One of the staple classes within the NMRA is Renegade. The class has enjoyed steady competition while participation in other classes fell off. For 2015, the NMRA is allowing gear-driven superchargers, and a “front end air source.” Meaning, cars are also allowed to have a hole in the front bumper cover, as you see here on Renegade mainstay Alton Clements’ Fox coupe.

The open air source and gear drive supercharger are 2 changes made for 2015 in NMRA Renegade competition.

Clements, besides cutting a hole in his Racecraft front bumper cover, and molding a velocity ring into it, also switched to a ProCharger F-1C 10.5 supercharger with a Supercharger Store gear drive.

One thing he is staying with is a pushrod combination. “Last year we ran a 310 cubic inch engine, but this year we’ll be running a 360 cubic inch combination,” Clements says. Clements will have to weigh more to carry that many cubic inches, but while Gerald Dyer does the machine work, Alton and his dad handle the engine assembly. The engine consists of a Ford Racing Boss block, a Callies crank, GRP rods, a .550-lift custom cam, Diamond pistons, AFR 225cc heads, Jesel shaft-mount rockers, and an Edelbrock Victor intake. Behind the 360 will be a Neal Turbo 400 with a Cameron’s Torque Converter Service stall converter, while an 8.8 rear is stuffed with Mark Williams’ finest components. The combo is tuned with a Big Stuff 3.

If you follow Mustang drag racing history, this is the same car the Swill Boys used to run. Alton thinks it was like 7 years ago they bought the car from the Swill Crew.  Clements says he keeps the Swill Boys updated when he changes something on the car, like when he changed the look of the front clip with the new bumper cover, which also required new paint. The engine compartment was also repainted, and closed in with Scott Rod Fabrication inner panels.

When asked how fast Renegade will be this year, Clements answered, “I think the fast guys will probably run in the 7.70s-7.60s.” As for Clements, he hopes to run 7s at Bradenton, and go from there.