David Schroeder and John Ens Are Out to Prove Nitrous Can Play At the Top In Unlimited
It wasn’t supposed to go down like this. David Schroeder was coming off a win at Hot Rod Drag Week in 2021, the first time at the event for the 2019 Corvette that replaced the 1966 model Schroeder and John Ens were known for.
But at the first Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, Schroeder didn’t even get to make a pass on Monday, falling prey to mechanical issue on Sunday that put him on the sidelines.
“We hadn’t gotten a ton of testing in, and we normally only run Drag Week every year,” said Schroeder. “We knocked out a couple pistons because an injector was only flowing about 90 percent of what it should. We had never hurt it before that, never nipped a spark plug.”
Truth be told, they are still adapting to the new C7 Corvette, a former Pro Mod chassis that Schroeder and Ens picked it up and made some wholesale changes. “We did quite a bit a work to make it drag-and-drive worthy,” Schroeder said. “Changing the cooling system, alternator, wiring, fueling and such.”
To stay on the path they want, no changes have been made to the program between last year’s Sick Week and the 2023 edition. The same 872 cubic inch engine has been retained, along with 4 stages of nitrous on top. Schroeder knows there’s more left, and the testing and data will show them the way.
“We’re happy with how the car drives on the street,” said Schroeder. “We’re thinking the car has a 5-second run in it, but we don’t have the amount of testing to likely see it on Sick Week. I hope we can beat our previous best time (6.42 at 209 mph).”
Schroeder and Ens also plan to attend Sick Summer and Hot Rod Drag Week with the 2019 Corvette. this season.
- Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Motion Raceworks.