$10K Drag Shootout 2: Inside The Enemies Everywhere TurboRoo Camaro

The Enemies Everywhere team has made the long haul twice to the United States from its Australian home to compete at the dragstrip. Since the day the team was selected to compete at the Horsepower Wars $10K Drag Shootout: Season 2, the thrill of winning shortened the approximately 13-hour plane ride to race in the states again.

Their most recent adventure to compete in the United States was in 2017 at Drag Week, where they found good fortune competing with their twin-turbo, LS-powered Ford Ute. So, as the team prepared to travel to California for the Horsepower Wars build-off, team leader Jamie Farmer was instrumental in readying his teammates.

Farmer is a 35-year drag racing veteran at both building and competing with winning cars for both the street and strip. Farmer carefully chose his team members to get every ounce of talent he could bring for the long-distance effort.

“Robby Abbott has been a mate of mine for close to 30 years,” Farmer says. “He’s an engine builder and fills that role to head up the engine program with our entry quite well.”

Steve Metcalf works in Farmer’s race car fabrication and parts shop. The company name, “Enemies Everywhere” in Queensland, Australia, is the apparent source for their team identification. “Steve is a talented fabricator,” Farmer says. “That guy is a robot and just doesn’t stop.”

Though the team finished last in the competition for the "schoolyard pick" of vehicles for the build, the Aussies are very pleased with the results of their Camaro construction.

Originally, Casey Leonard was on the list for wiring and fabrications, but as Farmer notes, “He was diagnosed with medical issues, and the doctor wouldn’t let him travel with us. He’s still fully a member of the team but couldn’t come to the United States. So, we asked Ross Wye to join the team. Ross is extremely experienced at wiring, shock absorbers, and tuning. You won’t get a better wiring guy than him.”

Nathan Clark is a mechanic, fabrication guy and the team’s all-around “roustabout” guy who can do just about anything. Rounding out the team roster is Kev Morton, an engine-oriented guy with a lot of general knowledge.

The Car

Though their first choice in the $10K Drag Shootout 2 lineup was the 2004 Ford Mustang, but after finishing dead last in the Olympics, they ended up with the 1998 Camaro they affectionately named “TurboRoo.”

Team leader Jamie Farmer had an extensive build plan laid out for each and every car in the lineup for season two. The team decided to retain the mostly stock front suspension while putting lots of fabrication effort into the 8.8 Ford and ladder bar rearend design.

“Yes, our second choice was the S10, and our third choice was the Camaro,” Farmer says. “The Camaro was the hardest, longest build, but now we think we have constructed the potentially best overall car. We have no regrets.”

“I race an Australian SN94, which is essentially the same car platform like a Ford Mustang,” Farmer adds. “We are very familiar with them and have made a lot of parts for the new-age Mustang. That was our standout number one choice because of our racing experience with them. When we began fabricating the Camaro, our team became more confident on our build with every bolt and weld.”

“We put a lot of work into the pre-planning stage with every car combination since being accepted for season two,” Farmer explains. “I had every conceivable combination in a spreadsheet for cars, engines, the whole lot. I worked on it nearly full-time for the weeks before heading to Los Angeles, so we were ready for anything.”

He had broken down the build for every car available and how they would attack things. “The build plan was broken down in every little individual task from pricing each part in a detailed build order,” Farmer continues. “Each possible car choice had its own build roster developed and would be dismantled and rebuilt to our game plan.”

Mickey Thompson outfitted all entries with their choice of front runners and drag radial slicks. Farmer's own company, Enemies Everywhere, performed the beadlock conversions of their design onto a set of used "mystery brand" wheels they secured on the cheap.

The Powerplant

Ideally, the team wanted a nitrous big-block Chevy as their first engine option.

“We thought that would be the best in the 1/8-mile, but we could not make it work in the budget — not even close,” Farmer continued. “We didn’t get the rule revision on the twin-turbo limits until very late. If it had been a 62mm turbo, we know here in Australia we can run mid sevens in the 1/4-mile on 62’s with a big-block Chevy.

