My instructor showed us this today and I thought it was cool so thought I'd share


I can't verify this information, but it all sounds very realistic when you think about it.
Either way its a good read


1. One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.

2. Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of nitromethane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same rate with 25% less energy being produced.

3. A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive the dragster supercharger.

4. With 3000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a near-solid form before ignition. Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full throttle.

5. At the stoichiometric (stoichiometry: methodology and technology by which quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions are determined) 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitromethane the flame front temperature measures 7050 degrees F.

6. Nitromethane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above the stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from atmospheric water vapor by the searing exhaust gases.

7. Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output of an arc welder in each cylinder.

8. Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After ½ way, the engine is dieseling from compression plus the glow of exhaust valves at 1400 degrees F. The engine can only be shut down by cutting the fuel flow.

9. If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds up in the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to blow cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.

10. In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds dragsters must accelerate an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph well before half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.

11. Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed reading this sentence.

12. Top Fuel Engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to light!

13. Including the burnout the engine must only survive 900 revolutions under load.

14. The redline is actually quite high at 9500rpm.

15. The Bottom Line; Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, and for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per second.

16. The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher).

17. The top speed record is 333.00 mph. (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66' of the run (09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).


Putting all of this into perspective:

You are driving the average $140,000 Lingenfelter "twin-turbo" powered Corvette Z06.
Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass.
You have the advantage of a flying start. You run the 'Vette hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an honest 200 mph.
The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that moment.
The dragster launches and starts after you.
You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3 seconds the dragster catches and passes you.
He beats you to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed him.
Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 mph and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race course.

That is awesome acceleration !!!

 

this is some very good reading. to me it does make sense when i think about it. cool logic and theory. i like the ending of the vette and the dragster. made me laugh. i'm doing 200 mph and i still got my a== handed to me. lol. that would be the time to go home and have a beer and cigar!!!

 

Number 7 is wrong.

 

I love these perspective comparisons.

 

Impressive stuff.

 

i've seen that before an dyes it is awesome

 

Without googling it, I'm not sure about #7, either. But I do remember watching an NHRA event on ESPN2 a few years ago, and they compared the ignition systems from 30 years ago or so to today's systems. Mike Dunn said something to the effect that while systems from the "old" days might give you a nasty shock and a burn were you to idiotically grab onto the end of a plug wire, current ignitions will pretty much stop your heart.

Might be true; might be urban legend...any volunteers?
Pat

 

44 ams would be a pretty low setting on an arc welder. I haven't used my arc in a long time now that I have a MIG, but if memory serves, typically, welding 1/8 thick material, I would be between 80 and 90 amps or so.

 

i think the lowest setting on my arc welder is 50 amps...

 

Yes and no, current settings are based on rod size, rod type and metal thickness, using 1/16" rod the amp range is 20 to 40 amps for 3/16" steel and under. WELDING ELECTRODES

 

Modern welders(inverter)can "operate"as low as one amp.

My welder starts at 30 amps, a modern
Magneto does produce more amps than
A welder.

So number 7 is subject to scrutiny.

Just my 2 cents.

 

18. My 460 has burned enough gas in one trip to the store to support a whole season of top fuel drag racing for one team including support vehicles.

 

For the most part all pretty accurate. And if you've never stood near the the starting line as two of these dragsters or funny cars launch you are missing out on a pretty awesome experience. I am still a little disappointed they cut the top fuel track from the 1/4 mile to 1000'. So go out this summer and take in an NHRA event. And the best event to take in IMHO is the Brainerd International Raceway one as it combines the racing and one of the biggest parties on the planet in the "ZOO" at night.

http://www.brainerdraceway.com/natio...-overview.html

 

I agree...I think every racing enthusiast should go to at least one NHRA event. I was at Maple Grove in 2005, and except for the cramped bleachers, it was the most fun I've had short of racing my own (slow) cars. I tried taking my earplugs out for a Top Fuel pass...didn't work very well. It was painful.

Also agreed on returning to the full 1320' passes...the cars have gotten a little bit quicker since Scott Kalitta died. It'd be interesting to see what kind of times they'd run on a full quarter-mile pass. Just tell the tracks with the shorter shutdown areas to buy some more real estate!

Pat

 

As far as #7 being right or wrong, the whole thing is written to impress. 44 amps is not that impressive when it comes to arc welding. IMHO. That's what I was getting at. Compared to what my truck has for spark, then yes, it's impressive.