The engine has never been on a dyno, but Cooter estimates 1,900-2,000hp with the juice at full tilt. He pulls the engine and transmission down every 50 runs. Once in a while he hurts a piston but otherwise the car is a sweetheart on parts. He’s completely sold on his Performance Torque Converters-built (Muscle Shoals, AL) Powerglide and torque converter (“We’ve never hurt either of them. The 10-inch converter’s been in there four years now.”). It has a 4,000rpm stall speed and passes twist through a Mike’s Driveline (Tampa) prop shaft to the Moser Engineering 9-inch that carries a 3.70:1 ring-and-pinion.
Greg Stephens grew from boyhood with Troy. He’s a radial tire racer from the old school and before that had several successful speed shops until the big mail-order guys took the entire act over. Financially secure now, he is able to absorb the fiscal responsibility of running a race car. He loves Troy and would do anything for him.
If you’re radial tire fan, you already know the stipulations and the rules. A large-displacement engine, forced induction, or nitrous oxide are allowed so long as the car retains the original suspension mounting points, aftermarket facsimiles of the original components, and turns DOT-approved radial tires on the drive wheels.
The Pirez boys and Stephens are bound by rules. Any aftermarket equipment is legal so long as it will bolt into the original mounting locations, so no 4-links are allowed. At the rear, they installed BMR lower control arms, anti-sway bar, Panhard bar, and a custom BMR torque arm.