> ARBY CHAT

SEVENS FOR TANYA

QUEENSLANDER Tanya Thompson finally broke the seven-second barrier in her twin-turbo VH Commodore at Willowbank Raceway recently, running 7.97@169mph. She and husband Craig have been developing the stout streeter over the past five years and have been gradually creeping up on the tune-up. The Ls-based 377ci engine was built by Abbott Engines in Southport and is fitted with twin Garrett T04Z turbos.

Thommo reckons he has another 12psi of boost left in the tank, but as Tanya does the wheel work they will inch it in when she feels comfortable with it.

There are not many real streeters that can boast a seven-second quarter-mile!

SWEET MOPAR

PART-TIME engine builder and full-time trucker Mick Mcdonald is set to run his stunning VF Valiant coupe at Willowbank soon after freshening up the 427ci small-block Mopar engine. Bundaberg-based Mick debuted the car at Mopar Sunday in 2018 but had a piston failure that has seen him sidelined for the past year.

He recently ran the mill up on the engine dyno and it made 667hp on pump gas. He’s hoping a rocker change from 1.6 to 1.7 and replacing a few lazy valve springs will get the combination closer to the 700 mark.

DRAG WEEK OR BUST

TERRY and Anita Seng of Paramount Performance are still on track to take their Noonan-powered Brock VH Commodore to Hot Rod Drag Week for 2020. For the past few months they have had the water-jacketed Noonan engine in their VC street car, which ran a 7.4@190mph best on 27psi at Drag Challenge Weekend and ended up winning the event.

“At the moment it’s all about street miles and ironing out any bugs,” Terry says. “Once we are happy that everything is great on the street, we will put the engine back in the race car and work on our times.” Given the Brock car is 700lb lighter than the streeter, the 190mph would easily equate to a six-second pass in the racer. A recent dyno session saw the VH produce 2000hp with ease, so it’s set for big things in the future.

MINCER RETURNS

AFTER a devastating engine failure on a new combination saw it sidelined last year, Australia’s toughest Capri, Tristan Ockers’s MINCER, is preparing for its greatest ever comeback.

The 510ci Olds combination will utilise a new World Products steel block and a set of Oliver steel rods instead of alloy. The previous motor made 2400hp at just 7100rpm thanks to a 14/71 Kobelco Superman blower, and Tristan is looking to pick up where he left off. “We were only making around 1900hp back in 2016 and the car ran a 6.90,” he says. “If I can keep running that, pull a few big wheelstands, big burnouts and put on a show, I’ll be stoked.

“Racing is cruel, but when it all comes together nothing is better than running a number and a day at the track with your mates.”