Decided to make 64 Comet more Strip inspired...

I have finally decided my route I wish to take with my 64 Mercury Comet Caliente 4ddoooorr. After taking my 01 Bonneville SSEi to the track this past Sunday I want to make my Comet more strip spirited. I want to approach it from the point of taking a stock everything DailyDriver car and make it something that only sees road time to and from the strip(probably trailered since gas is gonna be insane) and maybe a few cruisenight/shows a year. As its just a bit to crazy for the street but still a street legal car. If that makes sense. But Im talking over a 5-10-15 span, depending on how the income situation is. Like a "relationship" so to speak. I was wondering where a good set of rules are on what is required to run a modified car at a track. I was trying to read the NHRA rules but got lost......my local tracks are Byron Dragway and Great Lakes Dragaway . For this summer I am looking only to rewire the car and work on setting up the suspension more for drag racing. I am only going to run my mild 302 and Toploader until I aquire more funds/time for things. Its probably only going to be a 12-13sec car starting out I know, but I just want to start the transformation into a true/safe strip car, get used to racing the car, and start familier with the true motorsport. I have a certified blowproof behousing already but that is the only thing I know for sure that has an approval. I also have McLeod clutch assembly and I think a flywheel from them. I have to go back and look at my receipts, I started an engine/trans swap AWHILE ago but lost interest/money AWHILE ago, I got a few things from David Kee and Dan Williams for transmission parts. So I'll make posts in my Project section of what I have and over things I had questions about. Sorry for the long post but I havnt felt a strong urge on which way to go with my car until now.

you say only 12 or 13 sec. In my opinion a 12 sec street car is very respectable,But i may be bias since my galaxie runs high 12's at nearly 4000lbs!! I am currently swappin cams headers and carb and I think she be down in the low 12's soon.

12 or 13s is my target for this year, but before I am done with it (def wont be for a long time) I was to be in the 10s and have people question the legality of it on the street, but of course it will be all Kosher. I think I read somewhere you have to have a liscense for 9s and lower? I want to take this thing in steps, like this year get rebuild suspension, get drag shocks, try and fit wider rears, rewire car to get rid of old crusty wiring, rebuild 8" with 3.55s, smaller somewhat cheaper stuff. Then MAYBE next year a bigger motor, or maybe I should spend money on 9" and brakes. Just get priorities for my vision. I just need to know if someone knows of a good website or book or something that could help point me in the right directions of what to start on first.

Like, say for instance what are the minimum requirements for me to pass inspection if I ran mid-12s? Or do things really only come into effect when you get to 11s, 10s and lower? I just have a bunch of questions.

First of all, remember that racing is not a cheap sport and only get into it if you have a steady cashflow that you can earmark for improvements and repairs. You will want to go faster . . . . . . . Trust Me

You can have a lot of fun with a 12 second car and a 4 speed tranny! Driving that 4 speed will be a challenge, especially when you are trying to be consistent.

I suggest installing the flywheel, clutch, scattershield and then pretty much leave the motor/tranny alone (of course finish rebuilding that toploader.) Concentrate on the body and suspension and what you need to get the car to hook properly. This is very, very important. Skip messing with the 8" and jump to the 9" since you have a stick. Look at Caltracs (expensive, but worth it) and get some adjustable rear shocks. You can clamp the leaf springs at the front for a cheap improvement. Choose a tire/rim combination that is inline with your goals. I assume you want DOT type drag tires such as Hoosier Quick Time Pros which work well with a 4 speed. Very light rims, such as Weld Pro Stars will cut down on unsprung weight.

In the front install 6 cylinder coil springs and some drag shocks. Most are satisfied with 90/10's and for that I suggest the ones from Calvert. Better would be QA's because of their extreme adjustability, but they will probably be out of your budget for now. Stiffen the body with subframe connectors. The best ones are the ones that are made to go from front to rear through the rear floorboards to attach to the rear frame. (Although being faster than 11.5 would require a roll bar or a cage--I mention this now as it is always a good idea to have one installed anyways as also stiffens the body.) Monte Carlo bars and Export Braces also help to stiffen the body.

Remove as much unused weight from in front of the driver as you can. Every 100lbs removed makes the car about a tenth faster. Installing fiberglass panels would be cool (4 door FX clone), but this is expensive.

A helmet is required at less than 13.99 seconds.

If you do NOT go faster than 11.5 there are only a few NHRA rules to worry about. I will start a list and someone will fill in what I forgot.

Your battery needs to be secure. If it is NOT mounted in the engine compartment, you will need an external switch that kills power. You will need a radiator puke catch can. Your vehicle cannot be leaking any fluids on the track so make sure that you have no dripping leaks anywhere on the car. Aftermarket rims require longer wheel studs. A driveshaft safety loop will be required at the front of the shaft, within 6" of the U-joint. Use no more than 12" "total" of rubber hose on the fuel line (braided flexible is OK in any length.)

I am sure that there are a couple of more items that I forgot as far as equipment goes.

