At what ET level does a car become solely a drag car?

[cobra gt 07]

Anyone have an opinion at what 1/4 mile ET level a person can expect a GT500 to no longer be street-able?

To put it another way, what is the fastest (in terms of ET) you think a supercharged GT500 can go at the track, that is also driven on the street?

I realize that this is a pretty general question, so to put it in some context, I am trying my best to balance the ability to drive my car on the street, at the same time going as fast as possible at the track. There is always something in the car that will create a limitation.

Right now, Instead of pushing my engine over the limit, I would like to consider building an engine with an aluminum block, but then my fuel system becomes a limitation. According to Kenne Bell's website, the competition 20V Dual BAP is good only to 1000 HP An upgraded fuel system then gets limited by the HP level of my built auto transmission, and so forth...

The crux of my dilemna is if you are going to spend big $ on a built engine, then it would be nice to be able to utilize that engine to as close to its full potential as possible. In my mind, this would mean a TH400 transmission instead of a AOD 4R70W, which takes the car that much more away from street-ability.

Any thoughts from members on this would be appreciated

 

[Ratchet27]

I think you reach that point when the car is no longer comfortable to drive. When you say in your head "taking it out and driving it is just no worth the hassle". Thats how I feel atleast. I dont think there is a certain et or mph.

 

[stkjock]

Once you get in the 9s or above 135 trap speeds and require a 8 point cage I think the car becomes much less street friendly.

It will really depend on the driver's comfort levels. The local Sunday Cruise spot see's fully tubbed and caged cars at it, however, I'd bet they only take them out to race or to this Sunday gathering. For me I can still take my Shelby (and I do) to Little League practice or the wholesale club.

 

[CPRsm]

I like both those answers. I'd usually say when the jungle gym goes in. That's too much bullshit. Even though I don't mind a well installed 10 point. That kind of cage just makes it really hard to call it a real street car regardless of how street oriented the drive train may be.

 

[Proto]

Not so much on ET. Really depends on drivability.

 

[cobra gt 07]

Thanks for the responses

Thanks for the responses everyone! I think you all have made good points/observations. I agree with everyone on their points on the cage.

Right now, my car is still "relatively" comfortable to drive. I say this because the full Bassani exhaust system is a bit on the loud side, but this has been in my car for quite some time. Because I run race gas at the drag strip, however, I find myself basing how I drive the car on the street on how my gas level will be when I want to race. I want the pump gas to be as close to be as close to E as possible when I pour in the race gas. That has modified how I approach driving the car on non-race days.

It seems like the two main focuses are on the cage and drive-ability. With the overdrive function on my FB trans, the drive-ability is still there. I think if I want to raise boost to a certain level, however, then a different (higher rated) transmission would compromise that to a certain extent, even with a $2,500 Gear Vendors. Then, the roll cage has to go in for sure, and then it is street car no more.

 

[CPRsm]

Eh, I see no problem with a full 10 pnt cage. Keep it nice and tight to the car, and it will drive better than ever from the extra rigidity And even have a place to rest your elbow while driving lol.

 

[stkjock]

Eh, I see no problem with a full 10 pnt cage. Keep it nice and tight to the car, and it will drive better than ever from the extra rigidity And even have a place to rest your elbow while driving lol.

unless one needs/wants to use the back seats........ some of us have families.

 

[rdsnk46]

In S. Fl., our local crew drives 7 sec. cars to regular cruise in's. Street car/Race car.........Strace car all is subject to personal opinion.

 

[bumplime]

Well if a cage makes it unstreetable I'm screwed. My local track requires a cage at 11.49. Thankfully RPMs cage doesn't interfere with use of the back seat. To me unstreetable has nothing to do with et, but with the car itself.

 

[CPRsm]

unless one needs/wants to use the back seats........ some of us have families.

Buy an SUV lol.
Never been one to want to carry a bunch of people in my hot rod. We used to lower the cars so much just so we could tell people they couldn't sit in the back because the tires would rub hahahaha.
IDK, I'm not going to ruin a car with it's own power just so I can call it more of a street car. These cars are pretty sturdy. But most cars you can ruin in short order without stiffening.

 

[stkjock]

Well if a cage makes it unstreetable I'm screwed. My local track requires a cage at 11.49. Thankfully RPMs cage doesn't interfere with use of the back seat. To me unstreetable has nothing to do with et, but with the car itself.

a cage in and of itself doesn't make it unstreetable, particularly if you have removable door bars it makes it easy for driver and a single passenger. The question was a "street car" not a streetable car. The 11.49 is a NHRA regulation.

Buy an SUV lol.
Never been one to want to carry a bunch of people in my hot rod.

I have an SUV and a second sedan, however my kids like to ride in the Shelby and sometimes we will take it somewhere on weekends if it's nice out. If I had a full cage in the car I would likely not be taking it those times. So for me I would loose some opportunities to drive the car, this is also one of the reasons I got the Shelby and not a Z06/ZR1 (which I did consider) so that I could take the family. This is what works for me.


Andy - while those 7 second cars go to the races and cruises, how many of them do you see at the local Publix?

