The Turbo V-6 That Ate Pro Stocks - A Look At Buddy Ingersoll’s Buicks
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- čas přidán 16. 11. 2023
- The stories surrounding Buddy Ingersoll and the turbocharged Buick race cars he competed with in the 1980s are awesome. But here's the thing, there are lots of myths out there as well that are completely wrong. In this video we explore the history of the two turbo Buick cars Buddy ran, the mulitiple different turbocharger configurations he used, the performances he achieved and more.
Was this car ever ACUALLY banned by the NHRA? Did this car or either of his Buicks ACTUALLY win races and set records? Were they even real Buick engines? Was he the only guy running them?
All this and a ton more as we explore one of the neatest guys and a few of the most awesome cars in drag racing history. - Auta a dopravní prostředky
As someone who grew up in that era, I consider Buddy Ingersol to be THE man who put turbocharging on the radar for your average gearhead. Until then, it was diesel tech to most of us. Buddy showed the world there were other forms of boost out there!
There is zero doubt on that point
I remember this car very well
RIP Buddy Ingersoll a true legend! Thank you for memories.
My mom bought a 1979 Buick Regal Turbo and my mom gave to me when I turned 15 in 1982. it was quite a quick little car (in a straight line lol) and I was blessed with becoming friends with a neighbor that was freshly graduated mechanical engineer that rented a small house from my mom right next door and he was fascinated with my little blue V6 Buick!! He put a larger Turbo in it and rebuilt the internals in that V6. It had a pretty big electronic carburetor on it already so he left that alone. It was kind of slow off the line but once it got to around 25-30 mph it would start pulling and just go and go. It broke some GTs IROCs and Vettes hearts and when a V6 beat them they were butthurt to say the least. I wasn't a racer and never raced for money just had a lot of fun with the car. When it was getting older and time for me to get another car I gave it to Randy (the guy who did so much work for free just to drive it every now and then) as he deserved it. He put a lot more work into it, painted it and kept that car for a long time. I'm talking decades!! My next car was a Conquest TSI that car turned and stopped much better lol. Best Regards
7's from a turbo 6 Buick in the 80's was amazing 👏. Most BB v8's in today's classes can't match that even with efi. So awesome 👌
Huh? Pro Stocks have been running in the 6's @ 200mph with carbureted 500 CID V8s for decades...
btw... What would "efi vs carb" have anything to do with making power? Engines make just as much power with properly set up carbs. If your a/f ratio is right and the fuel is atomized well, there's literally NO difference in the combustion process, and therefore power output is identical. Out of curiosity how could there be? I (and every other auto engineer) would love to hear it!
@@billymanillihonestly I thank you just for the effort vs carb comment alone. If both pull the same air as one another at the exact same rpm all through the range then there isn't a loss in power as far as I'm aware.
Having seen the Little 6 that Beat Tricky Ricky, and Almost Beat Glidden, I can tell you the Big Boys of Pro Stock Got Him ,as they say Today, " ShadowBanned", because they were Scared To Death. Period! The Man was a True Pioneer and Legend with Those Little Guys that Fill the Lanes Every Weekend! 🆗
Man, you got to give Tricky Ricky and Bob some credit because, they were arch enemies against each other on any other weekend racing… But, they both wanted a crack at trying to beat that Buick… I still think Glidden tried to burn him down on the starting line… I think that’s where the boost hit the clutch to fry it from the start… He knew that car was gonna eat his lunch that day…👍🏾
@@southtexashustler I Really liked Smith, Glidden, not so much, but you're Right, Glidden did hold him for a bit longer, probably because he knew his clutch was going, and of course the Fomoco Brass wouldn't have liked being Beat by basically a Privateer in a Buick with a V6 in it. But, it was Fun to watch. 👍
Almost beat Glidden....that's an excuse that fast and furious guys use 😂. FoMoCo > GM
@@chadkent1241 Go watch some of the Old Grainy videos there Sport, your Ford Hero had to Play Burndown Every Time... Because He Was Scared of a Little 268cid. Buick, when he had Over 700cid in his Bird. That's FEAR.🆗
There's a 4 cylinder Pinto some guy is running today. It's incredibly fast!
Every time we were at the same track as Buddy we had to go over and see what he was up to. A real innovator way ahead of his time!
