Don Terrill’s Speed-Talk

A car with lots of aero drag will be more consistant when the air density changes.

On edit: the ability to change the font size to a LARGER one. My eyes aren't what they used to be ya know. If you have internet explorer look down to the bottom on the right side. See the 100%? Click on that or the little down arrow to the right of it and you can change the size to whatever you wan...

I did a lot of testing on my P-30 454 GM chassis RV after installing a miles per gallon computer in the late 80's. Gearing changes and installing an overdrive with the turbo 400 transmission showed that the lower the cruise rpm the higher the mileage even with a loaded trailer as long as it was on l...

I'm not sure how many cylinders you have but on some 4 cylinder engines there is a spot where the piston speed is low when half the cylinders are near TDC and the other half near BDC. The normal feeling when rotating the short block is free, then harder as the piston speeds increase then free again.

There is a lot of heat transfer between the ports in that kind of head too. Coating inside the intake and exhaust ports could help. A U shaped sheet metal shroud around the intake with a blower at the firewall supplying fresh cowl air around the manifold and down could be fabricated fairly easily. I...

I really like your enthusiasm. Sometimes we have to think outside the box. Keep those wheels turning. I agree. Don't let these guys discourage you, just keep experimenting. I would suggest you refine your test methods by adding an accurate speedometer and odometer. A good stopwatch and a G-meter ar...

If car weight is in proportion to engine size the smallest displacement will have an advantage as long as the rpm needed is safely possible. The first thing that has to be considered is the bore size. The bore has to be large enough to let the heads work. If the bore size of the 240 is too small you...

That is the worst, I had a theft once too, years ago. Put a "race parts wanted" ad on craigs list. Use a phone number with caller id. Just list one thing they have like the manifold and carburetors. Don't be too specific in the ad, just something like 2x4 manifold and carbs. When they call...

I was just watching the Cup race and noticed the smoke from the Gibbs cars. It sounds like the carburetors are built to be sealed very well on deceleration to keep all oxygen bearing air out of the intake system. This increases engine braking slightly. The flames seen on many cars are ignited at the...

Lots of good advice so far. How old is the gas? Does it contain ethanol? What temperatures are we talking about in the morning?

Try less spring pressure to lessen the initial shot and to prolong the shot time. When you get the a/f ratio constant for that first bit, then adjust squirter size to get the ratio you want. Make sure the 60 foot times and response are improving.

The car will need a specific amount of power to maintain 70 mph. The rolling resistance, wind resistance and friction losses in the transmission and driveline/axle will determine the amount of power needed. Lets estimate it takes about 45 hp to make this car go 70. Engine size is not a factor as far...

One last thought is those old things often had giant cast iron pulleys, could there be a chunk missing on one?

There were no vibrations in those cars.



Inspect the radiator fan for loose or missing blades too.

It is common for an overly rich methanol mixture to miss or sputter on the top end. Sometimes this can also give a "shooting ducks sound" (pop) when getting out of the throttle.