Blank Slate’s New Additions Include Harnesses, EZ-EFI And A Dyno Day

With Project Blank Slate in full swing, we sat down with shop manager Sean Goude to discuss the 1969 Chevy Camaro’s recent developments. According to Goude, much progress has been made mechanically and it shows through the dyno runs Blank Slate made in recent weeks.

Looking back, our last addition to Blank Slate was the OER door moldings, which keep Blank Slate sealed and free of any drag or resistance. The install was simple and straightforward, which gives us confidence leading up to the our next order of business: harnesses, a FAST EZ-EFI system, and a day on dyno for Blank Slate.

To begin, Goude and his team of technicians installed safety harnesses to the SCAT Procar seats that we discussed previously. As a refresher, the seats are Scat/Procar’s Evolution P’s. They are a high-tech racing-style seat that is designed to be suitable for both racing and street duty. In other words, they’re comfortable, and supportive. The seat is not only comfortable, but when necessary, can be reclined in case you have to spend the night in the pits. This seat is ideal for that tight fitting applications, with a width of only 15 3/4-inches. The cool carbon fiber inlay looks great also.

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Goude told us that the harnesses were a fairly easy install, and were not as strenuous as installing the seats. Since the Procar seats are a universal design, Goude did need to make several modifications that were necessary in order to gain proper fitment in Blank Slate. The modifications were not because the Procar seats didn’t fit, but on the contrary, since they are a universal design, some concessions–and brackets had to be made.

 

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With our Scat/Procar racing seats installed, and the Impact harness in place to keep us planted in the seat, project Blank Slate has the capability to keep the driver (and anyone brave enough to ride along), planted securely on their collective butts.

When you are in a racing situation, not just any seat belt will do. While a lap belt is OK for a street car, Blank Slate needs more. For that reason, we contacted the folks at Impact Racing for a pair of  5-point racing harnesses. Installing the belts is fairly easy, but remember that an improperly installed seat belt is worthless.

 

Installation of the Impact shoulder harnesses is an easy task, as the simply wrap around the bar behind the set. But, the proper routing of the strap can be the difference between securely seated, and bouncing around the car in the event of a crash.

Learn As You Go

Next up was the install of the FAST EZ-EFI system into Blank Slate. Goude said the kit was essentially plug and play. However, Goude and his team hit a few walls due to working on several cars within the shop simultaneously.

“The install was really straightforward,” said Goude. “There wasn’t any major challenges other than the fact that we left one vacuum port unplugged. It messed up the map readings but it was simply a mistake on our part. Once we plugged it in, it ran like a train.”

At first, Blank Slate spent a considerable amount of time on the dyno acclimating itself to the newly installed electronic fuel injection system.

“First hit, the air to fuel ratio was off,” said Goude. “But after three to four runs, we saw Blank Slate learn how to adjust itself. We really like how it performed overall.”

Goude said Blank Slate was a bit shaky at first but its performance numbers began to flatten out and give consistent numbers with each respective dyno run.

“It was a beautiful system,” said Goude. “It was simple and gave us detailed diagrams and instructions that made the process seamless.”

In addition, Goude said the EFI system was easy and doesn’t require an individual to be highly skilled with performance tuning. FAST has engineered a self tuning system that we felt was the right addition to Blank Slate’s internals.

“All the tuning nightmares and fears are subsided here since you don’t have to hook up the system to a laptop,” said Goude. “If you’re hustling, you can get this swapped on in simply a day, two day max.”

Unleashing The Beast

As for dyno day, Blank Slate had several of its issues fixed with a few minor adjustments. What was running rich initially, Blank Slate’s air to fuel ratio improved with the help of some software tuning.

With the addition of the EZ EFI system, it proved to give Blank Slate a slight increase in both horsepower and torque. According to the dyno graph, Blank Slate gained 10 HP and 9 ft./lb. of torque.

“We could easily hit 600 horses with some time and dedication,” said Goude. “It’s only a matter of time simply.”

When we asked Goude what was next, he had much to say. Given Blank Slate is not even close to completion, he said the motor is coming along nicely and they’re glad it is running without fault.

“Our next step is to get it out to an autocross and see what she does,” said Goude. “We want to see how she handles and performs in a real life scenario.”

With much to look forward to, Project Blank Slate is coming along, with attention to detail applied to each step. There may not be any paint or glass installed in Blank Slate, but its motor is alive and thriving.

Blank Slate can be heard far and wide even at idle. Screaming loud and proud, we can’t wait to see Blank Slate hit the road in full stride. Stay tuned as we will continue to follow Blank Slate as its missing pieces are brought into play.

Project Blank Slate may be one of several project builds we currently have in development, but it is definitely receiving tons of tender loving care. We can’t wait until we see this beast hit the track and you should be too. We’re confident Blank Slate’s LSX 502 V8 will hit 600 HP if not more as we tune her to perfection.

What are your thoughts on the dyno results? Feel free to share a comment or two below. Also, be sure to follow our progress with Project Blank Slate through our build thread here.

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About the author

nicaguon

Nic Aguon is a graduate from San Jose State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism and mass communications and holds a passion for sleek and unique automobiles. Serving as a Staff Writer for multiple publications at Power Automedia, Nic pledges to bring readers clean and concise storytelling that hits the nail right on the head. A jack of all trades, his interests range from imports to American muscle, hot rods, and Kustoms.
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