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We first got a glimpse at Craig Shefchik’s 1966 Chevelle during testing of the 2022 Builder’s Brawl at World Wide Technology Raceway. It was there that his ProCharged 564 cubic inch AJPE Hemi engine seriously impressed us, so we joined him in the pits to learn more.
Craig owns and operates Xtreme Innovations and Fabrication (XIF) in Luxemburg, WI, which is just outside of Green Bay. At the shop, Craig brings more than 25 years of experience in work such as engine tuning, fabricating, painting, and parts sales. Xtreme Innovations is a one-stop shop for anyone with a street car, a road race car or a full-blown drag car.
It’s that experience and attention to detail that makes Criag’s own ‘66 Chevelle and its 564 cid ProCharged Hemi engine really stand out. His Hemi features some nice billet components and was built by a machine shop in Ohio.
“I built the fuel tank and all the accessories and wiring that go with it,” Shefchik says. “I did the full, complete chassis, as well as the body and paint work too, but other than that, I pretty much let the engine builder do his thing and just told him what we’re doing with the car.”
What Criag is doing with the Hemi-powered Chevelle is competing in events like the Builder’s Brawl, which was a No Prep, 1/8th-mile drag racing event that took place at the end of July 2022.
“The 564 Hemi is an Alan Johnson-based ProCharged deal that Fowler Engines built out of Columbus, OH,” Shefchik says. “It’s got an F140 ProCharger on it, which makes plenty of power. We dyno’d it at FuelTech because it has a FuelTech EFI system on it with billet Atomizer injectors. It made a lot of power – like 3,300 wheel horsepower. We’re just dialing her in and trying to have a little bit of fun with it. We also have zoomies on this setup.”
When the Hemi was at Fowler Engines, that shop did all the machine work on the Alan Johnson billet aluminum block, and installed a Bryant billet crankshaft, aluminum rods, custom pistons, and a Frankenstein billet intake. His Hemi runs on M1 fuel and has dual 700-lb. per hour injectors in it.
“The Hemi makes about 50-55 lbs. of boost from the F140 ProCharger,” he says. “We also run a System 1 wet sump oiling setup. That gives us the results we need and we haven’t had any problems with it.”
With 3,300 wheel horsepower, Craig told us his expectations for the weekend of racing were to win his class, but admitted that the car was still in the testing stages and getting dialed in.
“The car is only a year old and with having a business we just don’t get out to test as much as we’d like to,” he says. “We know Joe [Zolper], and this is a pretty cool event that we get to come out to and display some of our work. At the end of the day, I hope we run some low 4s in the 1/8th mile. Hopefully we can just keep going rounds.”
Engine of the Week is sponsored by PennGrade Motor Oil, Elring – Das Original and Engine & Performance Warehouse Inc./NPW Companies. If you have an engine you’d like to highlight in this series, please email Engine Builder Editor Greg Jones at [email protected].
