Can you tell us anything about that engine project?
AC: Well, NHRA's rules are very specific for fuel (nitro) engines regarding the location of the cylinder head studs and bores, crankshaft and camshaft location, and the valve angles. All of that is specified by the rules. So, the changes that we're allowed to incorporate in (the Ford engine) are subtle. Hopefully they will be of some benefit to us. It's kind of a cat and mouse game with the rules committee and (us) building a little better motor.
I guess you submit blueprints of the block and heads to the rules committee on a regular basis?
AC: Let's say that we haven't been able to forge ahead very quickly on that (engine) at this time because we are backed up with too many other things. We're getting our machine shop in Indy going and when we transfer the cylinder head work (from California) to the Indy facility that will free up enough manpower and machines to get back going on the (Ford) block here. Lately there hasn’t' been a whole lot of progress … but we hope to get moving on it soon.
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It seems that NHRA gives you racers a lot more latitude on the bodies than the engines. I was looking at Tommy Johnson's Impala SS and noticed that it has a lot of subtle aerodynamic touches. You can tell from looking at the body from the back that it is slightly “wasp-waisted,” kind of like some Pro Mod bodies.
AC: Well, you know, they won't allow that much. But it's like each time you go before the rules committee there's a song and dance routine that goes along with them measuring the body and approving the buck. It's like when we built the car that we have now there were half a dozen sessions where “this” was going to be okay, but you have to change “that” and so on. In reality they've all got to know is that it's (body aerodynamics) more a playing field for the aero-dynamist than it is for the racers. An aero-dynamist works on airplanes or cars to get better fuel mileage…they get real excited when they see 10 lbs of drag reduction and it's like, on a fuel funny car, if you don't have 250 lbs of drag reduction at 500 lbs of down force, you're not changing anything that you will be able to see on the race track.