Brian, Buddy was eggs, bacon, toast and grits. Driver or mechanical guru he knew what to do! Drag racing needs more like him. Buick V6 turbo power sounds cool all day long.
I knew this would come up eventually…. Thanks for setting the record straight even though it’s probably going to still head straight in the ditch in every buddy ingersol related Facebook post for the rest of eternity.
Either way it’s still one of Mr Kepners favorite subjects of all time 😂. Nicely done sir
I’m right there with you bro… When I saw highlights of that car racing in IHRA to the finals… I said, “Man, this V-6 is gonna bust them up…”
Thanks for the history lesson Brian. Stories like these always seem to have more relevance when told by a racing historian like yourself. Like so many, I've always heard the myths, now it's great to have heard what really happened.
Few newcomers to the sport know of Buddy's accomplishments and those of us that searched for more power long before computers relied on innovation. Thanks for touching on Buddy's journey and his program as it was nothing short of amazing to see a little V6 line up next to the likes of Bob Glidden back n the day.
You used the “I” word: innovation. True, they were innovative, inventive perhaps, but the other “I” word- intelligence- coupled with vision happen long before innovation occurs.
As the video states: there were a lot of long hours in the dyno booth testing and refining their ideas. He was smart enough to wrench it into working and had the vision to see past the ceiling, but the work ethic was there.
Who’s to say what produces innovation? It’s not for the lazy or the dumb: you either have to wrench it or hire it.
@@fishhuntadventure Often times progress occurs by happenstance and sometimes through years of compiling empirical data. Big Daddy unlocked the key to power of the TF Hemi by attempting to blow it up after being frustrated with the lack of increased performance by twisting the mag to 50 degrees timing and as a result, he eclipsed 200MPH back in the day.
This is an incredible video. I grew up miles away from Buddy and met him before his death. Big names would come into that tiny town to see him
Killer video, sir! I was at Bristol In '86 . I remember the car spooling up on the starting line and it sounded like a jet engine winding up. It was getting louder and louder, and I remember thinking WTH ?!?!?! never had seen anything like it.
Watched Buddy race a ‘56 Chevy in Super Stock in the ‘70’s at Harrisburg Drag Strip in So. Illinois. He took no crap but gave none either. A racer’s racer, but definitely one of a kind! He raced during the modified eliminator days which we, as dyed in the wool drag racers, miss very much! Drag racing has changed so much from those days, and in my opinion as an old school drag racer who started in the late ‘60’s, NOT for the better.😢
I watched buddy beat a friend of mine in mod eliminator in seattle! In his turbo white ford pinto? My friend had a big block 396 69 camaro! And lost to buddy by a car length and a 1/2! We went over a talked to him for about a hour! He showed us everything he was doing with that turbo 4 banger! Super nice guy. and what a car! He won the whole race, nobody could out run him that weekend! Believe me we all tried. Miss those mod eliminator cars
Once the cars are no longer real looking the racing seems unreal
Thanks Brian! I was a big Buddy supporter and fan during this heyday of professional drag racing.
Great work, Brian! I’m a big buddy fan and am very disappointed I did not get to meet him before he passed. Betcha he’s running 200s all day in heaven.
17:33 - Buddy did run in pro stock in the early '90s. There's footage of him at the 1990 NHRA Mile-High Nationals where he went to the semi finals.
Great note, thank you!
Yeah, it was the _Jeff Velde_ sponsored, (just an Olds Cutlass) w/Buick Regal taillights, & lil trinkets to 'Buick it up'. The reeaalllll tail to tell behind Buddy's Buick Prostock car, was the time it that flock of Seagulls, while testing in Florida over the winter. Bradenton I thk??
Anyway, that car stunk to high heaven for weeks till the repairs were made, on the inside, from all the Seagulls guts that went thru the lexan windshield, spreading guts & 💩 all over the inside. If the birds (@ >185mph) had not hit on the passenger side of the windshield. The event could have easily caused a severe crash, or even killed the driver inside the car from the impact. This was circa ~1990, or ~'91.
Thanks for setting the story straight. It’s interesting that Buddy’s early “Buicks” still had the Olds quarter glass, while the later cars had the Buick windows. As an owner of an all original 87 Grand National I really appreciate the story. Those little V6 mills really performed well. Another home run video Brian. Well done, and thanks.
