I decided to test the Viper at a private track rental today. It has never been on a drag strip. Weather: Humidity greater than 60%. Temperature 80 but felt hotter. The track is about 110 miles from my house. I drove there. I did not let the car cool down. I hot lapped it. I failed to reduce the pressure in my rear tires. When I left the house they were at 32. ( I was running new Nitto drag radials). I know - ignorant of me. But even more absurd was leaving my suspension settings on road course so that the suspension was as stiff as a board.
So, having never used the car for drag racing, with heat soak ,and some traction issues, here is what happened:
9:38 AM - 11.974/121.78
9:42 AM - 11.656/123.76
9:47 AM - 11.653/124.79
9:51 AM - 11.582/121.33
10:02 AM - 11.427/124.55
10.08 AM - 11.688/122.3
Then I let it cool a bit and ran it at 10:52 AM - 11.415/122.99 with a 7.46 1/8th at 97.87.
My two best 60 foot times were 1.73 for the 11.427 run and 1.798 for the 11.582 run. The 60 for the 11.415 run was 1.849.
The main traction issue was not at launch. It was in the shift from second to third and the shift from third to fourth. I think that because of the high air pressure in my rear tires and the road course suspension settings I was not getting proper weight transfer. I had to make some subtle corrections to keep my rear in line. On each run it was slipping around a little bit on these two shifts.
With better weather, no heat soak, proper tire pressure and proper suspension settings, I think the car easily has a sub 11 second run in it. At least I learned a bit about how to launch it properly - not an easy task. The BOG is like a curse. I found that leaving at about 1750 RPM produced the best result. I did experience some wheel hop on a number of runs. I think that too may have been, in part from the high tire pressure.
It was a worthwhile learning experience but the bottom line is that my car is really a road racer and standing mile racer which is also used for cruising. It is not a drag racer. But, with that said, if I wanted to convert it, after today, I know what I would have to do. LOL.
So, having never used the car for drag racing, with heat soak ,and some traction issues, here is what happened:
9:38 AM - 11.974/121.78
9:42 AM - 11.656/123.76
9:47 AM - 11.653/124.79
9:51 AM - 11.582/121.33
10:02 AM - 11.427/124.55
10.08 AM - 11.688/122.3
Then I let it cool a bit and ran it at 10:52 AM - 11.415/122.99 with a 7.46 1/8th at 97.87.
My two best 60 foot times were 1.73 for the 11.427 run and 1.798 for the 11.582 run. The 60 for the 11.415 run was 1.849.
The main traction issue was not at launch. It was in the shift from second to third and the shift from third to fourth. I think that because of the high air pressure in my rear tires and the road course suspension settings I was not getting proper weight transfer. I had to make some subtle corrections to keep my rear in line. On each run it was slipping around a little bit on these two shifts.
With better weather, no heat soak, proper tire pressure and proper suspension settings, I think the car easily has a sub 11 second run in it. At least I learned a bit about how to launch it properly - not an easy task. The BOG is like a curse. I found that leaving at about 1750 RPM produced the best result. I did experience some wheel hop on a number of runs. I think that too may have been, in part from the high tire pressure.
It was a worthwhile learning experience but the bottom line is that my car is really a road racer and standing mile racer which is also used for cruising. It is not a drag racer. But, with that said, if I wanted to convert it, after today, I know what I would have to do. LOL.