HEADLINES: The World’s First Diesel-Powered Pro 275 Car

Meet the first-ever Pro 275 diesel: Ring Racing’s Cummins-powered ’16 Cadillac ATS-V. Built and once campaigned by Larry Larson, the factory bodied ‘Caddy is destined for the Pro 275 class—a category that regularly sees eighth-mile passes in the 3.70s. It’s no coincidence that driver, Jared Ring, has his sights set on 3.70s in 2024—and his mission gets underway this week at Lights Out 15. The unveiling of Ring’s ground-breaking Pro 275 program comes on the heels of his N/T Truck win at the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals behind the wheel of his ‘15 Ram known as “Frosty 2.0.”

What A Pro 275 Cummins Looks Like

To earn a 3.7x timeslip, Jared Ring will lean on the Freedom Racing Engines-built Cummins under the Cadillac’s front clip. The 415 ci Cummins benefits from a Fleece billet-aluminum block, a Wagler billet-aluminum head, and built-to-order injectors, dual high-speed 14mm CP3’s and an SP3000 from lead sponsor, S&S Diesel Motorsport, who also wired up the car’s MoTeC M142 ECU (for which it will provide tuning support). A single, 102mm Hart’s turbo builds boost. Nitrous, by way of Nitrous Express, provides cooling, helps bring the 102 to life, and (of course) adds horsepower. And, as for that one-off, work-of-art header you can’t stop staring… it was fabricated by 1X Precision.

NFMS Truck & Tractor Pulling

American Pride Wins In Louisville

It was year 14 for the Super Stock diesel trucks being part of the action at the prestigious Championship Tractor Pull, which is of course held under the National Farm Machinery Show umbrella. The Saturday afternoon affair would consist of 10 invite-only Super Stocks, and for 2024 a pair of Scheid-powered trucks would finish First and Second. Keith Witt’s new “American Pride” Ram took the win and Brady Ingram followed, just inches behind. Other notable highlights included Darryl Folz and the legendary “Tinker Toy” John Deere’s First Place hook during the first nighttime session for the 10,200-pound Pro Stock class, and Kevin Lindstrom’s “Hyper Harvester” stealing the show in the 9,500-pound Limited Pro Stock field.

Cutting-Edge Engine Tech

The Featherweight Of Diesel Drag Racing: Wagler’s Aluminum Duramax Block

Big news out of the Wagler camp last week was the weight savings one of its billet-aluminum Duramax blocks brings to the table. Even with a 1-inch deck height, this version tips the scales at a very impressive 125 pounds. For comparison’s sake, a bare factory cast-iron Duramax block weighs 290 pounds. For drag racing and truck pulling applications alike, that’s a substantial improvement, even before other weight saving measures are brought into the equation. The folks at Wagler have told the world to stay tuned, as even more block options will be available soon.

3,000 HP Club

Firepunk’s Duster Clears 3,000 hp On The Hub Dyno

With the first ODSS race of the year fast-approaching, you can bet the guys at Firepunk Diesel are doing everything they can to fine-tune the new Duster Pro Mod. A recent session with the hub dyno proved the car is capable of applying more than 3,000 hp to the track. The Duster’s rowdiest pull produced 3,046 hp and 3,707 lb-ft of torque. However, in testing the limits there is always the possibility of finding a weak link. In this case, it was the piston in cylinder number 5, which didn’t take kindly to another 3 degrees of timing being thrown at it. Look for Firepunk’s Cummins-powered Pro Mod to find the 3’s this summer.

New Product

Riffraff Diesel’s Max-Flow 4-Line Fuel Feed Kit

Long in the business of perfecting the 7.3L Power Stroke, Riffraff Diesel has developed a straightforward way to scrap your ’94-’03 Ford’s factory fuel bowl and also maximize the fuel being delivered to the injectors. The company’s Max-Flow 4-Line Fuel Feed Kit features an industry-first fuel block machined from USA 6061 aluminum—available in six different anodized colors—which mounts in the lifter valley and incorporates all line connections for 100-percent leak-free operation. Also within the box, you’ll find stainless steel braided fuel lines and all necessary mounting hardware. For less than $400, Riffraff’s kit takes the guesswork out of piecing together your own fuel bowl delete and 4-line feed arrangement.

Written by Mike McGlothlin