Oztrack Clubsport Drag Racing 2004-2006
Base Specifications
5.7L (346ci) US Manufactured LS1 engine.
Used in America in Corvette, Pontiac GTO & Camaro.
Weight 1650Kg (3638lb)
The car did 323 drag races at Sydney Dragway
with 187 times in the 11s range before we sold it in 2008.
Drag Racing Results
Drag Races are over 1/4 mile (about 402m) and the results are given as a time in seconds and the finishing mph at the end.
Cars straight off the street can race most Wednesday nights but the Sport of Drag Racing that includes many classes of racing and handicap racing occurs on the weekends.
Sydney Dragway is south of the Eastern Creek Circuit Race Track
23 June 2004 – First visit ever to WSID.
13.904s best of 101.7 Mph (163kph)
14 July 2004 – won $100 for 3rd best start of the night
13.274 – done with air intake and Re55 tyres but with full, quiet exhaust
28 July 2004 – won $300 for the best start of the night.
13.031 best of 108mph (174kph) – done with a special custom air intake and RE55 Race tyres plus race loud exhaust
11 August 2004
13.066 – maxi flow air intake and RE55 Race Tyres plus race loud exhaust
20 September 2004 – Sunday Private Track Day
13.2140 best of 108.7Mph (175Kph) – all on street tyres plus race loud exhaust
29 September 2004 – two runs, and it rained. Done on street tyres. plus, race loud exhaust
13.160
3 November 2004 – won $200 for the second-best start of the night.
There is good improvement from engine mods done with street tyres, plus race loud exhaust
12.713 best of 112.94Mph (182Kph)
10 November 2004
- With borrowed BF Goodrich Drag Radials. The track was slippery compared to the previous week.
- The temperature of 19 degrees. Nice if we had near 10 degrees again – it would help about 0.1s .
- 12.645
- 12.968 – had to ease off the throttle – left traction control turned on.
- 12.692- best end speed 112.5Mph (181Kph)
27 Feb 2005
It did 11 between 12.608 and 12.700. Recording a new best of 12.608 and 113.57mph, which is 182kph (with a 1.940 first 60 footer. This was in 22 degrees and 77% RH, so with 10 degrees, the car is in low 12.40 shape now.
- The times for my best run were
- 1.940
- 5.375
- 8.169 at 86mph
- 10.578
- 12.608 at 113.57 mph
Project 11SR8
Late 2005 Further Modifications.
Most of the base work for an 11s car had already been done and the next big stage was to purchase a Hi-Stall converter from the USA, we did lots of research and decided on a “Yank Super Stock 3600”. It promised to make the car able to launch at 3600rpm and maintain revs at 5000rpm and above for most of the strip. Plus it would likely smooth the cars gear changes out and make it much smoother to ride in on the road.
The Yank SS3600 was fitted and some modifications were made to the exhaust to make it quieter on the road and also perform better at the track. Some American drag racing tyres called Mickey Thompson ET Streets in 235/60 x 15 were MT3752R purchased just to be used at the race track they give the car such traction that it can get to 100kph from a stop in close to 3.4s and go on to 160kph in under 8.0s.
A special manifold cooling device to use at the race track was also imported to assist performance in hot weather.
Steve raced on the 1st June 2005 and did 12.070 – just half a car off joining the 11s club. The car did a 1.678 launch, which at that stage felt like being shot out of a canon (“I got a headspin from the surprise”).
The car was now doing 9.0s to 160kph
On June 12th 2005, at WSID at a private race day, the car had a breakthrough, after some minor modifications to the gearbox change firmness and the removal of some weight. The car ran its first sub 12s pass, then continued to complete 17 races under 12s. It even did 3 runs under 11.9s and finished with a new best of 11.891 with a 60 footer of 1.647s.
