We take Project Nova to the SuperFlow chassis dyno a Westech for some power tuning...

Over the past year, we've been preoccupied with cosmetic and safety issues with Project Nova, and now it's time to see what she's got under the hood, and try to iron out some driveability issues that have been bugging us. We made an appointment with the SuperFlow chassis dyno over at Westech Performance Group in Mira Loma, CA, and spent the morning dyno tuning for more power and better driveability.

The chassis dyno session gave us a unique chance to see what transpires once you install an engine under the hood; we actually dyno tested the very same Dart SHP 400 small-block on Westech's SuperFlow 901 more than two years ago, where it made 523 hp with dyno headers and an electric water pump. Now installed in our Nova, we found that the jetting and timing needs were far different than in the dyno cell. We also noted that even after a solid power tune (rearwheel power ended up at 385 hp), the Turbo 400 trans, water pump, power steering pump, 12-bolt rearend, and mechanical fan had soaked up 138 hp in parasitic losses.

Check out the step-by-step tuning video of our Holley 850 Street HP carb and DUI distributor by clicking here!