As I write this, I'm holding a quarter-mile time slip in my hand. The slip is from Atco Raceway, Atco, N.J., and is dated July 9, 2000. I'll read a few numbers off the slip and you try to guess what kind of car made the run.

60-foot e.t.: 1.726 secs.

1/8-mile e.t.: 7.780 secs.

1/4-mile e.t.: 12.293 secs.

Trap Speed: 108.44 mph.

Well, what did you come up with? It wasn't a Corvette. Nor was it some nitrous-pumped, turbo-sucking rice rocket. The car that made this run is a 1965 VW Type I Sedan equipped with a factory-issue engine block, swingaxle transmission and DOT-approved street tires. Shocked? No, of course you're not. If, however, you were a regular reader of any of a multitude of other automotive performance magazines, you might well be shocked beyond belief. I mean, Bugs aren't supposed to be fast, are they? Something equipped with a 50-horse engine isn't supposed to be running 12s, is it?

Well, yeah. The only thing is, this car can no longer claim to have 50hp. It's owned by one Eric Heyman, of Chalfont, Penn.

"I bought a VW magazine when I was 13 and have been hooked ever since," Heyman informs me. "I wanted to have a clean, almost stock-looking Beetle that is able to spank V8s on the street and the track." Heyman's quest led him eventually to the car you see pictured here and this is basically what it looked like when he bought it. It came with the original bill of sale from 1965, was already wearing a nice coat of L456 Ruby Red and, amazingly, all its panels were smooth, straight, unperforated metal. All Heyman added were chrome overrider bumpers front and rear and West Coast Metric factory-style running boards.

The floorpan received a little more attention. Heyman knew he was going to be cramming a great deal of power through the little car's diminutive drivetrain, so concessions were made to make sure the chassis was sound enough for a high-powered application. In front, the car hunkers down over the pan about 1-1/2-inches lower than its factory height setting using a lowered front beam and welded in adjusters. BUGPACK urethane spring plate bushings add a modicum of rigidity to the suspension setup, while stock oil shocks add damping properties to the springs themselves. Heyman places his faith in the factory master cylinder, original front drum brakes and Type III drum assemblies when it's time to hit the binders. The whole thing rolls on 15-inch satin Centerlines, 3.5-inches wide front, 5-inches wide rear. McCreary street tires, sized 145x15 front and 225/70/15 rear, collaborate on the car's contact patch.

Believe it or not, this car's heavily modified engine started life as a stock 1600cc VW case, which Heyman sent to Rimco in Santa Ana, Calif., for the initial machine work. The case was shuffle pinned and the lifter bores sleeved for greater operating integrity, then tapped for full flow, clearanced for a stroker crank and bored out to accept larger 94mm pistons. The new bore effects a whopping new displacement of 2332cc; that's 732 cubic centimeters over the stock displacement--on a factory case!

The actual engine build was performed by Heyman and friend Kurt Mezger at Mezger's shop, Vintage Performance, Westchester, Penn. The engine's agressive 10.3:1 compression is actuated by 94mm Cima pistons. Eagle 5.7-inch connecting rods effect an 84mm stroke and link the pistons to a balanced, wedgemated 84mm Demello crankshaft; KS main and Clevite rod bearings keep things spinning smoothly along. A 12.5-lb wedgemated flywheel rounds out the engine's rotating mass. Lubrication is supplied by a Gene Berg 26mm full flow pump, 3.5-quart Berg sump and stock Doghouse cooler. The case was sealed using Raceware 8mm studs and 12-point nuts.

The top end was assembled beginning with VW 040 head castings that were ported, polished and cced by Performance Technology in Anaheim, Calif. The heads were then fitted with stainless steel Manley valves, sized 44mm intake and 37.5mm exhaust. The valves sit in silicon-bronze guides and are operated by a custom-ground Webcam camshaft and Manton dual-taper pushrods; K-Motion dual spring assemblies return them to their seats, while titanium retainers ensure everything stays where it should.

Breathing on this 2332cc beast is facilitated through what else but dual Weber IDA carbs that incorporate 40mm venturis, welded and ported manifolds and a CB Performance hex bar linkage. Spent gasses exit the system through a 1-5/8-inch Phoenix merged header and 2.5-inch Flowmaster muffler. Ignition spark is supplied by a MSD billet distributor, MSD Blaster 2 coil, MSD 8.5mm wires and NGK plugs.

The responsibility of getting all this power to the ground is shouldered by a stock VW swingaxle transmission modified by Jim Sartwell in Severn, Md. The housing is bolstered by a solid rear tranny mount and an intermediate mount, both from Gene Berg, that were welded into the car's floorpan. The new gearbox features four custom-ratio forward gears that incorporate ERCO mainshaft steel forks in first and second gear.

Other transaxle mods include a McKenzies Threaded Super Diff (modified by Jim Kaforski at Der Transaxle Shop, Anaheim, Calif.), gusseted hockey stick and a chrome-moly pinion retainer. Transferring power from the gearbox to the Saw race axles falls to a super grippy dual friction clutch disc and KEP 2600-lb pressure plate assembly. Gear selection is actuated by the classic Gene Berg shifter. Heyman's only complaint about this setup is the "wimpy little ring and pinion" he has to incorporate into the swingaxle tranny.

Inside there's a clean, relatively sedate restored interior that is very tight-lipped about the car's performance potential. The aforementioned Berg shifter and AutoMeter tach and oil temperature gauge are your only clues, because there are no roll cages, racing seats or harnesses, or bare metal surfaces anywhere to be seen.

The stock VW seats have been reskinned with gray vinyl and ivory piping from TMI (upholstery by the infamous Chris Mangler) while the floorboard is shrouded in classic gray German squareweave carpet. The original factory headliner remains in place, as does the dash mounted Sapphire radio.