In Part 3, we focus on two wildly different Pontiac race cars, a tube-chassis Firebird and a steel-bodied LeMans that both run iron-block Pontiac engines with aluminum heads. As you know by now, HPP was invited by Jim Zeek of Chief Pontiac Productions and Virginia Motorsports Park (VMP) to use its NHRA-sanctioned track in Petersburg, Virginia, the day before the fifth annual Pontiacs in the Park event, and this time, it's Jim's own Firebird that has to put up or shut up on the strip.
Jim Zeek of Forest Grove, Pennsylvania, arrived with his '92 Firebird, which consistently runs in the mid-8s. It features a 400/502 stroker motor, Wenzler heads, a Powerglide trans, and 4.10 gears.
Ike Heckler Jr. of Malabar, Florida, came with his '67 LeMans producing low-11-second timeslips. It features a Pontiac 400/461 stroker motor, Edelbrock heads, a Turbo 400, and a 3.91-geared rear.
Weather Report
Virginia Motorsports Park temperature readings ranged from the low 60s to 75.2 degrees. Barometric pressure was 30.24 Hg and the dew point was 46.4 degrees. Though the track is 98 feet above sea level, density altitude ranged from 995 to 1,784, so we'll employ a factor of 0.9809 for elapsed time and 1.0199 for mph for 1,700 feet to chart the theoretical best performance at sea level. This will be done on the best pass only, based on e.t.