November 2014

The Newsletter of the Metro-Long Island Chapter Volume 22 Number 4

In Memory of Metro Lines Editor

John Waluk

November 2014

2

________________________________________________________________

John J. Waluk, Jr.

1947 – 2014 ________________________________________________________________

By Bill Armstrong

As I sit to compose my recollections of John Waluk I still find it hard to accept that he has left

us and that I will not see his smiling face on the Judging Field, Wine Cruise, Christmas Party

and all the other events “car guys” (and girls) congregate to. I would like to take this oppor-

tunity to share with you some of my recol-

lections of how I met John and his involve-

ment with the origins of our Chapter.

A leap back to 1992 found what would be-

come our Chapter in an organizational

meeting arranged by Vinnie Peters held at

a VFW Post in Nassau County. Back then

the only NCRS Chapter in the area was the

Northeast Chapter with roots in Connecti-

cut which had formed in the early 1980’s.

Vinnie, John Waluk, Pete Hartman and Charlie Stewart were all Long Island boys who had

joined the Northeast Chapter only to be dissatisfied with having to go to Connecticut for any

Chapter function. Hence a decision was made to see if enough interest could be generated to

form a Long Island Chapter of the NCRS. That meeting back in 1992 proved there was tre-

mendous interest in forming a Long Island Chapter of the NCRS as the meeting hall was stand-

ing room only from my recollections.

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As I gazed around the room listening to Vinnie explain Chapter requirements I looked to see

who I recognized in the crowd. Somewhere along the line I saw who I later came to know as

John Waluk sitting about a row or two behind me. For some reason unknown to me then or

now, I felt that I knew him from somewhere? As the meeting drew to a close and small talk

took over among the attendees, I went over to John to say hello. For you “law enforcement

types” you will understand my jovial first hello to John.....as a Police Officer I looked at John

and said to myself either I locked this guy up somewhere or I know him from some sort of mu-

tual Police interaction. After telling John my two different theories of how I somehow felt I

recognized him we had a good laugh when he

informed me that he had recently retired from

the Nassau County Police Department. John

also felt that we had met somewhere and we

tried to find some common ground in our past

but never did quite figure it out. Also as the

years rolled by on occasion we would revisit

this issue and thought maybe it was before the

Police Department that we crossed paths. As

both of us were in the Army we explored as-

signments and locations, but the closest we

came to being in the same place was in Vi-

etnam. I was there for two years from 1966 and

came back to the “world” in August of 1968.

John got there around October 1968 and came

back home in October of 1969 so that was not the answer as I had already left the military

when John was first sent to Vietnam. John was discharged from the Army in 1971, however he

stayed active in the Army Reserves for many years. The mystery continued.

After that organizational meeting in 1992 our Chapter formed with Vinnie Peters becoming the

first Chapter Chairman. Around 1996 Vinnie wanted to step down as Chapter Chairman, as he

had been elected a Regional Representative for the NCRS. At the Chapter Christmas Party on

December 6, 1996 at the Coral House Restaurant in Baldwin, John was elected Chapter Chair-

man commencing in January, 1997. John found himself with big shoes to fill as the newly

elected Chapter Chairman. In 1997 the Metro Chapter and the Northeast Chapter co-hosted

the 1997 NCRS National Convention in Lake Placid which was a great success. After a year

or so tenure as Chapter Chairman, John then took over the reins of Chapter Judging Chairman

with Pete Hartman as Co-Judging Chairman. During John’s tenure as Judging Chairman, our

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Chapter hosted a Regional at the Montauk Manor in April, 2000. I can recall seeing John and

Pete doing just about everything to ensure the event’s success, including parking lot attendants,

security officers, trailer parkers, “social workers”....... and oh yes, Judging Chairmen!!!!

After serving as Chapter Judging Chairman for about five years John stepped down, but was

always an active member of the Chapter and NCRS attending the various meets and functions

both locally and on the National level. John had attained Master Judge status with well over

400 points and more recently had gone over 500 points. John had also been the recipient of the

Mark of Excellence Award.

As the years rolled by, a vacancy existed in 2011 on the Chapter’s Board of Directors. The po-

sition was for the Metro Lines Newsletter Editor, and John stepped

up for the demanding job. Over the past few years John did an ex-

traordinary job with the Metro Lines which resulted in two Golden

Quill Awards. In addition John penned numerous technical arti-

cles over the years which I am sure aided our members in some of

their projects.

It is always difficult to say good bye, and in this case we did not have the opportunity to con-

vey this to John due to the tragedy that befell him. I am sure all of us in our extended

“Corvette Family” will miss John and think of him as a great friend.

I would like to thank Vinnie Peters and John’s wife Maryann for assistance in composing this

article.

Bill

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CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

By Mark Tulley

The leaves are falling and it is getting cooler outside and the Corvette season is wind-ing down. I am writing this article before I travel to Frisco, Texas for their 2014 Re-gional and by the time you read this our annual Charity Wine Cruise will be history. This is a great Corvette family event. If you have never attended please put it on your bucket list for next year.