Logging during an 11.990 pass indicated acceleration times of:
- 0-100kph 3.8s
- 0-130kph 5.9s
- 0-160kph 9.0s
- 0-180kph 11.4s
So now the major goal for the car was now complete. It was driving nicely on the street and returned 15L/100km for its last 500km before the weekend’s drag meet. It was a daily driven car capable of an 11.8 pass and an estimated maximum speed of 290kph.
Australian National Drag Racing Association Bracket Meet WIN
On July 17th Steve raced in the ‘Bracket Attack’ to do this he had to register for an ANDRA licence and lined up against 43 cars. Many of them dedicated drag cars that arrived on trailers. The morning required some qualifying runs before the action started in Elimination Rounds. Each round of elimination consists of a handicap race start controlled by the drag strips computer. This system makes for close racing. Steve “dialled in” 11.820 and had to go as close as possible to that but not go faster. This type of racing places a great deal of importance on having a consistent reaction time to the starting lights. His practice with a stopwatch with Athletes he coached paid off and he was able to consistently get around 0.100s reactions. Steve raced 4 races before finding himself a very excited driver racing in the semifinal against a well known Nationally ranked driver and knew that one more race and he was in the final. So he concentrated better than ever and did the fastest start and run of the night for the car and won. He then rang up people letting them know he was in the final and was so happy about it. As he approached the line he was thinking “this is great i will at least win something as runner-up, then “I thought NO, damn it, you are going to win this!” and then won the final with an even better run. So the car drove away with a new PB of 11.765s with a 1.622 first 60 footer, won $110 and got a nice engraved wall plaque to remember a good day with.
Doing a good run in an elimination round required
- A precise even two-wheel burnout this means keeping the car straight, not easy when the surface is unevenly wet and sticky.
- Staging the car just mm into the right position at the start and then locking on that spot with hand brake and foot brake pushed to their maximum.
- Building revs in the auto against the brake – but not so much so that the car creeps forward while concentrating to the maximum on the starting lights as the first 2 orange lights come on.
- Stomping the throttle to FULL and letting both brakes off the micro-instant that the 3rd orange light comes on.
- The car then launches within 0.100 after the green comes on, a safe margin it seemed. But all it would take would be a loss of concentration or locking the car down too close to the start position and the start would create a red light start (before green) and that would be the end of the competition for me. False starts are an instant DQ.
- Driving down the strip is easy – except with drag radials on the car wobbles down the straight being pushed around much more by wind etc than on normal road tyres. After the finish line, there is 600m to slow down and its usually not a fuss. You don’t know how you have gone until you get the timeslip from the scrutineering shed unless someone tells you via CB or Mobile.
Steve’s son Andrew often Video recorded the races and they enjoyed watching them later.
Australian National Drag Racing Association Bracket Meet WIN
Clubsport Drag Racing Season 2005 2006
On July 17th, Steve raced in the Bracket Attack 2oo5 To participate, he had to register for an ANDRA license. He lined up against 43 other cars. Many of them dedicated drag cars that arrived on trailers. The morning required some qualifying runs before the action started in Elimination Rounds. Each elimination round consists of a handicap race start controlled by the drag strip’s computer. This system makes for close racing. Steve “dialled in” 11.820 and had to go as close as possible to that but not go faster. This type of racing places great importance on having a consistent reaction time to the starting lights. His practice with a stopwatch with Athletes he coached paid off, and he consistently got around 0.100 reactions. Steve raced in four events before becoming an excited driver. He found himself in the semifinal against a well-known, nationally ranked competitor. He knew that winning this race would take him to the final. So he concentrated better than ever and made the fastest start and run of the night for the car, winning. He then rang up people, letting them know he was in the final and was so happy about it. As he approached the line, he thought, “This is great” I will at least win something as a runner-up. Then he changed his mind and said, No, damn it, you are going to win this! He ended up winning the final with an even better run. So the car drove away with a new PB of 11.765s with a 1.622 first 60-footer, won $110 and got a nice engraved wall plaque to remember a good day.
Doing a good run in an elimination round required
- A precise, even two-wheel burnout means keeping the car straight, which is difficult when the surface is unevenly wet and sticky.
