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This Mustang has been in his possession for the last thirteen years, but only recently has Fred Silbernagel made his way to the 275 Radial ranks in Oklahoma.
“I’ve owned the car for quite some time, but I’ve just finished an extensive update to make it fit into X275-style classes. When I started building it, the plan was to run it in limited Drag Radial-type events, but not Outlaw Radial. Then the X275 class came around, and here we are.” Silbernagel competes Thunder Valley Raceway Park in Noble, Okla. and other tracks within the region.
Left - The 347-cubic-inch engine comes from Hans Feustel in Texas and is topped off with a slick Reichard racing manifold. Left Middle - The turbo system was designed and fabricated by Mike Duffy Race Cars, and Fred is quick to credit them for helping with his success so far. Right Middle - Duffy also built the 9-inch rear that's suspended by a set of Afco shocks. Right - The 25.3-spec cage was also crafted by Duffy. Fred keeps an eye on the Racepak for any changes in engine operation.
The car looks great from all angles. Billet Specialties rolling stock with Mickey Thompson rubber sits on the corners, and Duffy made a nice short set of turnouts for the exhaust system.
Man and Machine.
The car consists of a Mike Duffy Race Cars-built 25.3 chassis wrapped inside a Mustang shell. A Hans Feustel-built 347 cubic inch Ford mill is topped off with a set of Trick Flow High Ports and is pressurized by a Precision Turbo 94mm turbocharger that are reduced depending on the class he’s running.
As Silbernagel explained, “I’m really dedicated to keeping a Ford a Ford. Of the 12 cars in our race last weekend, half of them were Fords, but only two had Ford engines – myself and one other racer. The rest were, for the most part, big-block Chevy-powered. On the dyno we made 1,425 horsepower to the tire, so the Ford engine does just fine. I was able to set four career bests in a row last weekend, and the quickest of those was a 4.94 at almost 150 mph. We were running on the Mickey Thompson ET Street Radial Pro 275 tire – I don’t think anyone’s found the limit of those tires yet – they are just incredible.”
“It takes a lot of people to get a program like this together that actually works. I am the nut-and-bolt guy; the only things I don’t do are welding and machine-work type stuff. Mike Duffy, I can’t say enough about him – he’s quite a talent. He’s the guy that built the turbo kit, built the rearend, and has helped in many other places, when I get stumped, he’s the guy I call.”
Silbernagel is quick to credit close friends and family that have allowed the project to happen, including friend Mike G., crewman Brandon Howe, and wife Yvonne and daughter Sage that support him as he spends evenings in the garage working on this beautiful race car.
