Small Block Chevy Procharger Centrifugal Blower Test

Although we've had a lot of fun testing all the different combinations to see how much power Danger Mouse (DM) could make without any power adders, we figured it was about time DM got serious. Because, let's face it. It's become way-to-easy to build a 400hp small-block today and we've already grown tired of such mundane challenges. We always wanted DM to lead the charge, not follow it. So now it's time to see just how much power DM could really make. Or maybe if this would be the test that breaks the Mouse's back.

For this installment we searched out a means to produce so much power that some called us mad. Except, we also had to make sure that the power we made was something you could easily do at home and without having to sell your car just to finance the engine! It also had to be bare-bones simple, the kind of parts it takes less than a weekend to install and we think we torpedoed the target. This month's tests involved bolting on a centrifugal D-1SC ATI Procharger and boosting DM with just enough extra air to crank out almost 700 hp on pump gas! We probably could've made more power, but we ran out of time during our day at the dyno.

Supercharged Chevy Small Block Dyno Chart

We've been considering attempting to make this kind of power with ATI's entry-level P-1SC blower ever since we did the series on ATI's 8-second, pump-gas Super Street Nova, (see: SUPER CHEVY December 2002, January, February, March 2003) and we knew we wanted to run one of their self-contained units, which the D-1SC is, so the choice was simple. We also didn't want to blow out the street-style Fel-Pro (PN 1003) head gaskets so the plan was to limit to the boost to about 15 psi. Besides, pumping in more than one atmosphere (14.7 psi is equal to one atmosphere) on pump gas is very tough for any motor to handle. But none of that really mattered because DM is tough and after it made 697 hp at 6,200 rpm and 613 ft-lb of torque at 5,500 rpm, our resident test mule was now running with some of our a bad-boy big-blocks and we're lovin' every minute of it!

To build this much power from only 355 cid takes thorough planning and some stout parts. You may recall that in the beginning we built DM using the strongest parts around, just in case we ran such a test. So this time the World Products four-bolt Motown block and forged Lunati crank, rods, and pistons were really put to the test. We're happy to report that they all performed flawlessly and might make 800 hp the next time out!

Since this test was going to use a bolt-on centrifugal supercharger, we wanted to run Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI), even though carb kits are available for these blowers. We contacted ACCEL for one of its GEN VII Digital Fuel Injection (DFI) systems, just like EFI, but with a different acronym, and the first time we opened the big box it came in, we knew we'd made the right choice. The ACCEL manifold and its related components came completely assembled, with all fittings and injectors installed and even the billet throttle body mounted in place. This was truly going to be and easy bolt-on.

Next, to insure that the DFI and blower would work well together and make the most power they could, the crew at Speed-O-Motive installed an off-the-shelf hydraulic roller cam from Crane. In keeping with the spirit of making the most power it ever has, DM's new cam is also the largest it has run to date, with 240/248 degrees duration at 0.050 inches and more than 0.590-inch lift with the 1.6:1 COMP Cams Pro Magnum roller rockers we ran. This cam sure wasn't a little street grind, but combined with the blower, the engine idled well at 900 rpm making greater than 9-inches of vacuum. And to make sure that DM was compatible with the new blower, (read that as having lower compression) we once again installed the set of big-chamber Trick Flow Specialties (TFS) aluminum heads that we've used on several previous tests (see: SUPER CHEVY July, August, September 2003).

Danger Mouse is all set and ready to blow! That's Chris Spies from ATI/Procharger, who came out to help us dial our rodent in.
Danger Mouse is all set and ready to blow! That's Chris Spies from ATI/Procharger, who cam
Prior to bolting the engine onto Vrbancic Brother's DTS engine dyno for this month's tests, the crew at Speed-O-Motive, the keepers of Danger Mouse, tore it down to its short block and installed new parts like this big Crane hydraulic roller cam.
Prior to bolting the engine onto Vrbancic Brother's DTS engine dyno for this month's tests
In its new configuration with the "zero" deck Lunati pistons, Trick Flow heads, and Fel-Pro PN 1003 head gaskets (shown), DM is at 9.1:1 compression. That's just about right for a hard-core centrifugally charged street engine, which is the effect we were after.
In its new configuration with the "zero" deck Lunati pistons, Trick Flow heads, and Fel-Pr

The TFS heads, combined with the flat-top Lunati pistons, put DM's compression at 9.1:1, which may still seem a bit high for a blown motor running pump gas. But, the DFI and big cam, along with the centrifugal blower's high efficiency, meant that we were confident DM would not detonate itself to death. And the fuel experts at 76 Racing who supplied the gas for this test agreed that their 91-octane unleaded could support the boost levels and power we were trying to make. So from there it was onto the dyno.

