STRAIGHT-WEIGHT PERFORMANCE MURDER NOVA
Maxima Racing Oils
HIGH PERFORMANCE MINERAL DRAG RACING OIL Mineral based engine oil designed to enable maximum power while providing ultimate protection under the most severe race conditions. • Unique friction modifier system enables maximum power output • “Stay-in-place” chemistry and 2X Zinc anti-wear system provide lasting protection • High quality base stocks enable effective ring seal • Advanced, proprietary additive system keeps your engine clean • Designed to prevent separation caused by fuel dilution • Available in 50WT, 60WT & 70WT
Made in the USA
MaximaUSA.com
RPM Magazine is a REGISTERED TRADEMARK of Revolution Publishing & Media Inc. RPM Magazine is a worldwide motorsports publication distributed online.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF.............................................................. CHRIS BIRO EDITOR@RPMMAG.COM V.P. MARKETING/CUSTOMER RELATIONS..................TRISH BIRO TRISH@RPMMAG.COM EVENT MEDIA..................................................EVENTS@RPMMAG.COM EVENT SUBSCRIPTIONS COORDINATOR...........SHERRIE WEBER SHERRIE@RPMMAG.COM ART DIRECTOR............................................................ JIM MCHARG PHOTOGRAPHIC CONTRIBUTIONS: MARK GODRAGRACING. ORG, GEORGE PICH, MATT WOODS, LOUIS FRONKIER, BLAKE FARNAN, JERRY GARRISON, NEIL ZIMBALDI, EDDIE MALONEY, WES TAYLOR, STEVEN TAYLOR, DAVID GATES, AND ANDREW RADIOTIS EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: CHUCK SCOTT, MARK GODRAGRACING.ORG, TIM BIRO, STAN SMITH, GEORGE PICH, JAY MISENER, EDDIE MALONEY, WES TAYLOR, AND SCOTT FORBES TECHNICAL WRITING CONTRIBUTION: CHUCK SCOTT, SHANE TECKLENBURG, TIM BIRO AND JAY MISENER
FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION CONTACT TRISH BIRO...........................519.752.3705....... TRISH@RPMMAG.COM
SPECIAL EVENTS MANAGER: CHRIS BIRO EVENTS@RPMMAG.COM SPECIAL EVENTS SALES: TRISH BIRO: 519-752-3705 TRISH@RPMMAG.COM SUBSCRIPTIONS/ADDRESS CHANGES: CIRCULATION CIRCULATION@RPMMAG.COM GENERAL INQUIRIES: 519.752.3705 INFO@RPMMAG.COM
To subscribe to RPM go to www.rpmmag.com or email Trish Biro at trish@rpmmag.com, or call 519752-3705. The focus of RPM is to bring a diverse mix of high performance street and race automobiles to life within its pages including race cars, muscle cars, hot rods and street legal machines with an emphasis on the “EXTREME,” including fast doorslammer and outlaw forms of drag racing. Not familiar with these types of cars? They are considered to be the top-shelf of the industry and are on the edge with regard to design, performance, and power! RPM Magazine does not sell its mailing list or share any of the confidential information regarding its subscribers.
RPM Magazine has been a world leader in motorsports publishing for 24 years and has support locations in Ontario, Canada, Alabama, Texas, and Virginia, along with contributing writers and photojournalists worldwide. If you have a story that may fit within the focus and scope of RPM Magazine’s coverage, please email our Editor In Chief at editor@rpmmag.com. Submission of an article does not guarantee that it will be published. Revolution Publishing & Media Inc. (RPM) / RPM Magazine IS NOT responsible for errors or omissions in ANY advertisement or article. Advertisements may be rearranged or altered at the sole discretion of RPM to allow the ad to fit in the space purchased by the advertiser. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REFUSE ANY ADVERTISING WHICH WE CONSIDER TO CONTAIN MISLEADING, OFFENSIVE OR FALSE INFORMATION. REPRODUCTION OF ANY INFORMATION HEREIN IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT.
