Below is a cool onboard video of a top fuel dragster through Start-up, burnout, and a run. The car starts on gasoline, squirted in by the pit crew, then switches over to nitromethane - the exhaust gets cloudy at that point.
A few statistics about Top Fuel drag race cars:
- The fuel burn during the run alone is about 14 gallons (53 liters).
- 100 mph (161 kph) is reached in 0.8 seconds
- 300 mph (483 kph) is reached in just over 3 seconds - making these the fastest straight-line accelerating vehicles in existence. Faster than rockets, faster than aircraft carrier catapults, and faster than jets on full afterburner.
- The pushrod hemi engine is limited to 500 cubic inches (8.2 liters), and produces about 11,000 horsepower (8090 kw) This value can only be calculated by the acceleration that the engine applies to the vehicle. There is no engine dynamometer capable of measuring the engine's output.
- Boost is by roots supercharger at 60 psig (4.1 bar)
- At launch the driver experiences 4.5 g, which increases to 6 g mid-track as the clutch fully engages. Fighter jets must maneuver in order for pilots to experience this level of g force - they cannot achieve it on engine acceleration.
Below: A reaction video. Supercharged nitro engine noise is pretty intense. Every fiber of your body vibrates.
2 comments:
Best i have experienced is 0-60mph in 2.8 seconds. That that was fast but wow!
The Honda motorbike does 0-60 in about 2.5 seconds, and 0-100 in 4.5 seconds. You have to short-shift in first gear - as it really begins pulling hard - so that it doesn't wheelie over backwards. It's an old-school bike without wheelie control, so you are on your own for safety.
It really makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Can't imagine what it's like to launch a professional race car on slicks.
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