Go fast or quit?

I think my car has done everything it's supposed to do at the level that it is built. I hate to sell it because that will be my one and only e-body...I don't think I want to spend money on building N/A hp to make it go faster. Then, building a power adder, I'm only good to 7.50. Rock and a hard place...

What does the car run now? Personally, I'd keep tweeking on it and go fast N/A. It's much more challenging going fast N/A than bolting on nitrous or turbos or blowers IMO. Not that power adders don't provide their own specific issues as well as benefits, but they also add more cost to an initial build. Learning to tune the car to run the best it can N/A with what you have is very satisfying and educational in my book. Whatever you decide, have fun and good luck!

LS swap!

Blasphemy above!!!!

Dave I feel your pain and you know what I did. Was time for me to move on. Didn't hurt I had a buyer for the car however. But I also had one thing you don't, a HEAVY car. I had ZERO ballast and aluminum engine and still weighed 2975 ready to race and managed to go 171 and change. You have the advantage of being well under that and with an aluminum block can loose even more. I don't think it would take a ton of HP to get your car in the 7's power wise. Will the chassis support that kind of power is another question.

You have plenty of space to go til you outrun your cert for sure. And building a Mopar power plant to do it NA is certainly possible. Or you could buy a newly built one I know of and be there straight away A nice B1 deal with an aluminum block would get you well into the 7's if you just wanna go faster. I know a guy with a very nice set of CFE B1 heads he don't need anymore...Fresh in the bag. Hell would sell you everything but a block CHEAP to put that car in the 7's

Horsepower is no longer the issue.. heck you can go 750s with a 318.. if you had a big enough snail upfront.. you may explore some of the small Tire Grudge Racing.. where exactly in Cali are you located up north or down south.. up north you have Bodie in the center you have West Coast hot rod.. and down south Steve Sherman..

....make that fuel injected LS swap!

Is it possible to remove the body, and start over? Somebody out there must be looking for a good chassis, if you can separate the two?

How about turning left and right? I'm sure you've been to Wednesday night drags at Sonoma Raceway. Its my home track and will run the road course many times this year. It would'nt take much modifications to make that Chally a nice corner carver!

Are you in mild steel Dave?

N/A till you can't keep up and I personally respect it more and it is definitely more challenging............Your car fly's man...........

Thanks for giving me food for thought. Building a C/M chassis is definitely doable. I've had the body on and off this thing probably 4 times. I'd just cut this one up though. I could sell the struts but that's about all I wouldn't use. Don't know if someone would want it without the rear? Might fit a Camaro then Jbody could have his LS wish...
Dom, no parachute, no Bueno.

I think the chally body and gm powerplant would have much more appeal (pot stirring comments). So what class would you try to run? My stuff is strictly a hobby... I hope to go where people are fun and the sidewalks don't roll up at night. Wish I had the budget/time/knowledge to play in the N/A rainbow chaser group. Think that would be kind of fun, but perhaps more "work" than I'd want to do.

NA Rainbow Chasers...lol..Good thing we are just filler

Dave, Lots of cars out there for sale and a lot of ways to go fast. Easiest cheapest way to go fast is an engine on a stick. Also probably the best optiong to use for bracket and big bucks racing. I am lusting after a roadster to run big bucks, brackets and some S/G with.

[quote=J_BODY]. Wish I had the budget/time/knowledge to play in the N/A rainbow chaser group. Think that would be kind of fun, but perhaps more "work" than I'd want to do....... hey J the only thing from stopping you from going really fast is a camshaft and maybe a little bit of intake work.. the last I checked neither one of those things was very expensive. ..
The water's warm..

I think at times all of us "I wanna go faster" guys make this sport harder than it has to be. Look at Super comp, super gas, super street, sure its nice to have great mph but is it necessary to win? NO it isn't. Now with IHRA doing their tricks Top Sportsman is gone and honestly to make the NHRA field and run for the peanuts they pay out isn't the smartest idea in the book. Running heads up class with a Mopar ranks right up there as another "brain dead" idea. Other than being able to run some Mopar only events its like bringing a knife to a gunfight. But we all want to go as fast as we can, me included.

I would agree it's tougher to do with a Mopar. Although there are a few people that are successful. Rob gross and Jason Bigsby. In this day and age it wouldn't be easy to run up front with any make.. the competition and technology is evolving so quickly it has gotten to be an expensive money War.. however that being said.. going fast and doing it in a Mopar is fun. I think the only reason most of us do this is for enjoyment.. those of you that are in it for a profitable business should go ahead and hang it up now.. my racing budget is what it is.. and personally I would rather have a Mopar that qualify 6 then a Chevy or Ford that qualifies.3. I don't think I could financially support a number one qualifier in any class other than paper airplanes

There are still E body deals with 4130 full tube chassis.
I bought mine last year. Car came with 4130 chassis that will cert to 6.0. Strange struts, brakes, and rear koni's with a 4 link. Steel roof, quarters, doors, and the rest is fiberglass.

