No2 ?

[Madmiles442]

Well, had my 392 crate for almost a year and am thinking I need more power. Rob dynoed it at KCM in Plano at 359 rwhp. It ran 12.43 at 118 mph in the 1/4.
The cheapest way to add substantial power would be via nitrous. The motor only has 7300 miles on it at 9.5:1, so I think it should handle it okay.
I've heard you hit the nitrous when coming out of the hole but not so much on the 3rd or 4th gears. If that's the case, it wouldn't do me much good because with my 3.73 rear end, 1st and 2nd gears don't last long.
Has anyone put their Cobra on the bottle? It would have obvious drag benefits but is there any road racing benefits? Straightaways?
I haven't road raced it yet, but plan to take a course in Feb. Only been to the drags once. (and that might be all) I do mostly redlight to redlight driving.
Any help yall could offer would be...well.....helpful.

[blykins]

I wouldn't hit it out of the hole....I'd hit it after you're straight and moving....maybe 3rd gear....

What's the bottom end like? Forged pistons?

[Burgs]

I agree with Bly,... 3rd gear, once your straight, and torque starts down a bit.

I'm not sure how practical it would be on a road course. You may empty your bottle before you make it around the track. Forced induction may be a better choice for the road and track.

[wtm442]

Stop-light racing is severely limited by traction in a Cobra. Therefore, to improve your "time to XX (fill in your number) MPH from a stop", you can do a few things ...
1) Practice ... what RPM to come out of the hole. I've seen stock VW's beat muscle cars for the first 30 feet
2) Play with rear tire pressure
3) Get rid off your tires and add a set of sticky tires
4) Change rear gear ratio to higher number
5) New mufflers - OEM's are really restrictive

As far as the nitrous is concerned, it should be activated as soon as the tires stop spinning ... without spinning the tire more ...

When yer layin rubber, HP is irrelevant. Put a blower fed by dual turbos ... so what ... ya ain't going to go any faster til the tires stop spinning.

[wtm442]

Of course, you could always push the Cobra with your 442 .....

[Madmiles442]

I definitely need more practice. I've seen videos where guys launch their Cobras from idle and seems to work better. I'd try that but she's up on stands for winter projects. My reaction time sucks too.
I've adjusted the tire pressure from 22 to 18 to 13. Made slight improvements.
My 17x335 Michelin Pilot Sports don't spin. They hop. Hop 1st gear, hop 2nd gear. The Easter Bunny's got nothin on me.
I don't think I'd go to a higher gear. My Chevelle had a 4.56 and although it ran mid 11's through mufflers, it wasn't very streetable. I might go lower to maybe a 3.50, but that's not going to help me redlight to redlight.
I'd love the exhaust upgrade but that $1100 isn't laying around after my wife's Christmas....

[CHRIS DAMSCH]

Keep practicing, You'll get it. My old motor (396w) went 11.7 @ 115 similar rwhp to yours. You should be able to muster 1.5-1.6 60' times with drag radials. 1.7-1.8's on street tires.

[wtm442]

I've adjusted the tire pressure from 22 to 18 to 13.

Have you tried going higher? You are probably under inflated. Lay down a patch of rubber and inspect. Keep increasing pressure until the center of the patch is darker than the outsides. Many/most street tires have best traction at 30 psi or higher!

[Burgs]

Originally Posted by Madmiles442

My 17x335 Michelin Pilot Sports don't spin. They hop. Hop 1st gear, hop 2nd gear. The Easter Bunny's got nothin on me.

Wheel hop is not a tire issue, it's the suspension set-up, and I would suggest you get that fixed first, and foremost!!!

[ItBites]

Wheel hop is prevalent in SPFs. Do a search. I saw one run 10s a few weeks ago and it was violent... Something in the rear suspension is not adjusted or designed right to produce the type of wheel hop I saw. If your getting wheel hop at 12s there is something really wrong with your setup.

[Madmiles442]

Prevalent in SPF's but not other Cobra's? Wierd. Come to think of it, I've never seen others hop, they gently kinda slip and slide around as the whiffs of smoke sneak out and a faint squeal fills the air.
It's a totally stock SPF setup. I do have the old AVO shocks, not the Bilstein's, had them adjusted full + on the rear and full - on the front. Figured it would help the car squat and put weight on the rear.
I haven't played with making the rear full -
Thanks for the info.
Know anyone who might be able to Internet-diagnose the suspension?

[ItBites]

You might check with Greg Schroeder.

[RedBarchetta]

I switched from the AVOs to Bilsteins (off of a newer 2xxx car) and noticed a big improvement in general drivability and reduced wheel hop under hard acceleration.

Greg S. did A LOT of stuff to his car to run a high 10. Hardened axles, after market third member, vastly improved headers and sidepipes (the latter which I've done...would love to do the better headers someday). Also MT 325/50-15 DRs. Impressive, but he had to open his wallet (which doesn't surprise me when you're hell bent on turning a 10). I think a high 10 is totally possible with just some squeeze in the 3-4 gear range, but getting out of the hole without serious slip or wheel hop is the challenge (and takes practice).

-Dean #747