The team secured a General Motors 6.0-liter core for a mere $180 and used the core block and crankshaft. Into the short block went a set of Eagle Specialty Products 4340 H-beam rods, MAHLE 10.5cc dish pistons, Total Seal rings, and a new King Engine Bearings set.

“The LS engine option was the better choice in our opinion when it came to these new turbo limits,” Farmer explains. “We couldn’t find a 58mm turbo that would fit into the budget and make it pay off in horsepower when mated to a big-block. So, we began redesigning our engine combination with an LS 6.0 engine.

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On top of the block, the team used a set of Australia’s factory GM Commodore VE #0821 cylinder head castings. Their used set traveled “over the pond” with them for reworking. These Aussie GM heads are what the team is  accustomed to using for maximum power. They thought it was worth bringing over a used set in the event that there are differences with General Motors heads from the states.

These heads were ported using Enemies Everywheres’ expertise and put together with factory valves, Trick Flow Specialties #TFS-2500300 dual valve springs, retainers and lock set. The heads were topped with Moroso Performance Products-supplied billet aluminum valve covers. The engine was sealed up with a set of used Ridgecrest Engineering copper head gaskets that the team acquired; plus all Victor Reinz Sealing Products gaskets for the oil pan, water pump, and exhaust ports.

To fasten the overall 6.0 engine together, ARP bolts were exclusively used for the heads studs (#ARP234-4345) main studs (#ARP234-5608) balancer bolt (#ARP234-2503), header bolts (#ARP134-1102), flexplate bolts (#ARP244-2902) and transmission bellhousing bolt kit (#ARP-134-0901).

Valvetrain duties for the LS combo consisted of a COMP Cams custom-grind roller tappet setup with Chevrolet Performance LS1 hydraulic roller lifters and rocker stands. A set of Lunati 5/16-inch pushrods feed Summit Racing rocker arms (#SUM-141553).

Power Adder, Induction, and Fuel System

For the almighty boost and top-end induction, a FiTech Fuel Injection intake is combined with a Holley Performance Sniper 92mm throttle body. A set of mystery brand 1000cc fuel injectors were obtained on the cheap and mated to the FiTech fuel rails that came with the intake manifold.

Feeding the injectors is a Summit Racing brand #SUM-250110-E, 320 gallon-per-hour fuel pump. A HyperFuel Systems fuel regulator was purchased from Summit, along with Allstar Performance aluminum panels used for a custom-fabricated fuel cell.

The teams’ turbo combination consisted of a single BorgWarner AirWerks SX400 turbocharger. The team incorporates a wealth of 4-inch aluminum tubing and elbows supplied by Spectre Performance. A 40mm diameter wastegate was ordered from Precision Turbo & Engines. Summit Racing got the order for the ICT Billet turbocharger oil flanges.

The Camaro accepted the 6.0-liter LS engine build without major modification. This allowed the team to invest time in a super-clean plumbing layout for its BorgWarner turbocharger in front of the PRW Industries aluminum radiator and cooling system.

Cooling and Plumbing

The cooling system for TurboRoo is filled out by PRW Industries. PRW supplied the fitted Camaro racing radiator, electric race water pump, 90-degree water outlet, and hose adapter. The team ordered a Hayden Automotive transmission cooler as part of their Summit Bucks.

When it came to plumbing the Camaro’s engine, fuel, turbo system, and drivetrain, the lion’s share of hardware came from Fragola Performance Systems. The varied -AN fittings, bulkheads and braided hose were part of their Fragola-Summit Racing order. Other unique fittings and tubing were sourced to Vibrant Performance, Russell Performance Plumbing, and Meziere Enterprises.

Ignition and Exhaust

E3 Spark Plugs brand ignition are lighting up all of the teams’ powerplants. Enemies Everywhere used their #E3-108 plugs, LS truck-style coil packs, and 8.5mm spiral core wire set.

The exhaust is handled by a set of factory core GM exhaust manifolds followed by Walker and Patriot brands of steel exhaust tubing ordered through Summit Racing. A variety of Summit Racing’s own line of v-band clamps connected together their custom fabrication work.