It's wild how much the 88-92 Ford Probe front end looks like that Buick Somerset
Me being an OG GMC Syclone & Typhoon guy, I've always known of Buddy. But I never knew the details like this. WOW! Thanks, Brian! 👊
Great great video...Buddy Ingersoll and Bruce Allen and Bob Glidden were ahead of their times..just what they did 40 years ago is so insane ..
You have, by far, the best most detailed stories of drag racing history! I really enjoy your content Mr. Lohnes
Oh Brian, it's like you made this video for me. I love Turbo Buicks, work on Turbo Buicks, and even Turbo Buick swapped my 72 Old. (Ironic since buddy raced an Olds). There is a lot of ignorance when it comes to all Turbo Buicks, even the street cars. Thanks for clearing some of it up man. Can't wait till your back on TV for the new NHRA season.
I watched Buddy race the Somerset at Kansas City International Raceway in the late 80’s. I remember being in his pits watching them fish a metal fragment out of the engine with a wad of gum on the end of a rod.
People really make some of thier comments hard too believe. But I believe you
He always had him for those fishing trips !!!
Walk and chew gum at the time 101 how cool 😅
Buddy was one of the Greatest! Thank you Brian!
Grwar stuff Brian. Your fluid, rapid, and articulate delivery always impresses me. As does the fantastic research that has obviously gone into this presentation. Being in Australia, I wasn't aware of this story, and greatly appreciate your telling of it. Many thanks, Greg
My buddy owns the regal here in S.E. Michigan. He bracket raced it for a couple years,but has sat in his garage for a while now.
One thing i never knew was this was WJ's old silver H/O car. At 10:47 you can really see the 1/4 window on this side is all Oldsmobile, with that little rounded edge on the lower back corner. The Buick Regal g body windows were rectangle and squared off on all 4 corners. Can't tell for sure but appears as if they just painted the driver side black to look like the Buick window, but never got to the right side.
I was at the US Nationals every year from 1980 thru 1986. I remember being very interested in both WJ and Buddys rides but had no idea in 1985 this was Warrens old body and chassis!
I was only about 16 in 1985 so i was too young to understand all the controversy but this vid explains it all in detail. I was hardcore behind both racers and their programs back then and i remember all the attention in the stands when Buddy came to the burnout box!
Saw BI turbos run many times. They were so quiet compared to the other pro stock cars. He usually went rounds but seldom won in the pro stock class. Bob G said in one final, he did not want to be the first guy to lose in the finals to this car, lol. True that. BI's cars were always innovative and ran well. Hats off to a great mechanic, and racer. Should add that this car was running a power adder, no other cars were at this time. So, when BI needed more power, he turned up the boost. He had the advantage. N/A he was not even in the game. And I did see that final against BG. That was BI's best race, and I thought he would win. He made no excuses for what happened, that's just drag racing, one little thing can make a big difference in who wins.
Very cool Brian! I have to admit, I was one of the misinformed. I would have sworn he ran in NHRA Pro Stock in 1986. I stand corrected and still impressed! The 1986 US Nationals was the only National event myself as a teenager and my Dad ever went to. We both came away stunned at the performance of the little V6 Buick. I went on to build and race in Stock Eliminator but Dad never came along. Memories are everything. Keep up the good work!
Absolutely flawless storytelling brother... I've had a poster of buddy's first regal on the wall of my father and i's shop since the 4th grade ... can't believe our school bookstore actually had something like that in it
Great info. We were running Comp Eliminator at the first Texas Motorplex NHRA event in 1986 pitted across from Buddy, they were having trouble keeping a clutch in it as you mentioned. Buick factory rep named Bernard Santavy also deserves mention in supporting the program
Was there also. I could not believe the power he was making with that small motor. They kept the motor covered in the pits so i never was able to see it. I knew the Pro stock group would keep Wally from ever letting him in the class. Great story!
Buddy was a genius! I grew up in the Midwest in the Sioux Falls SD area and attended many points meets! I was always taking pictures and one day this super clean baby blue Pinto rolled into the burnout box….then my brain went into meltdown as I read the time on the window….8.90! 😯 Small tires and a turbo 4 cylinder!!! He ran under the index! 🤯 That was my introduction to turbo charging!
