Crate Motor Class

[Jim Caughlin]

Several years ago, there was a proposal for a 'crate motor' Comp Eliminator class with one each Chevy, Ford & Mopar motor combo with soft indexes. The story was that NHRA killed the idea before it got off the ground, they got word that engine builders weren't happy about having to run on kill while the crate motor class had a soft index, they had plans to build one off motors to bomb the indexes on day one. So yeah, be careful what you wish for. I know a couple of brothers that live up the street from me who would just love to bomb the HP factor on something like this.

Jim Caughlin
SS 6019

[Michael Beard]

Originally Posted by Todd Hoven

What is the highest HP rated crate Motor available for class? What's the fastest a crate car has run in IHRA et wise?

Crate Motor spec sheets:
http://www.ihra.com/competition/comp...t/category/211

Ford CM Engines
● 460 / 535 @ 515
● 514 / 600 @ 520

Last I could find on some other combos:
Chevy 502/502 was rated at 443
500 / 445 Mopar (Wedge) at 443

Outside of Top Stock, the big HP combinations were few and far between. Most crate motor guys ran small blocks. I know Terry Taylor went 9.60's in A/CM many years ago. I'm sure Nitro Joe has the stats from back in the day. When IHRA did away with record points, class runoffs, etc people quit caring about performance as much.


FYI, my old 360 Magnum crate motor was rated at 325. Add aluminum heads with bigger valves, more cam, almost 2 points more compression, and a 1000cfm throttle body and you have a 5.9L DragPak, rated by NHRA in its infinite wisdom at 275HP. LOL

My advice to Crate Motor Racers is, "be careful what you wish for." You might see your combo hit harder than you ever thought possible. It'd be cheaper to build a stocker combo, than to try and keep up with some of the "wallets" in stock eliminator. It's not gonna be Easier or Cheaper to run a Crate Motor Combo...Guaranteed !

Depends on if you want to keep up with the Jones's or not. You can do things kinda-sorta affordable if you don't care about going fast. I built the 5.9L DragPak for Super Stock GT on a budget, and it paid for itself pretty quickly. I had less in my Super Stock car than most people have in their Stockers. One guy flat out told me I was lying when I told him how much I had in it. The car may have been slow, but it won both a National and a Divisional. The only thing that cost much more than a good crate motor was the EFI computer and fuel system.

[Jim Bailey]

Come on Michael, I love ya , don't act like a liberal and make partial quotes. The point is the cost of crate motors will double, triple, maybe quadruple if approved for NHRA class racing. I don't care about the past costs. We know what will happen. And that's a fact. Plus add to that your chances of a heads up, and if you're a slug, there are no wins. Even if you're as good a driver as you !

[Dan Fahey]

Originally Posted by Nmbr1GMfan

Why would they want to do such a thing?

Called promoting the sport

[Dan Fahey]

Originally Posted by Jim Bailey

Come on Michael, I love ya , don't act like a liberal and make partial quotes. The point is the cost of crate motors will double, triple, maybe quadruple if approved for NHRA class racing. I don't care about the past costs. We know what will happen. And that's a fact. Plus add to that your chances of a heads up, and if you're a slug, there are no wins. Even if you're as good a driver as you !

Jim we are have a fruitful conversation without provocative comments..!

This battle about Crate Motors is not much different than Pure Stock community Or earlier about the GT classes.
Stock had to morph for many reasons.
Such as the plethora of high performance Vehicles from other non US companies and not being included into Stock.
The new generation of kids like the Rice Burners because that is what they can afford.
The pitiful US choices against the foreign markets.
The 91-96 B-body community is growing because useful platforms are available.
When GM Ford and Chrysler reformed after the recession.
They began producing some cool cars...
Including race ready Factory race cars for $100000 !

Crate Motors is natural extension of Stock.
Spirit of Stock taking approved combinations and stuffing into useful platforms.
Combinations that run in the same ET range as current Stock before the COPO and Factory built racers.
Older and nostalgic combinations are being considered with modern engines.
Where their older power plants with vintage parts are becoming expensive.
Upgrading from a 273 4v to and 360 4v is a bolt in procedure.
Think Pure Stock would benefit allowing us to upgrade to a more powerful version.

Already Stock has morphed from Stock with limited Cam specs to junior Super Stock.
In 70s and 80s the Stockers were never quick enough to qualify in a SS field, but they are now!

At any rate Crate Motors cars are a good addition to Stock.

D

[Nmbr1GMfan]

Originally Posted by Dan Fahey

Called promoting the sport

Why, based on some info posted in this thread concerning car counts would NHRA adopt CM into competition when the guys that run CM don't even show up to the IHRA races?

Originally Posted by Rory McNeil

According to my most recent Nitro Joe Stats book (July 2017 edition), IHRA Stock total car count for 1/8th mile events was 116 cars, of which 37 were crate engine classes. For 1/4 mile events, there was a total of 54 cars in Stock (all classes), with TWO crate motor cars! (by the way, at 1/8th mile events, there was a whopping FIVE Pure Stockers and in 1/4 mile ONE Pure Stocker.

[Dan Fahey]

Originally Posted by Nmbr1GMfan

Why, based on some info posted in this thread concerning car counts would NHRA adopt CM into competition when the guys that run CM don't even show up to the IHRA races?

They show up!
You have to attend an IHRA race to see them!
D

[Bob Mulry]

Originally Posted by Dan Fahey

Jim we are have a fruitful conversation without provocative comments..!

This battle about Crate Motors is not much different than Pure Stock community Or earlier about the GT classes.
Stock had to morph for many reasons.
Such as the plethora of high performance Vehicles from other non US companies and not being included into Stock.
The new generation of kids like the Rice Burners because that is what they can afford.
The pitiful US choices against the foreign markets.
The 91-96 B-body community is growing because useful platforms are available.
When GM Ford and Chrysler reformed after the recession.
They began producing some cool cars...
Including race ready Factory race cars for $100000 !

Crate Motors is natural extension of Stock.
Spirit of Stock taking approved combinations and stuffing into useful platforms.
Combinations that run in the same ET range as current Stock before the COPO and Factory built racers.
Older and nostalgic combinations are being considered with modern engines.
Where their older power plants with vintage parts are becoming expensive.
Upgrading from a 273 4v to and 360 4v is a bolt in procedure.
Think Pure Stock would benefit allowing us to upgrade to a more powerful version.

Already Stock has morphed from Stock with limited Cam specs to junior Super Stock.
In 70s and 80s the Stockers were never quick enough to qualify in a SS field, but they are now!

At any rate Crate Motors cars are a good addition to Stock.

D

You sound like someone who built a racecar and wants to rewrite the rules and the NHRA, which you don't race, to suit your own agenda....

If you think that the NHRA needs saving, build a legal NHRA car and enter some events.....

There are also people who buy a house next to an airport because it is cheaper...
After they buy they put all of their efforts into closing the airport that was there first...

Just sayin'

[rk3800]

Well said Bob.

[Alan Roehrich]

Originally Posted by Bob Mulry

You sound like someone who built a racecar and wants to rewrite the rules and the NHRA, which you don't race, to suit your own agenda....

If you think that the NHRA needs saving, build a legal NHRA car and enter some events.....

There are also people who buy a house next to an airport because it is cheaper...
After they buy they put all of their efforts into closing the airport that was there first...

Just sayin'

Well said, Bob.