I never thought I'd be posting in the racing column, but I took the old girl out to the local track last night to see what it would do. This was to set the "before" baseline, I will do it again when I get done with the winter rebuild.
This is my 66 Valiant in all-original condition. It has a completely untouched drivetrain with the exception of a new radiator and new 15" wheels/tires (which surely contributed to it being a D-O-G). 127K on the clock, 53 years old, and it still runs like a champ. It's a slant with three-on-the-tree and 3.23 open gears.
First run was a whopping 21.0 @ 56 MPH. I didn't realize where the finish line was......I thought I was there and backed out of it, only to find the 1/4 mile camera a few hundred yards later.
Next few runs were better, averaging low-to-mid 20's at about 65 MPH. The tranny is tired for sure, and shifts were sloooooooooooooow. My buddy who was playing camera man could tell from the grandstands there was a lot of wasted time between shifts, but the gear box was unhappy and grinding a bit when I tried to shift quickly. Coming off the line took a while with the bigger tires, but I got the reaction time down to about .500 and didn't red light.
A few runs later, and I'd figured out a few things. Note To Self: You will get better results off the line if you take your foot off the brake and put it on the gas, where it is ready to do its thing when you get the green light. Oh, and there's a point at which the gear you're in isn't going any faster, you might as well shift to the next one. And lastly, the final three runs I double-clutched the shifts which made it LOTS faster between gears, and no grinding. Best run of the night was a 19.8 @ 68 MPH.
All in all, it was a fun experience, and I'll do it again, even after getting whacked bad by everyone I lined up against. Nothing like seeing the other lane crossing the finish line before you can get to the half-way point to keep a guy humble.
The Mighty Beast, ready for its first run.
Starter: Sir, please roll up your window.
Me: Doh. Sorry...
The heart of said Mighty Beast.
Proof of the evening!
This is my 66 Valiant in all-original condition. It has a completely untouched drivetrain with the exception of a new radiator and new 15" wheels/tires (which surely contributed to it being a D-O-G). 127K on the clock, 53 years old, and it still runs like a champ. It's a slant with three-on-the-tree and 3.23 open gears.
First run was a whopping 21.0 @ 56 MPH. I didn't realize where the finish line was......I thought I was there and backed out of it, only to find the 1/4 mile camera a few hundred yards later.
Next few runs were better, averaging low-to-mid 20's at about 65 MPH. The tranny is tired for sure, and shifts were sloooooooooooooow. My buddy who was playing camera man could tell from the grandstands there was a lot of wasted time between shifts, but the gear box was unhappy and grinding a bit when I tried to shift quickly. Coming off the line took a while with the bigger tires, but I got the reaction time down to about .500 and didn't red light.
A few runs later, and I'd figured out a few things. Note To Self: You will get better results off the line if you take your foot off the brake and put it on the gas, where it is ready to do its thing when you get the green light.
Oh, and there's a point at which the gear you're in isn't going any faster, you might as well shift to the next one. And lastly, the final three runs I double-clutched the shifts which made it LOTS faster between gears, and no grinding. Best run of the night was a 19.8 @ 68 MPH.All in all, it was a fun experience, and I'll do it again, even after getting whacked bad by everyone I lined up against. Nothing like seeing the other lane crossing the finish line before you can get to the half-way point to keep a guy humble.
The Mighty Beast, ready for its first run.
Starter: Sir, please roll up your window.
Me: Doh. Sorry...
The heart of said Mighty Beast.
Proof of the evening!
