When Alabama-based Jimmy Cantrell brought his ’94 Ranger to NMRA Detroit Locker Truck and Lightning in ‘09, it was powered by a V6 engine with ported and polished stock-casting heads and a 125-shot of nitrous, and it clocked low twelves in the quarter-mile.
Around that time, he began to work on another ’94 Ranger that he had bought years before, and the project was completed about two weeks ago. David Lemmond’s Race Shop outfitted the truck with an 8.50 chrome moly cage, and a FAB9 rearend with a Strange centersection and 4:86 gears and ladderbars were put into place. Chris Terry Racing worked on the front suspension.
The truck’s bed was modified for weight reduction, and a four-inch fiberglass cowl was added. When it was all said and done, Yager Autowerx laid fresh paint.
Supplying the power is a Sam Vincent-built 377 cubic-inch engine featuring an 8.2-deck R302 block, Eagle crank, GRP aluminum rods, Diamond pistons, Bullet solid roller cam and Jesel valvetrain. It’s topped with Sam Vincent-massaged 240cc TEA High Port heads and an AED 950 carburetor, while a Stef’s oil pan sits underneath. A PTC Powerglide and converter — the specs for which Cantrell chooses to keep to himself — round out the combination.
On the dyno at Young’s Performance a few weeks ago, the engine — which does its huffing naturally-aspirated — measured approximately 750 horsepower, and back in the engine bay last weekend, it propelled the truck to a 9.66 at 141 mph during a test session.
“I cannot say enough about how helpful and great Sam Vincent has been with the engine and tuning,” said Cantrell. “At first, I was kind of worried about whether I was going to be able to make the jump from running twelves to nines, but the truck launched straight, went down track straight and stopped well. We’re hoping it will run in the 9.20 range in the quarter-mile soon.”
Cantrell plans to kick off his race season with the 19th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Spring Break Shootout March 7-10, 2013 at Bradenton Motorsports Park in Florida, where he’ll continue to vary his timing and launch and shift RPMs to find his combination’s sweet spot. He’ll follow that with as many NMRA races as possible.
“I want to thank all of my family and friends who helped support me throughout this build,” said Cantrell.
By Mary Lendzion