These Trick Flow heads that we got a long time ago from Summit Racing have become a staple of DM's performance because it's worn them every time it's made the most horsepower. They're CNC machined and offer terrific flow numbers for such an affordable head.
These Trick Flow heads that we got a long time ago from Summit Racing have become a staple
ACCEL's GEN VII DFI system has to be one of the easiest bolt-ons we've made yet. It came completely assembled and all we had to do was bolt it on. Even the throttle body was in place, so it was actually easier than swapping an intake manifold and carb.
ACCEL's GEN VII DFI system has to be one of the easiest bolt-ons we've made yet. It came c
The D-1SC centrifugal blower does not require any oil line connections to the motor. It only took about 30 minutes to install, once we figured out the correct bolthole locations from the many available in its bracket.
The D-1SC centrifugal blower does not require any oil line connections to the motor. It on

You may note the rather plain valve covers we used this month. That's because our trick Billet Fabrication aluminum covers would not clear the blower or the ACCEL fuel pressure regulator. Check out the simple, functional plumbing for the Procharger blower.
You may note the rather plain valve covers we used this month. That's because our trick Bi
ACCEL's Dual-Sync computerized distributor was included so the GEN VII ECU could control all timing events. Its dual-light installation checking system also made it very easy to install. The ACCEL guys really have thought of everything to make their DFI very user friendly.
ACCEL's Dual-Sync computerized distributor was included so the GEN VII ECU could control a
Procharger designed one the beefiest blower brackets we've ever seen, which helps limit the deflection under heavy loads that can cause belts to be tossed off. The idler pulley is also well thought out and maintains a firm hold on the belt, however, it's design makes pulley changes time consuming, but overall, it's a great system.
Procharger designed one the beefiest blower brackets we've ever seen, which helps limit th

Not only did Chris Spies from Procharger help us set up the blower, he also helped tune the ACCEL DFI MAP on the dyno. Chris has the same DFI system on his own racecar and really knows his way through ACCEL's system. Dyno operator George Vrbancic (right) was also instrumental in getting DM up to speed and making so much power this month.
Not only did Chris Spies from Procharger help us set up the blower, he also helped tune th
Proper ignition advance is critical to making power with any engine, but even more so with a blower. Too much advance and the engine will kill itself, while too little will create excessive heat, especially in the exhaust, which can also cause damage. Here, Bob Vrbancic reports the idling timing figures back to Chris in the dyno control room, who then confirms its what the ACCEL DFI computer registers.
Proper ignition advance is critical to making power with any engine, but even more so with
We never had any doubt that we could make 700 hp on pump gas and the engineers at 76 Racing Fuels assured us that it was possible so we ended up burning through about 15 gallons of 76's 91-octane unleaded, the same stuff you can buy at the pump.
We never had any doubt that we could make 700 hp on pump gas and the engineers at 76 Racin

Our confidence in pump gas might have been high, but we're not fools. After each pull we carefully checked the spark plugs for signs of detonation and if there were none we proceeded with another pull.
Our confidence in pump gas might have been high, but we're not fools. After each pull we c
We tried a few pulley swaps just to see what it would do. It turned out that the 4.25-inch diameter pulley, the size Procharger said we'd need to make this kind of power, worked best. An interesting side note is that we probably could've made equal power using Procharger's entry-level P-1SC blower, but we wanted to run the larger D-1SC instead.
We tried a few pulley swaps just to see what it would do. It turned out that the 4.25-inch
Since an engine basically sits in the dyno cell with little air moving around it, we wanted to give DM every chance to make the best, repeatable power. To that extent, as we made more and more pulls, temperatures went up so we cooled the intake track down with ice and directed a fan at the blower in between runs.
Since an engine basically sits in the dyno cell with little air moving around it, we wante

Maybe it was to check up on us or to see his favorite pet project in action, whatever the reason, it was great to have our boss, Terry Cole (right), stop by to help with the tests.

