Owner Bio: Mark Sweeney
Mark (left in photo) provided a whole new meaning for the term Grandpa's car, telling HPP, "My grandfather bought this LeMans new in 1973, and its been in the family ever since. This was my first car. I drove it through high school and built that bond with a machine that few can ever understand or appreciate."
The 34-year-old advisory software engineer has been racing for 16 years. "Though I hate to admit it, my favorite moment in this car was street racing against a friend's '67 455-powered Firebird," he says. "Tires blazing, pistons pumping, shotguns blasts into the midnight air, neck snapping heads-up racing only a few feet apart-it was stupid, I know, but exhilarating. Of course, I don't recommend you actually print that [we did anyway], so I'd say my other favorite moment would have to be the invitation to be part of the 'Pavement Pounders Shootout'. My friends are so jealous!"
"The build up of my LeMans would not have been possible without the countless hours of hard work by my great friend of 18 years, Bill Gay (right in photo)," Mark adds. "All LeMans' accomplishments are as much a testament to his knowledge and effort as they are mine."
| STRIP TUNING LOG |
| Run/Tuning | Launch RPM | Shift Point | 60-FT | 1/8 E.T./MPH | 1/4 E.T./MPH |
| 1. 31-deg timing, #86-#88 jets | 1,800 | 6,000 | 1.96 | 7.77/92.23 | 12.08/113.70 |
| 3. Same | 2,200 | 6,000 | 1.76 | 7.57/92.26 | 11.90/112.50 |
| 5. Same, #84/#86 jets | 2,200 | 6,000 | 1.75 | 7.53/92.68 | 11.83/113.59 |
| BEST PASS CORRECTED | 11.51/116.80 |
| 7. Same 34-deg timing | 2,200 | 6,000 | 1.75 | 7.55/92.52 | 11.84/113.84 |
| 8. Same 34-deg timing | 2,200 | 6,000 | 1.73 | 7.56/92.17 | 11.88/112.96 |
| Top 5 runs are listed in the order that they occurred. |
| Run Notes: 1) Terrible launch, rpm too low; 3) Line-Loc won't hold, pushes car through lights; 5) Good launch, good light; 7) Good launch, felt great!; 8) Bad burnout. |
| Strip Specs |
| Year/Model: | '73 LeMans (GTO grille) |
| Race Weight With Driver: | 3,695 lbs |
| Curb Weight: | 3,525 lbs |
| Fuel Level When Last Weighed: | 4 gal |
| Fuel: | C12 VP, 108-octane |
| Engine: | '68 400 YC-code |
| Cubic Inches Before/After: | 400/408 |
| Engine Built By: | Owner |
| Power Adder: | None |
| Induction System |
| Air Cleaner: | None |
| Carburetor: | Holley Dominator 1,050-cfm |
| Jets: | #88/#90 |
| Spacer Plate: | 1-in open wood |
| Intake Manifold: | Bone-stock RPM performer with water crossover cut to allow cooling to back of cylinder heads (#10 lines feed water from crossover to rear of each cylinder head) |
| Fuel System |
| Pump: | Mallory 140-gph elec |
| Lines: | -8 |
| Regulator: | Mallory set to 7 psi |
| Heads |
| Casting: | '68 Pontiac D-port #16 |
| Head Porting: | Kauffman Racing Equipment |
| Flow Numbers: | 282/215 cfm at 0.700 lift at 28 in of press. |
| Valves: | Ferrea SS 2.11/1.77 |
| Bottom End |
| Pistons: | Forged TRW flat-top, 0.040-over |
| Rings: | Sealed Power standard |
| Rods: | Stock Pontiac cast |
| Compression Ratio: | 11.0:1 |
| Crankshaft: | Stock GM cast, polished, 3.75-in stroke |
| Rotating Assembly Balanced: | Yes |
| Camshaft |
| Brand: | Comp Cam solid roller |
| Duration at 0.050: | 265/270-deg |
| Duration Advertised: | 296/306-deg |
| Lift With Specified Rocker Arms: | 0.660/0.660-in |
| Lobe-Separation Angle: | 106-deg |
| Installed Position: | 2-deg advanced |
| Rocker Arms: | Crane roller 1.65:1 |
| Ignition |
| Distributor: | HEI, MSD cap and rotor |
| Amplifier: | MSD 6AL |
| Coil: | ACCEL for HEI |
| Wires: | Taylor 8mm |
| Spark Plugs: | ACDelco R42TS |
| Total Timing: | 29-deg |
| RPM Total Timing is Reached: | 2,800 |
| Exhaust |
| Headers: | Hooker SuperComp |
| Primary Size: | 1.75-in |
| Collector Size: | 3-in |
| Exhaust Size: | 3-in |
| Muffler: | Magnaflow 3-in stainless 4x9-in ovals |
| Crossover: | Pypes X-style with dumps |
| Drivetrain |
| Transmission: | Turbo 400, reverse manual valvebody |
| Converter: | Continental 10-in, 3,800-stall |
| Shifter: | B&M Prostick |
| Rear: | Stock GM 10-bolt |
| Rear-Gear Ratio: | 4.10:1 |
| Spool: | Strange |
| Axles: | Stock 28-spline |
| Chassis and Suspension |
| Brakes F/R: | Stock GM 11-in disc/9.5-in drum |
| Wheels F/R: | Weld 5 Star 15x3/15x10 |
| Tires F/R: | Goodyear Eagle Dragway Specials, 29x4.5x15/Goodyear Eagle slicks, 29x 12.0 |
| Tire Pressure F/R: | 45 psi/12 psi |
| Suspension Front |
| Springs: | Stock |
| Control Arms: | Stock |
| Stabilizer Bar: | None |
| Shocks: | 3-way adjustable 90/10 Summit shocks, set to allow quickest rise with slowest return | |
| Other Features: | Polyurethane bushings, manual steering box |
| Suspension Rear |
| Springs: | Stock |
| Control Arms: | Stock, uppers boxed |
| Stabilizer Bar: | Stock 1-in |
| Shocks: | Summit 50/50 |
| Other Features: | Polyurethane bushings, airbags, left, 34 psi, right, 5 psi |
| Chassis Mods: | Six-point bar, solid motor mounts |
| The Rest |
| Interior Mods: | Gauges mounted in the stock dash bezel, racing seats, '02 Mustang GT domelight with map lights, and rearview mirror with map lights |
| Exterior Mods: | 7-inch snorkel hoodscoop molded into hood, relocated bumpers inward, no inner bracing, front wheelwells removed |
| Safety Mods: | 5-point safety harnesses, driveshaft safety loop, rollbar, fire extinguisher |
| Paint: | $25 worth of Rustoleum primer, painted by owner |
| Launch Technique: | Off idle |
| Best 1/4-mile ET, MPH Prior to Event: | 11.85 at 113 mph |