Fast Lane: Regional Race Tracks
By the time you read this, most racetracks will have begun their summer schedules. Sure, NASCAR has been running since February, and I’m sure many warm-weather tracks have been operating most of the year, but the majority of tracks are just beginning their seasons.If you haven’t done so already, now is the time to make
Engine Sealing Lowdown
With engines now lasting as long as 150,000-plus miles, there’s little doubt that the OEMs have created a monster! Gasket technology advances have played a significant part in the longevity and durability of today’s engines. They must be robust and durable enough to withstand a hostile environment for such a long life, and without leading
Stroker Engine Kits
For more than 50 years the old saying “There’s no substitute for cubic inches” has been the credo of nearly every racer and hot rodder. Whoever created this unwritten universal law could never have imagined to what extremes today’s speed enthusiasts would take it. Now, unless you have a 420cid-plus small-block or a 550cid-plus big-block
Machine Maintenance: The Flywheel Grinder – Getting To Know Your Shop Profit Pal
[email protected] In the last edition of “Machine Maintenance” I challenged you to tell me who introduced the first portable boring bar to the automotive aftermarket. I must admit that I was impressed by the number of responses I received. Here’s the answer: Rottler Manufacturing from Kent, WA.It seems that the founding father of Rottler was
Performance Notes: Cashing In On Power Adders: Blowers, Turbos, Nitrous
The demand for high performance vehicles has never been stronger. A good indicator is that automakers are turning out more powerful models with each successive new car introduction. Remember when 500 horsepower was a pretty good number for a race motor? Today you can purchase a number of vehicles that eclipse 500hp, from a Z06
Data Acquisition Systems and Engine Controllers
Motorsports in general and Formula One in particular is the leading edge (or bleeding edge, depending on how you look at it) of development of these electronic systems. With carburetors looking more and more like dinosaurs compared to modern electronically controlled engine management systems, engine builders – especially those building performance engines – must become
Drag Racing Engines
From the early days of drag racing up until the recent past, racers built everything for their cars themselves, from the engines and chassis to the shop equipment. Most racing teams pulled their racecars to the track behind the family station wagon or pickup truck. The personalities who participated in the sport were as colorful
Tuning in to the Sport Compact Market
While the American muscle car segment is getting a shot in the arm with the Mustang, Charger, GTO and others, the sport compact market is not going away any time soon. Much has been said about the possible demise of this once fast-growing market but according to some manufacturers there is still plenty of business
Bringing Monsters To Life
The New York City native’s journey started out as a line mechanic in NY before tackling marriage and working in Florida. It only took him a year in the sun before he returned to New York to work at the soon-to-be famous Motion Performance. His job description there was builder, tuner and driver of the
Coretalk: Pentagon 9/11 Survivor To Keynote PERA Convention
After American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, very close to his second floor office, LTC Birdwell was thrown to the ground and engulfed in flames. Of the burns that consumed 60 percent of his body, nearly half were third-degree burns. With more than 30 operations and months of multiple skin grafts and burn
Coretalk: Sunnen, RMC Form Strategic Alliance To Market Equipment
This Sunnen/RMC alliance is effective immediately. RMC products will be sold under the Sunnen/RMC brand. Sunnen’s team of field engineers and service specialists will now represent and support the RMC line. “The new Sunnen/RMC branded products complement Sunnen’s existing product line,” said Mike Haughey, Sunnen’s chief operating officer. Ray Meyer, president of RMC, agreed: “The
Align Honing Principles
If you ever want to get scared, check out what a crank looks like at high RPM. If you’re interested, the machine to do this with is called a Spintron. What you’ll see is a large, heavy, supposedly rigid chunk of steel squirming around like crazy. You’d swear any metal walking around that much would
Crankshafts:Stock and Performance
The crankshaft is the working arm of the engine. All the force generated by combustion and the downward motion of the pistons is focused on the crank throws. The leverage effect of the force exerted on the crank journals twists the shaft and converts the up-and-down reciprocating motion of the pistons into rotational motion of
Coretalk: PERA Promotes Profit At Tech/Marketing Meeting
The following is the agenda for the meeting: Friday, April 29 7:00 – 10:00 a.m. – Registration. 7:00 – 8:00 a.m. – PERA Continental Breakfast. 8:00 a.m. – Opening Remarks & Introductions. 8:15 a.m. – “Performance Market,” Scooter Brothers of Comp Cams. 9:00 a.m. – “Performance Market,” Ed Keibler. 9:45 a.m. – Refreshment Break. 10:00
New Clean Diesel Technology
With gasoline prices in the U.S. bouncing around the two dollars per gallon mark, record high oil prices and growing uncertainty over the price and availability of future oil supplies, any new technology that can give consumers more bang for their buck should be welcomed. Domestic vehicle manufacturers have virtually abandoned further development of electric
Sprint Car Motors
While the World of Outlaws, the All Stars, and USAC are the most well known of the sprint car racing organizations in this country, there are nearly fifty organizations that sanction sprint car racing. In addition, that doesn’t take into account the racetracks throughout the country that have their own division of sprint cars. Although
Great Scott! Wichlacz Takes Over as AERA Chairman
Wichlacz Takes Over as AERA Chairman Scott Wichlacz’s story begins the way many rebuilders’ stories begin: a young boy tinkering with lawnmower and tractor engines, taking apart the component parts of mechanisms and putting them back together, always knowing that this would be his chosen career. One thing led to another, and Wichlacz moved on
Rebuilding the New Chevy 262
This enabled GM to shorten the development process dramatically because it was able to adapt a proven design. But it also allowed it to share a lot of the existing tooling from the V8 production lines so the engines could be on the road sooner. The original 200 V6 that came out in 1978 was
Rebuilding The GM Quad 4
The Quad 4 had four valves per cylinder, tuned intake and exhaust manifolds, no distributor, no plug wires, lightweight rods and pistons to reduce shaking forces, and a crank with eight counterweights that was designed to reduce noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) and bearing wear. It didn’t have an A.I.R. pump or an EGR system,
1998 Market Update – Electrical
The information provided in this article is excerpted from a presentationmade by Doug Barron, Manager of Freedom Battery Design & Application,Delphi Energy & Engine Management Systems. The presentationwas made at last year’s Independent Battery Manufacturers Association(IBMA) Convention in Chicago, IL. Barron’s comments pertain to the future requirements of automotivebatteries. However, they also address the increasing