Maybe it was to check up on us or to see his favorite pet project in action, whatever the

The results shown here are listed chronologically and represent the power made before and after the Procharger was installed. Test 31 was without the blower and just running the ACCEL DFI. To baseline the motor's power. If you're not interested in a blower, but still want a great fuel injected street engine, this package ii one to look at. It made good torque, even though the cam was very big and the peak hp numbers are very respectable. Test 32 was actually one of the last tests we ran that day. It was after we'd tried many different pulley combinations and found the best one to be the pulley that ATI recommended we run. It made over 14 psi.

Danger Mouse short-block specs for Part 18, Tests 31-32: 355 cid, 9.1:1 cr, 4.030-bore four-bolt Motown block, 3.48-stroke Lunati crank, 5.7-inch Lunati steel rods

Test 31: DM Part 18 - ACCEL Gen VII DFI with 55 lb-hr injectors and Dual Sync ACCEL computerized distributor. Crane Cams hydraulic roller camshaft PN 119681 (306 intake/314 exhaust advertised duration; 240/248 at .050 inches; .595/.595 lift with 1.6:1 ratio rockers; 114 lobe separation, installed at 109 intake centerline). Crane retro-fit hydraulic roller lifters, Crane pushrods (special 7.150-inch length), and COMP Cams 1.6:1 rockers.

Test 32: DM Part 18 - Installed Procharger D-1SC centrifugal supercharger with 4.25-inch pulley.

RPM	Test 31: Motor		Test 32: Blower
RPM	TQ	HP	TQ	HP	Boost (PSI)
2600	316	156	388	192	2.5
2800	346	184	415	221	2.9
3000	364	208	439	251	3.2
3200	384	230	462	282	3.9
3400	384	248	482	312	4.4
3600	385	264	500	343	5
3800	383	277	520	377	5.4
4000	388	395	545	415	5.8
4200	398	319	568	454	6.5
4400	404	338	583	489	7.4
4600	405	355	597	523	8.1
4800	411	375	609	557	8.9
5000	420	399	611	582	9.7
5200	424	419	607	601	10.4
5400	423	436	612	629	11.3
5600	419	447	613	653	12.2
5800	413	456	613	677	13
6000	405	462	606	692	13.8
6200	395	466	591	697	14.7
Max	424	466	613	697	14.7
Avg	393	333	545	471	7.8

Danger Mouse Parts List For Part 18
DFI	ACCEL GEN VII (PN 77143)
Cam	Crane Hydraulic Roller (PN 119681)
Heads	TFS (PN 30400013-CNC)
Lifters	Crane (PN 11532-16)
Pushrods	Crane (PN 95623-16, 5/16-inch diameter, 7.150-inch length)
Rockers	Comp Cams Pro Magnum (1305-16)
Manifold	ACCEL
Gaskets	Fel-Pro (head gaskets PN 1003), (intake gasket PN 1206)

SOURCES
76 RACING FUELS & LUBRICANTS (800) 345-0076 www.76.com	Fel-Pro 26555 Northwestern Hwy. Southfield MI 48033
ACCEL Performance Products 10601 Memphis Ave. #12 Cleveland OH 44144	Lunati Cams Olive Branch MS 6-62/-892-1500 lunatipower.com
Accessible Technologies, Inc. (ATI Procharger) 14801 W. 114th Terr. Dept. SC Lenexa, KS 66215	Speed-O-Motive 131 W. Lang Ave. West Covina CA 91790 6-26/-869-0270 speedomotive.com
Bill Mitchell Hardcore Racing Products (Source for: World Products) 51 Trade Zone Ct. Dept. SC (631) 737-0372	Speed-Pro Part of the Sealed Power Corporation 100 Terrace Plaza Muskegon, MI 49443
Billet Fabrication 649-F Easy Street, Dept MMFF Simi Valley CA 93065	Summit Racing Equipment P.O. Box 909 Akron OH 44309
Crane Cams 530 Fentress Blvd. Daytona Beach FL 32114 3-86/-252-1151 N/A www.cranecams.com	Vrbancic Brothers Racing 1463 E. Philadelphia Ontario CA 91761 909-930-9980