www.rpmmag.com | January 2024
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editor’s
RANT
by
Chris Biro
RPM Magazine Celebrates 25 Years Of Smoke & Gears The world has changed considerably since our first issue a quarter century ago, but one constant has been our committment to maintaining the highest standard of excellence in each issue of RPM. We’re deeply appreciative of the unwavering enthusiasm and support from our readers, advertisers and the folks who share their projects with us each month. We’re grateful for 25 outstanding years and looking forward to an exciting future, thanks to all of you. It’s safe to say that re-running my CONGRATULATIONS! Editor’s Rant has now become tradition in RPM in the first issue of every year. CONGRATULATIONS! You Made It! Before you read on, just to be clear, I am all for progress, innovation, advances in safety, science, better health and moving forward, however, some things– read “some” things, just might make more sense the way we used to do them. The point is, learning how to deal with responsibility and challenges as well as success and failure at a young can go a long way in life as years pass. With that being said, I hope you enjoy this with the spirit in which it was written. Congratulations! CONGRATULATIONS to all of our 40+ year old readers. First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us and lived in houses made of asbestos. They took aspirin, ate blue cheese, raw egg products, loads of bacon and processed meat, white bread and tuna from a can. Then, after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paints. We had no childproofed medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking! Mom didn’t have to go to work to help dad make ends meet, she worked only if she wanted to. We would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags, and riding in the back of a pick-up on a warm spring day was always a special treat, not a crime. If someone cut us off while driving we’d flip them the bird, and they would return the favor, without getting out a bat, knife or gun at the next stoplight. We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. Take-out food was limited to hot dogs, fish and chips and pizza. You didn’t line up at the drive-thru for your morning coffee but got up earlier and made it yourself. Even though all the stores closed at 6:00pm and didn’t open on Sundays, somehow we didn’t starve to death. We shared one soft drink with four friends from one bottle and no one actually died from this. We could collect bottles and cash them in at the corner storeand buy a whole bag of penny candy, sports cards, bubble gum and some fire crackers. We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks with sugar in them, but we weren’t overweight because... we were always outside playing! We’d leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on. No one was able to reach us, yet we were somehow O.K. We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes, which consisted of a wooden stick on a screw that scraped the ground to slow us down! We’d hop-up our bikes with banana seats and long forks and didn’t need some slick dude on a TV reality show of the month to tell us how to do it. We built tree houses and played in river beds with Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars. We did not have any video games at all, and when we did finally get them it was for occasional entertainment with
4
the whole family. No on-demand TV or 200 channels on satellite, no DVD or streaming movies, no surround sound, no personal computers, no internet, internet message boards and forums or social media, no cell phones or other handheld devices and no texting... we did have friends though, and we went outside and found them! We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were rarely lawsuits. We were given pellet guns, jack knives and slingshots for our 10th birthdays. We played with toy guns that looked like real guns, only because it was cool, not because we wanted to be a gangster. And every young boy wanted to be a policeman or fireman! At 13 we learned to drive the family car at the empty mall parking lot on Sunday. We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled out for them. Christmas was Christmas not Xmas, no really it was! No Black Friday or Cyber Monday either. We went shopping for our gifts at actual stores and most everything was made here at home. Football, baseball and hockey had tryouts and not everyone made the team. And those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that! Getting on the team was a privilege based on ability and merit, and not due to special rules, threats, fear or guilt... There were very few football, hockey or soccer moms and dads who cared more about their kids becoming the next superstar over just letting them play and have fun. I know this all sounds strange, but it’s true! If a company we bought something from made a mistake, we gave them the benefit of the doubt and simply called them about it. And they either fixed it or they didn’t, and they would live with the word of mouth (good or bad) after we gave them a shot at fixing it. We didn’t go on social media (because there was none) and smear the company’s name first. We did not talk back to our parents or we’d get spanked, and knowing that kept us in line… most of the time. Our teachers used to belt us with rulers or leather straps, and knowing that kept us in line… most of the time. Grade school bullies didn’t have guns and knives. The idea of a mom or dad bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law! And police were given respect, because they deserved it. This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever! The past 70 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all! And You are one of them! Congratulations! You were allowed to grow up as kids, before the lawyers, governments and big businesses regulated our lives “for our own good”. You may want to let your kids read this so they will know how brave their parents and grandparents truly are. Once again, have a fantastic 2024! Chris Biro, Editor In Chief