Seat time is very, very important. The most important thing that you can do is Practice, Practice, Practice. Even after 105+ runs, I am still learn something new about the car, the track, the opponents, and myself.

Good Luck with your endeavor,

Thanks Dennis111!! I imagine I am going to have to go along the same lines that hotrodding has taken through the years to get what I want. I gonna try working with what I have and what I can find for a deal/cheap. I may just have to run some wider rear radials for now on some steelies. I am hoping to fab most of what I am needing, Do a lot of looking instead of just pointing and clicking stuff from summit or jegs. I think I remember someone buying me a Bracket racing book when I was in Highschool I'll have to look for that.

I think I have an idea but why do A LOT of poeple run 6 cyl front springs?

What do you guys think about mono leafsprings? The leafs that are in the car now are brand new, I also have a set of lakewoods on the shelf.

I agree with Dennis... work on traction first... cause without it, it doesnt matter how much HP you make. Plus any susbsequent chamges you make in power can easily be baselined.

Install sub frame connectors and a DS loop asap.

If money allows... go with Cal-tracs and thier monoleafs/ranchos. You can always ebay the springs or sell them to put towards the Cal-tracs.

Do not consider running without a new flywheel and scattershield. Its a time bomb... see previous posts about this.

Good luck!

I have a McLeod SFI bellhousing, steel flywheel, 10" 1/16x10 spline diaphragm pressure plate, and either the dual peformance clutch disc or regular disc from David Kee Transmissions. All parts have less than a few hundred miles on em. I have a hydraulic throwout bearing setup but thinking of putting that on the shelf and going back to the Zbar setup just for easierness of finding parts, cause if I spring a leak with that hydraulic setup, or something blows, I could really be stranded somewhere. I def agree about the traction being one of the first focal points. I still have a ways to go ,though, even before I have to worry about getting traction, engine and trans still need to be put in, as the before mentioned rewiring of the car, to rid of any possible cancer or gremlins. And there are a few other things.

It had power steering and I removed all that when I put in the 302 a few years ago. It drove fine, steering wheel was WAY outta wack but tracked ok. I read that the alignment needs to be set to manual steering specs to get the tires straightened out and then I wouldnt have to find a manual steering box and centerlink. Is this true? Although it would be a bit more difficult driving the car with the power steering box, no pump and no hoses as opposed to swapping in the manual items, I didnt have that hard of a time. The box does need some adjustment due to slopyness, which it had when power steering was in working order.

Six cylinder springs help to transfer more weight to the rear of the car--this increases rear tire "bite" at the line and during gear shifts.

Mono leaf springs are good, but many people have had good results clamping the front of the springs, as I mentioned before. I used to have 5 leafs, but I hooked better with 4 leafs which were less stiff. In my quest for the ultimate in traction, I swapped to the Mono leaf springs. I can't say that I see much difference over properly setup 4 leafs.

As far as the steering box, if it is trashed get another one. If it is serviceable, there really isn't any real reason to replace it. If it is like a mustang, the PS will have a faster steering ratio (16:1.) and there is no harm in running it. This is one of the tricks that Ford did to the GT--the manual box has the same ratio as the standard PS box. The 16:1 box does require more steering effort, especially in the parking lot and is not really advisable for the "standard" wife/girlfriend.

It might be best to convert the centerlink, tie rod ends, idler arm and the pitman arm all to the manual stuff to improve steering. Some of these items may be the same as your PS stuff. If nothing else, you will loose some weight by eliminating that hydraulic cylinder.

So far you have got some info but my 2 cents says concentrate on getting your car to pass tech and have some fun the first couple times. I have been playing around with my car for 5 years and still have not cracked the 12s.
Some of the most common failures at Tech are to much rubber fuel hose; 12 inches total. Battery relocated to trunk, you need a shut-off switch that is marked ON/OFF, 3/8inch hold down bolts and a sheetmetal barrier. Cables on the front of traction bars. Does your car have lap belts and what condition are they in? A fairly stock comet with a warm 302 should run low 14s and mabe high 13s. My car is stripped down to 2950lbs, 3400rpm stall, 3.73 gears, and 289 with about 300HP, running ET street tires and my best time is 13.67. My car should be faster, I feel it should run a sub 13.3 but I have not got the combo right.
Make your car safe and then make it fast. My 2cents Roger, have fun.

I agree w/ all of the suggestions already made. Extend the front shock length so that they do not limit travel. Check the resr springs closely. If they have never been relaced chances are they will be cracked and need to be replaced. Replace the u-joints if they show any signs of age/ damage. Make sure the brakes aren't glazed. Etc. Concentrate on suspension and wheels/tires to start. You are dealing w/ a 40+ year old car, inspect everything carefully. Don't worry about how quick the car is yet. Concentrate on learning how to play the game. Good trees and tight packages are what it's about. Nothing wrong w/ running a 4 door. It's a whole buncha fun to knock the slobber outa someone who isn't expecting it. I sure enjoy it.
Good luck.