Acceleration!!

[mustangski]

Sorry if this is a repost, somebody showed this to me today and it was awesome!!!

First, some useful info:
* One NHRA Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower than all the cars in the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.

* Under full throttle, a Top Fuel dragster engine consumes 1½ gallons of nitro methane per second; a fullyloaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same rate with 25% less energy being produced.

* A stock Dodge 426 Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to 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.

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

* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed reading this sentence.
* 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, and for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per second. The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). The top speed record is 333.00 mph (533 km/h) as measured over the last
66' of the run (09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).

Putting all of this into perspective for you bikers: You are riding the average $250,000 Honda MotoGP bike. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have the advantage of a flying start. You run the RC211V hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an honest 200 mph (293 ft/sec). The 'tree'goes green for both of you at that moment. The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your wrist cranked hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3 seconds the dragster catches and 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 and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race course.

That, folks, is acceleration

[ronboskz650sr]

I always knew those things were dangerous!

[Gilfy650a]

FAST

[Mintbread]

Putting all of this into perspective for you bikers: You are riding the average $250,000 Honda MotoGP bike. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have the advantage of a flying start. You run the RC211V hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an honest 200 mph (293 ft/sec). The 'tree'goes green for both of you at that moment. The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your wrist cranked hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3 seconds the dragster catches and 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 and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race course.

Then you tip the bike into the corner at the end of the straight, still doing 150+ mph with a dirty great big smile on your face.
Keep your acceleration, I prefer corners.

[Psyco Diver 69]

Untill you have been to a top fuel race you have no clue at the raw power you feel through the ground and the air of one them going full throttle. You can feel it in your chest, its pretty weird and amazing.

[mustangski]

Then you tip the bike into the corner at the end of the straight, still doing 150+ mph with a dirty great big smile on your face.
Keep your acceleration, I prefer corners.

I enjoy hitting the twisties as much as the next guy, but doing anything at 150+ MPH sounds crazy to me.

[iwannadie]

ive been meaning to slow my supra down i might have to look into one of those drag race engines.... wait, no.

[mydlyfkryzis]

Sorry if this is a repost, somebody showed this to me today and it was awesome!!!

* Under full throttle, a Top Fuel dragster engine consumes 1½ gallons of nitro methane per second; a fullyloaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same rate with 25% less energy being produced.

Maybe, But a 747 produces that power for hours, not seconds.

Same with the Nascar cars. They can go 500 miles, (or about 2000 times further than the top fuel dragster.

If fact, a 50cc moped can go 10 miles (in one continous trip) faster then the top fuel dragster can(under it's own power).

While the power is impressive, the longevity is not. The engine's essentially self destruct on each run. The engine life is measured in seconds.

[mustangski]

If fact, a 50cc moped can go 10 miles (in one continous trip) faster then the top fuel dragster can(under it's own power).

Although that might be true, you'll look a lot cooler and have a lot more fun in a dragster.

While the power is impressive, the longevity is not. The engine's essentially self destruct on each run. The engine life is measured in seconds.

I don't know why but for some reason a motor that runs so hard it destroys itself motivates me.

[scan]

* 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.


That one gets me. Thinking of jamming such a charge into the engine and it ignites - amazing. Nearly a solid.