Long Read Warning. I have been intending to document and share this long journey for many years, but never managed to start posting. Thus, I’m finally catching up on the story now, after the fact, and hopefully will keep it updated. I’ll split this up over a number of posts. I’m also seeking some knowledgeable advice for next steps at the conclusion.
Backstory:
For a couple decades, I had a goal to build/modify a car and drive over 200 MPH either at Bonneville or in a standing mile event. I wasn’t then, and still not necessarily motivated by setting records. For me, the excitement is the building/engineering challenge and just having as much fun as I can afford.
My first attempt at building a suitable 200 + mph car was with an impulse purchase in Nov. 2012 of an older NASCAR truck chassis for $3500. The truck had been converted by the seller for road-course track days and came with a “stockish” Ford 302. From a safety and parts standpoint, it was an inexpensive path to a great roll cage, chassis, rear end, etc. But more so at the time, the cool factor for me of owning an old NASCAR truck was too compelling to ignore. My plan was a budget built, twin-turbo used LS power plant swap of some configuration and a 6-speed manual. I never progressed with the build far enough to race it at an event.
My attention was diverted from the truck and the 200 MPH goal due to an opportunity to purchase and build a new Factory Five Cobra kit car, another long held dream. I couldn’t afford to do both at the time, and after much consideration, I put the 200 MPH thoughts on hold. I sold the NASCAR truck and associated parts, mostly recouping my investment with a few extra retained parts to show from the effort. I bought the FFR kit and built the cobra over the next few years.
Soon after the Cobra completion, that nagging desire of achieving 200+ MPH returned. By that time, I had some additional money saved and I began the search for a suitable vehicle. For this second build attempt, I had narrowed my search choices to an older NASCAR car chassis, a used C5/C6 corvette, or a used Gen 5 LS based Camaro. The initial buy-in for the Corvette or Camaro at the time would have stretched the initial budget more, but a suitable drivetrain configuration was already there for modifications. The NASCAR car chassis quickly fell out of favor due to my 6’5” height and associated difficulties with ingress and egress along with the apparent impossibilities of me easily working in any part of the interior.
During all this time, I had been daily driving a 2000 BMW Z3 M Coupe (AKA clownshoe), purchased used, quite a few years prior and had since paid off the loan. Mileage by this time was 135K+ and there were some pending maintenance and minor repairs needed. The thought crossed my mind a few times to convert the BMW to a race car. I knew though building the stock BMW S52 engine/trans to significant horsepower would be very expensive and I would most likely want a different drivetrain to make it work. I also didn’t like the idea of taking it off the street and/or heavily modifying it for racing. I greatly enjoyed driving the car in the stock configuration. Most importantly, I had a concern given the rarity of the car, I would later regret the decision.
However, after much searching for other cars and many subsequent considerations, I decided to convert the BMW into a car suitable for land speed racing and standing mile events. Some may think this was not a prudent decision, but this was before the value of these cars had started to increase. I have always favored the unusual builds, and it just made me happy to do so.
At the time I was previously working on the NASCAR truck, my son and I had taken the BMW M Coupe, in stock configuration, out to the June 2013 East Coast Timing Association (ECTA) mile event in Ohio. I attended just as a fact-finding mission to confirm my desire to take a deeper dive into the 200 MPH pursuit. The maximum speed allowed at that event for a street car (with no additional safety equipment) was 135 mph, plus a few extra before you were asked to leave. With the stock 240 HP BMW S52, the car ran 137 MPH in the mile. This seemed to suggest 200MPH was doable with the stock body aerodynamics using reasonably increased power levels.
Thus in 2018, I started the build by stripping the interior of the BMW, saving every part, screw, clip, carpet, seats, interior pieces, etc. This was so if I wanted to return the car back to stock, I had the option to do so at a later date.
The first task at hand was to have a suitable roll cage installed. I have a welder and can stick pieces of metal together, but in no way was I comfortable with cage design or installation. After a few conversations with local shops, I chose Piper Motorsports in Leesburg, VA for the job. They had a higher quote, but they gave me the greatest sense of expertise and were willing to make extra efforts in the cage design/installation to accommodate certain concerns and requests I had. The resulting 10-point cage was designed to meet, but more importantly to exceed the SCTA rule requirements at that time for 200 MPH speeds. I was very pleased with the final result. Working with Mitch Piper was a great experience.
For the drivetrain swap, I picked-up a used, low mileage 2014 non-VVT LS3 taken from a wrecked Gen 5 Camaro. I kept the stock bottom end, replacing the cam along with upgraded valve springs, rocker arms, head studs, new head gaskets, etc. My original intention was to use a turbo and I installed the Tick Turbo Cam (235/243, .635”/.613”, LSA116.5+6). I also purchased a new T56 magnum manual 6 -speed trans with the higher gear ratios and a Quicktime blow-proof bellhousing. I ordered a Mcleod dual-disk clutch and flywheel rated for 800 HP, which later would prove to be problematic. I saved and still have the original BMW S52 and manual trans drivetrain in the corner of my garage.
I started with Ebay sourced motor mounts, trans mount, and long-tube headers designed for BMW E-36/LS swaps. Modifications were needed to these items and many attempts of install/removal/placement of the engine were also needed to get everything to fit. However, due to the lack of resulting engine compartment space, I could never develop a reasonable solution to fit a turbo and associated piping without completely modifying the engine bay. After much thought and research, I changed course and decided to use a centrifugal supercharger and front accessory drive system for a C-6 corvette, all purchased from East Coast Superchargers. I purchased the largest Treadstone intercooler I could fit behind the front bumper.
