fine tuning help

[packers5432]

ok i race at woodhull raceway its a 1/3 high banked clay oval, and im having problems getting rpms outta the car they say the timings off its TDC all marks are inline dist. is at 36 deg. (newer style dist) and it just doesnt give me any power coming outta the corners it bogs down and slowly idles back up to power me down the striaghtway but i spent alot of money on this motor and shouldnt be acting like this..i got 3.45s in the car with a 5 spd trans they say thats what i should be running with a 5 spd most guys say(" ") they run a 4 spd with 373s so am i right with my geears or should i try 373s most guys turn about 7k to 75k rpms im around 66 -67k rpms have to run stock carb. and its all clean.. any easy fixes or should i get the motor looked at to see if everythings inline its a 1978 mustang motor

[Milford Motorsports]

I would check the cam timing first.Sounds like it could be off.Are you running a large solid lift cam?You may have too much cam,if you are not fast in the corners the engine rpm's comming into the straights may be too low for optimum cam performance.Bigger isn't always better.You cannot really judge top engine rpm's with others untill you are running the same times as everyone else.Your engine bog will definatly keep top engine speeds low.Other causes of bog can be too large of jets,weak coil,brake not releasing properly,not enough gear,bad fuel,and hopefully not a poorly assembled engine.
Good Luck !

[packers5432]

ok thanks i will check some of that stuff out but i use 110 every 3 weeks and use 93 the other times and there isnt a coil pack on my car, gonna try to get more gear for next year, and really dont use brake and im thinking the engine was put toghether bad so im gonna have another builder go through it thanks for the info though

[Milford Motorsports]

Why would you use 110 fuel only once in a while and 93 the rest of the time.If your motor is 12:1 or above compression 93 isn't near enough octane to keep the engine from detonation especially at 36* timing.There's a good chance you have some burned up pistons.I have had to fix way too many race engines because the owners tried to save a couple dollers on fuel.

[packers5432]

Ok so I'll use 110 next year all the time if that's gonna solve problems I'm pretty sure most of them other guys don't use 110 ever I'm still a beginner in the whole racing business and don't know a lot about it.. And I really can't afford 110 every single week with no sPonsers and everything outta pocket

[Milford Motorsports]

Packers,In my opinion the long term performance gains you will see with 110 far out weigh the $6 to $10 extra each week you will spend over pump gas.But what ever octain fuel you do use you need to make sure the engine is built and tuned for that specific fuel.You will save a lot of heartache down the road.