The Drivetrain

Behind the 6.0 build, the team used a stock Turbo 400 for a crisp $100 bill and proceeded to go through it using a transmission rebuild kit and kevlar transmission bands from TCI Auto. They found both a previously owned 9-inch torque converter and a trans brake/valve body on the cheap.

From Summit Racing they ordered an FTI Performance direct drum (#FTI-F4038) and billet forward clutch hub (#F4044). Summit also supplied their brand of transmission mount (#SUM-7731165), and certified flexplate (#SUM-G105SFI).

The driver's "office" is outfitted with a complete Competition Engineering roll cage kit, custom shifter mount, and a Speedwire Systems eight-relay electrical switch panel and complete race wiring kit.

“We had to change the rearend out for the sake of strength behind the turbo power,” Farmer says. “We know it is going to be a monster sticky surface at the runoff during the Duck X Productions’ Lights Out 11 event. So that was fairly time-consuming as we did it right with a custom fabricated control arm suspension.”

It’s a really nice little hot rod we’ve built. All of the teams built good quality cars, but we are proud that ours certainly looks like a racecar when it comes to the chassis fabrication. – Jamie Farmer

Behind the transmission, a Strange Engineering 3-1/2-inch diameter chromoly driveshaft kit was fabricated by the team. This leads back to a junkyard Ford 8.8-inch housing beefed up with a Moser Engineering axles and spool kit along with a Moser rear cover. US Gear supplied the Lightning series 4:10 ratio ring and pinion.

Suspension and Rolling Stock

TurboRoo’s rear suspension received upper and lower control arms fabricated using Summit Racing rod ends, (#SUM-MAX12), (#SUM-MAXL12), and (#SUM-XMAX10). The team invested some of its Summit money on a new set of QA1 Proma Star shocks and combined them with Summit Racing brand springs (#SUM-72-14-095).

For the front suspension, they were content with the stock Camaro front K-member assembly. They added Strange Engineering front shocks with Summit Racing 300 lb./in coilover springs (#SUM-72-12-300).

Mickey Thompson Performance has supplied all of the teams with their racing rubber. Enemies Everywhere located a set of mystery brand 15×4-inch aluminum wheels on which they mounted 26.0/4.0-15 ET Front tires. On the rear, another set of mystery wheels of the 8-inch wide variety are mounted with Mickey Thompson P275/60R15 ET Street Radial Pro tires.

The brake system for TurboRoo is primarily OEM hardware, including the factory disc brakes up front and the disc brake from the Ford 8.8 rearend in the rear. Hawk Performance Street HPS brake pads were the key upgrades to all calipers, while they retained the original Camaro master cylinder and brake lines.

Lubrication

Lucas Oil Products supplied the engine, trans, differential and assembly lube for each team. The team used 10W-40 Lucas racing engine oil for the engine and a K&N Performance Filters Gold oil filter. The transmission received Lucas Oil semi-synthetic automatic transmission fluid, and the rear differential is filled with Lucas L9 racing gear oil.

Electrical and Electronics

The overall injection and ignition system functions are controlled by a MS3 Mega Squirt unit from DiY Autotune. This ECU also feeds an Android tablet, which provides not only ECU control, but all dashboard gauge instrumentation for the tachometer, oil pressure, water temperature, and fuel pressure.

The team outfitted a FiTech Fuel Injection intake with a Holley Performance Sniper 92mm throttle body. A no-name set of used 1000cc fuel injectors saved them money towards their budget. Based on the team's experience in tuning with a DiY Autotune system, they chose the MS3 Mega Squirt for controlling the entire fuel system and engine control duties.

A SpeedWire Systems eight-relay electrical switch panel, relay controller, and complete race wiring kit was presented to all teams. A Moroso Performance battery box and on/off safety switch is used along with a Performance Distributors/DynaBatt 12-volt battery.

Enemies Everywhere invested in thee driver’s launch prowess by purchasing a Biondo Racing Products momentary transbrake switch, combined with a PICO Wiring bump switch.

