FAQ Regarding Cobra Drivetrain Setups

[scottj]

Originally Posted by Mac VABCH

Brent,

What are your thoughts on dog ring verses synchronized? Helical or straight cut gears? My car is road course only track car so the noise of straight cut isn't an issue for me. With cost being the same aren't straight cut gears stronger? The motor is making 500 rwhp, I have been lucky not to break the stock t-5 behind it now but I don't do launches or power shifts... Great thread though, lots of info.... Mac

If you are placing a high importance on lap times (competition) I would run a dog ring box. Matched with a low MOI button clutch it's about as good as it gets, short of a sequential box. With a standard weight clutch and an aluminum flywheel, downshifting is done with consecutive movements, i.e., blip the throttle, wait for the revs to come up, downshift. With the button clutch downshifting is done with simultaneous movements, i.e., blip the throttle and downshift at the same time. For a hamfist like myself, I found the latter much easier to accomplish and not snatch the tires loose under threshold braking. That allowed me to focus more on going fast and staying on the track. The combined benefit was about a 3 second reduction in lap time.