Unless you can build a new 4130 chassis for the existing body yourself, It doesn't make financial sense to have a shop do it.
If you want to go faster, I would sell your challenger as is, then get a fiberglass challenger body and have a 4130 chassis built for it.

I could build it, I just couldn't weld it. Doesn't make sense to me to sell this one pennies on the dollar to buy another one.

You also buy for pennies on the dollar...Just sayin...I sold a S/St car and bought a Pro Stock car with money left over. Just sayin.

Or just go Grudge racing. Don't matter how fast you go. Have more fun & win more money (If your fast enough, obviously). I know someone with a PVC plastic cage in there car & the officials never say a word. They told him at his speeds he had to at least put a cage in the car so he did (It's just plastic, painted black). LOL. Looks real.

Dave don't have deep enough pockets to grudge race around here. lol!! Guys around here are doing over 150 in the 1/8 on small tires and the big tire cars are now going over 190. Keep your car ,race the bracket races and be happy with what you have as its a very nice car! Kyle just increased our payouts and 1400. to win Spro is not a bad payout for a 70.00 buy in.

The only other viable option I see is to buy a welded 4130 chassis and put it under the challenger body and sell existing steel chassis.
You can get a welded bare 4130 single rail chassis from tim mcamis for 7300 plus shipping. double rail chassis for 7900 plus shipping.
I think you would be surprised what the old car would sell for.
It's hard to find many E body race cars for sale at any price. I just got lucky finding mine for sale.

There is a 2010 rick jones avenger ex prostock body, slicks, and frame for sale now in Tucson craigs for 10k.

https://tucson.craigslist.org/cto/d/race-car/6446587473.html

Confused, you want to as fast as possible, are cert-ed to 7.50 and "no bueno" on a chute..........

My car isn't fast enough for a chute. Therefore no good... That Avenger looks cool but 100,000 dollars later...

Then build more power dammit...............

Problem solved, only 5179.95.
You will now need at least one parachute and probably a diaper.

https://www.cnc-motorsports.com/cnc-comp...-1-pistons.html

When the weather clears up I’m building a shed so I can call my junkyard buddies and round up all the LS engines I can find. Maybe moparts will start a new for sale section so I can sell them to the Chevy lovers amoungst us. Lol 😂

lmao!!! almost spit my coffee all over the puter screen.

2800 lbs? That must be a typo.

The Avenger in Tucson has been on its lid and into the wall slightly and needs a fair amount spent to fix it. But it is very fixable and would not cost anywhere near 100K. But it also wont be cheap. Having said that is has been for sale for quite sometime and I can put you in touch with the guy who knows everything there is to know about that car. It was a brand new car with 8 passes on it when it got wrecked. They stripped it of all the useful parts that could be put on the next new chassis and let it go..That car done to Pro Stock spec like mine will be close to 1800lbs with an aluminum BB and glide.

2800 is the max cert weight, not actual car weight.
25.1G is 6.0 et @2800# max weight.

Got it. Thank you.

https://www.racingjunk.com/Door-Cars/182....html?searchStr

How much to fit a carbon interior back in that thing? From as it sits to the track 100K minimum. You'll have 10K in the body work and paint alone...

I knew that car would come up.
#1. It's fugly
#2 It's worth just as much as mine running.
#3. It doesn't work...

Dave...You have a damn nice car! I would be proud of your accomplishment! Sometimes we don't know what we have til it jumps right out at ya!

I didn't mention the car to actually buy and build it. Just to show you what other options are available. Basically get the lightest quality car you can and have fun. Even a dragster or roadster would be good deals to go as fast as you want.

I've been thinking about a dragster for myself to bracket race, and use my challenger for no prep type stuff.

It's hard to paint a car so fugly that it even looks bad in the dark, but dean, NAILED IT....
38k minus 10k for new paint.

If you buy a dragster double down and buy a chevy engine. That's the smart move.

I'm not opposed to a GM based BB. Although the only dragsters I like are these Spitzer cars. This pic is Andy Spiegel at Sonoma. The car went 6.52@207 on this pass. This is an ex Schmidt 4.84 BS with two carbs. The 60 was 1.01 with the back tires. He later built a 669" 5.0 BS wedge that went 6.44 at Phoenix with a single carb N/A. That pass was .953 60'!!! He would definitely help me if I decided to go that way. I'm not really a dragster guy though I want to drive one at some point.

having had a few friends go the "piperack" route, you'd be far ahead with the GM based stuff..... at that point it just doesn't matter..... although mine would have a W8 small block

so are you chasing this spring Dave?

