You could hit the 12's if you're now in the high 13's -- in a 2500-lb. car you'd have to add about 100 hp through the whole rev cycle, so it would take some serious mods, but it's doable. I've seen WRX's in the 12's.
I think that a lot of people don't understand how fast 11's are. The difference between mid-13's and mid-11's is like the difference between 18's and 13's. And the chasm between 11's and 10's is the same, if not bigger. After my first run with this setup I couldn't stop my hands from shaking.
Ferraris run in the 12's. Porsche Turbos, Maseratis, and stock 'Vettes run in the low 13's. I read somewhere that the Lamborghini Diablo runs a high 11. This is with professional drivers.
With the last incarnation of this car -- before the supercharger and the stroker -- I was running 13's on a good light. That's with a twin-carbureted tunnel-rammed 5.0 HO with an X cam and 289 Shelby heads, Mickeys, a 4.11 rear, and a bad@ss shifter setup.
It took another $8000 and two summers of busting my knuckles and beating my head against the garage wall in frustration nearly every weekend to get into the 11's. I wouldn't do it again.
Let's talk 10's for a minute.
Running solidly in the 10's is a whole other world. A very expensive, dedicated world. I don't doubt that you could trick out an aluminum block 4-cylinder to run in the 10's, but I would wonder how long the engine would put up with that kind of abuse. You're talking at least 500 rwhp -- all through the power band (as opposed to peak hp or what you get with your NOS shot) -- for a 2000-lb. car, and a small aluminum block (or a two-bolt main V8) just doesn't have the sense of humor to take that kind of abuse. I run a 4-bolt main and forged steel internals, and I'm only pushing 500hp at WOT.
Then there's the brakes you need to safely run a car that accelerates into the 10's. . . . I'm in the 11's and I had to design my own. I can't imagine what it would cost to have a brake shop do it.
A lot of guys think that they have a car that's in the 12's, or can get into the 12's because they have a friend who says that THEIR car is in the 12's. The kid in the Neon thought he was going to be in the 11's because he had just put a bodykit and new plug wires on his car. I'm not kidding.
At the track, I've seen two guys in the tens who didn't have corporate sponsorship or who weren't professional engine builders. Just FYI.
All I'm saying is, if you're reading this and you want to be Fast & Furious, go for it. But before you get your hopes up, head down to the track and watch some people. Don't take their word. Watch the readout at the end of the track, and keep it real. You'll save youself a lot of heartbreak.
Keep your foot in it.
