Nitrous Express » Next Generation Nitrous Oxide Systems

Wow, it's been a long 9 months since I started this project.  It was supposed to be easy with plenty of time to get it done and go testing before I left for Drag Week, but it's August 15th, two  and a half  weeks before I have to leave for Bowling Green, and I still do not have the engine!

Thank you Diesel Performance Research!  I finally have the engine, August 18th, and have a ton of fabrication work to do.  Mount the turbo, build the exhaust, wire the ECM, mount the front fiberglass, and on and on.....................

Finally got the engine running!  It's the evening of September 3rd, I have to leave for Bowling Green on the 6th.  No Chassis inspection tag from the NHRA yet, have to get that done or it will be no racing for me!  I decide to drive the car 200 miles Thursday to travel to Oklahoma where the NHRA chassis certification man lives, this will be the shake down run before I leave on the 3,500 mile journey! 

All goes well  on Thursday  except for a minor overheating problem caused by the lack of airflow over the radiator.  A quick fab job produces a 4" spoiler attached to the radiator shroud, problem solved! 

This is  Friday  September the 5th and I am loading everything I think I might need in the car.  A $69.00 tool kit from Sam's Club, a few wire tires and shop rags, that should be enough to fix any problem....................

8:00  AM   Saturday September 6th Project DuraMax GT hits the road, too late to worry about all those little details, it's now or never!   After about 5 hours in the drivers seat I discover the MAXX Performance race seats do not have enough padding for my 54 year old butt!  A quick stop at Wal-Mart fixes the problem, 4 inches of foam seat padding does the trick, ahhhhhhh!  I end up in Brinkley Arkansas to spend the night, relief at last from the constant hammering from the solid mounted diesel engine, a major design flaw I discovered much too late to do anything about.  After all this is a race car!

7:00 AM Sunday morning, a bright and early start, gotta make it to Bowling Green before dark, haven't even tried the headlights and no telling where they are aimed!   Bose noise cancellation headphones and a portable XM radio solve the excessive cabin noise problem, all is good!   Another uneventful day but I did get a pleasant surprise, 27 miles per gallon.  Not bad,  I thought,   for a brand new engine with no break-in miles .  Before dark I rolled into Bowling Green and to the "America's Best Value Inn"  what a dump........

Monday morning at the track, Beech Bend Raceway, it was a hot and muggy day but at least the sun was shinning and no sign of rain in the forecast.  I unloaded the car  (not off the trailer, see the pictures)  and got ready for the first pass.  Since this was it's maiden voyage I decided to take it easy and not break anything, or kill myself!  An easy roll through netted a 11.41 @ 124.66, not bad but I wanted to go much faster!  The second pass yielded 10.41 @ 127.35, it was becoming clear that a few keystrokes on the laptop was not going to produce the 8.50 ET we had hoped for, oh well back to the staging lanes.  The third pass resulted in instant tire smoke............  Back to the laptop!  Pass number 4 had the same result, not too good so far.   Pass number 5 launched well, 1.48 60ft and ended up a 10.51 @ 127.59, more frustration.  Number 6, more tire shake and smoke....  Pass number seven, 10.59 @ 127.74.  We were not making any headway the the MPH numbers indicated we were not making any more power.  Time to pack it in, tomorrow at 9:00AM the real race starts.

Tuesday morning was another good weather day if you like sunshine and humidity!  Went to the track, unloaded and got ready for my first pass that really counts.  Just for fun I ran my car over the scales, my goal weight when this project started was 3400lbs with me in the car fueled and ready to race, results, 3475.  Very close but still heavier than I wanted.  Got to the staging lanes and waited patiently, then it was show time.  First pass, 12.37....... shook the tires so hard I thought the windshield was going to pop out!  Second pass, 10.35 @  130.59.  We were making a little more power but nowhere near the potential of this engine.  Time to hit the road, I have to drive to Steele Alabama.  I turned in the time slip and got the driving directions, south on secondary roads for over 200 miles.  45mph speed limits and every small town along the way, this is no interstate four lane cruise.  Wow, 5 hours of hard driving and I arrive in beautiful Steele!  Time to get some rest and get ready for day 2.

