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My quest for better E.T./MPH

10K views 40 replies 11 participants last post by  trdtoy 
#1 ·
I've always been into drag racing and modifying everything I've owned to run better at the strip. Why stop now..... :wink:

My VT started with best time on all oem components of 9.56 in the 1/8 mile. From there it went to 9.46 with addition of behemoth air filter sri. Then 9.36 with addition of wastegate boost hack. When the ORHP was added it dropped to 9.27 sec 1/8 mile.

As mods were added and runs have improved, my time slips have not shown the true gains from mods added to the car due to wheel spin with oem setup and fueling issues from oem fuel line causing power cut. Now that I no longer have fueling issues thanks to -x- and the -6 fuel line I aquired from him, my times should show that next time i hit the strip. Looking at traction mods along the way as I can not put power I have now to the ground.

With this being said, I plan to make a few runs this coming Thursday night, hoping for the best. I know it may be a stretch but I'm hoping to get into the 8's in the 1/8 mile, on oem tune, before this season is out. Hope to get there Thursday night..... Really trying to show everyone what these little cars are capable of.
 
#4 ·
Will likely get tires, wheels, suspension, motor mounts etc in the off season. I have a few tricks up my sleeve for this thursday night that should help me get into the 8's.
If anyone is within driving distance of mooresville dragstrip and wants to come join me then feel free. Would love to have a VT support crew!
 
#5 ·
Did some testing with some new items on the car. No fueling issues thanks to -x-'s -6 fuel line, but seem to be hitting legitimate psi and/or power limiters of the oem tune. Per testing over last 2 days it should have enough to get into the 8's in the 1/8th thursday night for sure. :wink:
 
#7 ·
^^^^^True.....
However, spinning ain't winning.....
And without slips there is no proof.....

Basically everyone has to trust what I post here. And trust me, she pulls harder now with the upgraded fuel line than before, even on less than oem boost levels and flat boost curve from the MBC.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Went to the strip tonight.....
Density Altitude was good.....
Track prep was hit n miss.....
Timing system was working this time.....
Only thing is they still had issues getting the slips to print.....
So now I have to go back and run 8's another night in hopes of actually getting a slip to show everyone what she'll do.....
:furious:
Fyi.....best it did was 1.9xx sec 60', 8.9xx seconds @ 80.xx mph. That was with minimal spin during launch as I was having to ease into the throttle the first 100'. Could not go wot lower than 25-30 mph or it would spin or wheel hop depending on tire psi.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Went to the strip yesterday and made some runs. They were finally able to print slips but on some it did not get the 60' or 330' (half track) times. Best I managed was a 9.08 @ 77.5 mph as traction became horrible due to oil and dirt/debris that was put on the track from a few trucks that ran earlier.:furious: oem tires/wheels, collars/bushings, and motor mounts did not help things either.....
Still kinda ticked that I have been in the 8's the last few times but unable to get slips, then on one of the most ideal days/conditions the track was screwed up from some idiots when I could actually get tickets printed(although timing system was still somewhat screwy).
Text Ticket Receipt Font Label

Sucks no 60' or 330' for this pass. I did make a 9.2345 sec pass at 77.44 which was my slowest and had a 2.1611 60' and 6.0341 330' on it.
Going to the 1/4 mile this Saturday to try to better my current runs.....
 
#11 ·
Text Font Paper Document

I'm car 82. Elite vt's 16 rally is car 62.
Well no personal bests but best I have proof of on tickets for e.t. and mph. Also first time down the 1/4 mile in the VT.
Still need to sort out traction as it is still an issue as well as high cat temps killing power due to rich afrs. This is evident in my mph as I only had 1 pass that cat temps were in check and it ran +4 mph over the other passes.
 
#26 ·
My A/T was hitting low 14s with roughly same mods. 2400rpm launch. I am going to the track today hoping they are handing out slips and not just doing fun runs. it will be the first time i really opened my new Rally up. curios as to what you were launching at Elite? i think the first run ill go with 3200 rpms (stock tires) and then the next ill try 3800 then just play with it from there.

View attachment 50005
I'm car 82. Elite vt's 16 rally is car 62.
Well no personal bests but best I have proof of on tickets for e.t. and mph. Also first time down the 1/4 mile in the VT.
Still need to sort out traction as it is still an issue as well as high cat temps killing power due to rich afrs. This is evident in my mph as I only had 1 pass that cat temps were in check and it ran +4 mph over the other passes.
 
