The ultimate '71?

[G-Series]

Yeah, finally, I'm in. There are some differences to this body compared to the 'street' version we did in 04. With what we've learned at A2/Aerodyn windtunnel with the K&K, the bi-wing will make an appearance on this car as well as a much larger front spoiler(as you can see). We moved this spoiler more forward than the factory's chin spoiler location. The big change is the semi-fastback rear window that Romberg and Herlitz wanted to see for 71. Not quite as dramatic as some of the sketches or clay mock ups, but enough to smooth out the transition to the deck filler panel. We should have it done in plenty of time to hit A2/Aerodyn and do some land speed runs in Oct at Maxton.

[CtownRunner]

Thanks for the update Gary.
What do U mean by the semi fastback rear window design.

Is this a mod U are doing or is this the stock configuration we have on our 71/72 Plymouths.

Sounds like a custom rear window. Any pics to share yet of this change.

[bruce]

If you read anything about the design of the '71 Road Runners by John Herlitz you'll find that the rear window on our cars was a compromise. The powers that be dictated that the '71 Satellites AND the '71 Chargers share rear window glass as a cost cutting measure. So the rear window is a compromise--not what Herlitz wanted originally. It seems to be a point that fairly stuck in Mr. Herlitz' craw. He was unhappy with that part of the design because of that compromise. I'm especially interested to see this part of Gary and Pam's Superbird as a result!

[G-Series]

Well it isn't drastic. We were able to keep the original rear glass. We just figured that crew chiefs like Harry Hyde and Dale Inman, Junior Johnson...guys that knew how to bend the rules...would have seen the problem with the drag created by the sharp angle between the deck filler and the glass and fixed it without drawing attention to it by the officials or other teams. You probably wouldn't notice it, which is the point of the exercise, unless another one was lined up next to it. We're hoping, from what we learned doing a baseline windtunnel test with the orange 71 bird, that our change will reduce drag thereby gaining usable horsepower.

[bruce]

Cool! A little Smokey Yunick magic applied to a Mopar!

[NOrrTH]

Is it rude of me to ask what business Gary is in in order to fund these amazing cars? They must have a million invested in their hobby. I'm nosey I admit it, but there's gotta be a story here :0)

I met with a client of ours with a V12 1937 Packard which he has over $250k into.

[bruce]

I'll definitely defer to Gary on that one...

[Eric]

I won't comment about what business Gary is in, but I will say that he and Pam do all the work on these cars themselves. These aren't checkbook builds.

[SureGrip]

I thought I had read somewhere that the 'scoops' in the front fenders were to allow for more tire travel as the front downforce was great enough to force the tires up into the fenders...

[bruce]

That has been repeated often... also remember that stock cars don't run inner fenders so the scoops also released air trapped underhood.

[CtownRunner]

Pretty sure I read in a MOPAR mag that Gary is an attorney.
Nuff said. I could be wrong. Not guessing but is was a couple years ago.
I just happen to remember reading that I think.
Clear as mud.

[bruce]

You would be correct...

[Clone Runner]

WOW that under construction pic looks killer! i really love that front spoiler.

[pats71]

Gary definately answered my question. In the time I've spent outside making parts lists and observations on my bird, I always thought the body had nice aerodynamics to it up until you get to where the glass meets the rear deck filler. I kept wondering why chrysler did that instead of curving it or giving better transition rather. Guess it would be a dumb question to ask if louvers would provide better transition

[G-Series]

One of the tests that Romberg conducted was to see if the louvers would help the transition. That's why we put them on the orange bird. They didn't help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-t5WKkgMDk This link is of the windtunnel tests we conducted with the orange bird to get a baseline to compare it to the 43 racecar. We'll return to the tunnel in Oct and see what we accomplished.