- To stage the car, position it just millimetres into the right spot at the start line. Then, engage the hand brake and press the foot brake down as hard as possible to lock it in place.
- Building revs in the car against the brake is essential. However, you should not rev too high. If you do, the car may creep forward. Focus on the starting lights as the first two orange lights come on.
- Stomping the throttle to FULL and letting both brakes off the micro-instant that the 3rd orange light comes on.
- The car then launches within 0.100 after the green comes on, a safe margin, it seemed. A loss of concentration or stopping the car too close to the start line could lead to a red light start. If that happens, my competition would be over before it even began. False starts are an instant DQ.
- Driving down the strip is easy. However, when using drag radials, the car can wobble. It is pushed around more by the wind than regular road tyres. After the finish line, there is 600m to slow down and it’s usually not a fuss. You don’t know how you have gone until you get the timeslip from the scrutineering shed unless someone tells you via CB or Mobile.
Steve’s son Andrew often video-recorded the races, and they enjoyed watching them later.
Oztrack made the Semi-Finals at the East Coast Nationals.
Oztrack participated in the Super Street category at the AC DELCO East Coast Nationals. This event took place at WSID from September 16 to 18, 2005. It was fantastic to race in front of a large crowd of about 30000 people. The car consistently ran sub-12-second passes all weekend. It made it to the Semi-Finals in a competition with about 38 cars from Queensland, Victoria, and New South Wales.
The car stood out from the rest as the only ‘driven to the meet’ car and a late model car. The others mainly were older Toranas, Capris, Ford and Holdens, running old school muscle carburetted V8s. Mostly cars trailered to the track.
Making the Semi-Finals earned me Steve a good-sized cheque of $200-300 and proved that the Bracket Attack win was not a fluke. The commentators praised the car and provided positive feedback. Additionally, he had many clear fans in the crowd, especially after his semi-final loss. Steve said, “It was a nice feeling to see a good-sized group of people giving the car the thumbs up and clapping”.
Round 1 – win against an LX Torana with Nitrous Oxide
11.982 on 11.87 dial-in, 0.099 reaction, 1.655 60 footer
Round 2 – win against V8 XU1 Torana
11.965 on 11.95, 0.094 reaction, 1.659 60-footer
1/4 Finals – win against Chev 350 powered SLR5000 Torana
12.076 on 11.90 easing up (was on schedule to go about 11.94), 0.013 reaction, 1.661 60-footer
Semi-Finals – lost to Ford XD 351 ute
11.922 on 11.90, 0.166 reaction, 1.653 60 footer
Steve's Clubsport faced off against a racer from Victoria. The competitor drove an older Ford Ute. The Ute recorded a time of 12.008 seconds. It had a reaction time of 0.011 seconds and a 60-foot time of 1.689 seconds. Steve’s Clubsport, however, managed to achieve a time of 11.98 seconds.
The Oztrack Clubsport raced with the rear muffler on. It added about 0.060s onto the ETs. All the races in Eliminations were into fresh headwinds.
New Heads & Fuel Injectors
The car had regular LS1 heads that were hand-ported and shaved. This raised the compression ratio to 10.8:1. A higher compression ratio allows the engine to take in more air and fuel. It also helps to expel more exhaust gases. This enables the engine to make more power and be more efficient. Straight away, the car was noticeably more powerful, even at very low throttle. The other bonus was a boost to fuel economy. It even recorded 9.7L/100km at 110kph on the M4 and 9.0L/100km at 87kph. This was phenomenal fuel economy for a high-performance car with 3.73 ratios in the rear. It could also get in the 13L/100km range for a tank of fuel around town, depending on how it was driven. So, the fuel economy improved by around 10% just from the heads.
The car was noticeably quicker at high speeds. We immediately thought it could reach 11.4 seconds at 118 mph in good conditions at the drag strip. If it were manual (as dynos are more accurate with manuals), it would probably show around 297rwkw (400hp at the rear wheels). Engine at around 360kw. Accelerating with race tyres with 0 to 100kph in 3.4s, 0 to 160kph in 8.2s. It would also have a maximum speed of around 290kph.
