pierre-Luc Mallet,