The Metro LI Chapter puts on some of the best Judged Meets in the country and the recent Fall Meet at Exotic Classics was one of the best - a big thank you to Will Branston and his crew and to all of you that Judged and Tabulated. As usual, we conducted a Judging School on the preceding Saturday, October 4th at Vintage Restorations in Hicksville. Thanks to Dave and his crew for providing his shop and two lifts for the School.

This past July the NCRS National Convention was held in Kansas City. The Metro LI Chapter was well represented. Congratulations to Dennis and Donna Crupi as well as Hank DeMartino for achieving their 200 point Judging Award. Kevin MacKay provided a fantastic display of historic race cars. The judging and technical seminars were first class. A National Convention should also be on everyone’s bucket list.

The September Regional in Marlboro Massachusetts was also well attended with 25 Metro LI members and wives present. Congratulations to Phil Kostis and Lou Coccaro for achieving their 100 Point Master Judge Hats. Congratula-tions to Frank Kehr and Tom Flanagan for receiving their Top Flight Ribbons. For those of you that have ever had a Corvette PV’d you know how difficult the performance Verification Award can be. John Kahronas passed his PV on his first try and also had his car in the current issue of Corvette Magazine.

The Holiday Party this year will be at the Irish Coffee Pub in East Islip. Please register early. Look for the flyer in this Newsletter, and come listen to the Oldies from DJ Night Train.

As most of you know we lost a good friend and member, John Waluk, who passed away in August. John was a found-ing member, former Judging Chairman, Chapter Chairman, Newsletter Editor, for which he achieved the prestigious Golden Quill Award. John was always there whenever there was a job to do. He will be missed. Thank you to every-one who contributed to the Fund to purchase a large memorial brick in John’s name at the National Corvette Muse-um. We have met our goal.

I look forward to seeing many of you at our Holiday Party.

If anyone has a comment or suggestion please e-mail me at mandmcarleplace@aol.com.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS,

Mark

Mark Tulley & Bill Armstrong thanking Will Branston (left)

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VICE CHAIR’S MESSAGE

By Donna Crupi

Happy Autumn. It was so great seeing everyone at the fall chapter meet at Ex-

otic Classics. The October weather was beautiful and so were the cars. We had a

good turnout for the event. Thank you to all the car owners for bringing out your cars and the judges for

all your hard work. Thank you to Will and Pat Branson for hosting the event and being so supportive of

our chapter.

The Corvette season is rapidly coming to an end, but we still have a great event coming up. The Holiday

Party is at a great new venue this year, The Irish Coffee Pub in East Islip. If you have never been there

before, it has a charming atmosphere with great food. We have a new DJ this year, playing tunes from

the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and some 80’s. So make sure you wear your dancing shoes, so you can dance the

night away. This event will be perfect for mingling with your fellow chapter members and their spouse/

families. Hope to see you there.

Donna

ADVERTISING IN THE NCRS METRO-LINES CHAPTER NEWSLETTER

* * * Note: Our rates have not gone up in six years! * * *

Non-commercial advertising in the SELL-SWAP-WANTED section of the Metro-Long Island Newsletter is

free to all active Chapter members.

Note: Advertising in this section is limited to Corvettes and Corvette-related items.

Commercial advertising rates are for a full year, January - December.

These ads do not have to be Corvette-related. They will run in every issue.

Full page - $150 Half page - $100 Business card - $35

Do not send cash; make checks payable to Metro-Long Island Chapter, NCRS.

E-mail ad copy to hank.demartino@verizon.net

Mail payment to:

Hank DeMartino

Newsletter Advertising, MLI Chapter, NCRS

2 Doti Court

Huntington, NY 11743

November 2014

8

In Memorium

John J. Waluk, Jr.

1947 – 2014

_________________________________________

As I sit to compose my recollections of John Waluk I still find it hard to accept that he has left

us and that I will not see his smiling face on the Judging Field, Wine Cruise, Christmas Party

and all the other events “car guys” (and girls) congregate to. I would like to take this oppor-

tunity to share with you some of my recollections of how I met John and his involvement with

the origins of our Chapter.

A leap back to 1992 found what would become our Chapter in an organizational meeting ar-

ranged by Vinnie Peters held at a VFW Post in Nassau County. Back then the only NCRS

Chapter in the area was the Northeast Chapter with roots in Connecticut which had formed in

the early 1980’s. Vinnie, John Waluk, Pete Hartman and Charlie Stewart were all Long Island

boys who had joined the Northeast Chapter only to be dissatisfied with having to go to Con-

necticut for any Chapter function. Hence a decision was made to see if enough interest could

be generated to form a Long Island Chapter of the NCRS. That meeting back in 1992 proved

there was tremendous interest in forming a Long Island Chapter of the NCRS as the meeting

hall was standing room only from my recollections.

