We shared the first drive of Shawn’s 1955 Chevy, after it had sat for 11 years, and couldn’t be happier with the giant grin on his face. I know what that’s like, and am stoked that he’s got this bitchin ride back up and running. The fact that it uses the same F1X ProCharger that we’re using on Ethyl, also makes me happy. When we had the F1A94 on the car we also ran it on E85 with no intercooler, so I know that you can make real power with that setup. This one should make real power as well. So what will it make? Will Shawn be happy? I’m not going to spoil it for you, because you need to watch it yourself, but I can tell you that this combo is capable of making well over 1,000 horsepower at the tire. Actually a few hundred more than 1,000 is doable with that blower. Can they do it without an intercooler though?
I like intercooled combos, don’t get me wrong, but running on E85 without an intercooler can be done pretty easily as well. And without all that extra plumbing and such, it is a much simpler system to install. And don’t forget, most turbocharged race cars running methanol don’t use an intercooler because the alcohol itself lowers intake temps so much that an intercooler is just extra weight with little reward. E85 isn’t quite as good as methanol at cooling the intake charge, but it is damn close.
Watch the video, enjoy it, and let us know what you think about this beast.