Chassis and Interior

The team custom-fabricated the chassis construction and roll cage from a Moroso/Competition Engineering roll cage kit, transmission crossmember kit, driveshaft loop, and parachute mounting kit. A parachute release assembly was ordered from Rhodes Race Cars.

The "TurboRoo" Camaro shows off the fabrication skills of the "Double-E" team. No corners were cut when it comes to hooking the Camaro to the super sticky surface offered at the eliminations hosted at the upcoming No Mercy 10 event.

Summit Racing supplied various hardware to keeps all racers safe, like the certified seat belts (#SUM-510305), an engine diaper (#SUM-590200), and transmission safety blanket (#SUM-590300).

The Dyno

Enemies Everywhere hit the dyno upon completion but was unable to produce a representative pull due to transmission issues, thus the numbers are being withheld.

Summary

At the conclusion of the 10-day build, Jamie Farmer’s meticulous pre-planning for the Enemies Everywhere team had utilized every penny from its Summit Racing account. They have just under $50 remaining of their cash budget.

“The Camaro was a massive build, and each of our guys excelled,” Farmer proudly mentions. “We probably had 30-percent more work into TurboRoo than any other team when it came to the fabrication side. Our car looks like a racecar compared to some that look more like streeters.”

The “Fresh Prince” money rules set by Horsepower Wars rules allow the teams to spend up to $1,000 cash over its budget, but incurs a weight penalty for doing so. This team avoided that scenario and weighed the car in at 3,325-pounds. With a win in a burrito-eating team competition, TurboRoo is allowed to tip the scales 25-pounds under the combination minimum of 3,350.

“A few of the other team members mentioned they hope to meet us in the finals,” Farmer finishes. “I’m not sure if they mean that they expect to see us be in the finals, or was just a polite gesture, but come hell or high water, we will be in the finals.”

All viewers have their favorite team; following the popular vote that got the Aussies into the competition, it is safe to bet the TurboRoo will have a substantial cheering section.

Team Enemies Everywhere TurboRoo Car Specifications

Vehicle: 1998 Chevrolet Camaro
Weight: 3,325 lbs
Roll cage kit: Competition Engineering – #C3231
Parachute mount: Competition Engineering – #C3451
Parachute release: Rhodes Race Cars parachute releases – #SUM-23-0204
Seat Harness: Summit Racing race harnesses – #SUM-510305
Gauges: Android tablet – team supplied
Plumbing: Fragola Performance Parts braided steel lines and -AN fittings
Fasteners: ARP Bolts
Roll cage kit: Competition Engineering – #C3231
Driveshaft Loop: Competition Engineering – #C3029
Engine Diaper: Summit Racing engine diaper – #SUM-0590200
Chassis tube ends: QA1 Chassis Tube Adapters – #QA1-1845-105
Chassis tube adapters: Summit Racing Equipment chassis tube adapters – #SUM-G7880
Seat: Kirkey 16 Series aluminum economy drag seats – #KIR-16800
Electrical/wiring: Speedwire Systems – Custom 8-switch panel, 8-relay controller, wiring kit
Battery box: MOROSO Performance  – #74051
Battery: Dynabatt 12v by Performance Distributors – #5575A
Battery switch: Moroso battery disconnect switch – #74101
Trans-brake button: Biondo trans-brake buttons – #SBR-TBB
Bump Switch: Pico push button momentary switch – #PCO-5512PT
Electrical relay: Dorman relay – #RNB-902-310

Suspension
Front suspension: Stock
Front shocks: Strange Engineering – #STR-S5271
Front springs: Summit Racing coilover springs, 300 lbs./in. rate, 12- x 2.5-inch – #SUM-72-12-300
Rear shocks: QA1 Proma Star shocks – #QA1-DS902
Rear springs: Summit Racing coilover springs, 95 lbs./in. rate, 14- x 2.5-inch – #SUM-72-14-095
Anti-Roll Bar: ARB arms, ends and slider tube – used
Wishbone and rear links: Team fabricated
Rod Ends: Summit Racing® Black Max Rod Ends – #SUM-MAX12
Rod Ends: Summit Racing® Black Max Rod Ends – #SUM-MAX10
Rod Ends: QA1 PCM Series Rod Ends – #PCMR8-10
Steering, steering column, steering wheel: Camaro stock
Front brakes: Aerospace Components disc brake kit
Rear Brakes: Stock Ford disc with Hawk Performance brake pads – #HB580F.627