As I gazed around the room listening to Vinnie explain Chapter requirements I looked to see

who I recognized in the crowd. Somewhere along the line I saw who I later came to know as

John Waluk sitting about a row or two behind me. For some reason unknown to me then or

now, I felt that I knew him from somewhere? As the meeting drew to a close and small talk

took over among the attendees, I went over to John to say hello. For you “law enforcement

types” you will understand my jovial first hello to John.....as a Police Officer I looked at John

and said to myself either I locked this guy up somewhere or I know him from some sort of mu-

tual Police interaction. After telling John my two different theories of how I somehow felt I

Chapter, NCRS

November 2014

9

Reconditioning a C1

Antenna Mounting Base

By Dennis Crupi

We are fortunate in the Corvette hobby to have many of the parts we need to

restore our cars available as reproductions. While some of the parts available

from the many great Corvette suppliers are better then others, there is nothing

like being able to salvage an original part.

Photo 1 on the right is an antenna mast

and mounting base from a late year C1

Corvette. The upper threaded section of

the nipple has been broken off, as can be

seen in photo 2 (left). This is the threaded

section of the assembly that is inserted

through the car body and to which the

chrome plated escutcheon nut is attached.

While walking around swap meets, finding

an antenna mast with the upper nipple broken is not uncommon.

Having access to a lathe, I decided to attempt to repair the broken nipple. I selected a steel nip-

ple larger than the outside dimension of the nipple at the point it inserts in to the base section.

Then the steel nipple was mounted in a lathe chuck and the outside diameter was turned down

to match the existing dimension, with the exception of several inches at one end (photo 3, be-

low left).

Since the intent of this article is to outline the concept of how the antenna mounting base can

be repaired, I will not attempt to describe the process involving work on the lathe.

Using a thread gauge, the threads per inch and pitch of the existing threads were measured and duplicated on the

lathe. The next step was to cut the nipple with the newly

cut threads to length. However, before doing that, I pro-

ceeded to drill out the broken nipple in the base. Follow-

ing this, the drilled hole in the base was enlarged to ac-

commodate the full dimension of the steel nipple as a

press fit.

Technical Article

Photo 1 Photo 2

Photo 3

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This would allow the new nipple to be pressed in to the base section. Once this was completed,

the nipple was cut to final length (photo 3). When the new fabricated part is completely finished,

it will be pressed in to the base.

The original broken nipple had two flats at the threaded end. In order to duplicate these flats, the

new nipple was mounted in a vise and the flats were created with a file. The machined flats can

be seen in photo 4 of the completed assembly.

The fabrication of the new part was now complete but before pressing the new nipple in place,

the fabricated part required cad plating. Since the part was small, the plating was accomplished

with a Caswell Copy Cad Plating Kit.

It was now time for final assembly. While I was confident the nipple would be securely inserted in

the base, as an added measure, I mixed up a small amount of JB Weld and wiped a little on the

inside of the base prior to pressing the nipple in to place (photo 4).

Now that the mounting base was back together, all

that remained was to reassemble the antenna mast

and install the refurbished antenna in the car.

Photo 4

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JUDGING CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

BY CO-CHAIRS: WILLIAM ARMSTRONG AND GREG PICCONI

Hello again everyone. We are now officially in the Fall Season of 2014 and now we must reacquaint our-selves with shortened day light available and the tapering off of all the car activities that we are used to such as cruise nights, weekend car shows and of course taking a ride. However looking ahead this is the

time to schedule those restoration projects, repair projects, “man-cave” construction or improvements, etc., etc.

On the weekend of October 4th and 5th our Chapter had its Fall Judging School and Flight Judged Meet. On Saturday, Oc-tober 4th a Judging School was held at Vintage Automotive Restorations in Hicksville, N.Y. We had a great turn out on a rainy day with over thirty (30) NCRS members present. The subject of the Judging School was a review of Chassis and In-terior Judging utilizing two (2) C-2 Corvettes provided by Vin-tage Automotive Restorations. Handouts were provided to all in attendance to utilize during the School. The instructors

were Greg Picconi for Chassis and Hank DeMartino for Interior. Prior to the “hands on” portion of the Judging School topics a discussion and review was conducted concerning some misconceptions or mis-information about what constitutes a “total deduct” utiliz-ing the often misused “CDCIF” approach in Judging. I do not have the space and time in this article to review this subject but suffice to say if “looks like GM” that is a good start to evaluate a part using CDCIF.....if it looks like “Pep Boys” that is a good start to a Total Deduct.

On Sunday, October 5th our Chapter held its Fall Flight Judged Meet at Exotic Classics in Syosset, N.Y. Fortunately the weather was with us and it was a beautiful sunny/warm Fall Day. After what initially appeared to be a meet with up-wards of fifteen (15) cars being offered for Judging, this meet quickly diminished to only seven (7) cars being Flight Judged. We experienced cancellations, a no-show, a car deemed counterfeit at a prior meet, and due to a lack of available Judges had to curtail Judging into only three (3) classes. A result of having to reduce the Judging classes resulted in turning away some late registration additional cars. Of the seven (7) cars Flight Judged, six (6) achieved Top Flight and one (1) a Second Flight. In addition there were three (3) cars entered for the Sportsman Award however one (1) was deemed inel-igible due to the owner not being a NCRS Chapter Member (any Chapter) in addition to being a

Continued Next Page…..

Judges Listening Attentivey to Bill’s Instructions….

Judges Busy at Work…..