#13 ·
just got home from the track and it had no prep plus the dew point was real low and everybodies car was dripping track was saturated. my best time was a 15.1 at 96.5 mph but i cut a 2.75 60 ft track had no traction. last run i managed to cut a 2.4 60 ft and ran 15.1 at 80mph yes 80mph i missed 4th completely....till next time good to see your car is almost running 13s if i could have gotten a 2.0 60ft at 96mph i would have def broke into the 13s
 
#14 ·
Mods on my car during runs: Behemoth sri filter, ORHP, fuel line, removed oem cat back, weight reduction to 2860 lbs race weight, adjusted air pressure in crappy oem tires with 20k on them.
The general thought is that a manual car will make quicker pass than an auto since it puts more power down, which is normally not true if both have approx same mods. A manual car will however trap the higher mph.
An auto has the advantage at the strip due to consistency/repeatability. With auto you are able to launch harder than manual via boost launch as long as tires and track are up to the job. Also the auto does not lose power between shifts like manual and shifts much quicker.
All this was apparent when running vs 13EliteVT in his '16 rally. On the launch I had a .2+ second advantage at 60' just from the launch even with him having slightly beer tires (still crappy though) and those awesome wheels. Then by 330' I am at least .3 sec ahead since he shifted. 1/8 mile I'm approx .4 sec ahead as he shifts again. Then nearing .5 sec ahead at the 1/4 mile from my car accel slightly quicker.
Both cars weighed about the same from my calc and should put down similar power. On one pass I gave him a jump on me so we were side by side from 1/8th mile on (4th gear) and my car only pulled a few feet on his in the last 1/8th mile.
 
#15 ·
i can power shift my first three gears in my 6spd vt but for some reason 4th gear is not having it, as far as boost launching goes doesnt help all that much unless your track is aggressively prepped because most of us are shredding the tires in first gear any ways. I am gonna buy some shifter bushings and the 2015 short shifter and go back at it on a test and tune night were the track is prepped pretty good. How much weight savings where those seats.
 
#16 ·
The bushings and sts didn't make a whole lot of difference. I couldn't have shifted any faster honestly. We absolutely saw the advantage of auto vs a 6 spd. The launch was the worst part for me. Even with the track prepped as good as it was, the tires and lack of lower mount was my worst evil. The weight savings I am sure helped immensely. We probably shaved close to 200 lbs. If I can eliminate the wheel spin, I'll be low 14s all days and close the gap.....
 
#17 ·
i put the rev 75a bushings in and wheel hop is pretty much non existent my power doesnt seem to cut out at all but for some reason the throw from third to fourth scratches every time sometimes it wont go so im gonna do a couple things to see if i can fix that a.k.a bushing short throw and new tranny oil. I wouldnt place all your chips on the auto yet from the numbers im seeing so far with out being able to hook or catch 4th good my car is looking real good to break into the 13s and with the mph your putting up you should be capable of 13s as well. On your last pass of the afternoon if you would have cut a 2.0 on your 60ft you would have ran a 13.9ish just keep at it.
 
#18 ·
Like 13EliteVT said, track was prepped impeccably. Oem tires and lower mount and suspension limiting factors. If he could of cut the same 60' as I then he would of been in the 14.2-14.3 range. Much harder to run a good time with a manual unless making way more power than an auto to overcome the cons from the manual in the drag strip scenario.
The front passenger and rear seats with associated brackets/hardware weigh in around 94 lbs iirc for my car. Did not weigh the rally but I imagine are very close to being the same as mine.
Additionally I had 1/4 tank gas(-60lbs from being full), no crash bar(-20lbs), no grille(-5lbs), and oem cat back removed to save weight (-43lbs) while gaining some power. Having head rest, mats in car, and everything in hatch area also shaved some weight (maybe 20-30 lbs)as well as minor plastics n such on car.
Shaving weight helps more than what most realize. I mean my car is probably in the 200 whp range when making these runs yet quicker/faster than cars making more power both auto and manual.
 
#19 ·
pick up better tires buy a lower mount or the 75a bushings from rev motorsports and try it again. be warned though when your still at a light the 75a bushings make the car shake a bit but the trade off is well worth it. I am currently running firestone firehawks ultra performance tires 225s and they make a world of difference at least on the street was hard to tell at the track since it was not prepped at all. I think next time I will definitely take out the seats if i can shave that much weight. The cat back would be sweet but I would be pulled over in a heart beat driving around like that.
 
#21 ·
Ya it took less than 30 mins to put seats back in, cat-back on, and air the tires back up.

Next Saturday I am going to knock out a 8.xxx 1/8th mile and a 13.xxx 1/4th mile then call it good. Will not take me long to do so as I pretty much figured things out on the 6 passes I made. From there on I will pit crew for 13EliteVT to get him a better time. He will not go 13's though as he would have to go .5-.6 seconds quicker in the 1/8th to do so. Which may not even be possible with slicks and dropping the clutch at redline with power he's currently making!
 
