You can tell this thing got hammered on, on the track. Great job! :drive:

Someone is going to have a very colorful garage.

Cris,

Killer build!

Thanks Guys! Fixing & dialing in things right now.. Early next month Buttonwillow Testing..

Here is a short shakey video..

I think its safe to say you are getting the feel of it.

Very cool car. Looks like fun to drive too.

Cris,

How are the shakedown runs going? Any good news to report?

We got about 500 miles on the car.. Car has very good street manners.. The short links on the 3 link rear suspension gives it a bit of a rough ride.. Still trying to find the right shock set-up in the rear.. The lower control arms have been hitting the inner wheel @ lock to lock on pass side.. We just re-designed a new lower control arm to fix that problem.. Fabricate them next week.. Gonna change the cam in the motor.. Don't like where the power band comes on & the car bucks from 1k to 3k on the rpm while street driving.. Karl will not like that.. Installing the same cam as we have in Blu Balz..

In two weeks we take it out to Buttonwillow for its first shake down run on the road course.. So I got a list of about 10 items I need to fix before it goes on the big track.. Karl will be driving it for the first time that weekend.. & we also have Danny Popp coming to SoCal to give me driving instruction on the road course & work with Karl on improving some of his driving technique plus do some big track testing for the Challenger & Blu Balz..

This weekend we just done testing the Challenger as if we were taking it to a event.. The car was on the road course for the first time & got one of the best guys to come out a do some testing for us on the road course plus give me some driving instruction... Danny Popp! In 2013 while attending events in the mid-west I was fortunate enough to become friends with Danny & asked him late in the year if he would come in to So Cal to help do some evaluating on the Challenger which has all JCG front & rear suspension.. & let's just say that I am finally relived that I have finished testing this prototype that was built into this car.. Danny drove the car to it full capability & asked him to spare it no mercy! The car performed well for it first outing on the road course.. Still have a few small bugs to dial out but we are close.. Karl also came into town to drive the Challenger for the first time & when I dropped him off this morning @ the airport was very happy @ the results of the Challenger!

When we left Oxnard Friday morning.. The car had 502 miles on it.. We drove it from the shop to Buttonwillow & put about 280 miles on it round trip plus ran it all day on all sessions that we were allowed.. Then we Auto-X on Saturday all day only giving the car about 30 minutes break between runs.. Karl, Danny, Casey & I were driving it all day.. Drove the car back to the shop.. Car has about 960 miles on it now! It never was loaded on the trailer & survived the abuse of this weekend.. Only made an adjustment to the shocks, panard bar & checked tire pressures when required..

Danny has named the car "BARNEY" Big, Fat, & Happy!

Here is a action shot that Casey took with Danny @ the wheel & I was riding shot gun!

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps71d671d4.jpg

Some in car video..

Man it looks fast in that video Cris, any idea on the current HP/weight?

1.3g's :confused59: , looked awesome Cris! Sounds great too :thumbsup:

Cris congrats on getting the car out! What is your driving impression compared to Blue? I could be wrong, but was the car loose in the vid? I'm sure D Popp makes all cars look loose, lol! Also, what motor did you guys put in there, another LS7?

What app/vid equipment did you have for the graphics in the video?

:cheers:

^ dear lord that engine sounds wicked!!! throttle response is great!

Tom- If I post the video of me driving you would get bored compared to Danny's.. LOL

Car weights about 3260.. The 416 LS3 is making about 600 hp!

1.3 g's on street tires! BFG Rivals.. :thankyou:

Thanks Ron! Danny drove both cars.. Blu was lose & the Challenger was tight.. We took out all the high & low speed compression out of the rear with all the rebound.. The Challenger had more forward bite & the front was working good! All changes that need be made will complete the sorting of the car.. Danny stuffs a car into a corner & deals with the consequences coming out.. The term "lose is Fast" applies to Danny but experience laying down stripes on the road course & getting the car side ways & catching it was the great thing to see in the passenger seat!

We are sticking with the LS3 this year in the Challenger.. The transmission on the Challenger has a ZR-1 gear set in it that are like a close ratio Muncie.. 4.11 gear in the rear.. Danny prefers this set up for road course.. In 6th gear wear are 3k on the rpm @ 80 mph on the freeway..

The lap timer we got is a Aims Solo that Larry Woo hooked us up on.. The camera is also from Aims..

We got a new lower control arm that will now clear up to 315's on the front! The first design was creating tire rub when we went full lock to lock & had to many rack n pinion limiters.. I really did not want do a fabricated control arm but was the easiest way to get clearance..