Oztrack made the Quarter Finals
At the Nitro Thunder Meet on October 29th
Red lighted in the Quarter Final – still won $75, ran a best of 11.818 in 24-degree weather.
Oztrack Wins ‘Super Street’ at the USA vs Australia Challenge Meet.
Racing in front of a crowd of about 32000 people on December 26th and 27th, 2005, the Oztrack Clubsport won the Super Street event. This was Steve’s biggest win in a major meet, so they collected a significant cash prize and a trophy. The standout moment for Steve was being in the staging lanes for the second-to-last race of the night. The other cars nearby were the Top Fuel Dragsters of USA superstars Dave Grubnic and Scott Kalitta. Then, driving through the tunnel to a full house of spectators.
The points from this win also put him in front in the NSW WSID Track Championship for ‘Super Street’.
So Far The Season:
- Winner of Bracket Attack in July 2005
- Semi-Finalist at East Coast Nationals September 2005
- Quarter Finalist at Nitro Thunder in October 2005
- Winner USA Top Fuel Challenge in Dec 2005
Here is the summary of the experiences at the USA Top Fuel Invasion Meet on Boxing Day 2005.
- Over the 2 days
- Did 3 qualifiers and 5 races of Eliminations.
- The weather was hot throughout the event. The density altitude stayed above 1,400 feet the entire time. Temperatures were close to 30 degrees for most of the meet.
Reaction Times Were The Key.
- Q1 0.072
Q2 0.234 (distracted by very early red light)
Q3 0.073 - Round 1 0.048
Round 2 0.110
1/4 Final 0.021
Semi 0.050
Final 0.094 - 60 footers
1.920 (spun almost to limiter at launch!)
1.665 - 1.657 Track Temp 48
1.660 Track Temp 59
1.666 Track Temp 42
1.673 Track Temp 40
1.675 Track Temp 40
1.687 Track Temp 40
The track was hot and greasy – did bigger burnouts than usual—160-170kph before shutting down.
Eliminations
Round 1
RXNOT a chevy powered Mazda Capella capable of 10.7 Reacted with 0.048 but was caught mid-track and blasted past. The Clubsport did 11.904 on an 11.85 dial-in. The other car broke out at 11.256 on an 11.35
Round 2 (almost 5 hours later)
Bob Moore – Chev Belair was close to top qualifier with 11.0
Steve did a 0.110, then a 1.666, and he red-lighted as well as broke out with an 11.031 on an 11.12. Our LS1 engine reached the rev limiter during the 2-3 shift. Steve had to ease off the throttle to change gears. The car ran a time of 12.064 seconds at 112 mph, losing about 3 mph in the middle of the track. Dial-in was 11.80
Quarter Finals
A HUGE MOMENT that decided OZTRACK’s future (Yes even this website!)
The car’s battery died because we ran the cooling fans manually for too long. We were pushing the vehicle to stay cool. We didn’t know this until beyond the tunnel on the final waiting pad area before being called out to do a burnout. The car wouldn’t start. Luckily, our battery pack was at the start area with Barry, my Dad. After three frantic tries, we finally started the engine and arrived late. We were just seconds away from disqualification due to the delay. The car didn’t even stop before beginning the burnout. Then won the race and won the entire meet and trophy.”
Fork in the Road
Sam Danaskos Capri 302
Steve felt the adrenaline rush after the initial panic of starting the car. He achieved a near-perfect reaction time of 0.021 seconds. However, he recorded a 1.673 second time but hit the rev limiter again. The car did 12.058 on an 11.80 and beat Sam to the line as he did a 0.130 reaction and 11.653 on an 11.500 dial-in with a 1.692 60-footer
Semi-Final
Rick Dudek Capri – Top Qualifier. He red-lighted. Same problem with our 2-3 changes hitting the limiter. He did a 0.050 reaction and a 1.675, maybe pressuring Rick to a red. He did an 11.102 on an 11.09 dial-in. I did 12.006 on an 11.80 dial-in.
