Full-size Chevy Silverado is within a second of NHRA Pro Stock cars.
The 2017 LS1 Truck Shootout in Texas featured an array of big trucks running 8-second quarter mile times, but one of the competitors laid down an incredible 7-second run in qualifying. This wasn’t the quickest run by this Chevy Silverado, but a full-size truck running in the 7-second range is nothing short of awe-inspiring.
The Twin Turbo LS1
This awesome racing action comes to us from the YouTube channel of Javier Padron and it features one of the quickest Chevrolet Silverado pickups in the world. The video begins with a preview of the truck making a pass, but it cuts away before we can see the numbers on the big board.
The footage then jumps to the pits, where the cameraman speaks with a member of the support team for this wicked Silverado. He doesn’t offer full details, but he explains that the Chevy truck is powered by an LS1-based Dart racing engine fitted with a set of 83-millimeter turbochargers that are mounted directly behind the grille.
The truck also has lightweight front wheels and tires, big, fat rear wheels with slicks, lightweight brakes all around and a huge charge-air cooler mounted on the floor of the cab. It also has an automatic transmission and while we don’t see the suspension parts, we can assume that this Silverado has a trick setup to allow it to make use of all of that twin turbo power.
The Racing Action
The bulk of the on-track footage of this Chevy Silverado begins with a test hit that results in a fairly unimpressive outing. After struggling with the launch sequence, the boosted LS1 truck stumbles away from the starting line and when the driver climbs into the throttle, traction proves to be an issue.
Next, the Silverado lines up in the left lane for another run and this time, the driver is able to get away from the line and he makes a solid pass, stopping the timers with a run of 7.94 at 177 miles per hour. For comparison, the NHRA Pro Stock cars at the last event were running in the high 6-second range, so this boosted, full-size pickup is within a second of those full-bodied drag cars.
The video ends with the 7-second Silverado making a run against another Chevy drag truck. While we don’t see another run in the 7s, the twin turbo half-ton truck gets the win when the truck in the right lane runs into traction issues on the top end of the track.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
