First Car you ever raced. Lets tell it all.
- Thread starter Quickshift409
- Start date
Quiet Phil I know you are in that photo!
Robert
My 57 purchased in February 1965 is my real racer from the 1960's & 1970's -150 runs racing with time trials(still have all the small time cards they handed out) never broke 283 2-4 barrel motor.
First picture above is original purchase of 57 in March 1965 with Sun tach on dash -Borg Warner 4 speed 270 HP/283 motor ( that Sun tach is still on original dash today) and note the white traction bars from 1965.
2nd picture is class winner in 1966 N/SA in Sept 1969 (after 3 years in US Army) Was actually back in college (with 2 small kids)
Third picture is bracket racing ET/2 winner 16.31 time set Won $ 50 I think. Note the 4 class winner stickers on rear 1/4 glass.
4th picture just as it is today -just changed wheels back to Hurst and rebuilt the original 283/270 HP 2-4 motor with original factory 270 HP solid lifter cam
Paul
Here’s a pic of the morning of my first trip to the track with my own car at 17 and my first round of eliminations that I lost to a guy that became a great racing friend. But the very first time down the track, my buddy had a 1960 Chevy truck 4 speed 327 that I learned to drive a stick in. His dad wouldn’t let him take it so we drove his dads work truck 1987 Silverado 305 auto we put racing gas in it and flipped the air cleaner beat the shit out of that things that day and it blew up two weeks later. By the way that was Norwalk raceway park in 1990 my paint was only about two weeks old
Nice picture Robert, we all were a little younger then, RIP to those who are no longer with us.
First real race car, 5.18 @ 120 in the 1/8th
In 1990 I had a 68 Chevelle with an L 78 396 in it. I rebuilt it angle milling the heads decking the block for more compression and was up around 12-1 compression. 4.10 gears with 9 inch Goodyear‘s and headed to the track at Nolan Road in Kansas City. Wednesday night grudge racing. Car went through tech just fine, and the first couple of passes I may down the track run in the high 12s. I kept creeping it down a little bit more in a little bit more until I got in the low 12s. And it was starting to get late so I decided that I was going to run it as hard as I could and see what happened. I ran an 11.07 @122mph! And I knew it was a good hit. The guy at the Time slip booth said nice run. He has seen me many times and had been watching me. Only because I did not have a roll bar. When he handed me my time slip he said nice run will see you next time when you have a roll bar!!!!!!!!!
And no I did not put a rollbar in it because I drove it on the street. Probably should’ve for safety though. But it was a hoot and it was a lot of fun. James I miss KCIR as well, dreaming about I-70 in Odessa though!!!!
Burn a tire!
And no I did not put a rollbar in it because I drove it on the street. Probably should’ve for safety though. But it was a hoot and it was a lot of fun. James I miss KCIR as well, dreaming about I-70 in Odessa though!!!!
Burn a tire!
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First time I ever raced on a track was around 2004 at thunder valley in Marion South Dakota. I was usually just the mechanic but the guy I was with says he never gets to see his car go down the track so told me to take it for a couple runs. It was a 72 Pontiac Ventura with a 383 stroker I built for him. My first run went pretty horrible being I had never been behind the wheel of that car and it got cold enough to have frost overnight. I was the first to hit the track in the morning and I went in the water box and did my burnout and came out of the box and forgot to dry the tires off so when I staged and left the line and shifted to second gear the car went completely sideways and it stalled about 3 foot from the guard rail. Scared the crap out of me! The next run went much better though.
Never could afford to have a race car, but first time drag racing my 38 in about 88 or 89, ran consistent low to mid 15's, early 90's done a few improvements and got into the high 14's at around 98-100 mph over the 1/4, 4V 351 Cleveland with closed chamber large port heads, 750 Holly and close ration toploader.
Car today has a 3.8L V6 Buick and TH700R, lucky to break 17's I would suspect, building a 434 for it at the moment, who knows might get back into the 14's when done.
Photos, top around 1988, middle from 91' till about 2005, last photo is how its been since 2006.
Car today has a 3.8L V6 Buick and TH700R, lucky to break 17's I would suspect, building a 434 for it at the moment, who knows might get back into the 14's when done.
Photos, top around 1988, middle from 91' till about 2005, last photo is how its been since 2006.
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Many of us got started long before we got cars. Racing was always part of it. We went from building models to slot cars (which I still do) to motorcycles. Our heroes weren't the older guys who took their street 55s to Kingdon, but the local motorcycle racers who raced every weekend. Thus the Honda 50 and a long string of motorcycles. Then I started breaking everything my dad owned and every old POS I could trade/borrow etc. One of these cars was a '56 Nomad with a smog-emitting 265, which I replace with my first W motor, size unknown. I was told it was a 409, it had the factory 2x4 intake, but who knows??? It ran very well, broke a lot of drive train parts. Eventually it became part of some 3-way trade and the engine disappeared. We sometimes went out to an old airstrip, but no real lights or timing. Or we just went out in the country and ran 'em off, usually from a roll.
