WWhen we last caught up with Caroline Hayes (People Like Us, SM, Oct ’17), she had just completed her LH Torana Drag Challenge with her then partner (and now husband), Aussie pro street legend Mark Hayes. Construction was starting. . The car is now nearing completion, and this 900hp small block will power it.
I was first published. Street Machine Yearbook 2022
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Caroline was one of our OG Drag Challenge fighters in her previous Torana in 2014, driving a stout, naturally aspirated small-block. But with Mark being a devout nitrous guy, it should come as no surprise to learn that Carolyn’s new combo will be aided by a healthy shot of the good stuff.
The 415-Cuber was assembled at home by Mark and Caroline, with machining done by Westend Performance. Starting with the Dart block, the rotating assembly includes a Callies crank and rods and JE slugs, with Moroso and Mailing bits sharing oiling duties.
AFR 210 heads wearing Yella Terra Platinum Rockers are used up top with a Holley 750 carb and Edelbrock Super Victor manifold. Sandwiched between them is an induction solution billet nitrous plate that injects the special sauce.
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With hassle-free motoring in the drag challenge the Caroline’s main priority, a Comp Cams hydraulic roller keeps the top end happy, while the fire is lit by an MSD 6AL-2 with an MSD Power Grid controller.
“That’s what we’ll use for power management; Caroline knows how to use it because she does the data when we race,” says Mark. Rob Godfrey’s car has the same system. Say no to EFI!
What makes this combo so impressive is its simplicity: it’s a traditional small-block shaver with a hydraulic roller camshaft, cast manifold, single carb and a basic plate nitrous system, but regardless There are higher numbers.
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“I also built a 383ci small-block at Elisha Telle’s Drag Challenge HQ, which is really solid. The combo is very similar, just a little bigger,” says Mark. “Carolyn’s engine has more cubes, but the head, carby and camshaft are very similar between the two. Carolyn wanted a hassle-free engine. She wanted to run it, not work on it. About it. There’s nothing exotic about it, and it makes peak power at just 6500rpm. With the gearing, converter, tires and vehicle weight, it should be a very simple but efficient package.”
The engine made 665hp naturally aspirated and 900hp at the bottle, and with tune-ups for both pump fuel and E85, aim for mid-eights with nines and spray on the motor.
Really impressive numbers for such a modest looking, low maintenance street engine!
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Keen to see Carolyn’s 275NOS Torana in the flesh? we too! by the Street Machine Summer Nets 35, where it will be unveiled to the world as part of the Great Maguire reveal. But her show career will be short-lived – Drag Challenge is calling!