Getting the most from your trip to the track
#1
06-17-2005, 04:12 PM
Getting the most from your trip to the track
Recently I made a trip to my local track with a first timer. He has an 00GT with the basic mod's, gears, DR's, exhaust and a 150 shot of nitrous. He is a friend of my son
and has been hesitant to race at the track. He was nervous that he would mess up in front of a crowd of strangers and that he would lose his races. I told him to choose a night and we would race together. I took him through the tech and registration process then we prepped our cars, finally we lined up and ran. He pulled through the staging lights and waited, I finally full staged figuring the starter was going to let us go even though he was five feet past the staging beams. They let us go and he reacted slowly but got through his first race. He ran about 6 times that night battling traction problems but he had a great time and ran a 12.35 @ 112.5 mph on the nitrous. He sat out and watched several rounds until I convinced him to get back at it. He was upset at not running more consistant and felt he should be faster.
The point of this thread is to discuss what you should expect to get out of a trip to the track and how to better achieve your goals.
When I bought my car in 2003 I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to run and how to make it run faster. I did alot of research into the performance of a 2v GT before I purchased it. Before I ever went to the track I made a race log book to take to the track and set up a spread sheet in excel to help me compare trips to the track and better evaluate modifications. You should set realistic goals for you and your car. Don't worry about winning every race, you won't. There is always a bigger badder car right around the corner. Instead concentrate on consistancy, this means going through the same routine on each trip and each run. You should stage the exact same way on each pass. Why is this important? Because staging affects your e.t.. If you stage very shallow (inching until the second staging lamp is barely lit) you will run faster than if you stage deeper. On a mid 13 second car you can run as much as 4 tenths faster or slower just by differences in staging. Always check your tire pressures before running, lower tire pressure in your front tires will slow your reaction times so you should know your starting pressure. Of course rear tire pressure plays a important role in traction. By checking your tire pressure before every pass you can make accurate adjustments. Keep detailed records on either your timeslip or in a log book. I put in anything I can think of on each run such as tire spin, shift points, rpm through the traps, wind etc. Finally always correct your times after you get home, this allows you to accurately compare each run, not only of that trip but of any previous run you have made. You can find correction tools at sites such as Modular Depot which has an excellent array of tools for drag racers.
By setting realistic goals and following a well thought out routine you will find your times will drop and you will enjoy your outings a great deal more.
and has been hesitant to race at the track. He was nervous that he would mess up in front of a crowd of strangers and that he would lose his races. I told him to choose a night and we would race together. I took him through the tech and registration process then we prepped our cars, finally we lined up and ran. He pulled through the staging lights and waited, I finally full staged figuring the starter was going to let us go even though he was five feet past the staging beams. They let us go and he reacted slowly but got through his first race. He ran about 6 times that night battling traction problems but he had a great time and ran a 12.35 @ 112.5 mph on the nitrous. He sat out and watched several rounds until I convinced him to get back at it. He was upset at not running more consistant and felt he should be faster.
The point of this thread is to discuss what you should expect to get out of a trip to the track and how to better achieve your goals.
When I bought my car in 2003 I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to run and how to make it run faster. I did alot of research into the performance of a 2v GT before I purchased it. Before I ever went to the track I made a race log book to take to the track and set up a spread sheet in excel to help me compare trips to the track and better evaluate modifications. You should set realistic goals for you and your car. Don't worry about winning every race, you won't. There is always a bigger badder car right around the corner. Instead concentrate on consistancy, this means going through the same routine on each trip and each run. You should stage the exact same way on each pass. Why is this important? Because staging affects your e.t.. If you stage very shallow (inching until the second staging lamp is barely lit) you will run faster than if you stage deeper. On a mid 13 second car you can run as much as 4 tenths faster or slower just by differences in staging. Always check your tire pressures before running, lower tire pressure in your front tires will slow your reaction times so you should know your starting pressure. Of course rear tire pressure plays a important role in traction. By checking your tire pressure before every pass you can make accurate adjustments. Keep detailed records on either your timeslip or in a log book. I put in anything I can think of on each run such as tire spin, shift points, rpm through the traps, wind etc. Finally always correct your times after you get home, this allows you to accurately compare each run, not only of that trip but of any previous run you have made. You can find correction tools at sites such as Modular Depot which has an excellent array of tools for drag racers.
