Add a lower or wait for more traction?

[MustangThief]

This is the dilemma i'm in now... After the blower port, traction became a little more of an issue. However, my nittos when the port was done were about 25% life. Now that they are bald, the car is sitting. While I sit here waiting on tires, I'm considering just pulling the trigger and ordering a lower.

Now, if I order a lower, I know lowers are high in the tq department, and I'm already at the traction threshold.

Should I wait on going with a lower until I get some subframes? I'm hoping some of my traction issue was due to the low tread on my DR's and the fresh tires will help remedy the problem.

Also, how much more strain would a lower be ? I know the Terminator blocks hold a lot of HP, i just don't want to decline my reliability for a lower...

And I still haven't decided on a 2# or 4# lower

Thoughts?

 

[LuDamiKE81]

2# and some new dr's. Nittos suck even more when there worn out. I almost lost to an evo thanks to my almost bald 275's. Now i have a new set of 315's and i love them, but at your power level plus a lower you might want a set of mt's.

 

[racerage7]

I put a 6lb lower on with stock upper.Have 305x35x18 nitto DR and the car went from 12.08 @ 116mph to 11.31 with a 1.62 60FT @121mph. Man what a difference. Love to drive this thing on the street. Now before all of you start throwing the red flag at me this was in super cold weather and the corrected sea level was around 700 below. I race at Houston Raceway Park and non corrected sea level is around 20. The car made 487hp and 503flbs at PSI Performance. In the heat at Pinks last year it ran a best of 11.74 in the heat at 118mph.

I dont have any subframes yet but was wanting to put some on there.Mainly just in case if I ever had a wreck it would maybe keep from twisting the frame so it wouldnt total. I have sub frames on four off my other cars and it does make for a differnt feel and gets rid of some of the creaks and rattles.

Do the lower man!! you will love it. Whole new car after that!!

 

[geeteego]

Traction first. There is no use having tons of power if you can't get it to the ground.

There's nothing more embarrassing than a 134mph trap attached to a 13-second timeslip.

 

[CobraRyan]

If you like going to the track then keep your setup the same. 500/500 will get you out of the hole very quick even with nittos. All that a lower is going to do is make it harder. The only lower that might help your trap speed is a 2# but imo its not worth taking all that support away from the crank for a 2#. You should spray it, you will get all the torque you want there, and it will help your traps...

 

[racerage7]

Well traction is always an issue even from day one on a stock Cobra. You just have to learn how to drive the car. No matter if you have 300hp or 1000hp you still can learn to drive it without spinning off the line. It just takes practice. I leave at 5500rpm and slip the clutch out.

I know this is hard on the clutch and yes after over 200 passes down the track the stock clutch finally gave up. But thats just part of the game.

But yeah dont waste your time doing a 2lb and do the lower so you dont loose belt rap on the upper. If you do the upper you will just be spending more money buying a extra pulley up top to help get back the belt rap.

 

[01SN8K]

[/QUOTE]But yeah dont waste your time doing a 2lb and do the lower so you dont loose belt rap on the upper. If you do the upper you will just be spending more money buying a extra pulley up top to help get back the belt rap.[/QUOTE]

What!!!??? I dont understand this statement.

To the O.P. Adding a lower will not help traction. it will make it worse. a lower helps add torque and torque means more tire spin. you mentioned that and i would hold off on the lower until you get the new radials on. if you are happy and the car hooks save the money and just do the subframes. if you feel you need more, then i would vote for the 4# lower. i run a 2.93/4# combo and love it. as far as horsepower goes, you are still safe. the twin screw and turbo guys are 100+rwhp over your car, and doing so reliably.

 

[xenodragon]

But yeah dont waste your time doing a 2lb and do the lower so you dont loose belt rap on the upper. If you do the upper you will just be spending more money buying a extra pulley up top to help get back the belt rap.

What!!!??? I dont understand this statement.

To the O.P. Adding a lower will not help traction. it will make it worse. a lower helps add torque and torque means more tire spin. you mentioned that and i would hold off on the lower until you get the new radials on. if you are happy and the car hooks save the money and just do the subframes. if you feel you need more, then i would vote for the 4# lower. i run a 2.93/4# combo and love it. as far as horsepower goes, you are still safe. the twin screw and turbo guys are 100+rwhp over your car, and doing so reliably.

