Car was originally built for a street/strip pump gas driver, but it has only had one tank of 93 in it, been running 110+ since. I will still drive it on the weekends around town and to car shows local, but mostly dragstrip oriented now. It is streetable now but my expectations are more than the car is now. Here is my combo now and my possible changes to get more out of the setup, what would you suggest? Motor, tranny, rearend, lightweight panels, different combo altogether? Guess I need to put in my goals for the car first huh? I dyno'd 430hp and 467tq at the wheels on motor and ran 11.71@112 on motor and 10.84@121 on 150 shot. Would like to get it as close to 10's on motor and mid 9's on the jug, or faster. Whatever you can think would take it to get there(besides going big block) please list. I have ideas in my head that I will list, but kind of got builders block.

1970 Nova 2 door
MOTOR
406ci small block 0 decked
11:1 TRW forged flattop with total seal file fit rings
5.7 forged rods
3.75 forged crank
Comp cams custom street roller nitrous grind 252/264 .574/.574 110lsa 2800-7200 rpm range
comp cams 10,000rpm roller lifters
comp hardened pushrods
pete jackson noisy gear drive
Brodix Track 1's 67cc with very mild bowl blend
Harland sharp 1.6 rockers w/stud girdles
Weiand Team G 2800-7200 rpm range
Holley 800 dp stock
MSD pro billit dist. 38degrees timing
Hooker Super Comp. 1 7/8X 3 1/2 headers

TRANNY
junk yard TH350 with shift kit
3600 stall

REAREND
8.2 10 bolt 4.11 gear with stock axles and mini spool

SUSPENSION
front: lakewood 90/10 shocks
rear: ladder bar with off-brand shocks and 12-150 springs

Things I can think of to change:
called comp cams, suggested 270-280 .739/.739 112lsa cam
upping compression
different intake?
electric water pump
vacuum pump


Lot more I am not thinking of I am sure but lost at the moment.

 

Anyone want to take a guess?

 

How much does that Nova way? Something's way wrong. My stock LS1 car traps 110 mph and that's with a 6speed. That combo should be good for 620hp+ and a really fat torque curve. Your 112 mph trap in a lighter car indicates a problem somewhere.

I think a cam change or a dome piston is jumping the gun. You need to find out what's holding it back. It should run WAY better than what it is.

Ben T.

 

A good friend of mine has a '69 Nova that runs 10.0's all day, it's an all steel door slammer, and I'll tell you exactly what he has. He is running a 388 at 13.5:1, dual 660's on a Weiand tunnel ram, a camshaft very similar to the one you are thinking about from Comp, a TH350 with a Munnsinger 5500 stall, and 4.88:1 rear gears. He shifts at 8500. His best pass to date on the motor was a 9.93 at 137 i think. For your current engine to run 10's on the motor, I think you are gonna have to run alot more cfm, further port the heads, run the more aggresive camshaft, Deffinately go to a 4500 to 5000 stall converter and a 4.88 to 5.13 gear set. You might need to bump your compression, but 11.0:1 might get you there. And raise your shift point to around 7500. It won't be a street car anymore though.

 

I do run at bristol so the elevation kills us here. For example, Pro Stock John came to bristol for the GM high performance shootout in around 2000 and went from running 11.70's to 12.40's, then went back home to running 11.70's again. The density altitude works out to around 4000-5000ft above sea level most of the time, actual altitude is 1490ft above. I would be able to run better times if I went to a track lower but probably won't anytime soon. Now I know my 112mph does sound low even at this track and my motor, my 98 Z runs 110, I am thinking that my junkyard TH350 may be holding me back. For what it is worth, I went 114 and let off at the 1000' mark(too much gear-4.56) and then put the 4.11 and a ladder bar kit in it with 28" E.T. streets and had it tuned then went back and ran 112. Do you think the heads are either too big for the cam or something else in my setup is wrong, it pulls strong on top end but feels like it has no bottom end.

 

The 4.56 with a 28" tire shouldn't be too much at all. What RPM do you shift at? What makes you think that gear was too short? Maybe you have another problem holding you back, like fuel supply, not letting the engine work on top. A well built 406 should spin like hell to 7500+ rpm. As far as you not having any bottum end, like I said earlier, swap in a 4500-5000 stall converter, that'll fix ya right up. Also one more quick pointer, that Pete Jackson gear drive isn't doing you any favors. I've actually seen those things kill 20 h.p. on an engine dyno. A good true double roller timing chain will be just as accurate for valve events and it won't have the parasitic drag of the gear drive.