The spindle also changed.. When we welded the caliper mounting brackets they distorted a bit.. Did not like that.. so we redesigned the caliper mount bracket to bolt directly to the machined part of the spindle plus it holds the Wilwood radial mount caliper.. It interlock for less flex on caliper mount which translates to better pedal feel.. Plus we took some weight out of it..Waiting for SKF bearing packs from Van Steel & we will bolt these on next week..

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps65d3baff.jpg


http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps735d1b46.jpg

This past weekend had Danny Popp come into SoCal for some test & tune on the Challenger plus to give me some driving instruction on the road course.. It was a great weekend of gaining knowledge & making sure the changes we made to the car worked.. We are close to having the car dialed in.. but still chasing some very minor things.. But the one thing that I am very proud of for the JCG gang as Danny refers to us now.. is the durability of our car preparation.. I told Danny not to spare the car any mercy & to run it as hard as he could within his comfort zone.. The Challenger survived!! Best time he knocked down was 1.59! We ran the snot out of the Challenger plus Auto-X in two days.. My driving abilities on the auto-x are showing thanks to Casey's coaching for the last year.. I am barely getting comfortable on the road course but was able to knock down a 2.12. Practice will bring my times down & confidence! In car video of Danny driving.. I can't believe how fast he down shifts a car plus moving his feet like a type writer!

You're too modest dude; you are literally the fastest driver I've seen out at autox. You drive blueballz 15/10th and do it well.

Just found this, Cool build. Needs the Dodge Cup engine though!:lol: But I understand the economics of it. Great workmanship!:hello:

Amazing fabrication !

plum crazy!!
 

I just finished reading this whole thread. I am amazed at the level of fabrication on this car.

I have to admit if I had the money, I more then likely would build my 68 charger pretty close to how you built thism challenger, to be driven.

About the only thing I would of not done is, put an ls engine in it. All aluminum wedge for me please.. Yes I am a Mopar guy true and true but, all the factory number stuff, and original this and that crap, you can keep it. Sitting around a show making sure people don't touch your trailer queen, Please.. BORING!!!!

By chance do you have any more pics of the front spoiler, and rear wing??

:BlahBlah: :BlahBlah: I thought you just read the whole thread. People have already complained, cried, sobbed, moaned about it and it's old news. MOPAR guys it's not the end of the world. Besides, if you owned a shop, you would have done exactly what Cris did....put an LS engine in it because doing what a customer wants pays his bills. All I'm saying is that it's a beautiful car and a beast at that.

Here is a little in car video of this past weekend @ Laguna Seca! I was testing my skills on "Loose is Fast".. This was one of the most fun events that I have driven! The cork screw was a blast.. Bruce Cambren gave me some advise on front straight away coming over the hill where I kept lifting.. I managed to put 117 mph with his advise when he clocked me! On my last run of the day I was able to sueeze in my best time of the day 1.55.. Special thanks to Danny Popp & Casey Cronin for teaching me how to drive.. I promise you guys I will get faster with time.. & to my good friend Karl Dunn.. you have allowed me to live something I only thought would be a dream! Thank you Karl for letting me drive the Challenger this weekend..




http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps376e568c.jpg

damn that 340 sounds awesome!!! Nice work. Sure beats Willows and adams aye?

That was pretty fun to watch. It was nice meeting you on saturday in line for our 45minute burger. I found out they were just aging the cheese....

Vince- When I told Bruce Cambren that the car had an LS in it.. he just laughed.. No wonder the car is fast!

Laguna Seca is one of the greatest tracks that I have ever visited & had the opportunity to drive in.. In July they will have a Corvette Challenge their that I plan on doing again!

Mike- It was great meeting you this weekend!

Hiya Chris,

Wanted to introduce myself on Saturday but every time I saw you, you were either driving or had a 3-deep crowd around you.

Car runs great and judging by the grin every time you got out of it you were having a heck of a time driving it.

Congrats on another successful build.

Nice vid Cris. You don't look so uncomfortable behind that wheel anymore. :D



:computer: :lol:

That tends to happen when your the $h!t. It makes people do this....:king:

Get your facts right.lol
Its a 440 6bbl.

Vid is very cool Cris, I think they are the best teaching aids. Teachs you where you hit the breaks early, and got on the throttle late. etc. etc.

I watched the vid of Farrington following my Mustang, it was the most helpful thing, except I determined that I suck.

Thanks for the ride along, that was awesome!! My hands started sweating just sitting here watching you drive the course.

What I liked was watching you step the pace up every time you caught up to another car on the track, rabbit and the hare kind of deal. I do the same thing, when you see someone you are chasing down, you try just a bit harder to catch them.