Drivetrain
Transmission: Turbo 400 core
Transmission rebuild kit: TCI Racing overhaul kit- #TCI-228600
Torque Converter: Transmission Specialties – used
Shifter: B&M Pro Ratchet – #BMM-80842
Transmission mount: Summit Racing transmission mount – #SUM-7731165
Transmission safety blanket: Summit Racing transmission blanket – #SUM-590300
Flexplate: Summit Racing SFI-approved flexplate – #SUM-G105SFI
Transmission crossmember: Competition Engineering transmission crossmember – #C3600
Transmission yoke: Strange Engineering transmission yoke – #U1650
Transmission sprag: TCI sprag and drum assembly – #TCI-223600
Transmission high direct drum: FTI Performance direct drum – #FTI-F4038
Transmission band: TCI Automotive KEVLAR automatic transmission band – #TCI-225105
Rear end housing:Used Ford 8.8 housing w/factory rear brakes
Rear end gear:
U.S. Gear, Lightning Series, 4.10:1 ratio – #07-888410ISF
Axles, spool, axle bearings, rear end cover, drive studs: Moser 30-spline 8.8 Ford kit
Rear end gear: U.S. Gear, Lightning Series, 4.10:1 ratio – #07-888410ISF
Tube yoke: Spicer Drivetrain Products weld-on tube yokes – #SDH-3-28-427
Wheel spacers: Allstar Performance aluminum wheel spacers, .25-inch – #ALL44216
Driveshaft: Strange Engineering 3 1/2- x .083-inch seamless chromoly – #STR-U1703T
U-Joint girdles: Strange Engineering U-joint girdles – #U1610
U-Joints: Moog Super Strength U-joints – #MOG-231

Engine
Engine block:
GM LS 5.3 core
Crankshaft: GM LS 5.3 core
Pistons: Mahle 10.5cc dish pistons – #197871200
Rings: Total Seal plasma-moly ring set – #CS0010 35
Rods: Eagle Specialty Products 4340 H-beam connecting rods – #ESP-6125B3DL19
Rod/main bearings: King engine bearings – #KGB-CR807XPNSTDX
Head bolts, studs, fasteners: ARP Bolts
Harmonic balancer: Summit Racing balancer – #SUM-C2520

Cylinder heads: VE Commodore LS cylinder heads
Valves: VE Commodore LS 5.3 core
Valve springs: Trick Flow Specialties Dual 1.304 in. OD springs, 7 -degree locks, titanium retainers – #TFS-2500300
Rocker arms: Summit Racing Pro LS upgraded rocker arms – #SUM-141553
Rocker arm stands: Chevrolet Performance rocker arm stands – #NAL-12600936
Camshaft: COMP Cams custom ground camshaft – #CCA-54-000-11
          Cam specs: Duration at .050: 251/267, Lift: .638/.639, 117 LSA
Timing Chain: Summit Racing True Roller timing set – #SUM-G6640
Valley plate: GM LS 5.3 core
Lifters: Chevrolet Performance LS1 hydraulic roller lifters – #NAL-88958689
Pushrods: Lunati 7.350 long 5/16 pushrods – used
Head gaskets: Ridgecrest 4.030 Copper Head Gaskets – used
Gaskets – oil pan, exhaust, water pump, fuel pump – Victor Reinz
Starter: Factory 5.3 core
Valve Covers: Moroso billet aluminum covers – #MOR-68488