January 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
ACC Performance............. 97 AED Competition............. 70 AFR: Air Flow Research....... 5,25,81 AJE Racing....................... 88 American Racing Headers........................... 24 Baer Brakes............ 10,103 BES Racing Engines......... 19 Billet Specialties.............. 61 Bill Mitchell Products....................11,68 Browell Bellhousings...... 53 Burns Stainless................ 96 Callies Performance Products..... 70 Calvert Racing Suspensions.................... 99 Canton Racing Products.. 56 Chassis Engineering........ 83 Clearshot Customs........... 81 C & S Specialties............108 Deez Performance........... 18 Derale............................. 62 Design Engineering......... 57 E3 Spark Plugs................. 72 ECAM Racing Engines...... 19 Engineered Racing Services...... 21,100 Erson Cams...................... 82 GoDragRacing.org.........114 GRP Connecting Rods...... 79 Harland Sharp................. 12 Hitman Hot Rods...........110 Holeshot Performance Wheels............................ 47 Hughes Performance.......... 7 Ian Hill Racing........ 73,104 Induction Solutions......... 51 Jesel................................ 26 Joe Van O......................... 80 JW Racing Transmissions..................... 5 Karbelt Speed & Custom........................ 94 Kinsler Fuel Injection....................13,72 Lentech Automatics............. 43,102 Liberty's Gears................ 85
Lokar Performance Products.......................... 81 Lutz Race Cars................. 94 Magnaflow...................... 53 Magnafuel....................112 Manton Pushrods..........111 Maxima Racing Oils............ 2 Meziere Enterprises......... 78 Misener Motorsports....... 87 Moroso............................ 85 Moser Engineering....17,87 Neal Chance Converters....................... 66 Parts Pro.......................120 Paul Silva Performance... 86 PBM Performance Products.......................... 72 PowerTubeTV.................. 55 Pro-Filer Performance Products...110 PRW - USA...................... 80 Rage Wraps..................... 19 RAM Clutches.................. 31 RCD Engineering............. 80 RM Racing Lubricants...... 43 Ross Racing Pistons......7,86 RPM Subscribe .............. 45,77,112,119 RPM 25 Years.................119 RPM Video Extra.............. 49 Summit Racing Equipment.......18,29,105 T&D Machine................... 82 Thermo Tec...................... 18 The Supercharger Store.............................114 Ti64.com......................... 60 Total Seal Rings.............108 Trailer Alarms.com.......... 52 TREMEC........................... 25 Trick Flow..................15,52 Tuned By Shane T............ 27 Ultimate Headers............ 88 VFN Fiberglass Inc........... 53 Vortech.....................47,69 VP Racing Fuels............... 59 World Products............... 94 Advertising Info: Contact Trish Biro 519.752.3705 trish@rpmmag.com
AFR: Air Flow Research
JW Racing Transmissions
www.rpmmag.com | January 2024
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January
2024
Often Imitated, Never Duplicated—For 25 STRAIGHT YEARS RPM Magazine has been the ORIGINAL Voice Of Wild Street Machines and Extreme Drag Cars WORLDWIDE! Don’t Settle For Less! We DELIVER Insane Fast Cars and Bring You NO POLITICS... JUST ACTION! Your ONLY “Real Time” “Real World” Car Mag...PERIOD!
100% Street Car...Period!........................... 64 …that also runs 7s in the quarter!
Black Widow............................................................................................... 8
This multi-purpose 1,800-plus horsepower blown Vette street car is an inspired build
Unique........................................................................................................ 92
Now here’s something you just don’t see every day, year...or decade!
RPM EXTRAS
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............................................................................................................................. From the pages of July, 2017 - Gary Houghtaling’s 1964 Ford Falcon X275
Small But Ferocious...................................................................... 40 Welding Exhaust Systems - Pt. 4.................................... 90 This Grudge racer Gremlin is a small-packaged supersized serving of nitrous’d nasty!
Flange/Exhaust Port Interface
Read COMPLETE ISSUES OF RPM MAG online at www.rpmmag.com 6
January 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
+
CUSTOM IN STOCK PISTONS
Ross Racing Pistons
TRUSTED BY THE FASTEST RACERS, ELITE ENGINE BUILDERS AND HIGHEST HORSEPOWER MACHINES ON THE PLANET, FOR OVER 40 YEARS!
WWW.ROSSPISTONS.COM | 310.536.0100 SALES@ROSSPISTONS.COM ONLINE
FACEBOOK.COM/ROSSPISTONS @ROSSPISTONS
Hughes Performance
www.rpmmag.com | January 2024
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Story: George Pich Photos: Mike Autrey:
Night Adder Photography
Baer Brakes
Life can be about focusing on negatives or the positives; Eric Simpson chose
the latter.