I knew there was gonna be a Gale in here somewhere. Gale Banks definitely deserves a video or series of videos with everything he's done and is still doing at 81.
Great job Brian. Watching this is got me thinking to some of the great Competition Eliminators folks and the late great John Lingenfelter. I know you probably get asked for a lot of stories but John is a true legend of Comp. Thanks for the follow up on the suggestion of chasing down the history of Buddy. Great story just like all of your NHRA stories have been.
I saw Buddy race at Englishtown Summer Nationals in 1986. Almost sure it race in the 7.30's. Also amazing was how quiet went down the track. Great write up!
I saw him run Pro Stock in the mid 80's. Watching the race from mid track. I heard the burnout, and I thought, Thats not a V8. I was totally blown away with his run. He was right up there with the rest of them. I had a pit pass and went to have a look. I had a mustang with a V8 and wanted to see his engine. Yep a V6 in there. No big crew, no ropes to keep you back. Just him working on the car. I walked right up and had a look and told him I couldnt believe his run. Back then you could actually approach them and talk to them, if they weren't busy.
This is quickly becoming my favorite CZcams channel.
Saw him in seattle in that amazing pinto! Real nice guy, he shows us his car.and all of what he was doing with the turbo!
Thank you so much for this peace man it's good and hard to find a lot about buddy he was a pioneer man paved the way for all turbo guys to come
15:44 That is not a Somerset Regal. That is a Skyhawk. The Somerset Regal was Buick's version of a Pontiac GrandAm of that era. I saw Buddy run his Regal at Indy in 1985 and couldn't believe my eyes and ears. This BUICK that was relatively quiet and odd-sounding ran as quick and fast as a 500 cubic inch Pro Stock. Well hell, I thought, that car is actually closer to being "stock" than any Pro Stocker out there. One could actually buy a V6 turbocharged, fuel-injected Buick from a dealer. 500 cubic-inch Ford Thunderbirds and Chevy Camaros were impossible.
I saw Buddy run the Skyhawk at Englishtown in 1987. Beautiful car, with the liquid Nitrogen intercooling setup. Buddy was a true pioneer that was 20 years ahead of his time. If he could have kept racing his turbo Buicks until Pro Mod became a thing, he might have been more famous.
Thanks for being accurate. I saw him set the record at the nationals in 87. I saw it roll a 7.19@198. But I don’t think it was an official record attempt so it didn’t make the books.
Well done ! A fantastic , detailed and well deserved story. I always wondered about Buddy and his Buick, almost a legend. Greatly appreciated and many thanks.
I remember those times, Buddy totally was shake'n things up, yep, heard all the rumors, great to hear the straight deal. Thanks again Brian-----------(, remember that Bantam too)
Very cool car. Incredible setup for the time
Once again, great history presented clearly....Thanks Brian
Ingersoll/Kenne/Bell for Buick. Mondelo for Oldsmobile. Love the underdogs. My late brother earned a Wally in the mid/early 80's with a 283,4 speed Malibu wagon. RIP David L Kirschner. ❤🙏😪
No chevy is an underdog
Thank you so much for doing the deep dive into this! I'm sure the enormous amount of misinformation out there prompted this video. A nice stroll down memory lane! An added bonus that it's publicly available and free for everyone to see and hear. Thanks again!
Congrats Brian! You do an incredible job of getting the facts out here fast AND very detailed. It's gonna take me some time to get thru all of your videos - BUT
I will be watching all of your videos - THANK YOU for the GREAT work here!
Awesome content!! Great research and in depth story!! Keep them coming!!
I could watch these all day long! Fascinating lost history.... Thank you for doing these videos, Brian
Well hello my name is Stuart. I am using my wife's account here on CZcams I saw the buddy Ingersoll Buick run at englishtown at Old bridge township in New Jersey several times. It made the most crazy high RPM sound I've ever heard. It was just crazy and you could hear the turbo screaming and the engine would just wind up that RPM and then he dropped the clutch and it was gone. It was a thing to behold. Really cool. Great days back then. Never probably ever to return????????
Excellent work once again, Brian! Always thought Buddy's Buicks were so cool back in the day. What an innovator and great sportsman.
Never knew about the homebrew mechanical fuel injection setup. That makes the program's performance all the more remarkable!