By setting realistic goals and following a well thought out routine you will find your times will drop and you will enjoy your outings a great deal more.
#2
06-17-2005, 10:04 PM
maybe you can help me out sir! i went to the track tonight and I'm just not doing as well as I believe I should. It's a 1/8th mile track. My best tonight and my best so far (I've only been to the track 3 times) is as follows
Reaction .421
60 ft 2.095
594 ft 8.657
1/8 et 9.228
1/8 mph 78.84
I'm running the Nittos with about 17 psi and I'm doing a pretty good burnout. I tried a couple different launches tonight and I dunno which is the best. I believe I did a 3K launch for that run (next time I'm going to keep better details down). The car seems to bog a little still.. like when I shift from 1st to 2nd. I've also been power shifting though I'm still not comfortable with it. I missed 3rd two times.. I have the Tri-Ax and I seem to think 3rd is further than what it is for some reason
Also I've heard you should shift where your HP and TQ lines cross? Is that true? My dyno sheet is in that other thread. I think I'm going to get a shift light to help me out, that way I can concentrate more on just shifting instead of when to shift. Any advice you could give me I'd appreciate it 
Reaction .421
60 ft 2.095
594 ft 8.657
1/8 et 9.228
1/8 mph 78.84
I'm running the Nittos with about 17 psi and I'm doing a pretty good burnout. I tried a couple different launches tonight and I dunno which is the best. I believe I did a 3K launch for that run (next time I'm going to keep better details down). The car seems to bog a little still.. like when I shift from 1st to 2nd. I've also been power shifting though I'm still not comfortable with it. I missed 3rd two times.. I have the Tri-Ax and I seem to think 3rd is further than what it is for some reason
Also I've heard you should shift where your HP and TQ lines cross? Is that true? My dyno sheet is in that other thread. I think I'm going to get a shift light to help me out, that way I can concentrate more on just shifting instead of when to shift. Any advice you could give me I'd appreciate it
#3
06-18-2005, 06:44 AM
Alot of people think you shift where your hp and tq cross, actually you want to shift about 500 ( about 10%) above that. So if you peak at 5200 try shifting at 5700 - 5800. I shift at 6,000 on mine. The reason you shift higher is to keep your motor rpm's up in it's power band. When you shift your motor will drop rpms as it begins to build power in the next gear. If you drop too far down you drop below your power and will bog. I have found that the 2-3 shift is critical to my et and trap speed. If I shift short it kills the run, you can feel the bog. A shift light is a great idea, anything that helps you concentrate on your driving is a plus. Keep good notes on your launching, it's the hardest part of drag racing. I have had a love hate relationship with my Nitto's. When they hook I love them when they don't I hate them. Lately I have been running mine at 18-19 lbs with a very long burnout. Mine are 15" 275 50's so I have a bigger side wall and can take advantage of more sidewall flex. You can do a simple test on your's away from the track. Find an asphalt parking lot where you can make a little noise and smoke without getting a ticket. Take a friend a tape measure, tire gauge and some water. Heat up the tires and launch, you will leave a nice rubber mark to measure. Get out and measure the width and amount of contact, you are looking to see at what air pressure you are getting the best tire contact. Try as many tire pressures as you can and be sure to check the pressure between tests because it will go up from the heat generated doing burnouts. You should be able to get your sixty foot time down into the 1.8's with a little practice.
#5
06-18-2005, 08:27 AM
Mine is an automatic so I just stomp the pedal to the floor and fiddle with the radio while I race. I have a 3,500 stall speed converter so I'd say it launches right about 3,000 rpm. I have owned manual and automatics and the automatics are soooo easy to race.
#6
06-19-2005, 02:18 PM
Some good info here. One thing about shift points. If you have a NON-PI car 96-98 you need to be shifting around 5700-5800..any more than that is a waste. A PI car needs to almost kiss the limiter 6050. A car with cams needs to be around 6200-6500 depending on what your comfortable with.
Adam
Adam
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