SCAT PACK Sojourn
The journey from high 11-second passes to low 11s may have been a long one, but now Scott Coffin’s Polara is knocking on the door of 10s
If you are a Mopar fan, then Scott Coffin is probably your kind of guy — and I’m not talking in the ‘diversity-is-welcomed-here’ sense. Scott’s love for all things Mopar started about 10 years ago — pretty much the first time he saw this ’64 Polara, then owned by his good mate Kerry-Jo, aka ‘Crazy-Jo’. Scott had owned a few cool Fords, but the sight and sound of the then44-year-old Mopar changed his outlook on cars forever, while also generating some conflicting emotions. We all know they are not the prettiest car of the era, but, for a lot of people, there is something about the ’64 Dodges that just works. In Scott’s own words, “It was kind of ugly, but I kind of liked it, and they are pretty rare over here, too. Plus, it sounded badass and performed as a ’60s muscle car could, and should, so really what was there not to like?” Not a lot, as it turned out, and when the chance to own it came up a year later Scott grabbed it. As most Mopar-philes know, the Polara was one of the weapons of choice in 1964 and could basically be ordered as a factory-built race car with a range of engine options, including the 426 Hemi. Polaras could be ordered with an aluminium bonnet, front guards, doors, and boot, along with lightweight front bumper and real magnesium wheels. Interior- trim options — or lack thereof — included the factory not installing a radio, heater, back seat, carpets, or sound deadening. Plastic side windows could be ordered, and the front bench seat could be replaced with non-adjustable bucket seats from a Dodge van. Such was Dodge’s commitment to the cause that it even fitted the battery in the boot for would-be racers, Sadly, Scott’s new pride and joy was not one of these factory-lightweight racers. It was originally a well-specced 383-powered car — until Long Beach’s Andy Zaccardo transformed it into a street/strip weapon back in the early 1990s. Built with a healthy 440, six-pack, four-speed,
and 4.56:1 gears, it was certainly no slouch. This combination made for easy 12-second passes and a couple of American magazine features. The fourspeed was later swapped for a built 727; with the auto, the Polara was not only a better cruiser but was also a more consistent car on the strip. Scott raced the tried-and-true combo for a couple of years. However, while still quick, the engine and drivetrain were getting tired after a couple of decades of use and abuse. The standard 8¾-inch diff’s axles were the first to go, breaking early in the piece, so Scott sourced some Strange 30-spline units to replace them. Scott reckons that, if something breaks, you should always replace it with something stronger, or it will just fail again. Little did he anticipate where this theory would lead. When an engine loses the will to rev, or at least make good top-end power, then valve-spring replacement is a good place to start. If the springs are being swapped, then why not upgrade them in case of a cam change in the future? And then you may as well throw some roller rockers in there while you’re at it. A roller cam was the next item to be ticked on the Comp Cams shopping list, and, before long, a huge parts order was on its way to New Zealand.
Most people would agree that if you are getting a Mopar engine built, Eric Livingstone at West Auckland Engine Reconditioners (WAER) is the bloke to do it — he knows Mopar products inside and out. So the 440 was sent north. Sadly, the news that came back was not good, as, even with all the new gear that had been ordered, it just wasn’t going to be good enough. There were some issues with the block, and it just wasn’t going to work. That’s when Scott commissioned Eric to build a completely new engine and 727, basically turn-key and ready to race. A new Dart block was ordered, along with a Scat crank and rods that would ultimately yield 496ci. Custom JE pistons and the aforementioned list of Comp Cams parts were installed, along with a Milodon gear drive and oil pan, a high-volume oil pump, and a plethora of ARP bolts to complete the bottom end. Indy 295/1 heads topped off the block with the rest of the Comp Cams gear, with a matching Indy Intake and a massive AED carburettor completing the combination. Needless to say, this was neither a quick nor a cheap process, and it would be a couple of years before the Polara roared again. However, by the end of 2014, it was back together, and, boy, was it sounding angry. First drives of a new combo are a cautious thing, and Scott gingerly drove the Dodge up and down the road. It all ran sweetly, but, come time to back it into the shed, there was no reverse. Scott was on the phone to Eric, who was soon as confused as Scott was, as WAER has built plenty of competition 727s without a hitch. Then it dawned on Eric: the transbrake! As a safety precaution, when reverse is selected, the transbrake button must be pressed for reverse actually to engage, preventing any overzealous shifting into reverse while on the move. As instructed, Scott hit the transbrake button and reverse was there. Positive result! With the potential catastrophe
averted, it was time to put some miles on the engine then hit the strip, and hit it hard! Eric had put together a powerful package, one that he knew would be a challenge to get to the ground, and Scott certainly found the fun in trying. 11-second passes were now the order of the day, but traction was often lacking. While transbrakes make for hard launching when the traction is good, they’re no good when it’s not — and big skids result. In the quest for traction, new mono-leaf springs were installed, along with a CalTracs system. Longer, smokier burnouts on the new Hoosiers may or may not have helped, but they certainly were a crowd-pleaser. Once traction was found and the transbrake started doing its job, the poor old 8¾-inch diff started taking a hiding with the 4.56:1s on a spool, hammering the Strange axles hard — way too hard, as it turned out, with both axles twisted by five splines when the diff was pulled apart to check them. Fellow Cam County member Eddie Trybula suggested swapping them left to right for the next few meetings; that way, the splines should straighten themselves back up — needless to say, Scott didn’t fall for that one! Tim Barwell at The Krysler Shop came to the rescue with a complete Strange Engineering nine-inch rear end, still a 4.56:1 but this time with beefier 35-spline axles and rear disc brakes. Once Brian Howat had built the new 3½-inch chromoly driveshaft from the Krysler-supplied Strange components, the final piece of the puzzle had been sorted and the times began to tumble — 11.6s became 11.4s and then 11.2s. Then, a totally unexpected issue reared its ugly head at Masterton Motorplex’s Dragstalgia meet — tyre pressures. They were dropped a touch lower than normal to try for a better launch, and that worked. Unfortunately, the top-end performance was not so flash. Crossing the finish line in front of his opponent to win the semi-final, Scott backed off and the car gave a big wobble, which got worse as the car rolled around on the soft rear tyres. Let’s just say that swapping lanes at finish-line speeds never ends well, especially when you kiss the wall! There is an old saying that horsepower dictates how fast you hit the wall, but torque determines how far you take the wall with you. Well, with the new wall at Masterton, the torque didn’t take it very far, but the big Mopar’s inertia did manage to move the left-side front wheel back by about an inch — not that anyone realized that at the time. After a quick check underneath, the guard was pulled straight, the bent bumper pulled off, and the car given the all-clear by track officials. Scott pulled the Polara up for the final race, to win the event by a mere 0.075 of a second! The Dodge is now looking good again, and the paintwork has been touched up to match the 30-year-old plus paint on the rest of the car. A new front bumper has been fitted, and Scott is once again focusing on improving the timeslips. With the drivetrain and traction now well and truly sorted, Scott’s ditched the old heavy wheels and fitted some lightweight rims to reduce mass and hopefully help the weight transfer on launch. The aim is to put the 53-year-old Polara into the 10s — with a current best of 11.05, that time shouldn’t be too far away!