Rear Tire Traction

[jrussell]

Roy,
I have a 460 at around 540 hp +/- at the flywheel, approx. 430 at the ground, and I have a 8.8 rear end with 3.73 gears and a Tremec TKO 5 speed. I also am running 17" wheels, with 335/37/17" Michelin Pilot sports, which gives me 13" tread width on the ground. In 2002 at the Shelby Mid- America in Tulsa in June I made 2 passes at the Drag strip, with outside temp at 97 and the track at about 135! The track was "greasy" for about 100 feet or so and traction was terrible on street tires. I pulled the rpm's up to just a bit over 1000 at launch and just rolled into the gas and shifted into second as quickly as I could. I could feel the car really start to hook up at about 4500 in second and it just lept forward. I only got in two runs, with a best of 12.31 at 117.8 mph. I raced all day before at Hallet on that reack, and the only changes I made from road racing trim were to lower the rear tire pressure to about 16# and increase the fronts to 40#. I do not trailer, but drove the car to/from Hallet and to/from the Drag strip.
I think a launch in 2nd. gear will be what I do the next time I get to a Drag strip if I have the 17's on, OR put my 15's back on as I have bought a set of Drag radials that should help get the car get off the line and should get it into the high 11's.. which will be good enough for me.
I hope this information will help you a bit, and since I just replaced the 335/35/17 Michelin Pilots yesterday ($766) I think I will save those for daily driving and track use, and use the purpose built BFG Drag radials on the Drag strip( I have the 295/60/15's- and if the larger 325/50/15 has been available then I would have bought them).
John Russell