Drag racing is a crazy and awesome sport where you get to see ingenuity, determination, and elbow grease turned into monstrously powerful vehicles.
Right off the bat, this specific video starts with a manual 2000hp Camaro, known as Grubb Worm, smashing the quarter mile in 6.75 seconds while going 213 mph. With that magnificent demonstration of speed, we move to the interview to learn a bit more about the car.
This is where we get to see Jonathan Atkins, the man behind Grubb Worm, explaining how this was possible. Right away, we hear the southern accent, and we already know this is going to be a crazy build, if that was not yet obvious from the fact it has a manual.
The car started with a second-generation LT1, the standard block for the fourth-generation Camaro. Atkins managed to get the car to achieve 7.0s quarter mile times with that engine and even a factory intake manifold.
After breaking a cylinder head and changing the manifold, a switch was made to a 348 ci Bowtie, Chevy’s aftermarket performance block. The rods and pistons were kept when changing the block, although the bore size was increased. This was actually one of the reasons the Bowtie block was chosen - its similarity to the LT1.
However, some things also changed with the switch, like the cylinder heads, which were stepped up to a 245 cc port, an off-the-shelf solid casting unit. A new intake manifold was installed and modified by the team working on Grubb Worm, along with a brand-new turbo, due to the old being a severe limitation to the car. New header flanges were also added, with an increased number of bolts in a bid to prevent warped headers and leakage.
Larger axles, along with an adjustable torque box, help the car ride lower and reduce the height of the center of gravity. This helps Grubb Worm be more planted and prevent wheelies. And that is important, considering the 48 pounds of boost the turbo handles make the car push about 2000hp.
Later on in the video, we can see Atkins in the Grubb Worm break the world record for a manual car. He drove a staggering 6.6s quarter mile, crossing the line at 216mph. This is an amazing achievement and a really fun video to watch.
As a kid, Bogdan grew up handing his dad the tools needed to work on his old Citroen and asking one too many questions about everything happening inside the engine bay. Naturally, this upbringing led Bogdan to become an engineer, but thanks to Top Gear, The Fast and the Furious series, and racing video games, a passion for automotive entertainment was ignited. Full profile
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