He didnt ask if adding a lower will help traction......

 

[Evan5469]

I'd say wait til you get your new Nitto's on to see how much better your traction is with them.

Next thing I'd do is get subframes welded in because no matter if you're stock or highly modded they're a great mod to have.

After that I'd decide on getting a lower. And also, there is a 3# lower kit out there if you can't decide between the 2 and the 4 kits.

 

[MustangThief]

Thanks for the comments.

Yeah thanks for pointing that out Xeno on that guy, I know the lower is going to hurt traction. :beer:

I actually did get decent traction if the nittos were warmed up and it was actually warm outside, and if I played 1st gear right, could WOT around 4k without breaking loose.

But anyway, one of the main reasons I wanted to do the lower was because I generally bog at the track, I tend to try to be off the clutch soon and use tq to pull through where i would have rode out the clutch till the 60' and not bogged. Albeit I haven't ran since the port at the track, and waiting on tires now. But i don't like riding the clutch out since it's stock and i'd like it to last through the year, and currently i think it will, as it's as strong as stock at 10k on the clock.

However, I think i'm leaning towards the subframes since a lower requires another retune, and she's running really good as is. Maybe i'll see how things go after subframes and the new tires, and some runs in at the 1/4, since i haven't ran it down yet with the port.

 

[MustangThief]

I'd say wait til you get your new Nitto's on to see how much better your traction is with them.

Next thing I'd do is get subframes welded in because no matter if you're stock or highly modded they're a great mod to have.

After that I'd decide on getting a lower. And also, there is a 3# lower kit out there if you can't decide between the 2 and the 4 kits.

:beer:

Yeah I remember the 3# kit a long time ago was pretty popular then they seemed to fall out of production and recently been popping up again.

It seems like a 3# might be a good idear too when i do a lower, since i will eventually do one regardless of now or later.

but then I think... well hell... it's the same price for a 4#... I'm ported... and it's just another #.... :bash: :rockon:

 

[MustangThief]

But yeah dont waste your time doing a 2lb and do the lower so you dont loose belt rap on the upper. If you do the upper you will just be spending more money buying a extra pulley up top to help get back the belt rap.

i don't think this would be a problem honestly... :??:

I haven't shown belt slip on the dyno yet, running a 90mm UPR idler and a 2.8 upper. and plenty of guys run a 2.93 upper witha 4# and a idler and run fine that i've heard.. so 2.93 to 2.8 isn't really a huge gap

 

[96stanggt]

But yeah dont waste your time doing a 2lb and do the lower so you dont loose belt rap on the upper. If you do the upper you will just be spending more money buying a extra pulley up top to help get back the belt rap.

I'm not understanding what you're trying to say here? Maybe we don't speak the same dialect of english? :shrug:

I actually did get decent traction if the nittos were warmed up and it was actually warm outside, and if I played 1st gear right, could WOT around 4k without breaking loose.


However, I think i'm leaning towards the subframes since a lower requires another retune, and she's running really good as is. Maybe i'll see how things go after subframes and the new tires, and some runs in at the 1/4, since i haven't ran it down yet with the port.

If you have a good tune on the car now and are generally happy with the power it puts out then keep it as is and work on the suspension/traction. With basically your same mods (ported blower, 2.75 pulley, bolt-ons) and some ET Streets I went 11.14 @ 127. I had that combo for well over a year and loved it, eventually I got greedy and went with a lower. If you're going to go through the PIA of installing a lower and paying for a retune don't bother with a 2lb, go ahead and get the 4lb.

 

[dredg9]

i have a brand new in box lower pulley setup im not going to use and looking to sell if your interested. 4# lower and 3.2 alt pulley. 350

 

[Posi]

I stopped reading when you asked about subframes.


Do subframes now!

 

[04MystiCobra]

Go w/ the 4#. Has allot of tq. You will benefit from the extra tq no matter how you drive it. You dont need subframes for the added power.