DODGY DEAL

ARBY BUYS A HIGH-REVVING DODGE R5P7 NASCAR MOTOR OFF FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE, LOADS IT ON THE DYNO AND PULLS THE STRING. WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?

- STORY MARK ARBLASTER PHOTOS JOSEPH HUI

FACEBOOK Marketplace is full of treasures, but it is also a hive of scum and villainy. Attempting to purchase a used engine from another country through Marketplace adds an extra level of complexity – organising it all via Messenger, paying via PayPal in a foreign currency – so it's definitely a roll of the dice. Still, I figured the chance to own one of the most exhilarating and refined small-block engines of all time – the legendary Dodge R5P7 NASCAR V8 – would be worth the risk.

These 355 to 358ci mighty-mouse engines have a fearsome reputation, having dominated NASCAR racing from 2001 to 2012. It was the golden age of corporate motorsport sponsorship – a win-at-all-costs, unlimited-budget era never to be seen again – so the Dodge R5P7 was supported by a research and development budget that would blow F1 out of the water. The result was what many believe to be the most highly developed engine in the history of motorsport.

Thousands of these mega-revving small-blocks were produced, and some two decades later, they are still a remarkable engine, highly prized today as replacement mills for ski boats, street cars, drag-and-drive cars, or – thanks to their incredibly refined oiling and cooling systems – world-class burnout builds.

I was keen to snare one of these legendary donks for a street car build I'm hoping to take on Street Machine Drag Challenge, which is how I found myself running the Marketplace gauntlet. Fortunately, the planets aligned for me thanks to the help of Dennis Young, a California-based Aussie who picks up parts in the US to deliver to eager revheads in Australia.