COPO questions

[joelster]

First off, I love the new COPO's, so this isn't a bash thread by any means. There are a few issues with them that just leave me puzzled, maybe someone can clarify for me.

1. With the 5.3/4.0L combo's----why did GM build them certified to 8.50? Local guy Paul Cambria went out ON THE FIRST DAY and ran an 8.88 with his. They (GM) had to know that the cars would be capable of going faster without too much trouble. That seems wrong to me to sell a car for $89k that the owner is going to have to take right back to a chassis shop for safety updates.

2. With the 427 N/A combo's--why did they put powerglides in them? I've seen several of them launch on their maiden track outings and they desperately need more 1st gear.

I understand that they want the customers to individualize their cars, but to me that means, changing shifters, seats, rear gearing, messing with the tune, etc, etc, not changing major components like a tranny or updating the cage.

[NBD MGT]

Originally Posted by joelster

First off, I love the new COPO's, so this isn't a bash thread by any means. There are a few issues with them that just leave me puzzled, maybe someone can clarify for me.

1. With the 5.3/4.0L combo's----why did GM build them certified to 8.50? Local guy Paul Cambria went out ON THE FIRST DAY and ran an 8.88 with his. They (GM) had to know that the cars would be capable of going faster without too much trouble. That seems wrong to me to sell a car for $89k that the owner is going to have to take right back to a chassis shop for safety updates.

2. With the 427 N/A combo's--why did they put powerglides in them? I've seen several of them launch on their maiden track outings and they desperately need more 1st gear.

I understand that they want the customers to individualize their cars, but to me that means, changing shifters, seats, rear gearing, messing with the tune, etc, etc, not changing major components like a tranny or updating the cage.

How much different is the COPO than a Super Cobra Jet for the roll cage? Does the SCJ come with a cage certified to run quicker than 8.50 or a factory installed parachute?

A guess for the Powerglide decision - They might have wanted to put 100% brand-new content into the cars.

That would be hard to do with the popular choices for fast automatics based on Turbo 350's and metric 200's since they have been out of production for well over 10 years. In the case of the TH350 it's probably more like 20-25 years.

How fast do out of the box 427 COPO's run compared to the index for their natural class? Is it quick enough to qualify in a typical field at a national event?

I thought NHRA's horsepower factoring system had cutoff points for average ET's below index and immediate cutoffs for running a certain amount below index before they would add horspower to a combination. If that's the case, does the factory COPO go fast enough to get in trouble, or does that require modifications to the car before it happens?

[Hemi Moose]

So the 427 Copo Camaro's also came with a 2 speed powerglide (just like the Drag Pak V-10 Challenger's) and are now in the same situation or are they actually doing alright and won't need a transmission swap.

[Geerhead55]

Some of the COPOs got transmission swaps before they hit the track. In the video of the Cagnazzi owned, Dave Connolly(spelled right?) driven, Bill Jenkins tribute COPO test run at Rockingham, pre Indy, you can deffinately hear a 3 speed automatic as the car travels down the track. I don't believe a manual trans swapped COPO has come out yet, but someone out there may know of one.
Danny Durham

[chris ok]

They is what they is, and if you can afford the car, you can afford to play with it. Meaning doing what it takes to satisify your need for that speed.

[Brett C]

The Cobra Jet cars are 8.50 certified also. For those that are quicker, they have to be modified and re-certified.

Brett Candies
4192 Stock/SS