 

[CPRsm]

Yeah, I won't be able to bring both of them because of the cage in the back. One in the front with the door bar pulled out.

 

[IronTerp]

Well, being an old head, I've got some different experiences here. Have always know a good number of folks that love to drive radical 1/4 mile cars on the street. Cages, straight through mufflers, cheater slicks, spools, etc. And obviously, in the last 9 years the Terminator/Shelby group has produced a slew of 9 second cars that are true street cars, with several that have even driven to the track, run their 9, and driven home. An awesome feat IMO.

What makes a car a drag car is open headers, full slicks, full time skinnies, etc, etc, but mostly just having an owner that keeps the car in the garage or on the trailer, that may be willing to keep his tags current, but is no longer willing to go to the trouble to return the car to street duty after a track visit. You put it back in street trim and drive it??? It's a street car!

 

[Spawn]

In S. Fl., our local crew drives 7 sec. cars to regular cruise in's. Street car/Race car.........Strace car all is subject to personal opinion.

Ditto above just look at the cars that run true street. They cruise 20 miles then go pull back to back runs in the 8's and 9's all year long.
Granted most are fox bodies but look at NMCA and there is a little of everything.
It all comes down to what you use the car for. If its all you have to drive then its crazy to think you are gonna make a 9 second car to drive to work and the shopping center, let alone put the dog in and take him to the vet!

What back seat? Its useless in these cars anyways unless your talking about a baby seat.

At 11.5 your supposed to have a cage anyways so that's why I run 11.600 and am happy with that.
Who wants a one purpose car anyways at any given moment I can do what I want on any track.

 

[GTOGreg]

Is this a rhetorical question? Is this my conscience speaking? :lol1:

 

[rodfarva]

There are several factors that can determine whether or not a car is streetable.

For instance:

Lack of radio and AC...tolerable

I'm no longer running an alternator on my car since I switched over to a dual 16 volt battery setup...not conducive to street driving

Trunk mounted ice tank without front mounted air to water heat exchanger...driveable on street, but prone to extreme heat soak

Front and rear crash beams removed and door crash braces removed...yeah, I could drive it on the street like this, but not really safe if involved in an accident

Unpadded bars on 10 point cage...I'd hate to hit my unhelmeted head on one of these

Open headers (yes, I could easily add mufflers, but it adds weight)...come and get me officer

Non-overdrive transmission...driving around town at 30-40 mph, would be ok, but that's a lot of rpm on the highway

Manual steering...not at all a problem--still very streetable

Manual brakes...a little tricky and definitely alter judgment of stopping distances

Lighweight drag brakes...prone to warping from stop and go driving

I'm preparing to install a 25.3 cage in my car. This will add a ton of bars and make it much more difficult to get in and out of. Plus, my unhelmeted head would be surrounded by the funny car style cage. No thanks.

To offset some of the added weight of the 25.3 cage, I'm installing Lexan windows. These are not DOT approved.

I'm also switching to alcohol for fuel (straight methanol). This uses twice as much fuel. I'd have to have a very large fuel cell to go any distance

The water jackets of my block will be epoxy filled and with a dry deck setup. This definitely would be prone to overheating if the car were street driven.


While the aluminum rod technology has improved drastically, I still wouldn't want to drive the car on the street with them due to the heat cycling characteristics of aluminum.

Yes, my car is an extreme example, but you get the idea.

 

[raycutchins]

Anyone have an opinion at what 1/4 mile ET level a person can expect a GT500 to no longer be street-able?

To put it another way, what is the fastest (in terms of ET) you think a supercharged GT500 can go at the track, that is also driven on the street?

I realize that this is a pretty general question, so to put it in some context, I am trying my best to balance the ability to drive my car on the street, at the same time going as fast as possible at the track. There is always something in the car that will create a limitation.

Right now, Instead of pushing my engine over the limit, I would like to consider building an engine with an aluminum block, but then my fuel system becomes a limitation. According to Kenne Bell's website, the competition 20V Dual BAP is good only to 1000 HP An upgraded fuel system then gets limited by the HP level of my built auto transmission, and so forth...

The crux of my dilemna is if you are going to spend big $ on a built engine, then it would be nice to be able to utilize that engine to as close to its full potential as possible. In my mind, this would mean a TH400 transmission instead of a AOD 4R70W, which takes the car that much more away from street-ability.

Any thoughts from members on this would be appreciated

The answer is very simple: When you don't enjoy just going for a casual drive anymore.

 

[stkjock]

/\ yea Matt, after the build, that will be far from a street car

 

[cobra gt 07]

I am a person who likes to set goals for myself, and I can envision my next goal as wanting to get into the 8's. Matt's car is a good example of the extent that must be done to get your car light enough to get down that track. My vision for my car is an aluminum block, perhaps with Darton sleeves (making the 5.4 into a 5.8), but then I will be forced to upgrade my fuel system. After that, I will have to consider a TH400 or a Powergluide, with a Gear Vendors to allow street driving. I really like my FB Trans, so I am debating whether a low 9 second car/high 8 second car is viable.