1971 Chevrolet Chevelle Drag Races 1969 Oldsmobile Cutlass, Big-Block Power Wins

When it was brand-spanking new for the 1971 model year, the rag-top Chevelle in the following clip used to rock 365 horsepower at 4,800 revolutions per minute and 465 pound-feet (630 Nm) of torque at 3,200 revs. The Hydra-Matic TH400 transmission also needs to be highlighted, along with highway-friendly 3.31 gears for the rear axle and a heck of a lot of weight.

The pumped-up Chevelle tips the scales at a whopping 3,843 pounds (1,743 kilograms), which is almost 400 pounds (181 kilograms) more than the Cutlass. The Oldsmobile features 3.73 gears instead of the original 2.76s for slightly better acceleration, which is exactly what you want on the strip.

Under the hood, the high-compression Olds V8 engine with 5.7 liters of displacement runs at 10.25:1 compared to 8.5:1 for the 7.4-liter colossus of the Chevelle. Rated at 310 horsepower at 4,800 revolutions per minute and 390 pound-feet (529 Nm) at 3,200 revs, the silver-painted Cutlass features the Hydra-Matic TH350 and a curb weight of 3,474 pounds (1,576 kilos).

At the time of filming the following series of drag races, the temperature was 70 degrees Fahrenheit (make that 21 degrees Celsius), which is more than adequate for a straight-line brawl. Surprisingly enough, the Cutlass and Chevelle are almost evenly matched on the first run with ETs of 13.49s.

Round two favors the Chevy even though the Olds has a much better reaction time (13.51 and 13.64 seconds). As for the final run, the Chevelle asserts dominance with an elapsed time of 13.44 seconds and a trap speed of 101.42 mph (163 kph) compared to 13.72 seconds and 101.24 mph (163 kph).