ODD ONE OUT

DODGE ASPEN RACER

David Wood vividly recalls earlier days in which he witnessed his father’s motor-racing exploits, his six-cylinder Zephyr sharing the track with some of New Zealand’s most capable racers. In addition, David’s mother was a McLaren — her dad being a brother of the father of New Zealand’s famous Bruce McLaren. So it should come as no surprise that, more than half a century later, David finds himself racing in the Historic Muscle Cars (HMC) series — a series dedicated to preserving the spirit of racing as it was in the good old days. While period-correct is the intention, the brutes that trade places in HMC are a far cry from the wheezy old Zephyr the elder Wood pedalled in his day. No, these are muscle cars as they were intended — bucketloads of grunt and not much else. Sure, modern suspension and tyres would guide them around a circuit more quickly, but that would be without the white-knuckle fear of departing the track backwards that makes these overpowered machines so endearing to drivers and fans alike. David’s father may have passed the circuit-racing bug on to him, but David did not fall under the spell of the Blue Oval. He’s a Mopar boy through and through, with his love of ’60s Nascar and idolatry of the legendary Richard Petty representing his first step on an automotive journey starting with Australian Valiants before moving on to American muscle. Somewhere along that timeline, which included an early generation Dodge Viper, David was introduced to circuit racing in the form of HMC. It’s probably redundant to mention that David wished to be part of such an intriguing series, and he began the necessary preparations to make it happen. His Mopar experimentation had led him to discover the Dodge Aspen, a ’70s compact car based on Chrysler’s small F-body platform, and relatively unknown in

New Zealand. As David already owned one, he thought its light weight and factory V8 power plant would make the bones of a perfect circuit racer. First, he needed to consult the HMC committee, as a cursory glance at the HMC list of eligible vehicles revealed an alarming lack of Dodge vehicles that weren’t ’70–’74 Challengers or ’66–’74 Chargers. That’s fair, as the Dodge Aspen could hardly be classified as a muscle car from factory, even with a factory-fitted 360ci small block. However, the HMC committee saw Dave’s commitment to building the car properly, and, with a relative shortage of Mopars on the field, updated the eligibility list to grant the ’74–’77 Dodge Aspen entry into the series. Dave’s next step was to find an Aspen shell in good condition, which he eventually managed to do, before arranging to have it filled up with parts sourced online and shipped home to New Zealand. Once home, Dave commenced his plan of attack; his intention was for nothing less than a top-tier race car. The rolling body was stripped, and found to be in as good a condition as Dave could have hoped. He brought it to Jono Panton for an intricate classcompliant roll cage. In addition, two holes were chopped into the rear floor to allow top-mounted traction arms. With adjustable brackets inside and mounting brackets welded to the diff, the arms limit the diff’s ability to ‘wrap up’ the rear leaf springs under hard acceleration.

Due to class requirements, the underpinnings are reasonably basic, with stock leaf springs at the rear and torsion-bar front suspension, complemented by a full set of Gabriel gas shocks. However, that doesn’t mean that it’s all as the factory intended: a pair of leaf-spring wedges adjusts the pinion angle for the 8¾-inch diff, while a Watt’s linkage keeps everything centred. Likewise, braking has been upgraded to suit the Aspen’s new duties as a circuit racer, while fitting within class regulations. The set-up comprises Wilwood six-piston calipers up front with Wilwood four-piston units at the rear and 12¼-inch discs all round to ensure the brakes fit within the 15x8-inch and 15x10-inch Chrysler steel wheels. Of course, where David had the most free rein to do as he pleased was with the engine. While HMC rules remain relatively tight as to what can and can’t be done, they are also lenient enough to permit some pretty wild power plants if you know what you’re doing. David knew better than to mess around with old gear, and ordered an Indy Heads 408ci small block crate engine. While he initially experienced issues with the valvetrain, the mechanical gremlins seem to have been ironed out now, and the all-iron small block pumps out a huge 628hp — power that somehow pales in comparison to the brutal soundtrack pumped through the dual three-inch exhaust and customized Nascar muffler. Don’t go thinking this car’s all fancy gear straight out of a parts catalogue, though. As David elected to go all-Mopar for this build, you’ll find no Nascar-spec dogbox behind this motor but, rather, a Chrysler A-833 four-speed manual box from behind a Hemi engine, which has no problem holding up to the small block’s power and torque. For a Mopar nut like David, when it came time to detail the completed race car, there was only one option — Petty Blue, in tribute to The King himself, with the famous number-43 race numbers on the doors and roof. In pursuit of some aesthetic bark to match the Aspen’s mechanical bite, David has gone with factory wheel-arch flares; ducktail spoiler; and R/T chin spoiler, modified with brake-cooling ducts. This car’s got the full package. Although the small block doesn’t have the brute force of some of the larger cube HMC monsters, its nimble stature and high-revving nature provide an effective alternative. David has certainly grown into it since completing his neat little addition to the roaring field of classic muscle, and we expect he’ll be even better to watch with more seat time — not that competition has ever mattered in the HMC series. He may not be a modern-day Richard Petty, but David Wood is having too much fun to care.