Bryan added these comments in the current discussion du jour ...
>> I'm scratching my head as to when the 383 went
>> > into the A-Body cars like the Dart, may have been 1968.
>>
>> IIRC it was '68 for the 383 and non-factory 440s (Mr. Norm, I
>> think). The factory did 440s for '69 based on Mr. Norm's
>> installations.
>
> The 383's debut in the A-body was 1967. I recall seeing a '67
> 383-S (fastback) running low 12s in Heavy bracket (12.00 -
> 13.99 at the time) in Seattle. When I asked the owner why he
> didn't push it a bit harder to run 11s, he stated that he
> would have to put a roll bar in it, and didn't want to go that
> far with such a rare piece. I've also seen a Dart version.
> IIRC, the 440 was a dealer-install option (M-code) for '69
> A-bodies. Bryan
>
Bryan, if you say it is true, I believe you. I guess I need to
dig deeper and probably eat some crow, but so far, I cannot
verify that a 383 was available in 1967 with the usual reference
books.
And, I can hardly dispute the numbers you quoted for that bracket
racer, but it must've had one helluva lot of mods! A production
383 was barely quicker no matter what gears than a 340, and often
lost anyway due to its weight and front-to-rear distribution
disadvantage.
Now, when we watch American Muscle Car, we see feats of drag
racing, street racing, billowing clouds of tire smoke and all the
dramatic crap out of cars I KNOW could not do that, because I
drove many/most of them. And, for production cars, not mods, I
have 2, maybe 3, books that reprinted the original road tests of
the day and a 340 or 383 A-Body was a long, long way from 12.00.
Hell, even the Hemi drag cars of the day were often running only
high 11's. Now before you flame me, as I know you know, MUCH
depends on weather and track conditions, not just raw hp, torque,
gearing and driver skill. Besides, in drag racing, it matters not
what your ET or trap speed is, only that you got there before the
other guy.
Thanks for the info, I'll dig deeper.
--
HP, aka Jerry
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