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There was a race I really wanted to attend last weekend so I worked pretty hard over the past couple of weeks to get the fuel system redone for E85 so I could run some decent boost. I havent actually raced since September of 2021 so this was a goal for me to make this race.
As a refresher the engine is now a DSP built LSX block 427 with Wilkes rectangular port heads, BTR stage 3 turbo cam (I think), and some pretty nice internals. Built for 10:1 compression. Still the twin FI S369s and dual 50mm gates.
Fuel system now consists of a aeromotive 5gpm brushless pump in one of my internal surge tanks being filled by a walbro 450 and FID 2200cc injectors. All new PTFE lines. -12 from pump to filter, -10 from filter to rails (fed in the back of both), -8 from front of rails to big regulator, then -10 back to the motion raceworks flexfuel sensor holder thing and finally -8 from there back to the surge tank.
Let me just say I have never used E85 before, tuned on the holley system more than just putting around, but I finally got everything working after chasing some issues on Friday afternoon. The race was Saturday morning so I filled with 85, made a fuel table adjustment, and loaded on the trailer and hoped for the best without any test hits on the new setup.
The race was at Fulton, MS and there were 35-40 fullsize trucks there with most of them being boosted in some way. It was an outlaw track, which means terrible, and no prep. I double entered two classes mainly so I could get more test runs in. I managed 5 test passes before the event started trying to figure out any fueling changes I need and working the boost controls on the holley. I didnt touch tires, spark plugs, shocks, traction bars, or anything else, just showed up to run A to B.
Long story short, I drew the fastest truck there in both classes for the first round. A newer F150 5.0 with a big whipple, 4wd, 10spd, and a very experienced driver with a whole lot of money in this truck. Someone said 1300hp without nitrous and typically runs low 5s on a prepped track. Well, I didnt come to loose so I let it eat probably more than I meant to. Boost gauge showed 30-32psi for most of the runs, with fuel consumption in the neighborhood of 1800lb/hr and injectors around 85% duty cycle, which is roughly in the 1600rwhp range. I managed to beat him both races, which he blamed on a transmission issue not wanting to shift, but regardless, I was going to win this whole event. Until my transmission decided to stop transmitting. So my 5th run I lost reverse after I tried doing a burnout, and the transmission pressure was in the 40-60psi range and making a lot of heat and puking from the trans vent. I was done for the day, but man was I impressed and had a blast. Truck was doing excellent and these turbos on this engine go from 8psi to 28psi in less than a second. Spinning all 4 tires most runs.
They werent handing out slips and I didnt have my draggy on, but from videos it looks like high to mid 5s on most runs. I will compile the videos I have at some point, but truck was doing work!
The plan right now is to pull the transmission and have it fixed. Obviously the needs at 1500-1600hp are different than 1000 its been at for years. After that there are so many places I can make improvements I think 5.50s are probably attainable and maybe faster if I can find time to work on it.
Here is a promo video a guy at the race put together. Most of the trucks there were running my parts which was a super flattering experience. The guy that won the main class (DigginZ71) actually had my old engine in his truck.
Sep 20, 2023 | 10:36 AM
