Diesel World Drags, Round 2 Recap:

Bottom 5’s Consistency & 150-MPH Trap Speeds

It was another successful weekend for Stainless Diesel’s Pro Street race team. Not only did driver Johnny Gilbert string together consistent low 5-second passes in route to victory at the Diesel World Drags at Wagler Motorsports Park, but he also brought home a new personal best trap speed. On the last pass of the day—an exhibition hit on a 138-degree track, no less—the truck stormed the eighth-mile in 5.12 seconds at 150.26 mph. Prior to that, Johnny’s quickest E.T. of the day checked in at 5.060 (with a 149.73-mph trap speed) despite having to pedal the truck. “When the converter locked, it kicked me sideways a bit and I lifted 20-percent according to our TPS data.”


Next stop, Rocky Top Diesel Shootout, where high 4’s may be on the table—not to mention the fact that the proven Pro Street rides of Derek Rose and Josh Scruggs will be lying in wait. But before Johnny and the rest of the Stainless Diesel crew load up for battle in Tennessee, they’ll be pulling the TH400 for a refresh. After 20 trouble-free passes at more than 2,000 hp, it’s time for a once-over. When that’s done, Johnny plans to throw a second bottle of nitrous at the truck to help keep bottle pressure up.

 

In case you haven’t heard, the triple-turbo arrangement is gone from under the hood—and it hasn’t changed a thing. The truck is still lightning-fast but boost production has been simplified courtesy of a big single, bolted to a Stainless Competition T-6 manifold. Switching to the lone GT55-based Stainless Diesel 5-blade 88mm charger shaved more than 100 pounds off of the truck, which now tips the scales right around the Pro Street class minimum of 4,400 pounds.

 

Between the weight savings and the combination of analyzing the data collected from each pass, the Pine Hill Auto assembled, S&S-fueled common-rail Cummins never skipping a beat, the TH400 holding up even when being pushed to the limit, and the recent fine-tuning of the truck’s water-injection system, the Stainless team is seeing solid results. As soon as Johnny can put together a typical 1.27/1.28-second 60-foot in conjunction with a drama-free back-half, he’ll be collecting a 4-second time slip at the end of the track. Stay tuned!