TOP FUEL DRAGSTER FAST FACTS ACCELERATION PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE * 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 11.2 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. * 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. * 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 acceleration 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.apex motorcycle helmet The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter-mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). motorcycle store in thornton coThe top speed record is 333.00 MPH (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66′ of the run (09/28/03, Doug Kalitta).motorcycle helmet law in minnesota Putting this all into perspective:motorbike helmets birmingham

Lets say the 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 by it. mini bikes for sale reginaYou have the advantage of a flying start. motorcycle helmet clownYou run the ‘Vette hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line & pass the dragster at an honest 200 MPH. harley davidson open face motorcycle helmets ukJust as you pass the Top Fuel Dragster the ‘tree’ goes green for both of you. 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!The requested URL /forum/showthread.php?t=20271 was not found on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.Top-fuelers burn a mixture that's 90 percent nitromethane and 10 percent alcohol. Interestingly, a gallon of nitromethane, which costs $58, has less energy content than gasoline (14 kilowatt-hours versus 34). But nitro is an oxygen-rich compound that requires less air to burn, so the engine can consume more of it, thereby producing greater power. The 58 nozzles in the intake tract are always open, dumping about 5 gallons of fuel in a 4-second run. That kind of flow requires a firehose-like fuel line.A five-disc dry clutch is the only link between the engine and the locked rear end—there's no transmission.

"The clutch is the lifeline of the car," Oberhofer says, because it regulates wheelspin by gradually engaging and slipping as the car moves down the track. A hydraulically motivated throw-out bearing operates off a simple timer (computer controls are illegal). The clutch is tuned according to track conditions. If it engages too quickly, the tires will spin, but if it's too lazy, the car won't accelerate as fast as possible. The discs get so hot that at least two of them are welded together by the run's end.Specially constructed Goodyears have the intimidating task of transferring all that rotational energy to forward speed. The bias-ply tires also dramatically change diameter over a run, which has the effect of altering the overall gearing. At the start, the 36-inch-diameter tires squat as the sidewalls wrap around the wheels' bead locks. With increasing vehicle speed, the tires expand to a final diameter of 44 inches. The special blend of tread rubber is designed to adhere to the adhesive that's applied to the track.

The resulting grip is akin to driving on flypaper.A top-fueler's exact horsepower is a mystery—there isn't a dynamometer that can handle one. Current estimates are in the 8000 neighborhood, and, no, we didn't mistakenly add a zero on the end. The basic layout is very similar to the 1964 Dodge Hemi 426 V8—16 pushrod-activated valves—but with two spark plugs for each cylinder and a total displacement of 500 cubic inches. The supercharger, which is just a belt-driven air pump that force-feeds the engine, is so massive that it takes 700 hp to run it. The extreme internal forces literally flatten the crankshaft bearings and destroy valve springs during a pass. So the engine is rebuilt after every run by a team of eight mechanics. They perform this harried rebuild in just 40 minutes.On March 13, 2010, in Gainesville, Fla., Kalitta driver David Grubnic set a top speed record on the 1000-foot track. Here's a breakdown.10.27 ft — 73.89 mphThe motor screams at its 8300 rpm redline, and the tires buckle under the load of getting the 2300-pound dragster moving.51.94 ft — 113.82 mphTo reduce power and the acceleration of the driveshaft and tires, the ignition advance is retarded from 56 degrees to 27—a strategy to keep the tires gripping the track surface instead of spinning.

The ignition timing is advanced back to the maxi­mum value. The clutch's throw-out bearing has moved through three of its five stages, increasing the pressure on the discs.231.91 ft — 213.09 mphThe fuel flow ramps to 95 gallons per minute. Aerodynamics increase tire traction so the throw-out bearing tightens its grip. The engine slightly bogs to 7200 rpm.379.86 ft — 248.50 mphIn the time required to take a sip of coffee, Grubnic's car reaches 248 mph. Some of the clutch plates begin welding together, pulling the engine to its lowest rpm, 6500.566.16 ft — 271.62 mphThanks to 5000 pounds of aero downforce, the tires have incredible traction, but wind resistance slows acceleration from the maximum 5 g's to about 4.783.62 ft — 293.41 mphLate in the run, many spark plugs have burned away, so the engine is dieseling, and some cylinders simply don't fire. "This is the engine's toughest zone," Oberhofer says.1000 ft — 321.58 mphThe mechanical abuse finally ends as the dragster clears nearly 500 feet per second.