The most common question I get is "how fast have you ever gone?" and "how much horsepower do you have?" I can only answer one of those questions without self-incriminating myself. So, let me give you some background knowledge on how I got Orange Julius to perform better on the track as well as provide some insight to the progress in performance based on the horsepower it had at that time.
ProCharger with Stock Engine, Transmission, and Rear End
When it comes to forced induction, there are many things you can do to make your car faster. As discussed in the previous blog, I chose the ProCharger. The ProCharger is considered to be a self-contained supercharger head unit in the shape of a turbo. When I first installed the ProCharger in 2020, I did not do any motor, transmission, drivetrain, fuel change, or rear end modifications. It was running on e93 pump gas with all original parts. This is considered to be a modified stock car. I went from 425 engine horsepower to 550 engine horsepower. That was with 6psi of boost from the ProCharger. That's expected considering a stock engine on premium pump gas. I could easily compete with other drivers who had 12 second quarter mile cars. I liked the increase in power for what it was - maxed in boost to protect longevity of the car - however, I wanted to go faster and in order to do and to get the most out of the ProCharger, other modifications had to be done.
Time slip at Test and Tune to see how the car performed on a quarter mile track
Not only did I need more horsepower, but I also needed better traction to control the power. My street tires are 275/40R20 in size all the way around so in comparison, I needed wheels and tires that were similar in size, lightweight, and good for racing. Thus, the hunt for drag radials were underway. Better traction on the track produces a more controlled launch. I decided to buy Race Star wheels with Mickey Thompson tires.
- The front sizes are 17x4.5 in Race Star wheels and 28/6R17 in Mickey Thompson tires.
- The rear sizes are 17x9.5 in Race Star wheels and 305/45R17 in Mickey Thompson tires.
The entire set cost $2000. When I took the car to the track for test and tune, the 12 second quarter mile timesheet was with the Racestar wheels and Mickey Thompson tires. My car is 4250lbs. That's a lot of weight to launch down a race track. So to be able to compete in what I consider to be the slowest competition was progress to me. However, it wasn't enough power at the engine to transfer to the rear end and my burnouts suffered because of it. Oddly enough, with more power, it was harder to get the drag radials to spin simply because of how much of that power wasn't getting to the wheels. With street tires, it was easy. Keep in mind that the drag radials are to give better traction so it takes more power to get them to "break" traction.
ProCharger with Modified Engine, Transmission, and Rear End
With great power, comes great power. The ProCharger D1X comes with a 1000hp rating. It's the upgraded version of their commonly sold P-1SC or P-IX self-contained head units. It's 9" in diameter with 32psi in max boost. Now, don't let the max boost fool you. If you're familiar with exponential curves, then you'll be able to understand that boost is similar to that curve. Based on the capabilities of my internal make-up (modifications done on the car), the boost will max out at a certain level but that doesn't mean that the max level will reach 32psi.
The modifications completed were:
- Engine rebuild - 402 cubic inch hemi stroker, forged internal parts
- Transmission rebuild - War Viking Max NAG1 transmission with a 3200 stall torque converter
- 4" aluminum one-piece driveshaft
- 3.09 limited slip differential
- ID1050 fuel injectors with FORE dual fuel pump
This allowed the boost to increase from 6 to 8psi. This may seem small to you, oh ye of little faith; however, I went from 525 engine horsepower to about 800 engine horsepower. And you know what?! My burnouts became a LOT easier to do. I was now able to compete with 10 second quarter mile competitors - which is one of the fastest street car competitions.