Wednesday is much cooler and with less humidity, time to rock and roll!   The track at Steele is open early and the racers are starting to arrive, all ready to burn some serious rubber.  I unload all my stuff and get in line.  The track sucks, no traction at all, tire shake is the result.  I finally get down the track with a 10.69 @ 130.02.  This is as good as it's going to get here, turned in the time slip and loaded up my car.  Now to Montgomery Alabama, only 247 miles this time :)  I roll into Montgomery about 5:00, rush hour.  Stuck in traffic HOT and SWEATY!  More good news though, this time I register 33mpg.  As the new engine is getting some miles on it  the fuel mileage is  getting increasingly better .  I find it hard to believe that this average includes my drag racing passes as well as the stop and go traveling through every small town between Steele and Montgomery.

Thursday dawns and I'm up and ready to go.  My average ET is 2.5 seconds quicker than my next competitor, a nice cushion.  I arrive at the track and repeat the last two days.  My stuff is in a pile in the pits and I get in the staging lanes, the earlier the better here I have to drive 350 miles this afternoon to get to Memphis.  The first pass is not good, tire shake causes me to lift momentarily but my mph is still almost 130 so my engine is still healthy even with all the highway miles and stop and go traffic.  It's right back in line, no adjustments, no tune-up changes.  The second pass is much better, 10.37 @ 129.77.  I think I better turn in the time slip and hit the road, 350 miles is a long way........

Friday and Memphis Motorsports Park is an NHRA national event track so I expect it to be the best and I'm not disappointed.  The bite is great, 1.36 60 ft, the best ever for this new car and the I'm rewarded with the best ET as well, 10.29 @ 131.65.  It's getting really close to the end of the race series and I decide not to push my luck.  I turn in the time slip and get my directions for Bowling Green.  As I leave the track I fill up the tank with No.2 diesel as usual and again I'm rewarded with 33 mpg.  The editor of Hot Rod Magazine declares that I'm getting the best mileage of anyone at the event including the compact rental cars the staff is driving, WooHoo!  I get on the highway and set the make believe cruise on 75, smiling all the way........

Saturday morning is cool and the humidity is low for a change.  I'm ready to turn up the wick and see if a 9 second pass is possible.  Remember I still have to drive this car back to Texas so I still have to be careful.  The first pass results in instant tire spin but I decide to stay with it to see if my new tune-up was going to work.  142.91 mph, holy crap!  11.26 gain in mph shows a tremendous gain in horsepower, gotta get back to the staging lanes and make another pass this deal is going to run this time!  I get it staged and leave the line easy, 1.44 60 ft, the car is pulling harder than ever before and all I can do is hang on, dang missed my shift point again!  Despite the missed shift point the time slip rewards me with the coveted 9.91 ET.  Now back to the pits for a suspension adjustment, the 142.91 indicates I'm making enough power to run a 9.40 ET!  When I jack up the car to adjust the shocks I see a horrible site, differential lubricant coating everything, a wheel bearing is leaking which indicates a bad bearing.  My racing day is done..............

In retrospect Hot Rod Drag Week was a huge success for me and Nitrous Express.  A car built from scratch with the craziest power train combination ever installed in a race style vehicle, traveled over 3,500 miles over public roads, averaged over 33 mpg, covered  the standing quarter mile in 9.91 seconds and had a terminal velocity of almost 143 mph.  Not bad for a first try but wait till this car has some dyno work and time to flog the chassis, sub 8.50 ET's at over 170 mph will be the order of the day soon.

P.S. On the way back to Texas the DuraMax GT achieved 35 mpg!  I guess all those drag strip passes were hurting my fuel mileage after all........