* One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more
horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.
* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1? gallons of
nitro methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at
the
same rate with 25% less energy being produced.
* A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to
drive
the dragster supercharger.
* 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.
* At the stoichiometric 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane the
flame front temperature measures 7050 degrees F.
* Nitro methane 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.
* Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the
output
of an arc welder in each cylinder.
* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After
1/2
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.
* 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.
* In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds dragsters must
accelerate
at an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph well before
half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.
* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have
completed
reading this sentence.
* Top Fuel Engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to
light!
* Including the burnout the engine must only survive 900
revolutions
under load.
* The redline is actually quite high at 9500rpm.
* 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 US $1,000.00 per second. The current Top Fuel
dragster
elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter mile (10/05/
03,
Tony Schumacher). 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, folks, is acceleration.
horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.
* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1? gallons of
nitro methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at
the
same rate with 25% less energy being produced.
* A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to
drive
the dragster supercharger.
* 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.
* At the stoichiometric 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane the
flame front temperature measures 7050 degrees F.
* Nitro methane 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.
* Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the
output
of an arc welder in each cylinder.
* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After
1/2
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.
* 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.
* In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds dragsters must
accelerate
at an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph well before
half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.
* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have
completed
reading this sentence.
* Top Fuel Engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to
light!
* Including the burnout the engine must only survive 900
revolutions
under load.
* The redline is actually quite high at 9500rpm.
* 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 US $1,000.00 per second. The current Top Fuel
dragster
elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter mile (10/05/
03,
Tony Schumacher). 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, folks, is acceleration.
