C10 build and speed it could achieve?

[riz]

Are these C10 pickups capable of 100+ mph ? I'm in the process of building mine from the frame up and wouldn't mind being able to hit those speeds every now and then. What HP and gear ratio would a guy need? I'm just curious. It would be interesting to hear the knowledge from the board on this subject. I think I read a post once before about how it's nearly impossible with these trucks due to their shape but I would think that could be overcome.

RIZ

[D13]

Remember when these trucks were designed the speed limit was 70mph, so almost all of them are easily capable of close to 100mph. My 250 inline 3ott 2.73 geared half ton 77 will push 90, while my 3.43 geared 3/4 ton will do at least 85. Any 1/2 ton with a 350 and reasonable gears will do 100. Heck, I think my 87 with the 6.2 diesel will do 100 if you give me about a 10 mile run.
Problem is that these trucks are really nose heavy, have slow reacting steering, seriously oversprung and over damped suspension, and brakes designed in 1964. A bump on a corner at 100mph in one of these is a wreck waiting to happen. Slam on the brakes at 100mph and the back end will pass you. These things are designed to haul not to haul ass.
Once a while in an emergency, yes. On a continuous basis, not without some serious brake and suspension upgrades.

[riz]

Mine will be lowered 4.5 in front and 6 in the rear with 20" wheels and tires. I will also be doing a rear disc brake swap. Under the hood will either be a built 350 or 383 with something in the 400-450 HP range.

What are they really capable of?

RIZ

[Keith Seymore]

My little V6 would easily bury the speedo for as long as you wanted to keep your foot in it.

4.3L TBI, MY6 overdrive trans, 3.73 axle, P235 tires.

K

[MikeB]

My 82 C10 has a 355 with a small roller cam, headers, and 2.73 axle. It will easily run 80 mph at only 2600 RPM. Peak torque is probably at 3500 RPM or so, which is 110 mph, so I'd bet a paycheck it will run that fast or faster. And with a 3.08 or 3.23 it would get there quicker and let horsepower take over.

At some point, a truck's box shape will be the limiting factor. It takes a lot of horsepower to push a giant box at high speed. And as someone above said, brakes and suspension are very important at those speeds! So if you want to run at 100+, be sure to focus on tight steering and suspension components and good brakes. And make sure the tires are at least T-rated (118 mph sustained speed) and aren't over 8 years old. Also, if those 20" wheels and tires weigh more than a stock setup, you will need some really good shocks to control them. And if you lower your truck using shorter, stiffer springs, shocks will be even more important.

[Big Port Jimmy 6]

Speed costs money how fast can you afford to ride? With the proper budget 175+ could be achieved. Distance and duration also play a role in planning. My CCSB easily cruises at 100.

[Tiger Joe]

100 mph is pretty easy to get up to in these trucks.

as far as 175, doubtful. Years ago when Stacey David built Copperhead on that show trucks, he took it to a track (nascar track not drag strip) and i think he never went over 135-140. not that he couldn't go faster, but he said the trucks front end started getting very light.

[DieselSJ]

Originally Posted by Big Port Jimmy 6

Speed costs money how fast can you afford to ride? With the proper budget 175+ could be achieved. Distance and duration also play a role in planning. My CCSB easily cruises at 100.

Well considering the Bonneville production pickup class record for 377 inch max engine is 185, you aren't going to build anything that will even be semi-streetable that will touch anything near 175. It took well over 700hp to get to 185. Next class smaller engine went 164 and that was 550-ish for horsepower. And those were set with a much sleeker body style truck, not a boxy C10. We had nearly 600hp and topped out a 65 El Camino at 167. We bumped up a class in engine size and went to methanol and pushed over 750hp and only gained 1mph - we hit the aerodynamic limit of the chassis. All we got for the extra horsepower was a lot of wheel spin.

[1970pelle]

I bought a new 1983 C10 with a 305,4bbl,auto trans. And it would run to 100 mph and past. I never took it to the max, had never felt the need. The way it came new, if you had to use the brakes at a higher road speed. Be prepared for the rear bumper to come around on you. They would spin out in a second.

Ken

[Blessed66]

If there's one thing I've learned about hot-rodding, it's this; You can do anything with a big enough budget or extensive mechanical ability.

More to the point, if you don't mind reinventing the wheel (in a sense) by fixing a lot of steering, suspension and brake shortcomings, you could probably go as fast as you wanted.

What's the old saying? Cheap, fast reliable; pick two.

[Big Port Jimmy 6]

Well the AA/PP is 213 set by the same team as the C/PP record. And we don't have any idea what his fab experience is or how streetable it has to be. I took it as more of a theoretical question.

Originally Posted by DieselSJ

Well considering the Bonneville production pickup class record for 377 inch max engine is 185, you aren't going to build anything that will even be semi-streetable that will touch anything near 175. It took well over 700hp to get to 185. Next class smaller engine went 164 and that was 550-ish for horsepower. And those were set with a much sleeker body style truck, not a boxy C10. We had nearly 600hp and topped out a 65 El Camino at 167. We bumped up a class in engine size and went to methanol and pushed over 750hp and only gained 1mph - we hit the aerodynamic limit of the chassis. All we got for the extra horsepower was a lot of wheel spin.

[DieselSJ]

Originally Posted by Big Port Jimmy 6

Well the AA/PP is 213 set by the same team as the C/PP record. And we don't have any idea what his fab experience is or how streetable it has to be. I took it as more of a theoretical question.

AA is unlimited cubic inch. IIRC, he was mid-500's inches with that engine. Having seen the truck as he took it through the various classes, I can tell you that none of the engines would have been anything that could be driven reasonably on the street. Again, that was a much later body style too.

[Tom]

Originally Posted by riz

Mine will be lowered 4.5 in front and 6 in the rear with 20" wheels and tires. I will also be doing a rear disc brake swap. Under the hood will either be a built 350 or 383 with something in the 400-450 HP range.

What are they really capable of?

RIZ

Probably more then what your tires will be rated for. Top speed is not really what these things do well though, being a giant brick and all.

[esbstuff]

My 78 k10 (350, 4-speed, 205/3.07's) saw 120 or so one night... Whatever the speed is when the pointer is at 6:00 and bouncing. The motor never sounded quite right afterwards and I lived to tell about it. Ah the spirit of youth!

Oh wait a minute... who am I kidding... My latest toy has this awesome speedo. Who wouldn't want to 'try-it-out' at least once? For the record, I chickened out about 155 or so one night. Seems the frontend got really light and scared the piss out of me. (1994 Formula Firebird LT1 and no its not stock)

[esbstuff]

Originally Posted by Tom

Probably more then what your tires will be rated for. Top speed is not really what these things do well though, being a giant brick and all.

They do call them 'Squares' for a reason!

[Blessed66]

Originally Posted by esbstuff

Oh wait a minute... who am I kidding... My latest toy has this awesome speedo. Who wouldn't want to 'try-it-out' at least once? For the record, I chickened out about 155 or so one night. Seems the frontend got really light and scared the piss out of me. (1994 Formula Firebird LT1 and no its not stock)

Don't feel bad mate, my old Chevrolet cousin to your car chickened me out at about 155-160, too. Fastest I've ever gone on four wheels to this day.