Is a 1400hp Diesel the Ultimate Drag-And-Drive Combo?
There’s no mistaking that there is something unusual under the hood of Rick Fletes’ ‘70 Chevelle. As the coupe spools up, a billowing black cloud from the exhaust tells all – this is a damned diesel!
Up front is a 403ci Duramax LB7, producing some 1400 horsepower and a huge 2200 foot pounds of torque. The cast iron block is factory, as is the crank, but it has been treated to SoCal forged rods, Mahle cast race pistons with reliefs and a SoCal diesel cam. The cylinder heads are stock, with 200,000 miles on them. With the exception of a resurfacing they are otherwise untouched.
Black diesel smoke pours from Rick’s Chevelle as he spools up for a burnout.
Love drag-and-drive? Get Sick The Magazine in print!
A Stainless Diesel five-blade S472 turbo and three stages of nitrous have been added to get the Chevelle really moving. The common 4L80E transmission was built by Casner Racing to handle the shifting, with a D&P custom torque convertor taking it to the Strange driveshaft.
Rick has done a huge amount of miles on this car. He confidently claims few other nine-second cars can compare.
“I built the car in 2008 and I have been driving it with the Duramax since 2009,” he said. “We’ve done over 100,000 miles on the car in 12 years.”
The pipework is complicated, but it makes for 1400 reliable horsepower!
This is the third diesel engine Fletes has used in the Chevelle. The first Duramax was a bone stock effort that lasted for 75,000 miles before he turned the screws, going low 11s, while the next motor was built slightly tougher and lasted 30,000 miles, running high nines. Now Rick is regularly in the upper eights! Of course, there are other benefits to a diesel.
“The fuel economy is outrageous. With a few tweaks and the Gear Vendor, we were getting 30mpg in a nine-second car doing cross country road trips. Two years ago we drove from California to Midwest Drags, ran a 9.92 at Norwalk, packed everything back in it and drove it home. It was a 5500 mile round trip. This car is doing everything we set out to do. Technology has came so far within the diesel world lately that combining it with a classic hot rod seems like a no brainer.”
Low nines now come easy for the Chevelle, which has racked up tens of thousands of miles so far.
Advice can be hard to find with such a unique combination, but thankfully Rick has the support of his wife Heather on the road.
“I’m glad she does more than just put up with my obsession. She gets dirty, helps me wrench, knows what time it is and always makes sure we are ready for the next round.”
