The Fast And Furious series has nothing on Street Outlaws, if it's insanely powerful modified cars thundering down a track at speeds they were never designed for, this is the show for you.
First airing in 2013, Street Outlaws isn't your average reality TV show where anything remotely dangerous is taken care of by a small army of stunt professionals. These are real gearheads with a passion for anything running with turbos, superchargers, and nitrous. The stars are definitely the cars, some of the sickest recreations of otherwise standard production cars, boasting power figures that even the most extreme hypercars can only dream of. To put into perspective, Bugatti's Chiron puts out 1577 horses, these outlaw racers easily double that without breaking a sweat. The insane power figures are only part of the story, delivery is another brutal example of just how fast man and machine can go, in a straight run nothing covers more ground in such a short time.
For anyone that has missed the show, these are the sickest cars featured on Street Outlaws.
10 Death Trap — '89 Fox Mustang
Critics would have us believe the fox body Mustang was a terrible car, and still, Ford managed to shift 2.6 million of the things, many finding homes among the drag racing community.
The familiar 89 Mustang profile might look stock, but beneath the skin, its custom-modified drive train makes some serious power. With Ford's 7-liter V8 providing the basis for this 2000 hp monster, twin-turbochargers and a healthy kick of nitrous complete the upgrades. Where does Death Trap get its name? Owner Chuck Seitsinger attributes that to the Mustang's first makeover, which featured a lot of home DIY elements.
9 Murder Nova — '69 Chevy Nova
We can't think of a better name for this 69 Chevy Nova, finished in matte black, giving it a dark sinister look of the kind of ride Satan himself would drive.
Originally running a supercharged V8 before owner Shawn Ellington "downgraded" to a small-block Chevy V8 with twin turbos. When we say downgraded, Murder Nova is anything but, the smaller block running 116-octane VP Racing gasoline produces an insane 3400 HP, covering the eighth-mile run in 4.42-seconds.
8 The Elco — '80 Chevy El Camino
One gearhead's home-built project, Elco shows what can be achieved with the right tools and some spare time. Starting life as a former Street Outlaws runner "The Slut" current owner Kamikaze Chris admits to using any spare or junk parts he can find to fit The Elco.
The bodywork might be a little beat up, but that adds to The Elco's appeal, this is a homemade project car that anyone could replicate. Under the hood it's anything but stock, updating the 7.7-liter V8 with Haltech electronics, twin precision turbochargers and a six-stage nitrous system result in 4000 hp, not bad for a home build.
7 Fireball Camaro — '10 Chevy Camaro
Fireball Camaro is different from other Street Outlaws entrants, built from the ground up as a rolling advertisement for Fireball Performance, albeit one that never stops evolving.
Think of Fireball Camaro as a professional project car, its 9.3-liter Alan Johnson 481X motor prepped by Pro-Line Racing using a custom camshaft to handle the extra grunt generated by a combined nitrous and twin-turbo installation. Owner Ryan Martin conservatively estimates a power figure of around 4500 HP.
6 57 Chevy — '57 Chevy Bel Air
Finished in classic taxi-cab yellow, you have to admit Jeff Lutz could easily fool unsuspecting passers-by simply by adding a suitable period-correct sign on the roof. We're not sure the interior would live up to expectations, but passengers would be in for one hell of a ride with 3500 HP lighting up the rears.
One of the more popular Street Outlaws regulars, the '57 Chevy Bel Air isn't just for the drag strip. Equipped with two of everything, the 8.8-liter turbocharged motor runs a low compression ratio of 9.0:1 allowing the use of regular pump gas, switching between the Bel Air's twin tanks and ECUs.
5 The Cutty — '82 Oldsmobile Cutlass
Big square and unassuming, who says you need good aerodynamic to tear down the drag strip? The Oldsmobile Cutlass wouldn't be most gearheads' first choice for competition use, but if you want to stand out, the Cutlass is like nothing else on Street Outlaws.
The odd choice of car is backed up by owner Andrade Jr's deceptive lack of real-world performance figure, the best estimates putting the 82 Oldsmobile around 1500 hp, whether that figure is before or after a recent update is not clear. Under the hood, a 6.6-liter LS1 Texas Speed and Performance motor now wearing twin-turbochargers, K1 Wiseco crank, custom cams, and a reputed 27 psi boost.
4 The Black Bird — '77 Chevy Vega
Right from the beginning, Chevrolet's Vega had serious design issues that would force most owners to junk them with catastrophic engine failures, just as well that Street Outlaw regular The Black Bird ditched GM power for a ProCharger fed small block V8.
The Vega Black Bird in its current guise runs a Brand Racing Engines 7.1-liter V8, F-3R-121 blower, and VP Fuels M5 Methanol to produced 2000 hp, on a good run covering the eighth-mile run in a little over 4-seconds.
3 Sinister Split Bumper — '72 Camaro Rally Sport
Unlike most racers on Street Outlaws, Jerry Johnston aka "Monza" sidesteps the popular tubular chassis design for the original, what you see here is a genuine 1972 Camaro RS body, with a few additions for strength.
Bare shell excepted, everything else is custom-built and very much work in progress, making the switch from nitrous to turbos in the search for more power. At the heart of Sinister Split Bumper, ProLine Racings 481X V8 in 9.3-liter spec with a brace of Precision turbos all under the watchful control of a FuelTech controller resulting in 4000 HP for the track, with an optional lower boost setting for road use. Already two-tenths faster than Johnston's previous nitrous set-up, Sinister Split Bumper looks set to recapture the coveted No. 1 slot.
2 The Sonoma — '96 GMC Sonoma S10
Making Street Outlaw's appearances under two different owners, the GMC Sonoma S10 is making a comeback after the current owner had a change of heart over the intended sale.
Swapping motors have become something of a regular occurrence with the Sonoma, currently fitted with a smaller 8.8-liter ProCharged Morgan And Son motor cranking out in the region of 3000 hp. If the early indications are to be believed the Sonoma is running faster than ever, an ominous warning sign.
1 The Street Beast — '70 Chevy Monte Carlo
A brief spell as Street Outlaws number before losing out not once but twice can only be a good thing, Doc taking the opportunity to upgrade the Monte Carlo's engine naturally.
Plans to reclaim top dog status include a stonking 12-liter V8 engine, which, let's be honest, should be enough for any gearhead high on gasoline fumes. However, it doesn't stop there. There are three Monte Smith nitrous foggers and VP Fuels delivering up 4,500 hp. If that lot isn't enough, we don't know what is, but Doc already has plans for an even bigger motor soon.