73-77 Oldsmobiles

[Rich Team11 H/O]

My brother and I are building a car to compete in the Bullrun. We have 6 cars in the stable but have decided in one of two. A 75 Cutlass Supreme (dubbed the Extreme) and a restorod 75 Hurst/Olds.

The engines are covered, both cars have engines built to put out over 500hp, the extreme may get a twin turbo setup bringing power closer to 1000hp..but thats non issue at this point.

What I am concentrating on are the wheels, tires, brakes and aerodynamics.

I have been trying to find out as much information about the NASCAR 77 Olds that was raced years ago from a aero point of view..but have not seen anything other than some lousy pictures.

1) As far as wheels: we need the lightest and most practical wheels we can find. Since the car weighs in at about 3500lbs the wheels need to be strong. I was also thinking of using wheel disks to help with the aerodynamics, but I dont know how badly that will affect the brakes. We are looking into 17-19" rims.

2) We were going to go with run flats, but after talking to the people at Tirerack, they highly suggested that we go with a conventional high performance tires and forget the emt tires since their performance is reduced. Basically we need a tire that handles fantastically in dry and wet. They need only last about 3000 miles but at speeds exceeding 150mph for long stints.

3) I would like to upgrade the brakes to multi piston fixed caliper units. I am considering Outlaw 4000 NEXTEL Cup units, anyone else have a suggestion (we dont want to spend a fortune on calipers)? Also does any company sell adapter brackets for these GM A-body vehicles (trying to cut down on the machine shop time)?

4) My favorite part is the aerodynamics, I am undecided if a rear spoiler or proper wing would be better..or both, this car has a tendancy to lift due to its rear shape. We will be using a smooth aluminum under tray, roof mounted vortex generators, chin spoiler and rear venturis. We also plan on adding stabilizer strips on the roof and will close off the grill as much as is practical. Convex light covers are going to be made as well. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as to how we may want to refine any of this or add to them.

This is a huge undertaking and we need the car to be done by first week of October. All help is greatly appreciated...great site!

[strangler]

Updates? Pictures?

[Rich Team11 H/O]

No updates as of yet, was hoping to get a little feedback from any one else that has a similar bodied vehicle. Been doing my due dilligence on aerodynamics, I really need to dial this thing in. Bro spoke to DickMiller and is considering picking up a bullet proof Olds race engine for $16k , 650hp on pump gas and enough torque to lift a house....dunno, thats steep, we will probably just stick to the engine we have, 600hp.

The 75 Hurst is in the Avatar; I know its hard to see.

[73z-6sp]

I really want to see this car!! Please post some pics?!

[Rich Team11 H/O]

Here are two shots of the Hurst...its been restored to appear stock, suspension is set up for handling/road race, and the engine of course is heavily modified; the wheels were custom made using the stock 15" centers, back are 10" wide. We have decided that we will be using the other Olds for the race that way we can make all the neccessary mods the right way and not risk hurting this one.

[strangler]

Sure does look stock. If you guys have altered one single peice of equipment you did a good job of hiding it. Nice car.

[Rich Team11 H/O]

Thanks, yeah we painted any performance parts to look OEM, the Edelbrock manifold has the name ground off and painted to look stock, MSD ignition is hidden. My bro even swapped out the tubular headers we had on there before the restoration for some Extrude Honed stock exhaust manifolds..we lost some horses there but the car has more than enough. Even the eight track is still in place, with an Alpine concealed. But when its running it sounds like a monster and the the underside at its lowest point is about 2.5" off the ground the rear tires are 295, so its a nice rear view....though the tires get grossly overtaken by the engine. We will be going with something a bit stickier and wider on the "Extreme".

[73z-6sp]

Very cool!! I love those cars! I remember when they were the thing. Everyone wanted one it seemed. But that may have been a regional thing though! (Midwest, circa 80's)

[Bandit]

Wow, I would love to see video of that thing blasting around a track at 150 +!! Wicked!!

Paul

[Rich Team11 H/O]

We did it we ran the event it was great, thank you to everyone who gave me tips. The tires recommended here were awesome and heleped us beyond belief. They have begun running promos on Spike TV, you can see the Hurst in several shots, you can see me running up to what looks like an emergency phone booth. I set up a myspace page that has three of the promos that are currently running. Former pro wrestler Bill Goldberg is the host.