Easy to see why American Graffiti started here. By the way, it's cancelled for this year.
Easy to see why American Graffiti started here. By the way, it's cancelled for this year.
chuckl
Well Known Member
My first race'n car was a 51 Plymouth, with a SICK 6 cylinder and 3 on the tree. It was in primer and ugly as homemade soap. Sooooo, I put in a 54 Chrysler Spitfire 6, bored .125 over (that's right full 1/8"), 3/4 grind cam, Jahn's racing pistons, large Caddy valves and springs, three 2-barrel Fjord carbs on the log manifold, and a split exhaust manifold. I had to cut the front cross member to clear the front pulley, because the Spitfire was about 6" longer. With the exhaust pipes off, I fired it up over a grease pit and the flames caught the floor of the pit on fire from 3 feet above. Holy shit! Push it back! Push it back! Dump sand to put out the fire. Whew!!
With everything tweaked, it would not idle under 1,100 RPM, ever! The stock clutch blew out immediately, followed rapidly by the 3-speed. So, I installed a HD Dodge truck clutch and tranny. Next was an exploded drive shaft through the floor pan. Then came both twisted axles and an exploded diffy. Ok, enough is enough; I installed a Dodge station wagon drive shaft and rear end with big tires. I built homemade traction bars for the rear.
I had no idea what I was doing. I don't remember the horse power, CI, CR, trans ratios or rear end ratio or 1/4 mile times/speeds. Just trying different things that would not break. But, I was never beaten by any stock-bodied 283 and beat many 327's. The engine had enough torque to drive a train. This was one tough car that came out of the hole like a demon. It's name was PEPE. Those were fun days, a long time ago!!!! Chuckl
With everything tweaked, it would not idle under 1,100 RPM, ever! The stock clutch blew out immediately, followed rapidly by the 3-speed. So, I installed a HD Dodge truck clutch and tranny. Next was an exploded drive shaft through the floor pan. Then came both twisted axles and an exploded diffy. Ok, enough is enough; I installed a Dodge station wagon drive shaft and rear end with big tires. I built homemade traction bars for the rear.
I had no idea what I was doing. I don't remember the horse power, CI, CR, trans ratios or rear end ratio or 1/4 mile times/speeds. Just trying different things that would not break. But, I was never beaten by any stock-bodied 283 and beat many 327's. The engine had enough torque to drive a train. This was one tough car that came out of the hole like a demon. It's name was PEPE. Those were fun days, a long time ago!!!! Chuckl
Greg Reimer
Well Known Member
July,1976, the original Irwindale Raceway, my '62 Impala SS, red, black interior,409,dual four barrels, 4 speed, 4:11 post early rear end, closed exhaust, street tires, low 16's, high 15's, no traction whatsoever until 4th gear, I had no idea what I was doing, but experience paid off. Eventually that car went 12.66 at 108.95, 12 bolt with 4:88's, my one piece driveshaft conversion, a wide ratio Muncie 4 speed, and an 11 inch three finger Borg and Beck clutch so that the clutch pedal wouldn't stick to the floor when launching and power shifting, what a fun time. Still drag racing, I've probably raced at least 14 cars at probably the same number of drag strips. What a fun time ever since!!!
My wife and I went out on our first date that month, not in the 409, but an orange and black '69 Plymouth Roadrunner. We were married the following summer. We still are, as well.
My wife and I went out on our first date that month, not in the 409, but an orange and black '69 Plymouth Roadrunner. We were married the following summer. We still are, as well.
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Greg Reimer
Well Known Member
Well, let's review 44 years of going racing. An asterisk indicates cars I owned personally, the rest were either partners or team cars owned by someone else. At the beginning, not exactly in order,
#1* 62 Impala SS, 409 4 speed, original Irwindale and Orange County.
#2* 69 Plymouth Road Runner, 383, 4 speed, original Irwindale
#3 55 Chevy drag car,409, OCIR. Owned by Bill Mitchell, a 409CCA member, who once owned Mike Lenke's Z-11 in the late '60's.
#4 '62 Bel Air hardtop, 409, 4 speed, OCIR and first ever Firebird Super Chevy, 1984
#5 '61 Bel Air 2 dr. sedan, 283 Stock Eliminator car, '83 Winternationals, Pomona. Not a great race car.
#6 '66 Chevelle wagon, 283, former Cal Method car, '85 Winternationals and '87 World Finals,Pomona. Great race car
#7*'66 Bel Air 2 dr sedan,283 Stock Eliminator car, Pomona,Palmdale,Riverside,old Las Vegas, and Bakersfield
#8*'63 Nova drag car, 409, OCIR Too crazy dangerous. Traded it for *9 below.
