Rozelle Camaro USCA Buildup

[JakeR]

Wow, long time no update! Time to get this thread back up to date. To be competitive in the USCA we are constantly making the car better otherwise we would quickly fall behind so there's a lot to cover over the next few posts.

The next big change after my last update was the motor. We started running USCA events with a GM crate LS7. It held up well and was very easy to drive fast but when you’re going up against guys like Mike Maier who are great drivers and have 700 hp, it is time to step up your game!

Lingenfelter Performance was at all the USCA events in 2015 and when we talked to them about a solution to our “problem” this is what they came up with:





Its an LS7 block with a full forged rotating assembly so I can spin it nice and high in the RPM range like I wanted. It’s still 427ci displacement, naturally aspirated, and is setup to run on the 91 octane premium gasoline we have out here in California. Being naturally aspirated, it is super fun to drive and helps the reliability while keeping underhood temperatures under control.

The numbers:


In the words of the guys at Lingenfelter “That should make driving fun.” Ya if you find 65+ mph burnouts with ease fun, this is definitely fun!

Even though it sounds nasty my dad is very particular about all our cars being very streetable. No lightweight clutches or crazy cams. Even with those numbers the car idles through LA traffic (which I do too often) like a champ and I wouldn’t hesitate to drive it anywhere.

And of course it’s more than enough power for me to have fun killing tires:



We did some different underhood stuff on the install that I thought was cool that I’ll cover in my next post. If you have any questions or want specific pictures let me know, I’m attempting to keep this thread more current so let me know what you want to see and I will do my best!

[JakeR]

Motor install pics!

Since we had the car apart anyways we decided to make some changes while the motor was out. The more driving I do the more particular I get about where the weight is at in our car. Previously our dry sump tank was located between the motor and radiator. For packaging and ease of access it was nice but it wasn’t where I liked it from a weight bias standpoint so back it went.

Cris and the JCG crew ordered a new, shorter dry sump tank and placed it along the firewall above the frame on the passenger side. Once it was as far back as possible they cut the tank apart and added volume to it so that our system holds a bit over 11 quarts of oil total. Thats a lot of weight!
Better pics of the completed tank at the end of this post.

Before:



After:



Why not put it farther back behind the fender like Mr. Stielow did? For us ease of access was too important to put it back there. This car gets flogged hard and we want everything easy to access and take in and out. Also, although his tank is likely 6” farther back so better for weight distribution it is also off to the very outside of the vehicle. Typically you want all the weight towards the center so by my logic it wasn’t worth the extra work for our car.

We also wanted to get the radiator back and lower. Ideally we would have laid it so the top went forward relative to the bottom and ducted air through the radiator then out the hood. However, under the time constraint before the next event and fearing messing up the classic good looks of the car we laid it the opposite way and moved it as far back as possible. JCG then made good ducting and clean closeout panels to make it look clean and like it belonged.



Cris then had the idea of using a C6 K&N air intake tube to draw air from on the other side of the radiator as this is how the modern vettes are set-up to draw cool air. Rumor has it the K&N C6 air intake tube makes pretty incredible power so in it went, some modification required. A little more aluminum ducting and it draws cool air separate from the heat of the engine now.









And as it looks now complete. Way cleaner than before and everything is still super easy to work on. Also this last pic is the best shot of how much volume was added to the dry sump tank.


After this install the car immediately went to Pikes Peak International Raceway for the USCA event for trial by fire of the Lingenfelter engine and all the work done by JCG. With 7000+rpm shifts and close to 700 hp being delivered all weekend long everything was definitely put to the test!



Luckily we had zero issues which allowed us to take the class win in every event and the overall GTV class win. Super fun weekend and a huge relief once we realized everything survived. Definitely a testament to the team that works on this car and the parts used.

More updates on their way! Let me know if there’s anything you want to see...

[67RSRAG]

Originally Posted by JakeR

Its an LS7 block with a full forged rotating assembly so I can spin it nice and high in the RPM range like I wanted. It’s still 427ci displacement, naturally aspirated, and is setup to run on the 91 octane premium gasoline we have out here in California. Being naturally aspirated, it is super fun to drive and helps the reliability while keeping underhood temperatures under control.



Even though it sounds nasty my dad is very particular about all our cars being very streetable. No lightweight clutches or crazy cams. Even with those numbers the car idles through LA traffic (which I do too often) like a champ and I wouldn’t hesitate to drive it anywhere.

Hey Jake do you know the cam specs ? also what compression are you running?

Those are some pretty good numbers.

[waynieZ]

The radiator mods look great.

[gnx7]

Love this car! The straight shot intake over the radiator on a high HP LS engine over one with a 90* bend will add an easy 20rwhp+.

We have tested this on a number of conversion cars running LSx swaps.

[Air-bender]

Jake,
What is the weight of the car now? How close are you to the #3,200?

[Chad-1stGen]

Originally Posted by Air-bender

Jake,
What is the weight of the car now? How close are you to the #3,200?

I'll let Jake answer if he wants to but it is quite a ways from the 3,200 minimum for the USCA.

[JakeR]

Originally Posted by Air-bender

Jake,
What is the weight of the car now? How close are you to the #3,200?

Not as close as I would like! haha

With under a half tank of gas at the last SCCA event the car weighed about 3350 lbs. Not terrible but If I could drop another hundred pounds I would be happy.

At least if anyone ever wants to challenge my car's weight at an event I have nothing to worry about

The oil, trans, power steering and diff cooler along with the fire suppression bottles and the 13ish quart dry sump all make it so this car runs incredible and safely on the road course but they certainly add a lot of weight.
At least the driver doesn't weigh much...

[PTAddict]

Jake,

Great job on the car for far, and thanks for sharing. I saw you ran a 1:58.2 lap at the Thunderhill USCA - that is flat out hauling the mail and a big tribute to both driver and car.

Based on your and Stielow's experience, I finally decided to pull the trigger on some Anvil fenders and inners. No matter what I do, my car ultimately seems to be limited by front grip, and I'm hoping 40mm more tire and less weight will be just the ticket. What backspacing did you end up with on the 18x11 front wheels? And did they rub anywhere? Trying to figure out my wheel options ... And of course I understand I still need to measure for myself

Thanks much for any info,

Scott

[JakeR]

Originally Posted by waynieZ

The radiator mods look great.

Thanks! And like gnx7 mentioned its pretty cool how it was able to help us with our intake tube performance. Win Win!