How do you all feel about Teslas or electric vehicles in general bracket racing. My opinion is they should be in their own class. There is a local guy that has rigged up a delay box now and wins more often than not. Talk about electronics! The whole thing is electronics...it's like a video game. The box people put their delay on kill and red light alot of the time trying to beat him.
If I have to be in a class by myself with no electronics I would most definitely say yes to its own class. I don't mind index racing without the electrical gadgets. A Tesla is an electrical Gadget all by itself
There is a $10K race today and he double entered and both are still in at 4th round. Another $10K race later today. And a $5K sunday Can watch on MotorMania TV.....
What do the sponsors think? If all their prize money is being won by someone who can’t use their products, they may quit being sponsors… Patrick
Watching someone run the numbers with all the electronics or watching a person run 4 passes from a 6.001to 6.080 (6.0 index) with no battery even onboard. I like oldschool myself.
I wondered how long this would take.. got nothing to do with the delay box, everything to do with what that car does not have.. namely a drive line.. or sensitivity to changing weather conditions. Two of the biggest factors in inconsistency in the car. I would imagine if it hooks, it runs the number every time. All he has to do is cut a decent light. As you said, guys will bulb next to him. Yes, they will need their own class, it will take a few guys cleaning up with them before this becomes apparent, this guy figured that out, and is going to make himself some money in the short term. I would bet that the big money events will start outlawing them this year, and by next year the sanctioning bodies will have guidance on running them only against other EV's. JW
That’s the kind of advantage that could agitate people, he better watch out and not be cocky. Hope someone puts him on the trailer. (I know he doesn’t have a trailer)
Why do ppl cry about boxes.......they still have to let go of the button at the right time.....ifvthey stage too deep or shallow it effects them the same way. Its all about perfecting your car. Now I do see it having an et advantage because weather and such doesn't effect it......but I bet battery % will. But I don't agree letting a fully computer controlled car with traction control race in a class where if I use my laptop to even download the data from my last run I'm considered cheating.
I've seen a lot of big money races. 1/8 mile. and the dragsters are unbelievable. The announcer doesn't give et,just says" dead with a 6 or dead with a 4",the races are decided by thousands each time. If the RT is in in the teens you're done. A double digit package usually loses. Running alcohol, not affected by weather much, delay box, and a grid system is almost just as automatic. Still takes a lot of seat time though.
Releasing a button on a microswitch with your finger with a transbrake isn't even close to letting go of brake and mashing throttle thru a torque converter. It's plain physics and human anatomy. Try to play the drums with your feet rather than hands. Relexes just not the same.
As long as the Tesla identifies as a gas powered vehicle they should be good to go. Maybe just some type of PA system that plays loud vroom vroom sounds as they launch.
I would be somewhat interested in watching an electric vehicle class, mostly to see how it develops. I remember as a kid waiting until midnight at the dragstrip to watch a "jet-car" race. Lots of noise, but slower than the top-fuel dragsters & funny cars. That's how I think of electric drag racing, kind of an oddity. One of the things I like about an older car is learning how engineering solved or simplified engine tuning. I still like to tinker though. Not sure how much satisfaction there is with a mostly digital 1/4-mile run. Traction and power-to-weight might take a few runs to solve. After that.....what do you do? How long before we have Top Ion or Top Electron classes at the track sponsored by companies that make electric wire or mine lithium for batteries?
Might as well do slot car drag racing..... Tracks will like electric car racing...no oil downs...less accidents
Your right there. However, there are many footbrake racers that have great reaction and are consistent. I've watched them at our home track and am amazed.
Well, I beat a Tesla today 2nd round....not the one with delay box. Lost 3rd round in the $5K race with a .002 red..... I know what I did...instead of bumping in real carefully and being shallow I went right in. You can see it in the 60ft 1.41 vs 1.39...didn't spin...would have been a .020 bulb. Oh well I tried to beat the box racers....with my foot. I love these new Hoosier DRAG bracket radials (28x10.5)
Nice couple lights in eliminations there Bruce.. but ya, that red eye does come when your down that tight, box or foot.. your window is just a big bigger.. I used to know plenty of guys who could not cut that consistent a light, with a box. Lots of red lights. Good job, keep it up, your wins will come. JW
It is just a matter of time before drag racing has to begin addressing electric cars, just as the SCCA has done. After winning the SCCA B Street championship in 2019 the Tesla Model 3 was reclassified to Super Street for the 2020 season so that they compete against cars such as the Acura NSX, Porsche GT3 and Corvette Z06, etc. instead of Mustangs or Camaros. https://www.thewattcar.com/home/scc...A discovered just how,Camaro SS 1LE, and more. "The SCCA discovered just how unique EVs are when a Tesla Model 3 Performance won an SCCA National Championship title in the B Street class in 2019, besting a Mustang GT350, Lotus Evora, Ford Focus RS, BMW M2, Chevrolet Camaro SS 1LE, and more. Not too much earlier, Tesla had pushed an over-the-air performance update – something that simply doesn’t happen with ICE vehicles. This confluence of events resulted in the SEB moving all EVs into Super Street for 2020, coincidentally just in time for Tesla’s second Track Mode OTA update." Then in 2021 the SCCA formed a committee to address electric cars. https://www.scca.com/articles/2014954-announcing-new-electrified-vehicle-advisory-committee and it looks like they will be putting the EVs into their own class very soon: file:///C:/Users/u33gws/Downloads/2021%20SCCA%20Solo%20Electric%20Vehicle%20Class%20Rules.pdf Speaking of Teslas at the drag strip, I have been impressed by the cars I've seen recently: A co-worker took his Model 3 (Dual Motor, Performance) to our local 1/8 mile track and it was deadly consistent running 7.33 @ 95 over and over. Weather conditions have very little impact on the performance, the battery life % is what the driver has to consider instead if they are bracket racing. Surprisingly the AWD Tesla was not ultra quick in the 60' (1.7569 seconds). Keep in mind this is just the Model 3 and the Model S and Model Y offer quicker performance well into the 10s. And we've all heard about the Plaid versions which run 9s as delivered from the factory. Yesterday 4/11/22 at Beech Bend someone was running a Tesla Model S Plaid and it ran 6.10 @ 120. It's strange to see something that quiet run so quick.