Part 8: Finishing Touches to Get Ready to Race

(above & right) In our haste to get the Diplomat running, we cobbled our fuel systemtogether using pieces of old braided steel line, hose clamps, the oldfuel filter, some duct tape, bubblegum, and bailing wire. We went toHolley for Earl's Plumbing Super Stock fuel line (3/8-inch) and theirSuper Stock push-on fittings. This fuel line is a nice alternative to abraided hose. The remainder of the fuel system remained stock, save forthe Holley mechanical fuel pump.

(above & below left) Earl's suggested we use assembly lube to mate the fittings to the hose,but we substituted 20W50 motor oil. Use it sparingly.

(above & right) Due to the gear swap (2.76 vs. 2.94) and tall tire combination (28inches), we had no way of accurately measuring our speed. So, wecontacted Garmin Industries, maker of some of the most cutting edgeGlobal Positioning Satellite (GPS) units. They provided us with one oftheir GPS V systems. We used three of its many functions during theNORC: real speed, average speed, and the trip meter.

Since Highway 318 (the location of the NORC) is located in the middle ofNevada's high desert, a Garmin Mighty Mouse II antenna was mounted inour rear window to make absolutely sure we could acquire the necessarysatellites.

As with our motor oil and rearend gear lube, we utilized Royal Purple'sexcellent synthetic transmission fluid. Even though equipped with a goodfactory police transmission cooler, the extra insurance offered bysynthetic trans fluid was comforting.

Due to our less-than-stellar aerodynamics, we decided to build a chinspoiler from sheet aluminum to direct air out from underneath the car.This will plant the front-end more firmly at speed. And believe us whenwe tell you, a Diplomat is aerodynamically challenged with the same dragcoefficient as a vending machine. Jim Sleeper used air-operated snips tocut out the spoiler, mimicking the shape of the front bumper.