Not surprised Gale Banks got involved with a program running turbochargers. It was around the same time he and Ron Hodgson were developing their Pacemaker twin-turbo AA/FD.
This is my favorite story so far. I am so glad you included the Hill and Williams car. We saw them test EVERY Wednesday evening at the track formerly known as Central Michigan Dragway. It's cool try and find myself in the US Nationals pics. I never missed Comp Eliminator sessions, mostly due to these two specific cars as well as the legendary John Lingenfelter. Good times!
This is an awesome story
Nice narrating and just by looking at the pictures i can picture what your telling .
Well done good sir well done. 👏
Thanks for putting this together and telling his story. I live a town over from his shop and he's definitely a underrated legend.
Another great story, thanks Brian. I remember reading about the cars back in the day, but didn’t realize or remember that he was using a mechanical FI system.
1985 Brainerd Northstar nats...I was lucky enough to be there and was highly interested in the Buick V6 turbo performance of that era. I had even bought an 85 turbo Dodge Daytona (yeah, I know, pales by comparison) and then scored on a free turbo Buick engine to build via the guidance of Jim Ruggles and some other smart people. Good times back then.
the engine combo came from McLaren Engines,he won the championship in the Pinto after buying out Mike Keener and John Buginski in the staging lanes which gave him the needed points to go to the finals I think at either Bowling Green or Columbus,,, Ex Warren Johnson car,,,,and furthermore Jim Gamache was responsible for the engines success,,,how do I know,,,,I was there
great insight!
Yes! He was a true legend!!! Another great video Brian! See you next week...
Very interesting, thanks for doing this one. I saw this car run once, I believe at the inaugural national event at the Texas Motorplex. I have no idea what the numbers were but this car visually moved off the line faster than any door car I had ever seen.
Early big boost turbo cars were dangerous, still are, but they were a different animal back then. John Lingenfelter had been public about it before his death in his turbo ecotec pro car.
Im building a TA performance aluminum v6 block w/ se-B heads and 82/80 turbo in my GN hoping for mid 8s late this year. Went 9.40s with old setup. I have been running these v6 Buick Grand Nationals since 87 and its the greatest time of my life
Thanks Brian for setting things straight, I like others had been told that Buddy and his Buick had been banned from competition from Nhra . You gave us information that alot of us probably never heard !❤
Very very cool video. Well done. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
I can't tell you how much I appreciate you doing this focused piece on what has otherwise been long forgotten to time !
Thanks for that !
You mentioned the Buick Indy effort, and referred that they were able to live lap after lAp under the extreme levels of boost that was given to be allowed by what was then the sanctioning body CART !
The effort put together for the late Scott Brayton, and
Pancho Carter, both of them in contention for the covetted pole at Indy !
And while we were successful at winning the pile on more than one occasion, we could never seem to be able to make then last more than a handful of laps, 25 or so !
But who's counting !
The hours upon hours of development time put in on behalf of Scott's dad,
Lee Brayton, and many many others !
I can't help but wonder what could have been if Buick would have continued to put their backing into that effort !
Not to mention, the far more affective lubricants we have available to us today !
How incredible would it be to have a truly American engine package available for IndyCar today !?
Unfortunately, that prize has gone to Honda instead !
If possible, I would love to see you do a focused piece on the Indy effort much like the extremely great piece you have done on the Turbo Buicks of what could have been in their drag racing efforts !
What a great, great video !!!
Thanks again !
Amazing info and thank you.
Buick's best finish at Indy was by Al Unser, who finished 3rd in 1992, completing all the laps.
Great vid!!!! 🏁🏁
I was lucky enough to hang out on his shop during those years ,
WOW, fantastic history lesson sir!!! Well done
The first thing I 5:36 thought when I saw this video was "The Indy Buick V-6, the Whale, the pregnant Guppy!"
I loved those things!
One minor point of contention - you said the IndyCars "ran for hours with no problems", and compared to a drag race, this is true, however: the Buicks had a hard time avoiding DNFs, usually failing near the end of the race.
Thanks for a great story - I had no idea about these other adventures of the mighty Buick V6 turbo!
Great point. I was really just trying to make the comparison between the fact that people were surprised that the engines lived at the drags as opposed to their more endurance minded Indy and IMSA stuff. They did have their problems for sure and your point is valid!