Thanks tboomer! This is exactly why I'm so torn. I just want to change the game a little as I'm not that excited about S/ST or Super Pro. Although S/P would be awesome with a faster car!

Lots of options Dave many presented here. Sell it and buy something else, lots of cars out there for sale and most go unadvertised on the net but are out there.

Next buy a welded 4130 25-1 chassis RJ, Haas, Bickel all sell them. Prices range from $7500 and up depending on options.

Since you have a 7.50 cert just build more HP for what you have. Not like what you have is an exotic piece. Its a good reliable bracket piece. You can build a good reliable 1000hp piece and go well faster than your cert at the weight you have.

In the end ALL options cost money. You know how I am about most cars, they are just a tool. If you have a specific goal in mind then you need the right tool for the job. I sold my old car for two reasons. Someone wanted it first and foremost. I was not selling he was buying. Secondly like you I accomplished what I wanted with the car and did not see it fitting in where I wanted to go next. So I moved on and have not looked back. Just need to get back home so we can get it to the track. This summer we should be out making passes in it.

No, I'm so slow I'm always out front!

S/P is great but you will be racing against a bunch of dragsters.
I am not a dragster guy either, I hate anything with a T stop.
I like the idea of keeping my challenger at the fast limit of pro, and a dragster to go head to head against dragsters in S/P.

.... I meant POINTS!!

No. Not last year either. What about you Jay? You going down the long division trail? It's a super fun deal to go to all the races. If you can afford it...If you go to all the races, at least in Div.7, you're going to finish top 20 probably...History has shown that if you win two you are going to be top 3 and most likely champion.

I love beating dragsters with a slower door car in both S/P and in any heads up .90 class

It's fun when you can do it...Doin' it is a whole entirely different thing! Much better being the hound and not the rabbit.

Dave why not rip the box and stop off the car. Step on it a bit and set it up to run high 8s/bottom 9s and go bottom bulb racing.

That would change things up a bit, and maybe make it fun again without breaking the bank.

I like your car and think you will miss it if you sell it.

I know a lot of guys chase the National event trail to win a trophy for the mantle at a very high cost with travel cost and entry fees but at least for us east coast guys big dollar bracket Racing is where it’s at. Footbrake, Top bulb, and bottom bulb races are almost held weekly

Winning a divisional or national is like winning a big bucks race. The competition is nothing but bada$$ cars. Redding, Sacramento and Sonoma are all within easy distance for me too. They all schedule differently so it's easy to attend. We have a couple bucks races with Spring Fling Vegas and the Figspeed race at Fontana. Utah is quite the haul for me but they have one more left before they go away. Bottom bulb is something I've thought about and may give it a shot.

I second the bottom bulb idea.

Bolt on a Procharger and start chasing

I bought this and kept the same motor

How do you like it and how fast is it? 440 deal?

I sat in an older build of one of those. I felt like I was going for a carnival ride! One thing I thought about recently is how hard Super Pro is on a car like mine. My car has been flawless because it has been babied in Super Street for 5 years. I recommend this. Faster or slower, the car should always be overbuilt for the class you want to run in if any kind of consistency or reliability is desired.

That's what makes engines on a stick so popular. Liteweight takes less power to run hard. Also helps with wear and tear on the car. That engine you have in the Challenger would probably 7.90's in a typical 4 link dragster.

I get it, I'm just not a dragster guy. I do want to try it sometime though...

Al what does your rear engine dragster weigh? I think my FED will weigh in at about 1600 with me in it.

Lets see.... chased points at Vegas one time long ago. Boring going to the same track.

chased points in the Hot Rod Heritage series two years ago after winning race 1 in Phoenix. Ended up 3rd. That whole 6 race ordeal went like this: COLD, OK, HOT, HOT, RAIN (9hr tow, but us desert guys don't get to see rain often), and the final race HOT. When I'm in the lanes at 4 different races feeling like "I HAD TO" kind of took the fun out of it some, but I did meet some really great people and that accounts for quite a bit with me.

With the B1 engine is weighs 1835, aluminum block. Its for sale rolling. Kid needs to focus on the business for a couple years then we will get a new car for him.

FWIW it is a 235" Racetech 4 link car set up for a BBM or BBC. Can come a lot of ways.

Dave we both feel the same way about the dragster thing. It is not my thing but after watching my kid have the success he did as a new driver I am a lot more intrigued. Plus don't take much power to go really fast. We can outrun his license with not much power.

Camastomcat,
It's a 470 approximately 650-700 hp. I have about 30 hp taken out of it with a throttle stop. Last time i had it out it went 8.59, 8.60, 8.60.I will be running in Super Pro and NE1 (8.60 index). It's fun to drive, but I'm still getting used to it.