Story: George Pich
Photos: Wes Taylor
For whatever reason, back in the day, Oldsmobile adopted the term “Rocket” and used it to identify many of their V8 engines from 1949 to 1990 along with a model; the Rocket 88, which was instrumental in creating the performance and race car movement we know today.
Olds made some cool cars, but none were as popular among enthusiasts as the Cutlass. Option package models were born of the Cutlass and included the Supreme, the Hurst Olds and the 442.
While the “Rocket”, as Oldsmobile defined it, is long gone from this 1987 Oldsmobile 442, there is no doubt that the car is as equally impressive as those first offerings. This grudge raced G-Body GM, piloted by Chris Kenney and owned by Donnie Phillips (Chris’s father in law), now packs a turbocharged 434-inch LS based mill that runs with the top contenders in small tire grudge drags, but we’ll get to that a bit later.
The body of the 442 remains all OEM steel with the exception of the fiberglass trunk and cowl hood, and the cool black with silver accent 442-themed skin was laid down by Marshall’s Paint & Body. An aftermarket chin spoiler helps direct air from going under the car at high speeds and the sheer length of the trunk serves as an ample surface to keep the rear planted.
Kenney is definitely no newcom er to racing and paid his dues on the track starting from when he was just 7 years old. Starting in go-carts, by 12 he moved up to mini-cups and at 15 into mini-stocks, and by the time he was 21 he found drag racing, and never looked back.
Of course, once he found his prefer ence for straight line racing, he snapped up a Fox Body Stang, gave it a slick paint job, slipped a 408-inch Windsor based mill in it and tried every power adder he could. “I street raced the Mustang, first with an NOS nitrous plate kit, then with a P600 ProCharger, then a Vortech P1SC and then back to an NOS nitrous plate,” he said. Next was an ’03 Cobra with a Whipple and nitrous dry kit (because if one power adder is good, two must be better!), but once marriage and children came into the mix, Chris took a break until 2011 when he decided to get back into the scene, only this time he’d be rac ing at the track.
In 2012, Chris and Donnie decided to put Chris behind the wheel of Donnie’s jet Black 1987 Olds Cutlass 442. At that time an Olds engine was motivating the heavyweight and that would eventually transition into to a small block nitrous combination, and in 2016 the choice to move into turbocharging was made. “We ran the car with the turbo and it was aptly nicknamed ‘Night Train’ in 2016 because of the sound of the turbo….the name stuck,” Kenney added.
The body of the 442 remains all OEM steel with the exception of the fiberglass trunk and hood, and the cool black with silver accent 442-themed skin was laid down by Marshall’s Paint & Body.
Inside Night Train a Holley interactive display sits front and center, complete with the “Night Train” home screen. The race car interior is accented by the factory dash and door panels and the cage includes a Funny Car style driver surround. The rear seat is long gone in favor of sizeable wheel tubs.
...the sound of the turbo was theinspirationfortheaptly named“NightTrain”...
In order to protect Donnie and Chris’ grudge scene status, while we can’t share numbers with you, we can say that Night Train is one serious form of high speed locomotion!
From there, Byron Warner treated the complete body with a protective ceramic coat.
Chassis mods and cage work were completed by Radford Gurganous and include a Funny Car style hoop for added driver protection. TRZ handles the front upper and lower A-arms and tubular K-member as well as rear upper and lower control arms. The 7” rear canister coilover shocks are of the Menscer flavor. Hanging from the beefy rear suspension is a heavily fortified fabricated 9-inch fitted with disc brakes from The Brake Man. RC Components V Series wheels feature beadlocked 15x12 rears wrapped with 275/60/15 Mickey Thompson ET Street Radial Pros.
That 434 LS we mentioned is the creation of TKM, and here’s what we can tell you about it, after all, this is a grudge car. An LSR aluminum block was filled with a Callies billet crank swinging Bill Miller aluminum rods pinned to Wiseco pistons. Heads and specific cam specs are not something that Chris was able to (or wanted to) share with us.
RACING OIL FILTERS
Donnie Phillips 1987 Olds Cutlass 442 Grudge Race Car Driven by Chris Kenney
Body & Paint:
Factory panel body except for the fiberglass trunk and fiberglass hood. Paint and body by Marshall’s Paint & Body black with silver accent lower. Complete car ceramic coated by Byron Warner after paint completed
Chassis Modifications:
Funny Car Cage by Radford Gurganous
Suspension:
TRZ Suspension upper and lower control arms, tubular K member. Menscer shocks all around with 7” canister shocks on the rear.
Engine:
434 CI LS based LSR aluminum block, TKM built. Callies billet crank, Bill Miller aluminum rods, Wiseco pistons.
TKM custom grind camshaft.
Induction & Fuel Delivery:
Holley EFI complete system with Accufab throttle body. Waterman mechanical fuel pump, Billet Atomizer injectors. Performance Fab catch cans and oil tank.
Power Adder:
Forced Induction billet GTR turbo. Overrev Fabrication headers and all turbo piping.
Transmission:
Tri County Transmissions Powerglide 169 gear set. Cameron’s Torque Converter Services converter and the Driveshaft Shop carbon fiber driveshaft.
Rear: Fab 9 Housing
Brakes:
The Brake Man (TBM) drilled/slotted brakes
Tires & wheels:
RC Components V series 15 x 12 Rear, 15 x 3.5 Front. Mickey Thompson front runners and 275/60/15 Mickey Thompson ET Street Radial Pro on the rear.
Interior:
Holley EFI 12.3” Dash, Davis Technologies VPS traction control. HCR Innovations wired the car and did all plumbing on the car.
ET & MPH – Race only:
GRUDGE CAR
Thanks To:
Thank you to my wonderful wife Amanda who constantly supports my hobby and is the team Parachute Packer and Chef. Dad for ongoing team support and not missing a race in 28 years. Big D, Father in law for the support and the amazing vehicle to race. My children for being able bodied crew members and helping out with so many things. Holley Performance, HCR Innovations, Cameron Converters, RC Components. Thanks also must go out to Radford Gurganous, John Kenney, Devin Vanderhoof, Byron Rabon, Jordan Tuck, Forrest Kennedy.
Out back, a heavily fortified fabricated 9-inch is hung by a TRZequipped stock style rear suspension with canister coilovers and anti-roll bar setup. Mickey T 275/60 Radial Pros mounted on oversized 12-inch V Series wheels provide the hook, while TBM brakes help slow things down at the big end.
The Holley intake is mated to an Accufab throttle body and equipped with Billet Atomizer injectors. A Forced Induction billet GTR piece provides the boost, and all fabrication associated with the system, including headers, was the work Overrev Fabrication.
Tri County Transmissions built a Powerglide with 169 gear set for the Olds with a Cameron’s converter linking
it to the LS, and power is directed rearward through a carbon fiber driveshaft.
Holley EFI makes everything work and HCR Innovations wired the car and also completed all required plumbing. Inside Night Train is mostly race with a splash of the original interior in the form of the factory dash and door panels. The sizeable Holley 12.3-inch interactive display is
definitely the centerpiece, complete with the “Night Train” home screen. The rear seat is long gone in favor of wheel tubs that can hold most any wheel and tire combination necessary.
Of the most memorable experiences so far with the 442, a recent high profile win has to be at the top of the list. “Winning WW3 at Alabama Inter-
national Raceway in a Night Train vs Grand Nasty final was amazing,” Kenney added.
Once again, because Donnie and Chris are serious about their grudge race presence, we can’t give out performance numbers, suffice it to say that there’s no doubt this Train is high speed locomotion...day or night!
