Known for pulling a camper behind him, unhitching, and going rounds all weekend at the track, or driving cross-country to race with his East Coast friends, Rick Fletes is living the dream in his Duramax-powered ’70 Chevelle. Depending on the organization he’s racing with, Fletes can detune his S400-fed LB7 to go rounds in a 6.70 Index class or load up the hottest tune in his arsenal and go fairly deep into the 9’s in the quarter-mile. Back in early August he did just that, sending the 4,500-pound diesel muscle car through the quarter in 9.65 seconds at 142 mph. Fletes ended up getting more than 1,000 passes out of his stock bottom end LB7 before it let loose in September. We look forward to seeing his new engine build, the car, and him out and about in 2021.

Diesel & Muscle: A Perfect Combination

Since their release, classic American muscle cars have rightfully earned the badge of being badass. With the immense power and steel bodies, what could someone not like about them? Just take this badass mustang as an example:

What isn’t there to like about it? With many external influences attempting to bring down the popularity of these cars, ironically enough, many of them have skyrocketed in value. Just one more reason to keep your vehicles in tip-top shape, they could be worth a pretty penny in the future! Below features one of our videos showing a Duramax-swapped Chevelle flying down the drag strip.

If diesel-swapped muscle cars are your favorites, here’s a cool article covering a 1,500-hp Cummins-powered Barracuda. In terms of the drag racing, our homepage features a schedule of significant diesel events. If you have blockages in your schedule, you can check out our YouTube page, and get the coverage there! DW

Image Credits

Ford Mustang Bullit: Image by “Alexander Migl” & Wikimedia link: click to access

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