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National NCRS Member. There was also a presentation of a 1960 Five Star Bowtie Candidate which already had achieved the Four Star award at a previous NCRS meet. There was a much spirited discussion among some very experienced Judges on the “originality” of this car. The results of this meet are printed elsewhere in this newsletter. I would like to thank the Judges and Tabulators that came from not only the Metro Chap-ter area but also from New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and upstate N.Y. that assisted in making this a great meet. I would also like to thank the owners of both Vintage Automotive Restorations and Exotic Clas-sics for providing their facilities for our Judging School and Judged Meet respectively. I must also state that it was an unusual and sad feeling that crept over me at both the Judging School and Flight Judged meet not to have my long time NCRS friend and general “car buddy” friend John Waluk not present. John, I am sure you are in a better place but know you are missed.

As related above I must comment on what appears to be a diminishing involvement of NCRS members com-ing out to assist in Judging. I know the NCRS membership numbers are now in the 60 thousand range but that does not mean there are 60,000 + members. I am informed that the actual paid membership is some-where around 15,000 members. There is a great disparity between old, long time members and the newer member who has just bought a Corvette and entered the hobby. Our recent meet showed this trend dra-matically with membership numbers in the 50-60,000 range with no (zero) judging experience for many of the car owners presenting their cars for Judging. The available Judges for this meet was down which created a scenario in which only three (3) classes could be fielded as opposed to the typical four (4) classes as in the past. Not enough Judges equals a cut back on the cars that can be judged. We are not alone as a NCRS Chap-ter in this regard. We are not unique in this matter as Judging participation appears to be diminished on a Nationwide basis as is also the amount of cars being offered for Judging. We can only Judge those cars that we have sufficient Judges to perform a proper NCRS evaluation for Flight Judging purposes.

So long for now and enjoy the Fall season!

Bill

Bill Armstrong (3618)

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EXOTIC CLASSICS

NCRS Metro Long Island Chapter October 5, 2014

FLIGHT AWARDS

Top Flight 1963 Martin Picone

Top Flight 1965 Tom Scannapieco

Top Flight 1967 Larry Sachs

Top Flight 1971 Larry Sachs

Top Flight 1971 Jack Dimaggio

Top Flight 1971 William Adlman

Top Flight 1996 Richard Tarter

Second Flight 1973 Gregory Gambino

SPORTSMAN AWARDS

1966 Gary Segal

2013 Robert Spinicchia

BOW TIE DISPLAY

1960 Keith Leggett

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Since my last report back in October of 2013, our total revenue collected for 2014 so far is $6,244.36. On the expense side, we spent a total of $4,222.52 as of 10/15/14. Our balance as of 10/15/14 is $11,039.48

which is approximately the same as last year at this time. The board’s continued efforts to solicit spon-sors for our meets, and judging schools have helped the chapter offset expenses. In addition, since we transitioned to e-mailing the Chapter newsletter, we continue to save money on printing, and postage. I would like to thank all the members who participate in our chapter events. It takes a lot of effort to schedule, and coordinate all the events we have so it’s great to see my fellow members participate and enjoy the passion. I look forward to a fantastic 2015. See everyone at the Holiday Party.

________________________________________

TREASURER’S REPORT

By Frank Erbio

Some Chapter Meet Photos…..

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Metro Long Island Chapter’s Annual Charity Wine Cruise

To

Laurel lake Vineyards

Sunday, November 2, 2014

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WEBMASTER’S MESSAGE

By Hank DeMartino

They say you join NCRS for the cars, but stay for the people.

Although I joined NCRS in 1999, it took me a while to become active in the Metro Long Island chapter. I had an Observer Judge role at our chapter meet in

the fall of 2007, but it took 2-years for me to finally attend my first chapter judging school in the fall of 2009. One month later, I received my first judging assignment at a Northeast Chapter meet. John Waluk was the team leader. It seemed as if we had more cars than judges that day, and both John and I were very busy. We did have time to have lunch together, and we got to know each other better. I was hooked on NCRS from that point forward.

As time moved on, I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to serve on our chapter’s board with John. He was a true gentleman and friend to everyone in our organization. Always eager to help. Always there for support. Always there to serve, as he did his entire life. He was certainly one of the people you stay in NCRS for.

I miss him a great deal. The chapter misses him too.

After John’s tragic death, Mark Tulley asked me to help keep the Metro Lines going. I can only hope

that any contributions I can make will serve to honor John’s commitment to his friends at NCRS, and to the legacy of this chapter.

I’ll do my best.

Hank

_______________________________________________

Sam & Harriet Krauthamer

donated their

50/50 Raffle winnings at

Laurel Lakes Winery to the

Long Island Veteran’s Home!

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Special thanks to our Chapter Event Hosts and Sponsors for their continuing support:

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Horsepower……

By Hank DeMartino

We seek it. We revere it. We pay insane dollars to acquire it. But what does this term really mean?

The idea of horsepower was fresh in mind after I returned from our annual convention in Kansas City, where we were treated to

the unveiling of the 2015 Corvette Z06. What a machine! It’s supercharged 6.2L V8 produces 650 horsepower and 650 lb/ft of

torque. These numbers got me thinking, so I did a bit of web searching on the topic of horsepower. Here’s what I found.

