Numbers Don't Lie Dyno Showdown Review

We felt that the AMSOIL/Mopar Muscle Numbers Don't Lie Showdown would be a great way to interact with our readers. We really enjoyed the great turnout for the inaugural contest, and had a fantastic time talking with the spectators, sponsors, and participants in the contest. If you were at the Nationals this year, we'd love to hear your thoughts about the dyno showdown so we can make the event even more spectacular next year. And don't forget, entry in the AMSOIL/Mopar Muscle Numbers Don't Lie Dyno Showdown is free for Nats participants, and if you're chosen, you get a great package of goodies and the chance to see your Mopar in the pages of Mopar Muscle magazine. So send us an email or letter to tell us what you think of our contest, and be sure to send your application in for next year's contest. We're already considering additional classes including an Open Outlaw class and diesel powered class, so we can feature a wider variety of Mopars in next year's competition. And remember, even if you don't enter the competition you can still find out what kind of power your vehicle makes to the wheels by paying the dyno operator to test your car. Thanks for the great turnout this year and we look forward to seeing you next year.

We had classes for both normally aspirated cars as well as for those with poweradders such as nitrous-oxide, turbochargers, or superchargers. This month we'll highlight just some of the action that took place during the inaugural showdown by highlighting several of the competitors and their Mopars. And be sure to follow future issues of Mopar Muscle to check out the rest of the competition and results. As the title sponsor of our contest, AMSOIL provided products to our contestants as well as a $100 or $250 bonus for the winner of each class if the car sported an AMSOIL decal during its dyno pulls. Additionally, each contestant gets an exclusive contest t-shirt, Mopar Muscle decals, and license plate.

We kept track of the results right on site so everyone at the show could see the numbers each vehicle posted. By now you've probably seen the videos, photos, and results from our contest on our moparmusclemagazine.com, Facebook, or YouTube, but what you haven't seen is what combination of parts each of these Mopars used to make their power. In this issue we'll give you the specs on six of the contest vehicles, in random order, and tell you how much power each of these contestants made. You might be surprised to find how close one of these combinations comes to the Mopar you have in your garage or driveway. As for the winners? They'll each get their own feature in upcoming issues of Mopar Muscle.

Bryan Miller

'66 Plymouth Belvedere I

Bringing an old-school powerhouse to our contest, Bryan Miller of Union, Kentucky, spun the dyno rollers with his Polar White Hemi-powered '66 Belvedere. This Plymouth not only had the look of a Super Stocker from the past, it sounded mean as well. And while this Plymouth has the appearance of a factory vehicle, it's powered by a Muscle Motors prepped 477-inch, 13.5:1 compression, stroker Hemi with a Crane solid-lifter camshaft. The 833 four-speed transmission was built by Passon Performance and the power is transferred through a 3.55 geared differential with Strange axles. Running in our non-power adder class during Friday's dyno session, Bryan's Hemi powered Belvedere made a best pull of 415 horsepower to the rear wheels.

Tom Filbert

'98 Dodge Dakota

Hailing from Marysville, Ohio, Tom Filbert brought his '98 Dakota to the Nats this year and entered our contest in the normally aspirated class. Tom built the 360 Magnum engine in his Dakota himself, adding a Hughes .544 lift camshaft, Mopar Performance M1 intake manifold, ported 52mm throttle body, and Firecore 50 spark plug wires. Edelbrock shorty headers help expel the gasses and power is transferred to the 3.92-geared Sure Grip differential through a manual transmissionfeaturing a cool B-Body Pistol Grip shifter. Tom loves Dakotas because they are goodlooking and inexpensive to build, claiming a best 1/4 mile time of 14.3 seconds at nearly 100 mph. On the dyno, Tom's small-block cranked out 281 horsepower on the Dyno Tune USA chassis dyno.

Jon Brooks

'08 Dodge Super Bee

Jon Brooks didn't have to make much of a road trip to the Mopar Nationals as he hails from nearby Zanesville, Ohio, but we're sure the trip was fun in his B-5 Blue '08 Dodge Charger Super Bee. As a retired math teacher, Jon knows firsthand that numbers don't lie, and enjoys running his car on the street, strip, and chassis dyno. Jon's Super Bee has the factory 6.1 Hemi in it, but has an AirAid cold air kit and scoop, along with a Diablosport tuner calibrated for 93 octane unleaded gasoline. Jon's back-to-back dyno pulls in our normally aspirated class were almost identical, netting a best horsepower of 381 at the rear tires. With a smooth idle, cold air-conditioning, and plenty of conveniences, Jon tells us it's hard to compete with late-model Mopars in terms of power, reliability, and comfort.

Jason Thompson

'02 Dodge Dakota R/T

Running in our power adder class, Jason Thompson from Jacksonville, North Carolina, brought his '02 Dakota R/T to the showdown with the intent of posting some big numbers. Also running on the track at the Nats, Jason's low-eleven second Dakota features a 408-inch Magnum small-block with Indy X-heads, Ross forged pistons, a Hughes roller cam, and a Scat forged crankshaft. Giving this 9.3:1 compression small-block a big boost is a Paxton Novi 2000 centrifugal supercharger feeding air through an F & B 58mm throttle body. During our contest, Jason's Dakota made a stout 540 horsepower at the rear wheels, impressing the crowd on the midway and making a good showing for Mopar small-block enthusiasts.

Keith Brunn

'70 Plymouth Satellite

Keith Brunn made the trip to the Mopar Nationals from Cloverdale, Virginia, to compete in our normally aspirated class, and works as a steel fabricator, explaining the arrow straight panels on his '70 Satellite. The 440 in Keith's B-Body is bored .030- inch over, with Eagle H-beam connecting rods, a factory forged crankshaft, and Diamond forged pistons for a compression ratio of 10.2:1. With a Comp Cams .510-inch lift hydraulic camshaft, roller rocker arms, and mildly ported 906 casting cylinder heads, Keith's big-block is topped with an Edelbrock Performer RPM intake and 750 cfm Demonfour-barrel carburetor. Power is transferred to the wheels through a 727 transmission with an ATI 3,500 rpm converter, and 3.91 geared Sure Grip 83.4 rear. On the dyno this combination made 332 horsepower at the rear wheels, representing big-blocks well.

Patrick Friel

'04 Dodge Ram 2500

Entering the only diesel powered Mopar in the showdown, was University of Cincinnati student Patrick Friel. He may not have made the most horsepower, but impressed everyone in attendance with giant torque numbers. Patrick's '04 5.9 liter Cummins is basically stock with the exception of a straight through exhaust, a Diablosport tuner, and the injectors have been changed to improve power. With a factory turbocharger installed this Dodge ran in the power adder class, making 370 horsepower and an impressive 824 lb-ft of torque. For next year's contest we're considering a diesel only class, which will be judged by torque rather than horsepower, so plan on bringing your trucks to the 2013 Mopar Nationals. We're sure Patrick will want to come back and compete in next year's truck class, perhaps with a few more modifications to his Ram.