Final
Michael Gauci drove a 160 hp Nitrous-assisted LX 5L Torana. Steve had a reaction time of 0.094 seconds. He eased off the throttle during the 1-2 and 2-3 shifts. Despite this, he finished with a time of 11.980 seconds. He backed off before the finish line, securing a clear win, crossing at only 106 mph. Michael did an 11.295 on an 11.12 dial-in and had a 0.064 reaction.
We won the biggest meet we have ever participated in. It was one of the largest events ever held at Sydney Dragway. This was certainly one of the highlights of Steve’s life. The Clubsport was purchased during a low time in his life, and it did this.
Street Commodore Magazine Article
The car was mentioned in the October Edition of Street Commodore Magazine
Dragster Australia Magazine Articles
The September Edition of Dragster Australia Magazine covered my win in July 2005 in the Bracket Attack.
The car was featured in Dragster Australia Magazine for my Semi-Finals performance at the East-Coast Nationals. This was highlighted in the October edition
WSID Drag Summernationals 2006
In February, Steve raced in the Summernationals. He reached the final five competitors but was eliminated just one race before the final. Steve earned valuable points and extended his lead in the NSW Champs for Super Street. He also placed near the top of the National Series. Winning the National Pointscore is a significant achievement. It allows the driver to display the prestigious number 1 on their car. This honour lasts for the entire next season.
As a driver, he performed the best in this meet so far. He consistently got great starts. However, some technical issues slowed the car just enough. This allowed David Simpson to beat him to the line by 0.0206 seconds, about 1 meter. Steve got a 0.009 reaction in this race and went 11.815 on an 11.720 handicap dial-in. You would rarely lose with that combination.
In the last 2 meets, Steve’s Dad, Barry, helped in the crew and made it much easier to focus more on racing and doing well. Steve almost definitely wouldn’t have done so well without Barry’s support.
The car scored 11.768 in the final qualifying round with a 1.630 60-footer. This was done in 27-degree heat and shows the car is ready to run near 11.50 come winter’s cold, fast-racing weather.
Logs showed it’s now accelerating at
- 0-80 2.65s
- 0-100 3.70s
- 0-130 5.73s
- 0-160 8.51s
- 0-190 12.04s
- 80-120 2.33s
Oztrack Wins The NSW Season Championship in Super Street Drag Racing
Steve was named the WSID 2005/2006 Track Champion in the Super Street Drag Racing class. He received the award at the NSW Drag Racing Communities season dinner.
At the big event of the season, the Nitro Champs, he set a new personal record. He completed the race in his car with a time of 11.619 seconds. Unfortunately, he was eliminated in the first round. The logs showed 0-100kph in 3.5s and 160kph coming up in 8.1s, the car got a 1.583 60 footer its best launch yet.
Then again, on May 28th, it did another PB 11.509s 117.45mph at the V8owners private day. The car did under 11.57 10 times and did a best 60-footer of 1.558.
In June 2006, it did another PB of 11.414 and 118.6mph. It also dropped its best 60-foot time to 1.551.
This has been logged at the strip as 0-100kph in 3.4s and 7.7s to 160kph. The car achieved fuel consumption of 8.9 litres per 100 kilometres. This was measured while driving at 85 kilometres per hour. The drive occurred on a flat freeway, from Castle Hill on the M7 to the Penrith River on the M4. This is 32 miles per gallon.
NA, the car did a best of 11.32/119.8mph and ran with nitrous to 10.9. On that run, it was launched in 2nd gear to try to stay past the 11.00s cutoff. If the run had been all out with the 100 shot it would likely have run around 10.6 and 125mph.
We sold the Silver Clubsport to someone in Townsville QLD in November 2008. After all that car did to let us do to establish Oztrack we should buy it back!