 

Well I ran the 4.56 and with the 26" tires and shifting at 7000 I was turning around 7800 at the 1000' mark and had to pedal it the last 320'(this was on motor). I put the 28" tires on it and it was making the 1/4 on motor running 11.71 but on the 150 shot, run out around 1000' again. I shift it at 6800 on motor and 7000 on nitrous. I want it to run 10's on motor but will be running nitrous for the most part. Fuel supply consists of 12 gallon fuel cell in trunk, 2 -8 lines to dual holley blue pumps 2 -8 lines out of pumps to Y fitting, running 1 -8 line up the body then Y fitting again to 2 regulators(1 for carb alone and 1 for nitrous solenoid). This is a safety feature for the nitrous, incase one fuel pump goes while on a run, it has a backup to finish the run and not have a dedicated pump that goes out and just blows the motor. I am stationed in Japan in the Air Force(been here 3 years) and just got back from Afghanistan, while I was gone, my father took the car and had a new converter put in it(4500-5000), I had a 3500 in it, reason for the change was it wouldn't footbrake 2000 on the line. He had it dyno'd(numbers I gave earlier) and it was too high maybe a 5500-6000. So he took it out and had it put to a 3500-3800. It will footbrake 3000 on the line now. I would have liked to have run that converter but he pulled it out before I got back in from deployment. The bottom end felt better before the dyno tune and converter swap so I am hoping getting a built TH350 w/transbrake and a 4500 stall will cure that. I have also been thinking about that gear drive, have heard that as well about the 20hp. I think I will change it when I do the cam swap.

Have also been looking into just changing the whole setup and going to 18 degree with 13.5 comp domes and bigger cam. Just can't figure out why this setup is just not running better than it is. I think the heads and cam are not up to par for the performance I want.

 

My chevelle had a very simalar set up to yours I had 4.10s with 28" tires,I was going 11.0S thru the pipes at 3200lbs 10.80s uncorked. First off get that gear drive out of your motor it is really bad on your cam bearings also I can get you a part number for a kick *** timing set that won't break. I don't think you need to be running that high of octane either unless your spraying the motor. I had a 4200 stahl with a th400 with brake. I would angle mill your heads or put more compression to it with pistons or both. And port and polish the heads there is alot of room in the track 1s and alot of power to be had. I was running a holly pro dominator with 2 750s cfm carbs that picked up 3tenths with that change alone.

 

what brand converter are you running? i agree also with taking the gear drive out and putting a chain on it but that shouldn't hurt your performance. i would suggest some carb tuning and a good 4500 converter. i suggest a PTC but that is just my prefference but there are many good converter brands out there. never had good luck with TCI or B&M

 

N20-ARMD= Could you give me more info on your combo you had and could you get me that part # for the timing set? I was thinking about going to a belt drive but don't think it would be much better than a good chain. I built the motor for spray with a nitrous cam(overrated I think) and have been spraying 150 shot for the few times I have run it, to see how the motor reacted to it and to get it setup(flowing fuel, monitering, etc.), I have a cheater kit on it and want to up the shot to a 250 but may have to go to a progressive as to not spin. My ultimate goals are 9.5's but it don't look like this combo will get me there the way it sits. When I bought the T1's they were a big name for hp, they had just came out with the T1X's so I thought these would be great for hp but I am beginning to wonder. Maybe they just need to be worked, seeing as how they pucker out around the 600-650 lift. Would it be worth it to work these heads or just get rid of them and go to a different and better head?

The converter is a local company(don't know the name right off top of head). Dad went to them, it was a 4500-5000 stall to start with. I did not get to drive it but dad said it was too big, when they dyno'd the car it didn't act right. He said it actually acted more like a 5500-6000. He took it back and had it shrunken down to stall as a true 3500. It will footbrake 3000 on the line and flashes around 3600-3800. I was looking into getting a TH350 w/brake and a good 4500-4800 converter. The car was dyno tuned and carb tuning done while on the dyno. Was running 7.41 in 1/8 with a 1.67 60' last year with old converter, 2006 I went back after tuning and bigger stall and ran 7.50 with a 1.77 60'. Bottom end felt weaker than before but the same everywhere else. I think I may have had the tune by ear closer than I thought last year.

 

if this is a track car...then go with more compression 12-13:1, get a full bowl port ...flow is where the numbers come from....nice demon carb that meets the need of your motor aaand some manley aluminum connecting rods, less weight on the rotating assembly.

 

Well, as of right now it has only seen the track for the past 3 years. It has been on the street before and that is what I built it for, weekend cruising and hit the strip and bust out some big numbers. It performed flawlessly when driving it before I put the ladder bar kit in it, since then have not put exhaust on it so it has only seen the track. I will probably bracket race the car when I get out of the military this year and will end up hitting some true street races as well(30 mile cruise, 3 runs back to back). I would really like to drive the 20-30 minutes to the drag strip, crack off some 9.XX runs and drive it home. Regardless, I will probably still drive it some around town whichever way I decide to go. Not worried that I will have to run racing gas in it if the comp. ratio is too high.

 

That's a tough bill to fill. I've been racing and building cars all my life, and I only know of a couple of true 9.XX street cars. Ones that actually drive to the track, run 9's then drive home. They are all bottle cars, it can be done, but you got an uphill battle. I admire you for it, it is always fun trying.

 

It's my hobby and my obsession, so I will keep trying to improve. My problem is when I finally get the money up to get my setup changed to make more power, something more streetable or reliable will have come out within that time. I build on a tight budget, took me 4 years to save, buy, and build my 406. There are a few here in bristol that run in the 9's and are streetable and one that is a true 9 second street car, all on nitrous, but I just don't want to go copying someones combo, I want to get done with it and say "I" built that. Not saying that I don't want any help or suggestions but I will take it and think, how can I make mine better or more streetable. Like you said, a constant uphill battle, but one that I will not give up on.