Kevin and Jamie Burnett were on a mission at the US NATS
It wouldn’t necessarily be something I’d reccommend….pretty significantly changing up an engine combination, adding a bunch of torque and power, just before an important big race, but once again, we find ourselves at the Big Go, NHRA US Nationals doing just that. No hiding we like taking on challenges, especially ones involving a G3 Hemi.
Very blessed to be here in Indy where the G3 Hemi powered dream of Kevin and Jamie Burnett was on a mission to make it into one of the fastest Top Dragster fields on the circuit.
The plan, simple, put the engine on the dyno just before Indy, try some new stuff to make more power for what we thought would be needed, a 6.2-6.3 something, Kevin will throw it back in the car at the track, and three passes later, we’d have it all figured out and qualify in the top 32, be ready to race…sounds simple enough.
Then, as it often goes, the plan doesn’t survive the first hit. And on that first run in Q1 the tune was way too spicy with our newly found power, lots of wheel speed, he has to lift, does a masterful job rolling back into it, and runs a 7.04 @ 196, near the bottom of the field, in serious jeopardy of being pushed out the next day in Q2 and Q3. But at the hit, before the drama, Kevin had a 0.001 RT, so at least, he’s dialed in.
Onto Q2 this AM with some tune adjustments to get it down the track and more safely on the qualifying sheet. As he rolls out of the burnout, track officials notice a drip, check it out, let him move forward and the thankfully watchful officials again notice lots of drips… coming from a tire shaken loose fitting at the fuel filter, so goodbye to the much needed Q2.
Then a couple hours later, with tight fittings, an extraordinarily soft tune (now that we know a 6.4-6.5 would likely put us in the field), Kevin, cool as cucumber goes up for our Hail Mary shot at getting in, does his job, lifts a bit before the stripe and with an easy 6.53 @ 204, plants the Rocky Mountain Rocket in the field at his first ever US Nationals. The only real Dodge Hemi on the sheet, in a sea of Big Inch, Big Block, Pro Charged Chevies, this little Hemi with factory production car heads, a Whipple 3.8l street car supercharger and built on the fantastic foundation of an Energy / Callies Aluminium block, got it done.
Tomorrow, we leave it alone and bracket race, we’ll save the 6.2 potential for Iowa!
