How important is a lowly vacuum pump? If you’re Tim Slone and you’ve
got turbocharged LS power pushing you to more than 200mph in what is
without a doubt the coolest Saturn Ion ever, it’s a matter of breaking records or being on fire at the Ohio Mile.
OK, so Saturn Ions aren’t know for being cool in the least, but when you’ve got what very well may be the only turbocharged, V8, RWD Saturn Ion and it put you in the ECTA’s 200mph club, we will watch you race it. Last Sunday at the ECTA’s May meet we were doing just that when things got very interesting for Slone.
In case you’re not a land speed racing regular, the ECTA’s standing mile events are sort of like a mile-long drag race. The difference it that in ECTA standing mile competition, only one car runs at a time and you’re clocked as you pass through timing lights at the end of the track. Elapsed times don’t matter.
Slone was well on his way down the runway when the belt on his vacuum pump decided that land speed racing was overrated and it jumped ship. The resulting spike in crankcase pressure blew out a valve cover gasket, spraying a finely-aerated mist of engine oil onto the exhaust. The resulting fireball was worthy of a Hollywood movie and led to rumors at the starting line, where the still-smoking Saturn wasn’t visible, that the car had burned to the ground.
There’s good news though! It turns out that the fireball was mostly show, and aside from burning the paint on the rockers, the car survived relatively unscathed. Tim’s son Austin told us:
“We’ll be back with the Saturn and my Nova in September to test, and will be there to get the Super Street jacket next spring with the Saturn.”
Big thanks to David Whealon, the ECTA’s track photographer, who nabbed the photos from near the finish line.
OK, so Saturn Ions aren’t know for being cool in the least, but when you’ve got what very well may be the only turbocharged, V8, RWD Saturn Ion and it put you in the ECTA’s 200mph club, we will watch you race it. Last Sunday at the ECTA’s May meet we were doing just that when things got very interesting for Slone.
In case you’re not a land speed racing regular, the ECTA’s standing mile events are sort of like a mile-long drag race. The difference it that in ECTA standing mile competition, only one car runs at a time and you’re clocked as you pass through timing lights at the end of the track. Elapsed times don’t matter.
Slone was well on his way down the runway when the belt on his vacuum pump decided that land speed racing was overrated and it jumped ship. The resulting spike in crankcase pressure blew out a valve cover gasket, spraying a finely-aerated mist of engine oil onto the exhaust. The resulting fireball was worthy of a Hollywood movie and led to rumors at the starting line, where the still-smoking Saturn wasn’t visible, that the car had burned to the ground.
There’s good news though! It turns out that the fireball was mostly show, and aside from burning the paint on the rockers, the car survived relatively unscathed. Tim’s son Austin told us:
“We’ll be back with the Saturn and my Nova in September to test, and will be there to get the Super Street jacket next spring with the Saturn.”
Big thanks to David Whealon, the ECTA’s track photographer, who nabbed the photos from near the finish line.
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