For our shindig, Norris' Pontiac was set up thusly: The original XD-code block had been bored to 462 cubes, replacement .030 over TRW forged pistons wrapped in Sealed Power moly rings pumped in the cylinders via the stock crank and forged steel SD rods. Compression ratio was stock 8.4:1 as were the #16 heads with factory 2.11/1.77 valves. A deviation was the cam, which was a Ram Air IV replacement featuring 308/320 degrees advertised duration, 230/240 degrees duration at .050 with .520 lift using Ram Air IV 1.65:1 stamped steel rockers. And it was installed 2 degrees advanced.
The induction system appeared completely stock employing a factory 800-cfm Q-Jet (#7043270), the SD Delco points distributor (#1112218), and the LS2 cast-iron intake. Mark however, tuned the combination with .074 primary jets and "DA" or "DH" secondary rods in the carb, a distributor recurve to get the timing all in by 2,400 rpm, and by port matching the intake to the heads. He tried a few different exhaust systems over the years but found that the best combination for use with the factory cast-iron exhaust manifolds consisted of 2 1/2-inch head pipes (with a crossover) attached two a pair of Borla mufflers and 2 1/2-inch tailpipes.
Beneath the rockers the suspension is stock save coilover shocks in the rear. Mark has used some loose front shocks from time to time to race and he does loosen the front stabilizer bar bushings on the drag strip but the bars and good front shocks are retained for regular street duty.
Power is fed to the shift kit enhanced Turbo 400 (code PQ) via a 2,800 stall converter. And the twist is put to the pavement through a 3.42 Safe-T-Track rear (original gears were 3.08s that were changed by the original owner prior to Mark purchasing the SD) and M/T 26x8.5x15 slicks on Rally II wheels. Skinny 15x3.5 Cragars and M/T Front Runners pumped up to 40 psi keep the rolling resistance to a minimum up front. On the street, the race meats and wheels give way to Rally IIs and BFGs.
Curb weight is a stout 3,850 pounds thanks in part to the optional A/C, which adds 110 pounds while race weight is 4,050 pounds and Mark runs 89 octane in the tank. Regarding his launch technique, Norris shared his thoughts. "I heat the tires with a burnout, which is very important. At the line I just load the chassis, flashing the converter to 1,200-1,500 rpm and nail it on the last yellow. Shift points are 5,500-5,700 rpm and the T/A goes through the traps at 5,250 rpm."
With 12-15 psi in the M/Ts, the 60 foot is 1.78 and the T/A runs the quarter in 12.6 at 109.65 in good air and is then hauled to a stop with the factory disc/drum brakes. For our outing it was 100-plus degrees and the T/A was running 12.80s-12.90s for the day at 107 mph.
Having 30-years racing experience under his belt in everything from Pontiacs to Vipers and Shifter Karts, this soft spoken hospital pharmacist has made many memories with his T/A on the track and cruising the streets of Atlanta, and selling the Pontiac has never even been a consideration. "It's good to know that the very special cars, which we have hung onto from the "bad car times" have found their place in automotive historyand we are still out there driving them today!" Mark said. And now that we have wrapped up this exercise in choosing a proper lead for this proper Pontiac story, I'm off to take some Tylenol.