#22 ·
Wow a <14s 1/4 mile with a <200whp car is optimistic, but I'd love to see it. Would give me hope for sure! :haha:

Is a tune in the works for you at one point? That would probably have even more of an impact than tires.
 
#23 ·
Ya doubt it's over 200 whp. They make what 170 whp stock and all performance wise was air filter on stock tubing, upgraded hot pipe, took cat back off, and fuel line. Doubt that will add more than 30 whp. Plus oem tune limits power in the 200 whp area anyway.
More parts are planned to go on the car that will help power and for sure want/need a tune to take advantage of all parts.
Goal is 7's in the 1/8 mile, hopefully 11's in the 1/4, stock motor.....
 
#24 ·
Planning to set some records this sat down the strip. Going to be a little lighter, slightly more power, and the density altitude is looking to be in the negatives and around 1k feet less than when I made passes last week!
 
#25 ·
Well no records were set today.
Same traction issues but worse due to track being horrible. Air was good to make power though. DA was in the - all day. My best times were 2.1 60', 5.9 330', 9.1 1/8 mile @ 77-78 mph, 14.1 1/4 mile @ 98-99 mph. This was running 2-3 psi below oem boost curve due to having a blown coupler..... even blew the fin-less non beaded ORHP off on a pass an it hit the track hard but just scratched. Pretty tough little bugger!
If I would of had another coupler with me records would of been set..... oh well.....
 
#28 ·
I would not run super sticky tires on oem components if you plan to drop the clutch on an m/t car. Sticky tires on an auto car is a little different as there is much less sudden spike in power application vs the manual.
Seen many a manual platform break driveline components at far less power than auto will. And I'm talking low power manual tranny platforms.
With that being said I can test those slicks for ya.....lol!
 
#29 ·
When I ran: 2.0 60', 9.0 1/8, and 14.0 1/4, my car made 182 whp/178 wtq dynojet.

Since then adding light pulleys, Catless dp, higher flow hotpipe, lighter wheels, and better tires gave me +8 whp and +34 wtq!

Since that dyno I've been tuned by sxth element engineering and currently at 215 whp! With better flowing exhaust, intake, intercooler, and hotpipe for my next dyno session, I should be in the 250-270 whp area on a new tune in the coming weeks pending no limiters will be hit.....

Lower motor mount en-route to help keep wheel hop down, and rear will be modified by raising 2-2.5" with 0 travel to keep weight over front tires. If this does not prevent spinning with new tires, no worries. My bro owns a tire/wheel shop and has 2 slicks on wheels ready to go on.....

Records will be set in 2017 on day 1 at the track!

Looking for a sub 8 second 1/8 pass..... ;-)
 
#30 ·
I think what you're going to run into is the lighter you make the car the more you're going to have wheel spin, especially with stock suspension. Also, unless you upgrade the front suspension, like adding a LSD, and other components, at some point that front end is going to give out. This car just isn't built for abuse like an SRT-4 is. Those things are built for the track from the factory.

Also, HP really doesn't matter unless there's before and after numbers. Numbers you did months ago don't translate because there are so many variables from ambient temps, humidity, car temps, different gas even if from the same station, the list goes on. 215HP one day and 230HP a month later may be the same thing depending on the conditions.

If you're running 1/8 mile I would put small wheels, maybe 17 or 16's with meaty slicks. Roll out a few feet and punch it. Don't worry about your reaction times unless your racing someone.
 
#31 ·
Car is not going to get much lighter at this point. Not going extreme on weight loss to run the times. Also the weight is coming off rear of car for the most part. I mean at 2860 lbs race weight I have 1900 lbs over the front tires.....

The issues I've had spinning was due to severial things: Track conditions being bad, oem tires suck, weight shifting off front tires, wheel hop from engine/trans movement, and surge of power in oem tune.

One I hit the track with current mods and a decent tune I'll see what I need to tweak next. At some point I fully expect to need more suspension mods and an LSD. But I want to see at what point they'll be needed first.

Re SRT-4 being made for track(dragstrip), I don't think so myself. I driven them, tuned them, modded them, and have friends that have done the same. They can make good power but will not hook up. And when they do the axles snap. Takes 100 whp more to run same times as my auto VT.....

Speaking of power, I have dyno numbers with mods I ran times with and the density altitude listed during the passes. Since dyno is corrected to 0' density altitude and all my passes were made at a higher DA, means I made less power than on dyno when passes were made.

I already have 16" wheels that weigh 13 lbs on car and slicks on light wheels as well. I'm not worried about spinning at all with slicks on oem motor and turbo. And I'm not rolling out and punching it either. Boost launch only for me..... ;-)

I know what it takes to make a good pass. The only VT that may have made a quicker pass is one with slicks that dyno 126 whp more than mine and only .2-.3 seconds quicker in the 1/4. And still have not seen a slip yet.....

That should say something.....
 
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