If you're into drag racing, you're probably aware that straight-line semi truck racing is a thing. If you haven't seen one yet, go check it out because you're missing out on some really cool quarter-mile action. This post isn't about drag-prepped trucks hauling trailers toward the finish line, but seeing a plain workhorse semi hitting the strip is just as intriguing.
This 1999 Kenworth W900L has been pulling sheep, goats, and reefer trailers for quite a few years now and shows almost 1.5 million miles (2.4 million km) on the odo. But despite the plain looks, this thing hauls goods with a few aftermarket upgrades under the hood.
The truck draws juice from a Caterpillar C15, a 15.2-liter inline-six diesel that cranks out up to 595 horsepower in stock form. But this mill has been touched by the folks over at Matzke Diesel and comes with a pair of turbochargers and custom cam, fuel pump, and ECU. All these upgrades help the Cat unit generate a whopping 1,800 horsepower.
Granted, this figure is not as massive as it seems on its own when we factor in the truck's 22,600-pound (10,25-tonne) curb weight, but it makes this Kenworth faster and notably more powerful than the average Kenworth W900L. Owner Petra Rosalie Mapes, who has been driving semis for more than 25 years, had the crazy idea to take it to the drag strip during a rare weekend off.
And not just for a test run. She actually entered the semi in the Jarrett Powell Memorial Diesel Drags event and ran against full-size diesel pickup trucks. A semi is obviously not quick enough to beat much smaller and beefed-up pickups, but she ran a couple of impressive 18-second runs.
The footage shows the Kenworth covering the quarter-mile in 18.34 seconds at 84.16 mph (135.44 kph), but Petra actually ran quicker than that. Her best sprint stopped the clock at 18.01 seconds, to go with a trap speed of 86.23 mph (138.77 kph).
That's actually a tad quicker than an entry-level Honda Civic, most production vans out there, and even the current Ford Ranger Raptor. The latter ran the quarter-mile in 18.3 seconds during a test by CarWow a couple of years ago. Definitely an entertaining way to spend the weekend.
Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. Full profile
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