Monterey 2009: Blastolene's twin-supercharged V12 Peterbilt hot rod
Blastolene Peterbilt Hot Rod - Click above for a high-res image gallery
We are amazed every time we see a new creation from the Blastolene Brothers, and this latest monster we spotted at last night's Jet Center party in Monterey made our jaws drop. Built by Randy Grubb, the same man responsible for designing and constructing Jay Leno's tank car, this rolling monster is comprised of a chopped Peterbilt model 351 cab and an 852ci two-stroke Detroit Diesel twin-supercharged V12 mated to an Allison 4-speed automatic transmission from a Greyhound bus. The engine produces 500 horsepower and nearly 1000 lb-ft torque with a redline of just 2,800 rpm. Other features include a custom boat-tail gas tank, Baer brakes, stitched leather seats made by a saddle maker and a customized rear end from a semi truck. Overall, Grubb spent over 3,000 man hours and 15 months to build this one off creation and has lovingly given it the nickname "Piss'd Off Pete." Check out all the incredible details in the high-res gallery below.
Gallery: Blastolene Peterbilt Hot Rod
Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
captain underpants and the bringdown gang 8:05PM (8/13/2009)
Gosh ONLY 500 hp? the mclaren f1 produces 600+ naturally aspirated. NO turbos nothing.
Reply
USCGTO 8:09PM (8/13/2009)
only 500 HP and 1000 tqs at 2800 rpm.... there fixed it for you.
MemphisNET 8:15PM (8/13/2009)
It also produces that power at 7800RPM. This is giving you that power from idle to 2800rpm -- Also, its the torque number that you feel when you're driving.
With such a small RPM range, 4 speeds and rediculous power, it probably tops out pretty quick - but it would be one helluva ride up to that max speed
DKB_SATX 8:52PM (8/13/2009)
MemphisNet: It's an Allison 4-speed from a bus, so it probably has a relatively bit spread since it was designed to put behind a slow-turning diesel in the first place. Besides, this thing doesn't really weigh anything compared to what a 12V71 is designed to deal with, so the rear axle ratio is almost inconsequential. You could probably set this beast up to run 150 mph at redline and it could still step off the line smartly.
My dad was a diesel mechanic and I helped him build LOTS of 71-series Detroits. I've heard them run without exhausts (essentially how this one is set up with those open headers) and I like my hearing, I wouldn't want to drive the thing without high-quality ear plugs. My dad lost a great deal of his hearing from that sort of abuse.
EU_reader 10:00PM (8/13/2009)
@DKB_SATX
Exactly, I know I get an uneasy fealing in my ears pretty quickly. This thing blasting by at full throttle (low gear) in a city would likely cause me some discomfort. So... As far as I'm concerned those things are a perfect toy for inconsiderate a-holes who think noise is 'cool' and everyone should enjoy it with them (although they usually have the earplugs). (same for those hogs with sawed off pipes)
@USCGTO
Do you mind if I ask what the American obsession is with LOW REVS? (no pun, just want to know). I mean, litterally every car is judged upon how low it can go in the rev range on highways. Again, same for harleys: a terrible sounding farting idle rpm speed, rvibrating the bike apart... But youtube is full of harley vids showing of an idle barely making it to the next ignition spark. Same for cars, if some of you could have it your way, you'd all have cars with maximum torque and HP at 500 rpm or so. And still there's so much opposition to electric drive, where maximum torque hits at 0 rpm. Should be your kinda ride...
Here we don't mind revvy engines and keeping it up there for a sporty ride. I bet most Americans HATE an RX8, since it only produces something usefull at 8000+rpm (same for S2000)
Jim 4:58AM (8/14/2009)
"Do you mind if I ask what the American obsession is with LOW REVS? (no pun, just want to know)."
lack of public transit=we drive a lot more=we don't want to sit in some screaming buzzbox for hours a day. It isn't that hard.
second, the "car" in this post has a f*cking heavy truck diesel engine. why do you act so surprised that it makes its power at a low rpm?
"Again, same for harleys: a terrible sounding farting idle rpm speed, rvibrating the bike apart... But youtube is full of harley vids showing of an idle barely making it to the next ignition spark."
er, it's just part of the way Harleys have always been, and it's an expected part of their character. Why does Ferrari stick with flat-plane V8s, even though they vibrate like h*ll? Because they are part of what a Ferrari buyer expects!
"And still there's so much opposition to electric drive, where maximum torque hits at 0 rpm. Should be your kinda ride..."
Er, the opposition is because the energy density of batteries sucks compared to liquid fuels. learn physics sometime.
"Here we don't mind revvy engines and keeping it up there for a sporty ride."
