Dilemma

[73dart360]

I built a very nice car for tha strip -occassional street and i never drive it ,Maybe the chase is over ,or just too much for the street? after finishing the car i have only driven it probably 30 miles in the last year it hasnt even broken in yet , I live in florida so its hot here , no air ,391 gears , My friends are alays sying you never drive the car you should just sell it ,has anyone felt the same, maybe i should make it more streetable .I should have built it so i could drive it to the track run 11`s and drive it home but i didnt its a built 408 ported polished indy single plane 11:1 compression 950 pro systems carb 1-7/8 tti with x pipe 3" exhaust, 9.5" dynamic 4500 stall 727 ,cheetah manual valve body 391 gears ,26tall tires, I was trhinking maybe putting 323 gears in it ? who knows any suggestions.

 

[dusted72]

If you change gears you need to check your stall as well. I say do what ever it takes so that you can enjoy what you built. If that means changing gears and running a little bit slower at the strip but getting alot more use out of the car then I would do that in a heart beat.
Edit: By the way that is one sweet looking ride. Get to changing what it takes to gets some more miles on it.

 

[Dartnut]

I think you should give it to me.
That car will only get you in trouble!
Seriously, i would detune it so it's more streetable or sell the engine and build one that isn't so hard to deal with.

 

[Frankie]

I live in Georgia, and I don't care if the car doesn't have tires and gears, it MUST have air, even the occasional street car.

3 of my last 4 track cars had A/C, I simply bypassed the compressor belt on the track, and just figured the additional weight into the total weight of the car.

I don't take things as seriously as some when it comes to hobby cars, but, I'm damn sure going to be comfortable when using the car on the street.

Just my 2¢, and not meant to be a criticism.

 

[RustyRatRod]

I agree about the air...but you kinda sealed your fate when you built a motor with such high compression.

 

[dusterny]

It is the age old question with the street/strip car. Lots of guys have gone this way and I have a good friend going through this now his car is wonderful in front of a crowd on cruise night but within a block you know your driving a racecar on the street and all the fun is gone. It's just a red light bandit and that's all and he wishs he had just a car to cruise in and it's almost hard to change it back with the engine and suspension mods.
My .02 is change gears and see if you can live with it and maybe cam but it's a ton of work at this point.

 

[Bulldozer]

sounds like you need two cars, one for the racetrack and one to cruise. put together another black 68 valiant sedan that is street friendly with a trailer hitch ....

 

[moparlover]

find someone here with a milder build that has A/C ... but are looking for a strip car.

if it's a fresh build, trade them

preferably someone in FL or somewhat close, so you can examine each other's work before trading

 

[Mopar to ya]

My 408 is 11.8:1 compression. I run a similar set up with an 800 Eddy carb and a 3000 stall. I did use an overdrive tranny but am running 4.10 gears. I drive this car everywhere I can whenever I can. Right now I dialed the timing up to 35 degrees and run 110 octane, but I usually dial it down to about 26 degrees and run on 93 octane pump gas. Who says you can't drive it everywhere? I don't have air and it gets 100 degrees plus here in the summer. I'll just open the windows and drive faster. Get in the car, drive it and enjoy it. Cars are meant to be driven. If you don't do it, sell it to someone who will. I think you should, though. The 408 is a blast to drive and is damn near untouchable by any loser who wants to run on the street.

 

[TrailBeast]

I tend to agree with "get that 408 out of there", and trade it for something milder with enough cash left over to get an aftermarket AC unit in it even.
I couldn't give up on that car, and think of how many people just WISH thier car was that close to driving daily.

 

[73dart360]

I could look for some indy heads or large port commando to lower the compression i think with aluminum i could run pump gas, switch to 355 or 323 gears, have aftrmarket air installed then i would have a sweet ride id say that would add up to about 6 grand, or detune it and put a procharger on it .

 

[Mopar to ya]

What? You can run 11:1 on pump gas. You need to set the timing down. Big deal. Why spend the money and time to change motors when you have a perfectly good 408 now? I drive mine damn near every day it isn't raining. I just set the timing back to 26 degrees today so I can run 93 octane without pinging. If I run 110 octane race gas, which I do quite often, I set it up to 35 degrees. I am 11.8:1 compression, 500hp and I am telling you I drive this car almost like a daily driver. Drive your car. Your car will thank you and you won't be able to wipe the smile off your face.

 

[73dart360]

Mopar to ya - I like your Idea ,that will save me a bunch, i am going to lower the timing and drive it, when i go to the track ill bump it back up and throw race gas in it .