@@brianlohnes3079
Thanks!
Great video man. Very informative and great editing. New subscriber.
Thanks Brian for the very cool history lesson!
Such great content. Glad i found ya on Instagram. Cant wait for more.
I loved these cars when they came out, Finally something that despite the tubs and the chassis had an engine i could buy (I know special parts, but you know what i mean V6 turbo). My dad and I got into an argument once, talking about these cars and pro stock as a whole. he claimed the turbo was cheating I replied with, "What's the name of the class? Pro Stock, Stock being the operative word here, How many Camaros, T birds or firebirds come factory with a 700+ Inch V8? But this car with an engine depending on Cu In (didn't know back then) was around 40-60% smaller and COULD actually be bought from the factory, with a turbo. This car represents what the layman could buy, better than any other pro stocker today." I remembered that IHRA run, sad day when they were essentially banned
I love these cars and between him and Kenny Duttweiler, they brought forth the Modern age of horsepower and fast race cars.
As the owner of a modified 87 Buick GN I approve this video.
Outstanding work,thank you
Thank you for this!!!!!!!! Been waiting for this!!!
Hope you enjoyed it!
Great video. I was well-entertained and learned a lot. Funny to watch all the big C.I. guys cowering over a 3.8L V6
Great Drag Racing history! Always fun 👍👍
Another great video, knocked it out of the park with this one. Had no idea that was an old WJ chassis, or Bruce Allen helped him with it. Thanks.
Glad you liked it and that it had some plot twists in there!
@@brianlohnes3079
This is out in left field, but I drew a watercolor picture of Bruce Allen's car at the time, had him sign it, he was so impressed, he sat me on the couch of his trailer, brought in David Reher, showed him, and we all talked for about 15 min, but Bruce treated me like he'd known me all his life. So the part about him working for Maclaren. What a great guy Bruce Allen is, too bad he had such big shoes (Lee Shepherd, who I also immortalize) to fill.
Makes you wonder where a lot of the old pro stock cars from the 80s are now.
The Buick is in south eastern Michigan!
@@BrettAirsun Do tell.
Good job on this presentation sir. You are a good speaker.
Thanks for this. Subscribed!
Buddy went HAM😂
I remember this car it was a huge deal, talk of the country. Really the first time when I a teen realized what Turbo's mostly on Diesel engines,were capable of. Today v6 Ford's 300 HP stock. I had a 77 Corvette L82 that I thought was fast in the 80s all 210hp😂
I seem to recall Kenny Bernstein running Buick engines in his Indycar team. Remember them blowing up frequently.
They were really powerful but also very prone to spitting the bit. Accurate!
Never heard of buddy until watching this mostly because I’m in thenn no uk but what and awesome story and a brilliant racer. Imagine where he’d be in history if Buick and Nora had come good back then !
What a great history story thank you so much it makes me chuckle when I think about my father in-laws grand national he had at that time and I got to drive it after putting the banks exhaust on it. So fun back then.
Well played sir very enjoyable
Very awesome story, and very awesome setup. Really cool to see how much power this little v6 was making this long ago with "old" head tech and "old" turbo tech. Although I must say that single turbo looks about the right size on today's turbos to be making that kind of power - BIG 😁
Thank you Brian for all u do gor drag racing
Wow thank you for bringing this out! You are fire
I appreciate that!
Thanks for the amazing history lesson on a true innovator!
You bet!
Thanks for a great video!
Thanks this video was very interesting!!!
I really like what you're doing here sir.. subscribed thank you
@12:36 I meant SIX throttle bodies. Whoopsie.
Saw this car run at Bristol, have a picture of the engine, on one of the burnouts, the tire shake was so bad it shook the whole car, what was odd, was one slick was larger than that engine, you could hardly believe that little engine could make that much horsepower, great memory.
im a buick fan great story good to know that the buick was not ban but they got scare of the little v6
Outstanding Video!
The car that was closer to anything from Detroit in any association's "Pro Stock" catagory. It was the car thar Bob Glidden & Ricky Smith were scared of. They both were two of the biggest names to lobby to get Ingersoll banned from the IHRA & rumor has it they had the ear of the NHRA as well.
GREAT VIDEO BRIAN!!!!!