#9*'63 Bel Air 2 door sedan, 409, OCIR,Riverside, Palmdale,Terminal Island, Very good bracket car, now owned by Mitch Akers,San Diego
#10*'70 Monte Carlo, 350 Stock Eliminator project, Riverside and new Irwindale
#11 *'68 Chevelle Malibu 2 dr hardtop, 327, K/SA, Pomona, Bakersfield, Speedworld in Arizona, Palmdale,Terminal Island,old Las Vegas, great race car.
#12 *'68 Chevelle 300 sport coupe (very rare body style), K/SA, I/SA,Pomona, Irwindale,Bakersfield,Las Vegas, and Fontana,excellent race car,
#13 '70 Chevelle, 402,E/SA,Palmdale,'92 Winternationals, very short partnership
#14 *'68 Chevelle wagon,327, N and O/SA, Pomona, Fontana,Palmdale,Bakersfield, new Irwindale.Excellent race car.
I guess that's about it. The first run down Irwindale almost 44 years ago, and I never went out on the street after that.
I kept all my racing out on the track.I've been the luckiest guy around to have been able to do all this and go the places I've gone,met the people I've met, made so many friends for so long, and won a lot of rounds. Nobody could ever take that away. I know you guys feel the same way.
#1* 62 Impala SS, 409 4 speed, original Irwindale and Orange County.
#2* 69 Plymouth Road Runner, 383, 4 speed, original Irwindale
#3 55 Chevy drag car,409, OCIR. Owned by Bill Mitchell, a 409CCA member, who once owned Mike Lenke's Z-11 in the late '60's.
#4 '62 Bel Air hardtop, 409, 4 speed, OCIR and first ever Firebird Super Chevy, 1984
#5 '61 Bel Air 2 dr. sedan, 283 Stock Eliminator car, '83 Winternationals, Pomona. Not a great race car.
#6 '66 Chevelle wagon, 283, former Cal Method car, '85 Winternationals and '87 World Finals,Pomona. Great race car
#7*'66 Bel Air 2 dr sedan,283 Stock Eliminator car, Pomona,Palmdale,Riverside,old Las Vegas, and Bakersfield
#8*'63 Nova drag car, 409, OCIR Too crazy dangerous. Traded it for *9 below.
#9*'63 Bel Air 2 door sedan, 409, OCIR,Riverside, Palmdale,Terminal Island, Very good bracket car, now owned by Mitch Akers,San Diego
#10*'70 Monte Carlo, 350 Stock Eliminator project, Riverside and new Irwindale
#11 *'68 Chevelle Malibu 2 dr hardtop, 327, K/SA, Pomona, Bakersfield, Speedworld in Arizona, Palmdale,Terminal Island,old Las Vegas, great race car.
#12 *'68 Chevelle 300 sport coupe (very rare body style), K/SA, I/SA,Pomona, Irwindale,Bakersfield,Las Vegas, and Fontana,excellent race car,
#13 '70 Chevelle, 402,E/SA,Palmdale,'92 Winternationals, very short partnership
#14 *'68 Chevelle wagon,327, N and O/SA, Pomona, Fontana,Palmdale,Bakersfield, new Irwindale.Excellent race car.
I guess that's about it. The first run down Irwindale almost 44 years ago, and I never went out on the street after that.
I kept all my racing out on the track.I've been the luckiest guy around to have been able to do all this and go the places I've gone,met the people I've met, made so many friends for so long, and won a lot of rounds. Nobody could ever take that away. I know you guys feel the same way.
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Kind of a loaded question. The first car I raced was my dads jeep 4.0 jeep back in 92' Pretty quick for the day but I was soon given a 1986 chevy Sprint. 3 cylinder (48hp/57lbs torque) automatic, front wheel drive car that would corner like it was on rails. Car was 1500lbs and would take a corner without having to lift off the gas (Granted it was 48hp). Anyway it was like my very own Rally Car. I even bought some aggressive front tires for it for better grip when shooting the gravel roads. Turns out my parents still have the car and I do plan on restoring it back to its original glory. Not much to do because it literally looks the same. Not rusted out because it didn't spend many years outside. Been in storage now for over 25 years. There happens to be a guy down the road from me who is restoring one right now. I flipped when I seen his project, he was pretty excited that I even knew what it was. LOL!
Officially my first run down a real drag strip was in my wagon last year. I have street raced and run on circle tracks modified for fun runs but never actually raced down a real track until last summer in the 64' Belair wagon know as "Space Shuttle". Thanks again to everyone that pitched in to make that happen at the track! Such an amazing weekend!
Officially my first run down a real drag strip was in my wagon last year. I have street raced and run on circle tracks modified for fun runs but never actually raced down a real track until last summer in the 64' Belair wagon know as "Space Shuttle". Thanks again to everyone that pitched in to make that happen at the track! Such an amazing weekend!
