MICHAEL MCMULLEN
VJ CHARGER
MICHAEL Mcmullen, another Drag Challenge finisher and all-round top bloke, set a PB of 11.22@120mph in his immaculate ’73 VJ Valiant Charger. Michael did 14 passes on the day without putting a spanner anywhere near it, proving it’s a reliable package!
How’d you go today, Michael?
I drove it here, raced all day, set a PB, and now
I’ll put air in the tyres and drive it home. I also flogged it all day at Lakeside yesterday, so it’s reliable. I came here wanting to run a low 11 or high 10, and the car did it all day. I only took up drag racing in October last year, but it’s quickly become my favourite thing to do. I’ve always been into cars but I never really raced before. A mate of mine did Drag Challenge and other mates are into racing, so I saw it and thought I’d get into it. I love it.
Let’s talk about your Charger. What’s been done to it?
Heaps! It gets street-driven, so it has to be reliable. It’s got a built Scat 408 stroker that makes about 400hp, reverse-pattern manualised 727 ’box, 3500rpm converter, and a 9in with Truetrac 3.55 gears. My engine builder does a lot of Mopar stuff, so we worked together on the entire set-up. I basically told him I wanted to run low 11s, and it does.
What are your plans for the car from here?
I obviously want to go quicker, and I think it’s capable of high 10s. It’s pretty much doing what I set out to do, but I’ll tune it and get a few more things sorted.