Drag race - Kirkham 65 side-oiler vs Ferrari 458 italia

[Dwight]

Mdman352 Question for the masses

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What gets you to the finish line first??? Torque or horsepower???
Does it matter if a motor makes 600 horsepower at 5800 rpm or 7200 rpm???

this is a comment that I hope bring a lot of response.

I have read that it takes torque to move the weight of the car and rpms to move it at speed. The way I understand it, a car with 600 foot lbs of torque and 500 hp would be slower than a 600 tq with 800 hp.

What do the experts have to say about this?

Dwight

[Dominik]

500 rwhp and 450lbft in the Cobra is enough to win.
Just get it on the ground. Which reminds me: How are the practice runs coming along??

[Don]

Yes, Las Vegas does have Umbrella Girls for automotive events:

http://www.emmegirls.com/Umbrella_Girls.html

Kirkham Motorsports might be introducing a new umbrella, made of polished aluminum with the KMU logo, the frame work and handle machined from aluminum billets.

Maybe Buzz can enhance the cartoon.......

[DanEC]

Originally Posted by Dwight

this is a comment that I hope bring a lot of response.

I have read that it takes torque to move the weight of the car and rpms to move it at speed. The way I understand it, a car with 600 foot lbs of torque and 500 hp would be slower than a 600 tq with 800 hp.

What do the experts have to say about this?

Dwight

Exellent question for discussion. Unfortunately, I think a 2200 lb, all-up Kirkham (minus driver) kind of puts a different twist on things. The tires and wieight transfer are probably the key to breaking the initial resting inertia - and after that there is a probably a surplus of torque to slingshot the thing along if the tires can continue to get bite and then HP to accelerate it through the traps. Torque and HP are so inter-related (basically components of the same formula - one used to calculate the other) that their influence on a quarter mile time are tough to completely separate. Vehicle dynamics, peak rpm range, gearing, etc will all influence it. Peak mph in the quarter are usually associated closest with HP. And torque with the launch and at least 60 ft. times if not first 1/8 mile time. But, it's logical that there is a huge area of shared influence over the course of the 1/4 mile.