Karl’s East Coast has progressively ran quicker with its GT500, but you might not know the shop now has a new GT500 it’s playing with. The shop had a previous generation GT500 it was able to get into the 8s, but this new car, strictly built for racing just ran 7s. Both cars are white with blue stripes, so there were quite a few who thought it was the same car, but the two are vastly different.

The engine uses a Hogan sheet metal intake to inhale air from a Vortech V27 YSi supercharger. Behind the built Four-Valve is a M&M Transmission Turbo 400 with an Ultimate Converter Concepts stall converter.

The previous car started life as a street car, and actual Shelby GT500, but this car was built for the NMCA’s Extreme Street class with a dedicated race-only chassis and powertrain combination. The 2010 Body-in-White is bodied as a 2014 Shelby GT500 with all the appropriate exterior appointments.

When Karl’s received the car they sent it to Victory Racecraft for a 25.3 cage and chassis, along with all the necessary suspension modifications the car would need for competition. Victory added its own 4-link rear suspension with a Racecraft K-member and spindles up front. Victory added Strange brakes all the way around to provide stopping power, with help from a Stroud parachute. Up front is a pair of Weld Racing 2.0 skinnies, with Weld Magnum double beadlock wheels out back. Karl’s uses Mickey Thompson offerings in competition. Quillen Motorsports’ Travis Quillen wired the whole car, including the FAST XFI 2.0 engine management system, Racepak Smart Wire and V300 data logger, and fully-operational HID headlights, taillights, and power windows.

The team recently added a “scoop,” if you will, to funnel air directly into the Vortech YSi supercharger.

While the chassis was at Victory Racecraft, Karl Volk Sr, the Karl in Karl’s East Coast Speed worked with ProPower Performance’s Dale Metlicka to spec out the powerplant. Mason’s Racing Engines’ Bob Mason performed the necessary engine machining prior to Volk putting it all together. Once the car was back at Karl’s, the guys completed and installed the engine, plumbed the car’s fuel and oiling system, and had the car running in August of 2014.

With the plan to run NMCA Extreme Street, the initial thought was to run a Vortech XI supercharger, but with the rule changes the class has undergone throughout the year, Karl’s Kevin Volk, the car’s driver, feels Vortech’s YSi is the better choice. The team’s recent testing shows they’re onto something. They’re trying to get it all sorted out before taking it to a race. They’ve had the car at two NMCA races thus far, but new car teething issues have kept them from progressing into elimination rounds. They hope the issues are a thing of the past, and have an eye on the NMCA/NMRA Super Bowl at Route 66 Raceway as the car’s next race.