A So-Cal Street Outlaw Twin-Turbo, Big-Block ’57 Chevy Bel Air from LP Racing & Design

September 2020 • By Nestor Cabrera • Photos by Nestor Cabrera and Tony Thacker

Let’s be honest, we love to watch the antics of the Street Outlaws crew. I personally feel it’s been one of the reasons drag racing has had a resurgence. Not that drag racing in general is in decline but I personally feel NHRA hasn’t done a good job of drawing in new fans. It appears to have spent most of the 2000s building ‘Big Show’ teams racing nitro-burning behemoths and forgetting about the average racer. Heck, the closest pro class car that resembles a real car is Pro Stock and they aren’t very exciting, they all look the same except for front end decals, and it took them 22 years to switch to EFI after the last carbureted car was sold. But this isn’t an NHRA bash session or my review of one of my favorite TV shows. No, this is actually the story of what people consider a street car these days. In fact, the streetcar we are referring to is one of the most popular hot rods—a ’57 Chevy Bel Air.

The reason I brought up the Street Outlaws show is because like most popular culture, they have influenced how people build their cars. Before Street Outlaws, a racecar was just that, something you built and mostly trailered to and from the track. A few guys would take them to the street races, but they weren’t typically something you would ever consider driving on the street. Well, all that has changed and in part because of the cars on the show. Unlike NHRA, that appears to frown on technology, the Street Outlaws (SO) crew can be seen with their laptops tuning the EFI of their nitrous and turbocharged racecars for best performance on the streets of OKC. Heck, one of the most popular cars is the ‘Farm Truck,’ a big block, nitrous snorting C10 with rusty old body, camper shell and a set of the biggest drag slicks you can stuff under a tubbed truck body.

The ’57 Chevy here is just like our favorite SO duo’s fishing bait. As a matter of fact, the patinated steel body is all original, no fiberglass anywhere. The doors even have the functional, retractable trim that flips up when you open the door. Once you open the door, any sense of this being a stock ’57 is lost, all the safety equipment and multi-point roll cage paints a perfect picture of what to expect from this Tri-Five. Not that the entire interior has been converted to race car spec, the instrument cluster is still original equipment as is the steering column, trim and bench seats. But if you know the crew at Lang Paciulli’s LP Racing & Design, Ontario, CA, then you know this isn’t just a mild mannered build for another customer—they don’t have any mild mannered customers. The owner of this car, who prefers to remain anonymous, owns several LP creations. When asked why he built the ’57, he simply answered, “Why not?”

To give you an idea of what this ’57 is capable of, let’s just say the engine that sits between the modified frame rails has gone 6.40 @ 240 mph in another car, that was with 45lbs of boost.  The 565 ci big-block Chevy is a beast to say the least. Twin Precision Pro Mod 88mm turbos feed a custom LP intake manifold mated to Brodix Big Duke heads. Custom forged 10:1 pistons and aluminum rods mated to a billet crank convert all the boost into a lot of torque. Boost is controlled through dual Turbosmart wastegates regulated at 15lbs, Turbosmart BOVs release any excess pressure when the skinny pedal is released.  On the chassis dyno the 565 produced 1200hp at 15lbs of boost on E85. The E85 fuel eliminates the need for any intercooler since the packaging of the engine and turbos leaves very little room underneath the hood.

To make so much horsepower a lot of fuel has to be burned so an Aeromotive fuel system is employed to ensure the engine does not run lean. Fuel and spark are managed by a Fuel Tech EFI system. Keeping a close eye on all the vitals is a Fuel Tech FT5000 ECU with a color LCD dashboard that gives the driver access to all the sensors but allows for full sequential fuel injection control and timing. 

With 1200hp on tap, power needs to make it to the ground so a Turbo 400 with a Gear Vendors’ overdrive was installed along with a Neal Chance Racing converter. Power is then routed through a Strange 9-inch rear end and LP Racing custom 4-link. A set of 15 x 14-inch wide Mickey Thompson beadlock wheels and M/T radials measuring 315/60R15 are tasked with converting it all to forward motion.

TorqTalk.com got to ride along with Lang for a cruise—this was before the engine had been properly tuned and boost raised—and let’s just say it was a crazy ride. This ’57 does not like to go straight, probably due to the high PSI in the radials and it was fun seeing our Lang roll into the throttle and initiate a mini drift at 40, 50 and then 60 mph.

From the outside this Chevy doesn’t look any more menacing than your typical hot rod and the twin side-exit exhausts don’t produce much of a rumble compared to other muscle cars with a mild cam and free flowing exhaust, however, don’t let looks fool you; the large tires aren’t there just for show. In reality the ’57 has some likeness to an old Pro Street set up, until you hit that skinny pedal that is. Don’t say we didn’t warn you if you happen to run into this street beast and decide to pick a fight with it and end up on the losing end.

Builder: LPRacing.net
Engine: 565  ci big-block Chevy
Brodix Big Duke Heads
Custom LP Racing Spec 10:1 pistons
Aluminum rods
6-stage dry sump

• Fuel Tech FT500 EFI System
• Twin Precision Turbo Pro Mod 88's
• Turbosmart BOV wastegates
• 1200hp at the wheels with15lb. Boost
(Engine has been 6.40 @240mph with 45lbs boost in another car)
• Turbo 400 with Gear Vendors Overdrive
• Neal Chance torque converter
• Aeromotive fuel system
• LP Racing cage and custom rear 4-Link
• Inland Empire steel one-piece driveshaft
• Ford 9-inch with Strange axles
• Wilwood brakes
• Custom front frame to clear engine
• Firewall recessed 3 inches
Wheels: 15x3.5 Pro-5 ET Mickey Thompson Billet Aluminum front, 15X14 M/T beadlock rear
Tires: 26x6.00R15 LT Mickey Thompson Sportsman SR front, 315/60R15 M/T radial rear