I know many of you have read the misadventures of my 62 Valiant as it carried me through Drag Week 2011, and 2012. Just as most knew that it didn't make the trip last year as I planned and purchased parts for re-building the venerable stroker X-block that had powered it for the better part of two decades. But, that doesn't mean I'm just going to jump on here and throw a brief description of the new parts, and an obligatory engine on a stand shot and call it good. There's always a story to tell, and it's still winter for most of you, so I'm going to take the time to introduce you to the Valiant, the engine, and how I ended up throwing good big block money at a big small block!

The little 62 got it's first taste of the drag strip in 1988. Local Stock Eliminator racer Neil Smedley tossed a bare bones, budget 318 into a little old lady's 47000 mile survivor and had himself a clean little 12 second bracket car to play with, and keep his driving skills honed, without wearing out his Stockers. This photo was the first night I ever saw the car in action.

Good to hear you have started for next year.Not going to ask about the rest of the family.219 Days til DW 14.

I am looking forward to this tale of money well spent.

Oh boy..... here we go again!!

Neil Smedley...Now there is a name I have not heard in a long time. He helped me out with some parts and advice a LONG time ago when I started with the Mopar stuff, circa 87..

Billy glad to hear you got the new engine done. Look forward to hearing about it. Assume I will see you at the national or divisional race. I might also be down next Saturday for the AZ S/St race, depends on how this weekends race goes.

Looking forward to the story!
Bill

Sweet! Can't wait to hear how it did on Brian's dyno. I also am glad to hear of the EARLY progress being made.

So Billy... your gonna run the 62 this year at DW..
are you adding to the fleet or is something gonna be
dropped ... I think that your family makes up about
20% of all the drivers and cars there on DW

Neil's focus with the Valiant was strictly mechanical, form equals function, but it wasn't long before the car caught the eye of Tom and Debbie Traw. A pair of fun loving California transplants, they were happy with the consistant 12.50's, but turned their attention to the aesthetic side of the little early A, and after they brought it up to near show car status, it attracted sponsorship from a local dealer.

Putting my Dad to work!

Lower end...

BLUE!

DISH

complete

Vid http://youtu.be/5nPhc_M9EC0

Are those the Dr J's heads?

As the sponsorship blossomed, and the Valiant became known as the "318 car", a plan was hatched to capitalize on that notoriety. That's when the car was fitted with a cage, ladder bars, tubs, hood scoop, and the engine that would power it into the 21st century.

Tom wasn't a big time gearhead, so the sponsor tabbed a well known pacific northwest super stock racer to build a rock solid bottom end, with a conservative top end. With "318" prominently displayed on the hoodscoop (you can barely make it out in this picture)Tom was sworn to secrecy, taught how to lash the valves, and given a rigid maintenance schedule which he adhered to religiously. The "318" was a virgin 4 bolt X block with stock 340 bore, 3.79 stroke crank, stock 340 rods, and Ross custom pistons which stuck .035 out of the hole. The top end was a pair of J heads, ported, Crane 1.5 gold rockers, the classic 296-557 MP solid cam, an M-1 intake with a 750 annular booster holley straight out of the MP catalogue. They rounded it out with a 4.88 geared 9", Turbo Action 4500 stall, and a low gear set 904.
When it debuted in the mid 90's running high 10's in good weather, and low 11's in the summer or at altitude, most people were impressed, and very few questioned the validity of the 318 claims.

In 1996, Tom was faced with a problem, the Valiant had to be at a Mopar race in Vegas, and he had to be at a wedding in California. So he tabbed me to drive it. I was in love on the first pass, and promised myself I would own the car some day. What shocked me was when he told me to shift it at 6400. "Good Greif Tom, how big is this motor?" I asked as I stared him in the eye.
"What do you mean?" he feigned ignorance.
"Well, the only Small block Mopar that ever blew my mind growing up in Oklahoma was the Kent Johnson/Bill Lamb wheelstanding Barracuda, and Kent used to laugh about 'fifty-five to eighty-five', so you can tell me it's a 318 that runs 10's, but it don't shift at 6400 to do it!"
That's the day I was in on the secret.
Tom raced the car for another 6 years or so, and the sponsorship eventually dissolved, leaving him without support, and a waning desire to keep it going. A broken ring gear, which in turn took out the sprag in the transmission, landed the car in Tom's garage for the duration of his ownership. I kept in touch, as the price whittled down over the years. In 2006, I attended my first Drag Week, and the hook was set, so when I returned to Arizona, I went to Tom with a single question, and the answer was yes he had a title for the car. We struck a deal two weeks later.

When I freshened the engine, and basically the whole car throughout 2007, the only internal changes I made was a 252/256 572/579 Hughes cam in place of the old 296-557 purple shaft. The 9 inch picked up 4.30s in place of the old 4.88s, and the 904 picked up a Griner Pro Brake. In 2008, I was still racing the Challenger, and ended up with a variety of people behind the wheel of the Valiant. 5 people made passes and it recorded a best of 10.70-123, my best (I'm larger by double) was a 10.89-121.