Billet side covers are not legal in stock classes.
There's nothing wrong with the stock side cover. I have never seen one break
After running your engine put it on a good surface plate and see what you find.
You might be surprised how much the bottom of the block has twisted. This will be
indicated by how much it rocks back and forth, side-to-side or corner-to-corner.
Just imagine what's going on when you apply the engine torque while racing.
The bottom of the block is twisting all over the place.
Billet side covers or thick plates on the bottom of the engine do absolutely nothing to
prevent this. They do look nice though.
The bolt mounting pad for the engine is about 3/4" thick aluminum (looks good) but
the material between the mounting pads (in the crankcase) is about 1/10" thick.
The torque of the Animal / WF engine wants to climb up the chain and also twist the
engine to the left.
The amount of material in the bottom of the block doesn't offer much strength to
keep this twisting from happening.
Some guys put a 1" plate between the engine and the motor mount. That may help
reduce the twisting transferred from the chassis but it does nothing to prevent the
engine torque from twisting the block.
Some guys will machine the bottom of the block to get it straight.
That works for a short time (until it twists again)
Be careful machining the bottom of the block. Since the drain plug has pipe threads
it acts like a wedge as you turn it into the block.
I have seen too many blocks crack from over tightening the drain plug.
Machining the bottom of the block may actually promote cracking by weakening the
area below the drain plug.
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