Question about the passing rules, about the 15 minute mark you came up no a black import type car...and struggled just a bit while waiting until his passenger finally pointed you by. I thought for a second you were gonna pass him a few times then backed off. What exactly are the passing rules at these events? Do you have to wait for a point by? Or do you have to wait for a passing zone? Or both?

Looked fun, would have loved a chance to drive on that track.

You should of just come by.. I would have kicked everybody else to the curb! :D Thanks for the props!

Seat time is key to what we are doing!

Wait tiill you see all the data aquistion we have in the car! hystograms, brake pressure sensors, O2's for wideband, diff, trans, & oil sensors..

I watched this paticular video ever nite to study the track..

You don't suck! You just have to drive with both arms! not with your elbow hanging out the window .. :ohsnap:



Glad you enjoyed the ride along! I never thought that I would be driving like this in such quick time especially passing cars.. The highlight of this session was passing Matt Alcala! We have been bringing in Danny into SoCal for the last two months not only to shake down the car but to instruct me & Karl.. I ran the car with no adjustments all weekend.. just adjusted tire pressures! Car ran like a champ..

We only had four areas that we could pass on.. So I tried to stay within those areas of passing plus was driving within my comfort zone.. This session was my sloppy one of them all.. by the end of the day I had better lines.. One of the main reasons I drove the car hard was because I had confidence in it! I rode shot gun with Danny many times when we were doing our shake down runs that taught me what the Challenger could do..

Rumor has it that JCG has a new addition to their crew!

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps153e2a03.jpg

I got to admit, I have talked a lot of sh!t about this car being LS powered, But seeing it in person and in action this last weekend has truly made me a fan!!! JCG has done an outstanding job on this car!!!!!
I look forward to seeing it in the future!

no way a 440 revs that fast, oh wait, there was that one time I forgot to install the center carb before I started it. :buttkick:

Danny Popp? no **** there goes the ****** neighborhood.

If you don't mind sharing (and I understand if you don't)
How much does your upright weigh with brake bracket included ?

That LCA looks massive, how much does it weigh and what thickness metal is it constructed from ? The pivots look like they are sized for a stock configuration style bushing ? what are you using - delrin, poly, or rubber ?

I have always loved a proper Mopar - some of their styling was the best. Love how easily you created that front flare its massive and yet not that noticeable. Purple is a great color too.

Thank you for the props sir!

Uprights with caliper brackets are about 11 lbs..

Lower control arm I have not got a weight & 1/8 plate.. The pivots are our own delrin bushings with bushings.. heavy? yup.. but strong!

Sorry to jack the thread, you sent me a PM but i tried to reply and you message box is full...

Matt

For the last two months this car has been put thru the test.. Attending as many open track events that I can plus doing some Auto-X events.. Car now has about 2500 miles on it with half of those being very hard track miles.. Car is working great... Making adjustments & changes as I learn what the car likes.. Gear changes, tires, brake ducting, completed the interior, & the list goes on..

Next phase for the car is to pull motor & make some changes.. Ditching the manual brakes.. going with Master cylinder & booster from a 2008 Z06 Corvette.. Get the car ready for USCA event in Fontana & then headed to the Mid-West for some events out there..

Action shot from this past weekend @ Good Guys Delmar!

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...psd79270bd.jpg

Does that car have an anti roll bar?

Yes sir! But also has alot of spring in it.. For small tight courses we were loosen up the car so that we could get it to turn.. When we have road course events & big Auto-x we tighten it up..

Another thing we have been working on is getting forward bite.. In this picture you can see that we are putting the power down!

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/...ps91f7f5dc.jpg

Cris why you ditching the manual brakes???

Manual brakes take more effort to stop a car.. It is nice when you have one master cylinder to control the front & another to control the rear with the capability to bias out in the cab of the car but we are giving up time on the road course by not being able to go deep into turn.. Most forms of racing use a pedal assembly like what I have in the Challenger but you have to find the right combination of bore size in the master cylinders plus friction material on brake pads.. The power booster will aid in stopping the car with less effort on the foot plus you will not be as tired from a 30 minute session on the road course.. Another key factor that will help on the Auto-X will be that with a tap on the front brakes.. it will help set the weight on the nose & help rotate the car around cones.. Our C5 Vettes are spoiling us with their braking capabilities! But most important of all.. Karl wants power brakes on all his cars..

We are also looking @ setting up two cars here @ the shop with a Antilock Braking System ABS M4 from Bosch Motorsport.. hoping that these will systems will find their way into Blu Balz & the Challenger.. Big benefits from this on the track!