Bully for you.
"I bet most Americans HATE an RX8, since it only produces something usefull at 8000+rpm (same for S2000)"
The RX-8 sucks because the wankel is an inefficient curiosity that only Mazda bothers with. And the reason only Mazda bothers with it is because there are enough people out there who will buy it because it's "different." The RX-8 gets terrible fuel economy for it's size, weight and power output.
Mr.Oak 7:54AM (8/14/2009)
Captain U: Please tell me, that you did not seriously compare a McLaren F1 engine to that of a Peterbilt Semi. I'd like to see that McLaren motor, pull 10 tons from the Atlantic ocean to the Pacific ocean.
EU_Reader: "Again, same for harleys: a terrible sounding farting idle rpm speed, rvibrating the bike apart... But youtube is full of harley vids showing of an idle barely making it to the next ignition spark".
A Harley from the factory does not idle as rough as the ones that has been tinkered with. I actually like the idle of the factory tuned Harley, don't really care for the ones done by shade-tree hacks.
Note: ALL Japanese cruisers (Harley type bikes) come from their respective factories with a misfire programmed into the bike's ECU to emulate the Harley tune.
captain underpants and the bringdown gang 9:30AM (8/14/2009)
1000 foot-pound of torque with 2 Superchargers.... I bet you could get the same amount of torque or even higher torque with 2 superchargers in a mclaren F1. And since, superchargers produce torque at low-rev's I'm sure you could even see it produce that much torque at around the same RPM level as that car. of course, with both you can't actually use it for towing.
the Mclaren F1 pulls in 520 Pound-feet naturally aspirated in a Petrolium engine... if you modifed the engine (you would be doing the world a GREAT disservice) to run on diesel you would probably see it get 2wice that with the two superchargers. AND TO TOP IT ALL OF THE CAR WAS BUILT IN 1995.
Throwback 9:40AM (8/14/2009)
There is a video of this on Leno's website. Awesome machine!
Jim 10:05AM (8/14/2009)
"1000 foot-pound of torque with 2 Superchargers...."
THEY'RE NOT SUPERCHARGERS!!! This is a 2-stroke engine, the blowers are for scavenging. They're not supercharging anything, this kind of engine will not run without the blower(s.)
"if you modifed the engine (you would be doing the world a GREAT disservice) to run on diesel"
Stop posting. seriously. You cannot seriously compare the engine from a supercar to a heavy truck (two-stroke) diesel. And no, kid, you can't "modify" the F1's engine to "run on diesel."
here's a tip- that Detroit Diesel is designed to crank out that 500 hp/1000 lb-ft all day long, continuously, every day, for a long time, without overhaul. The McLaren engine would melt down if you tried to force it to work in the kinds of applications that large diesels work. You trade off power output for longevity and reliability.
Jim 8:12PM (8/13/2009)
Those are Roots blowers, yes, but as a two-stroke, the blowers are required for the engine to run and are not considered "superchargers." By definition, "supercharging" is forcing a greater mass of air/fuel into the cylinder than the engine could take in naturally. Since the 2-stroke Detroits can't run w/o the blower, they're naturally-aspirated unless they also have turbochargers.
@captain, it's a diesel engine, and a big one at that. What do you want?
Reply
Jim 8:14PM (8/13/2009)
I should add that 2800 rpm is also past that engine's redline. As I recall the 12V-71 had a 2400 rpm redline, stock.
Jared 8:19PM (8/13/2009)
Damn that's a cool rod!
Reply
John 8:27PM (8/13/2009)
How long before Leno buys this one too?
Reply
Farmboy 12:40AM (8/14/2009)
3...2...1....there
Bruno Kussler 8:36PM (8/13/2009)
WTF!!! I really want to drive this thing once in my life. For sure, a hell of much more scarier than the The Duel truck.
Reply
Tony 8:37PM (8/13/2009)
Gives a whole new meaning to industrial hearing loss. "What's that officer?" "Hang on a sec while I turn down the radio." "Wait a minute there is no radio."
Reply
Bart 8:55PM (8/13/2009)
Seems utterly pointless. As a car enthusiast (not an American one) this gets me neither hot nor cold. I dont see the appeal of an engine and a cabin stuck on a ladder chassis with technology dating from the early 1900's. Maybe you Americans can explain it.
Reply
Jim 9:01PM (8/13/2009)
"Maybe you Americans can explain it."
spare me the condescension.
ack154 9:54PM (8/13/2009)
It's not like it is someone's daily driver or anything... it's about the craftsmanship and work that went into it. Pretty damn awesome, IMO. I was hoping someone would give a bit more detail on this one after seeing it in the other gallery today.