Big Block Chevy-powered Pontiac Grand Am Dominates at Bounty Hunters No Prep
Pontiac Grand Am is not the first drag car you think of. But this 2,800 HP monster has what it takes to put most other cars on the trailer.
Pontiac had some great performance cars. The Firebird was a performance legend that was also a movie star. The same can be said for the GTO. The Pontiac Grand Am, well, it was fine for picking up milk. The last generation Pontiac Grand Am GT made an underwhelming 175 horsepower from its 3.4-liter V6. It was tough to lose to a Grand Am.
However, the Grand Am of Rodney Weisser is easy to lose to. Especially since it would take about sixteen 2005 Pontiac Grand Am GT cars to equal the power of this dragster. His Pontiac is powered by a methanol burning 555 big block Chevy with a 136 R ProCharger. Weisser estimates that it puts down between 2,700 and 2,800 horsepower.
Weisser recently brought his Grand Am from his home in South Dakota to the Bounty Hunters No Prep in Odessa, Texas. He would finish the day second in the points in the Big Tire class. He put the smack down on quite a few very accomplished racers along the way. Each one of them had to admit that they just lost to a Grand Am. Of course, this Grand Am has as much in common with an original as an apple does to a zebra, but still. The folks at 1320video captured the fun and shared it on their YouTube channel.
The first race of the night was between Weisser and Birdman of Street Outlaws fame. Birdman is a formidable no prep racer. However, this night belonged to Weisser. He got a clean launch while Birdman in his vintage Camaro SS got squirrely. Once Birdman lost traction there was no hope of recovery. The next race would not be so easy.
Weisser was up against Mike Murillo in his Fox body Mustang. Murillo is a sixteen-time World Champion drag racer. That is about as tough a competitor as you are likely to run up against. Again, Weisser is able to maintain traction and sends Murillo home. After the race Weisser was humble as always. “I got lucky on that one because I was eating a cheeseburger and I was looking for a place to set it,” jokes Weisser.
Next up was a race against Cody Baker, another Street Outlaw alum. Unfortunately, Baker broke down at the line and had to shut his car down. That gave Weisser a bye and sent the Grand Am to the finals. However, the track was getting cold at that point. So, Weisser and his opponent decided to split the pot and not run.
Neither wanted to risk their car on the cold track and wanted to be sure they could race the next day. Keep in mind that Weisser is bringing his car and his buddies down on a single car trailer. No sponsorship stickers anywhere. And he is giving the guys with the half a million-dollar setups all they can handle.
The next day the Grand Am knocks out Shawn Willhoit in the first round. In the second round, ho hum, Weisser takes another win to advance. In round three, Weisser takes another win. This time his competitor pre-staged and then the car died. He could not re-fire it in time and Weisser walked to an easy victory. Time now for the finals.
Sadly, his luck ran out at that point. He pre-staged and then jumped, and he didn’t know why. “I was kind of confused at what I even did there,” says Weisser. It was a tough way to see the event end, but there is no doubt that the red Grand Am more than held its own.
Join the LS1Tech forums now!