Given my desire to stick with 93 octane pump gas, I chose to use a Alkycontrol 100% methanol injection system. I modified the stock BMW fuel tank insert to accept a Walbro 450LPH internal fuel pump and along with an external 250LPH pump triggered through a Hobbs switch under boost completed fuel delivery. I am also using a MSD fuel pump voltage regulator to help ensure a constant voltage to the fuel pumps. Fuel injectors are Injector Dynamics ID1050X.
More to come...
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dlmater said:
I think I remember that Cadillac. Sean? Turbocharged 500 IIRC.
johndej
UltraDork
4/17/24 8:41 p.m.
Oh man, great car and awesome to see another RVA local on the board!
Stampie said:
dlmater said:
I think I remember that Cadillac. Sean? Turbocharged 500 IIRC.
Yes, my memory suggests the same. He was a great guy. My son and I spoke with him quite a bit that weekend. I think he hurt his transmission that weekend, and retired a little early. But it was an awesome car. Because of him, an older Cadillac is still on my want list.
buzzboy
UltraDork
4/17/24 9:09 p.m.
I love clown shoes! 137 in the mile is pretty awesome. My e36/5 is pretty similar mechanically to your e36/8 and I've wondered what it would do opened up. I ran 14.5@97 in the quarter.
I would love to see more of that Caddy too. I have a thing for big slab sided sedans
buzzboy said:
I love clown shoes! 137 in the mile is pretty awesome.
I was surprised with that result as well. That was a key contributing factor for my decision to use the car for this purpose. I subsequently spent quite a bit of time internet researching the frontal area and drag coefficient for these cars. In a relative sense to some other cars, the frontal area value is low. It is a small car. However at the time, the drag coefficient values I found were contradictory. Thus, I just roughed out a needed horsepower number for 200mph based on wind resistance is the square of speed.
Following and just for fun I'll share that the top speed of my BMWs was 145mph. One was an E36M3 the other an E34 525i with at close ratio box, both limited by HP. Only modification was a chip, a physical chip replacement, remember those?
My power goals for the car were 800 HP at the crank with 12PSI, or so of boost. The first two trips to the dyno, resulted in observed clutch slip (a few %) near engine redline. The car dynoed at 700 HP to the wheels. These first sessions were stopped early and I took the car home to resolve the clutch slippage issue. Despite originally following the Mcleod clutch manufacturer’s recommended break-in procedure before the dyno visit, and re-checking throw-out bearing clearances, pedal travel, etc. after the dyno sessions, I could never resolve the Mcleod clutch slippage issue at high RPMs over multiple dyno sessions. I finally broke down, purchased (ouch $$$$) and installed a Centerforce dual-disc clutch/flywheel combination rated for 1300HP. That solved the clutch slippage issue on the dyno.
During these same dyno sessions I was experiencing supercharger/accessory drive belt shredding issues at high RPM’s. I eventually went to an 8-rib, dedicated belt drive for the SC that seemed to solve this issue. The final dyno session (much later and with a different tuner) showed 700 HP to the rear wheels at 12 to 13PSI boost, with a somewhat conservative tune given the extended high load pulls expected in the mile. I am calling it around 800 at the crank. I had previously registered for two different ECTA events, but I had to cancel both due to the mechanical issues experienced on the dyno and other minor bugs that needed resolution.
By this time, it was August 2023. It had taken me 5 long years to complete the build given the amount of work needed and the lack of consistent garage time devoted to the project. I was extremely excited to attend the ECTA event in Blytheville, AR the first weekend in Oct 2023. I loaded the car, tools, and associated gear in the trailer, picked up my son, and we embarked for a long drive from Eastern VA to AR.
old running nascar truck for $3500 sounds like a deal. However the clone shoe sounds more interesting.
We arrived to the ECTA event airport, Arkansas International Airport - BYH, on Thursday morning October 5, 2023. The weather on arrival was heavy clouds and light rain. The ECTA event airport is a decommissioned Air Force base formerly used to train B2 bomber pilots. The airfield is now being used as an aircraft parts-yard storage by the major commercial airlines. We staked out a pit space close to the runway and unloaded the car to check everything over from the drive.
I made it through tech inspection, completed the registration process, and was approved for speeds in excess of 200MPH. I had no expectations we would even reach 200 MPH during this first outing with the car. We attended the drivers meeting later in the day, loaded up the trailer, unhooked it, and left it in the locked airfield for the night.
dlmater said:
buzzboy said:
I love clown shoes! 137 in the mile is pretty awesome.
I was surprised with that result as well. That was a key contributing factor for my decision to use the car for this purpose. I subsequently spent quite a bit of time internet researching the frontal area and drag coefficient for these cars. In a relative sense to some other cars, the frontal area value is low. It is a small car. However at the time, the drag coefficient values I found were contradictory. Thus, I just roughed out a needed horsepower number for 200mph based on wind resistance is the square of speed.
I just looked this up to verify it:
- As the vehicle’s speed increases, the power required to overcome drag increases cubically due to the velocity term in the drag force equation.