Engine oil: Lucas Racing high performance motor oil – #10911-1
Automatic transmission fluid: Lucas semi-synthetic sure shift – #10052-1
Rear end fluid: Lucas racing only gear oil- #LUC-10458
Engine oil: Lucas Racing high performance motor oil – #10911-1
Oil Filter: K&N Performance Gold oil filter – #KNN-HP-1017

Radiator: PRW Industries racing radiator 19- x 29-inch – #PQX-5401929
Water pump: PRW Industries Water pump motor and housing assembly – #PQX-4494495
Cooling fan: Proform Parts electric fan – #PRO-67016
Fluid cooler: Hayden fluid cooler – #HDA-512
Thermostat housing: PRW Industries cast aluminum 90° water neck outlet- #PQX-5234683
Radiator fitting: PRW Industries straight radiator fitting- #PQX-5292323

Throttle body: Holley Sniper 92mm – #SNE-860001-1 
EFI intake: FiTech EFI intake manifolds – #FIF-70065
Air intake tubes: Spectre Performance tubes – #SPE-9799, #SPE-9724,  #SPE-9771,  #SPE-9799,  #SPE-9741, #SPE-9590 
Valve cover breather: K&N crankcase vent filters – #KNN-62-1370
Crankcase breather: K&N crankcase vent filters – #KNN-62-2470
Engine Control Fuel Management System Unit: DiY Autotune, Mega Squirt ECU – used
EFI injector plumbing: Fragola Performance
Fuel injectors: Unknown brand fuel injectors, 1,000.0 cc – used
Throttle Position Switch: acquired junk pile
Air components: Shifnoid, CO2, 1/4-inch hose, 20-feet – #CTN-PC130
Co2 bottle bracket: Biondo Racing universal bottle clamp – #SBR-BC2-5
MAP sensor: Holley MAP sensor – #554-134
Fuel pump: Summit Racing high-flow in-tank electric fuel pump – #SUM-250110-E
Fuel regulator: HyperFuel tight fit regulator, 30-70 psi universal – #HPF-44120
Fuel Cell: Enemies Everywhere hand fabricated from All-Star Perfomance aluminum – #AAF-ALL22238
Ignition coils: E3
 racing ignition coils pack set – #E3-602
Ignition wires: E3 DiamondFIRE Heat-Sleeved Racing Ignition Wires – #E3-1509
Spark plugs: E3 racing spark plugs – #ETP-E3-109
Exhaust: 5.3 OEM iron exhaust manifolds, Summit/Walker 2.5-inch tubing – #WLK-47987,
Summit/Patriot Exhaust 1.5-inch tube – #PTE-H7012, and Summit Racing v-band clamps – #SUM-694940, – #SUM-695840,
– #SUM-694925, and Cherry Bomb mandrel bend tube – #IMM-320466cb

Power Adder
Turbocharger:
BorgWarner AirWerks Turbo, SX400, cast iron turbine housing – #BWW-177287
Wastegate: Precision Turbo & Engines mechanical 40mm diameter – #PTU-PBO085-1505
Turbocharger oil flange: ICT Billet oil pan adapter flange – #ICB-551161

Front wheels: Unknown 15- x 4.5-inch
Rear wheels: Unknown 15- x 8-inch
Front tires: Mickey Thompson 26.0/4.0-15 ET Front – #MTT-30071
Rear tires: Mickey Thompson P275/60R15 ET Street Radial Pro – #MTT-3754x

The 2019 season of the $10K Drag Shootout is made possible by some of the leading companies in our industry, including Summit RacingCOMP CamsTCIK&N Filters, Mickey Thompson TiresMAHLE MotorsportsDyna-BattWeld RacingCorsa PerformanceFragolaHolleyDiabloSport, NOSE3 Spark PlugsTotal SealMoser EngineeringBMR SuspensionMiller ElectricAerospace ComponentsVictor ReinzMorosoUS GearHawk PerformanceLucas OilPRW IndustriesWeld RacingVP RacingNOSProCharger, and ARP.

About the author

Todd Silvey

Todd has been a hardcore drag racing journalist since 1987. He is constantly on both sides of the guardwall from racing photography and editorship to drag racing cars of every shape and class.
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