Horsepower is the measurement of the rate at which mechanical work is done. The term horsepower was coined by the engi-

neer James Watt (1736 to 1819) and is most famous for his work on improving the performance of steam engines. We are also

reminded of him every day when we turn on light bulbs.

The story goes that Watt was working with ponies lifting coal at a coal mine, and he wanted a way to talk about the power availa-

ble from one of these animals. He found that, on average, a mine pony could do 22,000 foot-pounds of work in a minute. He then

increased that number by 50 percent (theorizing that a horse could do 50 percent more work than a pony), and pegged the meas-

urement of horsepower at 33,000 foot-pounds of work in one minute. It is that arbitrary unit of measure that has made its way

down through the centuries and now appears on your car, your lawn mower, your chain saw and even in some cases your vacu-

um cleaner.

So, what horsepower means is this: In Watt's judgment, one horse can do 33,000 foot-pounds of work every minute. Imagine a

horse raising coal out of a coal mine as shown above. A horse exerting 1 horsepower can raise 330 pounds of coal 100 feet in a

minute, or 33 pounds of coal 1,000 feet in one minute, or 1,000 pounds 33 feet in one minute. You can make up whatever combi-

nation of feet and pounds you like. As long as the product is 33,000 foot-pounds in one minute, you have a horsepower .

Horsepower can be converted into other units as well. For example:

1 horsepower is equivalent to 746 watts. So if you took a 1-horsepower horse and put it on a treadmill, it could operate a gen-

erator producing a continuous 746 watts.

Technical Article

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1 horsepower (over the course of an hour) is equivalent to 2,545 BTU (British thermal units). If you took that 746 watts and ran it

through an electric heater for an hour, it would produce 2,545 BTU (where a BTU is the amount of energy needed to raise the tem-

perature of 1 pound of water 1 degree F).

One BTU is equal to 1,055 joules, or 252 gram-calories or 0.252 food Calories. Presumably, a horse producing 1 horsepower would

burn 641 Calories in one hour if it were 100-percent efficient.

If you want to know the horsepower of an engine, you hook the engine up to

a dynamometer. A dynamometer places a load on the engine and measures the

amount of power that the engine can produce against the load.

Imagine that you have a big socket wrench with a 2-foot-long handle on it, and you apply 50 pounds of force to that 2-foot handle.

What you are doing is applying a torque, or turning force, of 100 pound-feet (50 pounds to a 2-foot-long handle) to the bolt. You

could get the same 100 pound-feet of torque by applying 1 pound of force to the end of a 100-foot handle or 100 pounds of force

to a 1-foot handle.

Similarly, if you attach a shaft to an engine, the engine can apply torque to the shaft. A dynamometer measures this torque. You

can easily convert torque to horsepower by multiplying torque by rpm/5,252.

Turns out there are many different ways to measure engine horsepower, and they produce various results. Put an engine on a dy-

namometer and you could get a wide range of horsepower figures depending on how the engine is configured. For example, an

open-exhaust system will allow more air to flow through an engine than a restrictive exhaust and thus produce more power.

That's just one variable among many, so the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) has published a protocol for power measure-

ment. It's called SAE J1349, and it was updated in 2004 to close some loopholes.

There are a lot of misunderstandings among car enthusiasts and his-

torians about vintage horsepower ratings. It’s easy to assume from a

casual glance at ads or spec sheets that even quite ordinary Ameri-

can family sedans of the sixties were overwhelmingly powerful, with

300 horsepower or more, and yet by 1975, many of those same cars

were down to 150 hp or less. When asked the reason for the huge

difference, gearheads tend to shake their heads and mutter about emissions controls and anemic, low-octane unleaded gasoline —

which is true, but only partly.

What complicates the issue and makes apples-to-apples comparisons difficult is the fact that those pre-smog horsepower ratings

were not calculated in the same way as modern engines. “A horsepower is a horsepower, right?” you say. While a horsepower, pre

-smog or post, remains 746 watts (or 736, for metric horsepower), the way that output was measured has changed quite a bit. Let’s

explain:

Before 1972, most American engines were rated under the methodology laid out in Society of American Engineers (SAE) standards

J245 and J1995, which calculated the output of a ‘bare’ engine on a test stand with no accessories, free-flowing exhaust headers

(no mufflers), and optimal ignition timing, with a correction factor for standard atmospheric conditions.

What does all that mean? The engine in your car is burdened with various engine-driven accessories ranging from the engine’s own

oil and water pumps and generator/alternator to the power steering pump and air conditioning compressor, each of which con-

sumes a certain amount of power. An engine in a passenger car also has mufflers and an exhaust system designed for quiet opera-

tion rather than low back pressure, while the ignition is retarded to prevent detonation with pump gasoline. Meanwhile, carbure-

tor jetting and fuel injection calibration are aimed at fuel economy and driveability, not maximum power. The gross rating reflects

none of these losses; it represents an engine’s theoretical maximum output under ideal conditions, not how much power it actually

produces when installed in a car.