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January 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
S
impson was once told that he ‘was nothing but a shade tree mechanic and would never have anything worth talking about’, “I built this car to prove the naysayers wrong,” Eric said proudly. Starting off with a rocky childhood health wise, Simpson credits his Grandmother Gwendolyn M. Simmons for
what he has become today. “She adopted me and was my rock while I battled cancer,” he added. Living with his Grandmother, Eric recalls being interested in cars from a young age when he visited her workplace and met a young man who basically lived out of his bright red 1994 Mustang Cobra stick car.
Bill Mitchell Products
www.rpmmag.com | January 2024
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“A beautiful puzzle” are the words Eric Simpson uses to describe the build of Black Widow, his stunning, and wickedly quick and fast 2015 Z06 Corvette. Admittedly it was not an easy build, but the results speak for themselves and the fact that he was accepted to be in the SEMA Battle Of The Builders attests to the overall quality of the project.
Harland Sharp
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January 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
Eric loved the car, but his Grandmother and Uncle Tony explained that it took a good job and a lot of money to buy a car like that. “They told me that people like us
don’t own things like that. So I made it a point to work hard and have all the things that they said a young, poor, black man couldn’t have, and I haven’t stopped!”
Kinsler Fuel Injection
Simpson’s love of all things mechanical, especially cars, took off and soon TV shows like Knight Rider and The A-Team were his favorites, and he couldn’t wait to see movies like Smokey and the Bandit. Cars were something that Eric just seemed to understand in an otherwise crazy world. Working on them brought him peace of mind and having an uncle in the Military that liked wrenching on his own vehicles created a path for basic knowledge to be passed down to Eric.
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January 2024 | 25 Years Of RPM Magazine
Put the Hammer Down. You don’t cut corners or accept compromises. Use the best parts, like Trick Flow GenX® 255 square port cylinder heads that can significantly increase the performance of your GM LS-powered car. Highlights include LS3-shaped CNC Competition Ported runners, CNC-profiled combustion chambers, 12° valve angles, coolant holes that work with all LS head gaskets and engine blocks, and your choice of standard or 6-bolt mounting patterns—all engineered, machined, assembled, durability tested, and dyno proven in the USA to help your car stay ahead of the pack. Airflow Results
Dyno Results
GenX 255 Square Port
GenX 255 Square Port
Lift Value
Test Engine: GM 6.2L LS3 short block with 10.43:1 compression, Trick Flow GenX® 255 square port cylinder heads (TFS-3261T002-C01), Trick Flow Track Max® hydraulic roller cam (TFS-32603001), stock L92 intake with 90mm throttle body, Kooks headers with 17⁄8" primaries, and dual exhaust with 3" Flowmaster mufflers.
Intake Flow CFM
.100"
71
59
.200"
146
113
.300"
231
171
.400"
294
215
.500"
334
240
.600"
363
252
382
258
.700"
Trick Flow
Tests conducted at 28" of water (pressure). Bore size: 4.065"; exhaust with 2" pipe.
Your Formula for GM LS Performance!
New heads are just one component of the horsepower formula. To make it complete, you’re going to need some other components.
Track Max® Camshafts Give your GM LS an even bigger power boost with a Track Max camshaft. Available in several hydraulic roller designs up to 230°/238° duration and .625"/.625" of lift, they are dyno proven to produce significant power increases over the entire RPM range.
Active Fuel Management and Variable Valve Timing Delete Kits The problem: most performance camshafts don’t work on engines equipped with AFM or VVT. The solution? Ditch them with these delete kits! They include everything to completely remove AFM and VVT the right way, so your engine will make the power you expect with no hiccups.
R-Series Carb-Style EFI Intake Manifold for GM LS3 The R-Series carb-style EFI single plane intake manifold brings the simplicity of carbureted-style aspiration to the GM LS3. Capable of supreme power over a 3,500–7,500-plus RPM powerband, the manifold has custom-machined fuel injection ports that accept Bosch and Siemens-type fuel injectors. Other features include aluminum construction, high-flow runners, and extra material for custom porting.
TrickFlow.com • 1-330-630-1555 2401RPCT
Some parts are not legal for sale or use on any pollution-controlled motor vehicles.
Exhaust Flow CFM