Got my junkyard magnum motor in the 11s!

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LXguy

LXguy

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Hey All:

Finally got my 11 second pass yesterday.

Straight off the trailer car went:

60' 1.61
330 4.82
1/8 7.53
mph 89.76
1000 9.91
1/4 11.92
mph 111.93

Then the track proceeded to go to hell and couldn't hook at all the rest of the day.

Untouched junkyard 5.9 shortblock, 1.90 valve Iron Ram heads, 670 Street Avenger, Air Gap, 904, Ultimate Converter, 8.75, 4.11, cal-tracs, 255 Mickey Thompson drag radial. Hooker Comps, TTi X, dumped Dynomax Super Turbos.

Car still has the bench seat, full factory interior.

Here's a pic from the previous weekend when the alternator sent me home after one pass:

IMG_9656.jpg


Going to a real slick, racier carb, looking forward to fall air!
 
Thats great, those magnums run great, your getting some real good 60fts., whats the stall on the converter, & the specs on the cam?
 
Very nice..i'll bet with that mph theres a little more in it..
 
ahhhhh........recycling.......isn't it great.
 
Thanks guys.

Cam is 224/230 @ .050. The stall is right around 3800. I've only been launching at 2400.

I'm pretty stoked. That isn't the best 60' the car has gone, and I've only jetted up once.

My hope is that there's more in it with some more tuning/traction without changing anything else on the motor other than the carb and maybe the intake. I'm not putting a roll bar in this car, so there's no point in being able to go faster than 11.50s, but it would be nice to run that quick in some mineshaft air this fall/next spring.

Might put something other than the Autozone shocks in the front this week.

Steve
 
What cam is that? Were the iron rams ported or as cast? Excellent results, and I agree that you've got a little more in it.
 
Thanks Guys:

The cam is a custom grind hydraulic roller. Heads are as-cast from EQ or wherever Hughes gets them. No porting, no milling. I've got to say, I've been pretty impressed by them-especially for the price.

I haven't scaled the car. Based on bathroom scale weights of almost everything I changed, I'm guessing about 3200 with me in it (I'm about 140). However, that includes assumptions about the differing weights of the Magnum vs. 318, and the 8.75 vs. 7.25, and the subframe connectors.

The scale is too far to go with 4.11s and no overdrive, and is in the opposite direction of the track so I never seem to get out there with the car on the trailer. I will sometime this summer but I haven't made it yet.

Steve
 
I am also thinking about replacing the LA engine in my race car with a magnum. What year junkyard motor did you use? What compression ratio are you runnung? Did you do anything to the short block? Would you do anything differently?
 
Nice, conservative combination of "correct" parts that work well together!
Jet for MPH, carb squirters and pump cams for 60'.
Good job!
 
wedgie said:
I am also thinking about replacing the LA engine in my race car with a magnum. What year junkyard motor did you use? What compression ratio are you runnung? Did you do anything to the short block? Would you do anything differently?
Click to expand...

"IF" i'm not mistaken its a "stock" factory short block, but i could be wrong, I run 12.5s with a factory magnum block, RHS heads & a small cam, tight converter & 3.73 gears, those magnums run HARD!! So get to yanken that LA out & drop in a 360 magnum you'll love it!! 8)
 
Great combo! More proof that the engine ain't everything. That would be a fast car with a stock 2 bbl 318. You got the important stuff right. Great job.
 
wedgie said:
I am also thinking about replacing the LA engine in my race car with a magnum. What year junkyard motor did you use? What compression ratio are you runnung? Did you do anything to the short block? Would you do anything differently?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't be in a hurry to go to a Magnum unless you can do it for less than a LA engine, which you already have. The RHS LA-X heads have the same, exact ports as their MA-X Magnum versions but are machined for the original style rocker shafts, intake manifold and valve covers. They also flow at least as good as the Iron Ram heads. You can bolt on the LA-X heads to what you already have whether you freshen the short block or not. Then work on the rest of the rest of the combo to work together - cam, converter, gears, suspension, carb tuning, etc. "Just" swapping engine types or parts doesn't always guarantee a faster car.
 
Yeah, i forgot about the RHS LA-X heads, this is where the LA lacks with a standard J head, i stll like the fact of the lighter rotateing assembly of the magnums, low tention rings.
 
Lighter parts if OEM, but you can use lighter aftermarket pistons and rods and lighter rings can be gotten for any engine. Not top doller stuff either. Honing with deck plates is extra important if going lower tesnion with rings..
 
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