Measuring Horsepower

Understanding Gross Versus

Net Horsepower Ratings

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Until the mid-fifties, the gap between gross horsepower and as-installed output was not vast, but by the end of the decade, some

manufacturers’ advertised horsepower ratings far outstripped usable power. Significant inflation was clearly taking place, some-

times to the tune of 25-30%. We’re pretty sure that nothing in the SAE standards said that the calculated horsepower could be

whatever the marketing department wanted it to be, but that was more or less what happened. If Chevrolet advertised 195 gross

horsepower (145 kW) for its standard V8, for example, it was not difficult for Ford engineers to tweak their calculations to justify a

rating of 200 hp (149 kW) for their standard engine.

By the same token, in the mid- to late sixties, it was also not uncommon for power ratings to be deliberately understated. For ex-

ample, in 1965, Chevrolet released the 396 cu. in. (6,488 cc) TurboJet V8 as an option for Corvettes, rated at 425 gross horsepower

(317 kW). The following year, the engine was bored to 427 cubic inches (6,996 cc), but its power rating remained suspiciously un-

changed. (Indeed, some early GM promotional material credited the 427 with 450 gross horsepower (336 kW).) We can attribute

this to GM-imposed corporate rules limiting all their cars (except the Corvette) to a maximum of one gross horsepower per 10

pounds (1 kW per 6.1 kg) of curb weight.

Consider the 1966 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray’s 427 cu. in. (6,996

cc) L72 engine. Early literature credited the L72 with 450 hp (336

kW) at 6,400 rpm, but this was quickly amended to 425 hp (317

kW) at 5,600 rpm — the same horsepower as the previous year’s

396 cu. in. (6,488 cc) L78. Contemporary reviewers were highly

skeptical.

Why would a manufacturer underrate their engines? Particularly at

GM, the most conservative of the automakers, there was real fear

of the growing safety lobby, which already thought the amount of

power the auto industry offered in its cars was unseemly. In that

climate, advertising a 500 hp (373 kW) Corvette or 400 hp (298 kW)

GTO seemed like asking for trouble. Insurance was also becoming

an issue, with a growing number of insurance companies levying prohibitive surcharges on very powerful cars or simply refusing to

offer coverage at all.

Another concern was racing. Eligibility for different drag strip classes was based on power-to-weight ratio, calculated using adver-

tised horsepower and shipping weight. If an engine produced more power than its rating, it would have a competitive advantage.

This type of underrating was at best an open secret. Testing a Pontiac GTO Judge equipped with the 390 Ram Air IV engine, for ex-

ample, Car Life magazine noted that the division’s own executives freely admitted the 370 hp (276 kW) gross rating was purely a

fiction to satisfy insurance companies and their corporate superiors. As a result, racing officials frequently “factored” underrated

engines for the purposes of classification; Chrysler’s very strong 340 cu. in. (5,567 cc) engine, for example, carried a conservative

275 hp (205 kW) rating from the factory, but the NHRA treated it as a 325 hp (242 kW) engine for racing purposes.

Between inflation and deliberate underrating, by 1970, the relationship between advertised gross horsepower and actual power

was at best nebulous. The gross ratings served a variety of political and marketing purposes, but they were far from useful as a re-

alistic measure of engine output.

Starting in 1971, manufacturers began to lower compression ratios and de-tune their engines to prepare for the advent of unlead-

ed gasoline. Both the early emission-control systems (air-injection pumps, exhaust gas recirculation) and the reduced compression

ratios made engines perceptibly less powerful, whether those losses were reflected in the gross horsepower ratings or not.

Faced with this reality, along with the pressures of the safety and environmental lobby, U.S. manufacturers decided it was time to

abandon the gross rating system. In its place they adopted the SAE net rating methodology, described by SAE standard J1349.

“Net” horsepower ratings are still made with the engine on a test stand, but with stock ignition timing, carburetion, exhaust, and

accessories: in short, a closer approximation of how much power an engine produces as actually installed in the car.

November 2014

26

The result of the new net rating system was a dramatic drop in advertised power. The rated output of Cadillac Eldorado‘s mam-

moth 500 cu. in. (8,194 cc) V-8, for instance, fell from 400 gross horsepower (298 kW) in 1970 to 360 gross horsepower (269 kW) in

1971, a drop of about 10%. The engine was basically unchanged for 1971, but the switch to SAE net ratings reduced the rated out-

put to only 235 net horsepower (175 kW). (Although GM did not quote a net horsepower rating for the higher-compression 1970

engine, it was probably 275–285 hp (205-213 kW). In some cases, actual output did drop during this period, mostly due to emis-

sions-related changes, but the reduction in as-installed power was generally far less drastic than the numbers suggested.

Why was this change made? The most obvious reason was as an inexpensive PR gesture; overnight, the carmakers made it clear

that they were no longer offering irresponsible levels of horsepower, without making any expensive engineering changes whatso-

ever. Beyond that, the switch in ratings made it easier for salesmen to obfuscate the actual loss of power caused by reduced com-

pression and smog control hardware — useful when trying to explain to a customer why the 1972 Cadillac he’s looking at seems to

have 40% less power than the 1970 he’s trading in.

