Very cool cars, very rare, very fast. These went into a sort of mythical status back in the 1980's when Jim and Frank Mino were kicking butt at Supercar Showdowns and Muscle Car Shootouts. At the time, most muscle car fans were unfamiliar with what a RAII was. It seemed like out of the clear blue, this mysterious little '68 Firebird was kicking the collective butts of Hemis and Chevelles, and there were accusations that it was really a stroker 400 or a disguised 455. Years later, as Mino's car maintained nearly the exact same ET's and MPH year after year (other makes and models mysteriously dipped into the 11's), Mino did a tear down to show that every single part in his engine was Pontiac. There was no deception, just excellent assembly, attention to detail, and of course the power of the RAII.
The 1969-1970 RAIV was a faster engine, but the 1968-1/2 RAII holds its weight and has become very collectible due to its rarity and sleeper image.
Mike
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