Acceleration

[Micks]

What 10,000 horsepower does to a top fuel tire at launch.

TOP FUEL ACCELERATION PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE

* One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic-inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower (10,000 HP) than the first 5 rows at the Daytona 500.

* Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1.2-1.5 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 merely drive the dragster's 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.

* 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.

* 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.

* Dragsters reach over 300 MPH before you have completed reading this sentence.

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

* 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 9500 RPM.

* THE BOTTOM LINE: Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, & for once, NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000 per second.

0 to 100 MPH in .8 seconds (the first 60 feet of the run)
0 to 200 MPH in 2.2 seconds (the first 350 feet of the run)
6 g-forces at the starting line (nothing accelerates faster on land)
6 negative g-forces upon deployment of twin ‘chutes at 300 MPH An NHRA Top Fuel Dragster accelerates quicker than any other land vehicle on earth . . quicker than a jet fighter plane . . . quicker than the space shuttle.

The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.420 seconds for the quarter-mile (2004, Doug Kalitta). The top speed record is 337.58 MPH as measured over the last 66' of the run (2005, Tony Schumacher).

Putting this all 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 & 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 & pass the dragster at an honest 200 MPH. The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that moment.

The dragster launches & starts after you. You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums & within 3 seconds the dragster catches & 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 & not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race!

That's acceleration!

[sportwagon]

Everyone at least once in their lives must go and experience a top fuel run unfortunately here in perth they dont come here anymore really miss the feeling and the sound 2.5 on the richter scale basically a small earthquake.

[jc_sv8]

It's one of the most violent experiences you'll ever experience!
As they blast off the line it feels as though you are being punched in the chest, your eyes blur and then an almighty roar that you are not ready for.
Once they pass there is an earie silence as your ears are ringing and the sweet smell of nitro as your eyes start watering...

[C4B]

Back in our younger days we loved standing near the start line at Willowbank and watching the crowd to see who had never seen/heard a Top Fuel car before.

There would always be the odd person at the start of the night who would stand there with no ear protection, probably thinking that everyone else were a bunch of wusses for covering their ears.

Then a Fueller would roll through the burnout box, light them up and you'd get to see the newbie just about knock themselves unconscious with their own hands trying to cover their ears.

I'll never forget watching Graeme Cowan's crew swap the engine in his car before the New Years Series final and him proceed to do a 4.99 pass (only the 2nd in Australian history).

If you have never been to a Top Fuel event, you need to go because there is nothing else like it in motorsport!

[SASLS1]

These two video sum up the Top Fuel "Feeling" perfectly...


The water bottle test, this is what Top Fuel does to your internal organs, when your track side.

[SASLS1]

Second, the Top Fuel Throttle Blip, watch the crowd 100% Cower Away as "Schwarzenegger" would say, like Little Girly Men...

Also watch the whole side of the Tent wall suck in under vacuum as they Blip the Throttle...



Only way to experience it, is to go experience it, in person yourself...

I've been multiple times, 100% awesome experience...