By the end of the decade, the big drops in horsepower were no longer just on paper. For example, Pontiac’s 455 cu. in. (7,481 cc)

V8, which as late as 1973 had produced a conservative 310 net horsepower (231 kW), could muster only 200 (149 kW) by the time

it faded out in 1976. Ford’s 302 cu. in. (4,942 cc) V8, which had made as much as 306 gross horsepower (228 kW) in the sixties, had

plummeted by 1979 to less than 140 net horsepower (104 kW). It was not until the widespread proliferation of electronic fuel in-

jection in the 1980s that net power outputs again began to climb.

The net rating system was used until 2005, when the SAE issued standard J2723 to clarify and tighten the existing methodology and

require an independent observer be present when the ratings are measured. Under these new “SAE-certified output” guidelines,

some engines ended up with lower ratings than before, while a few actually increased. In most cases, the engines were not actually

altered in any way — the testing methodology had just changed. The new rating method is voluntary, but most, if not all, manufac-

turers now use it for their U.S. market cars.

Let’s clear up a couple of common misconceptions about gross and net horsepower ratings:

Contrary to some assumptions, net horsepower ratings do NOT measure horsepower at the drive wheels. Both gross and net

ratings are at the flywheel and don’t reflect power losses in the drivetrain.

Because of the vagaries of the old gross ratings and the widespread over- and underrating of different engines, there is NO precise

formula for converting gross horsepower to net horsepower or vice versa. Sometimes, the difference is as little as 5–10%; some-

times it’s more like 25%. The only way to be certain about the comparative gross and net ratings of a specific engine is if the factory

released both gross and net figures for that engine. (Some U.S. automakers did this during the 1971 model year and intermittently

before that.) Otherwise, the best you can do is make an

educated guess based on state of tune and real-world

performance testing — keeping in mind that published

road tests didn’t necessarily reflect the performance of cars the average consumer could actually buy.

The ambiguity of gross horsepower ratings means that many pre-1972 American cars were actually a lot less powerful than the

advertised figures would suggest. While the late sixties were a

golden age of horsepower compared to the late seventies or

early eighties, the differences weren’t quite as vast as they

appear at first blush. For example, a 1967 Chevrolet Impala

with the 396 cu. in. (6,488 cc) V8, rated at 325 gross horse-

power (242 kW), probably had something like 220 net horse-

power (164 kW) in pure stock form.

A car is considered to be "high performance" if it has a lot of power relative to the weight of the car. This makes sense -- the more

weight you have, the more power it takes to accelerate it. For a given amount of power you want to minimize the weight in order

to maximize the acceleration. I guess that’s why John DeLorean decided to stuff a 389 CID V8 into the Pontiac Tempest. He had the

right idea for sure!

Some Common Misconceptions

The ambiguity of gross horsepower ratings means that

many pre-1972 American cars were actually a lot less

powerful than the advertised figures would suggest.

November 2014

27

The following table shows you the horsepower and weight for several high-performance cars (and one low-performance car for

comparison). In the chart you can see the peak horsepower , the weight of the car, the power-to-weight ratio (horsepower divid-

ed by the weight), the number of seconds the car takes to accelerate from zero to 60 mph, and the price.

NOTE: The data in this table was compiled in April 2000.

You can see a very definite correlation between the power-to-weight ratio and the 0-to-60 time -- in most cases, a higher ratio indi-

cates a quicker car. Interestingly, there is less of a correlation between speed and price. The Viper actually looks like a pretty good

value on this particular table!

In conclusion, if you want a fast car, you want a good power-to-weight ratio. You want lots of power and minimal weight. So the

first place to start may be cleaning out your trunk. Or, for those of us who are so inspired, the answer is placing your order for the

2015 Corvette Z06!

Visit the LINKS page at www.MetroLI.org for valuable information about technical data resources, Corvette history, organizations,

and loads of other fun topics.

References:

1. www.wikipedia.org

2. www.howstuffworks.com

3. www.caranddriver.com

4. www.ateupwithmotor.com

Horsepower Weight(lbs) Power:Weight 0-60 mph

(seconds)

Price

Dodge Viper 450 3,320 0.136 4.1 $66,000

Ferrari 355 F1 375 2,975 0.126 4.6 $134,000

Shelby Series 1 320 2,650 0.121 4.4 $108,000

Lotus Esprit V8 350 3,045 0.115 4.4 $83,000

Chevrolet Corvette 345 3,245 0.106 4.8 $42,000

Porsche Carrera 300 2,900 0.103 5.0 $70,000

Mitsubishi 3000GT twin-turbo 320 3,740 0.086 5.8 $45,000

Ford Escort 110 2,470 0.045 10.9 $12,000

Horsepower in High Performance Cars

November 2014

28

Visit Your Metro Long Island NCRS Store Today for the very best in apparel and

merchandise, all branded with your Chapter logo!

Go to the METRO LONG ISLAND APPAREL & MERCHANDISE STORE at

www.MetroLI.org

November 2014

29

METRO-LONG ISLAND CHAPTER, NCRS

Board of Directors 2015 Nominations and Election

The Board of Directors election for our Metro LI Chapter will be held at our upcoming Christmas Party on December 6, 2014.

Our current Directors have all indicated they wish to be candidates for re-election for the calendar year of 2015. There are certain

changes with respect to the positions of Chapter Chairman and Vice Chairman that have come about due to recent changes in the

NCRS National Officers and Regional Directors.

If you are not aware, Dick Capello, NCRS President, stepped down from this position in October and also stepped down from his

position as Region I Director. Vice President Mike Ingham has now assumed the position of President of NCRS. Due to these

changes a vacancy existed for the remaining term of Dick Capello’s Regional Director position until December 31, 2015. Certain

candidates were considered by NCRS President Mike Ingham to fill out the remainder of the Region I Director term. As such Mark

Tulley, our current Chapter Chairman, was chosen and approved by the NCRS Board/Officers as the new Region I Director. As a

result of this new position, and the demands of such, Mark Tulley has requested to step down from the position of Chapter Chair-

man and wishes to be considered for the position of Chapter Vice Chairman.

In addition, in light of the changes listed above, current Chapter Vice Chairman Donna Crupi wishes to be considered for the

position Chapter Chairman.

At the present time the candidates for the elected Chapter Officer positions for the calendar year 2015 are as follows:

Donna Crupi Chapter Chairman

Mark Tulley Chapter Vice Chairman

Frank Erbio Treasurer

Mary Tulley Secretary

Elections to the Board positions are open to any current Chapter Member in good standing. If any Chapter member wishes to

be considered a candidate for any of the above positions they may do so. If you have a strong wish to be considered a candidate

for one of these positions please contact me as soon as possible. Nominees must be in place at least one (1) week prior to the

Christmas Party. No new nominations will be accepted at the Christmas Party. To be elected a candidate must have a majority

vote as counted from those members present.

All elected positions will assume office on January 1, 2015.

If you have any questions concerning any of the positions and duties please contact me by telephone or E-Mail.

Bill

Bill Armstrong (3618)

Co-Judging Chairman

November 2014

30

NCRS registered marks used in Metro Lines are NCRS Founders ©,NCRS Master Judge Award ©,NCRS Performance Verification Award©, NCRS Flight Award, ©,and NCRS Sportsman Award ©, are regis-tered with the United States Department of Commerce and Trademark Office. The NCRS American Heritage Award SM application is pending.

Membership in the NCRS is open to persons interested in the restoration, preservation and history of the Corvette produced by Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Corporation. NCRS is not affili-ated with Chevrolet or General Motors.

Membership in the Metro Long Island Chapter of the NCRS is open to all members of the NCRS Na-tional Organization. Dues are $30 for one-year membership or $50 for two years.

www.MetroLI.org

Metro-LI Chapter, NCRS Officers 2014

Mailing Address Contact Number Emal Address

Mark Tulley, Chairman 2 Clearland Avenue 516-841-6376 autqipsale@aol.com

Carle Place, NY 11514

Donna Crupi, Vice Chair 12 Hart Place 516-639-5352 DMCrupi61@gmail.com

Dix Hills, NY 11746

Frank Erbio, Treasurer 12 Tusa Court 631-512-3934 FrankErbio@yahoo.com

St. James, NY 11780

Mary Tulley, Treasurer 2 Clearland Avenue 516-997-4842 MandMcarleplace@aol.com

Carle Place, NY 11514

Bill Armstrong, Judging Chairman 1 Columbine Avenue 631-728-9227 BigTank61@optonline.net

Hampton Bays NY 11946

Greg Picconi, Judging Chairman 59 Union Drive 516-528-6005 GP133@optonline.net

Merrick, NY 11566

Hank DeMartino, Webmaster 2 Doti Court 631-368-9657 Hank.DeMartino@verizon.net

& Newsletter Editor Huntington, NY 11746

Mike Kersch, Membership Chairman 80 Loines Avenue 516-315-2691 MKer1955@aol.com

Merrick, NY 11566

Matt Kochman, Merchandise Chair-man 8 Sands Lane 631-764-7962 TheKochmanTeam@realtor.com

Port Jefferson, NY 11777

November 2014

31

2 Doti Court2 Doti Court2 Doti Court

Huntington, NY 11743Huntington, NY 11743Huntington, NY 11743

The Metro Lines is a quarterly publication of the Metro Long Island Chapter,

NCRS. We hope you enjoy our digital PDF format, which allows for hyperlinks, expanded articles, and

many more photos. The newsletter will be mailed electronically to all Metro Long Island Chapter mem-

bers. All chapter event flyers, notifications, and updates that appear in the Metro Lines are also posted

on the Events page at www.MetroLI.org , and may also be mailed to you electronically as appropriate.

We would be pleased to include YOUR story in future editions. The next time you begin a project on

your Corvette, don’t forget your camera. Jot a few notes and contact me with your story, which is sure

to enlighten your fellow members.

Please let me know your suggestions and comments about how we may improve the Metro Lines.

Enjoy the Holiday Season,

Hank

EDITOR’S MESSAGE

November 2014

By Hank DeMartino