It will be my first time at the track and I've searched and it just said no results found so I don't know if I'm retarted or my computer is or what. I was wondering what octane I should run on my mostly stock SHO and if there is anything I can do to get a better time for instance; filling the tank halfway, powershifting, any additives to put into the tank like octane booster etc. Or if there is anything else I am missing... thanks for any advice!!
First time..... at the track.
- Thread starter Corby
- Start date
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SuperHO
Mental Patient
many people get by just fine running 87 octane. I won't run anything less than 92 octane in either of my SHOs. Octane Booster and all that won't make a damn bit of difference...at all....unless you dump about 2 gallons of the stuff in it. Don't even bother with a half tank...go less....1/4 should be more than plenty.
Powershift at your own risk...chances are, if you can even get it to powershift (mine never has), you'll shatter a motor mount, clutch, half shaft or diff pin.
Clean all the crap out of your car that you're not using (i.e. trash, loose change, the dead ****** in the trunk, spare tire and jack, sub enclosure if you have one). More'n likely, you're like me with about 30 extra pounds of trash floating around your car.
Don't worry about pulling the back seat...it weighs like 10lbs anyway...won't make a lick of difference. If you have a power passenger seat, on the other hand, that **** weighs about 65...go ahead and pull it.
Pull off your center caps and make sure your lug nuts are tight (can't run the track with center caps in place anyway). Make sure your battery is down good and snug, and make sure you got full oil (don't listen to the guys saying running a quart low helps...the crank doesn't touch the oil in the pan).
Drop your tire pressure to about 20psi in the front and as high as you dare in the rear (50-60psi) to reduce rolling resistance. DON'T DO A BURNOUT IF YOU'RE ON STREET TIRES!!!!! Avoid the water box altogether. Burnouts on street tires just tear up chunks of the track and ruin it for the guys who actually mean business sporting slicks. Roll around the water box and do a hard first gear acceleration to clean the tires off....street tires won't heat up enough to make destroying the track worthwhile.
Aside from that, it's trial and error to find launch points and shift points. Every car is different. Just don't get frustrated if you run mid 15s or worse....everyone's first time sucks with few exceptions.
Did I forget anything?
Powershift at your own risk...chances are, if you can even get it to powershift (mine never has), you'll shatter a motor mount, clutch, half shaft or diff pin.
Clean all the crap out of your car that you're not using (i.e. trash, loose change, the dead ****** in the trunk, spare tire and jack, sub enclosure if you have one). More'n likely, you're like me with about 30 extra pounds of trash floating around your car.
Don't worry about pulling the back seat...it weighs like 10lbs anyway...won't make a lick of difference. If you have a power passenger seat, on the other hand, that **** weighs about 65...go ahead and pull it.
Pull off your center caps and make sure your lug nuts are tight (can't run the track with center caps in place anyway). Make sure your battery is down good and snug, and make sure you got full oil (don't listen to the guys saying running a quart low helps...the crank doesn't touch the oil in the pan).
Drop your tire pressure to about 20psi in the front and as high as you dare in the rear (50-60psi) to reduce rolling resistance. DON'T DO A BURNOUT IF YOU'RE ON STREET TIRES!!!!! Avoid the water box altogether. Burnouts on street tires just tear up chunks of the track and ruin it for the guys who actually mean business sporting slicks. Roll around the water box and do a hard first gear acceleration to clean the tires off....street tires won't heat up enough to make destroying the track worthwhile.
Aside from that, it's trial and error to find launch points and shift points. Every car is different. Just don't get frustrated if you run mid 15s or worse....everyone's first time sucks with few exceptions.
Did I forget anything?
1993MTXSHO
Its a Taurus...
I think you've pretty much got it covered
syP
GTP>SHO>*.cars
Hey Corby...
SuperHO hit the nail on the head..
i wouldnt go with 60psi in the rears tho.. heheh.. im nervous about that.. id go 50psi max.. esp if you have older tires.
just dont bog the car down.
what i do is..
hold the RPMS at 2k... then i rev it up to 2500-3000 and slip the clutch QUICKLY... not drop.. as i floor it...
I have outlaunched the following with this..
GTP
SRT-4
Mustang GT.
good stuff
SuperHO hit the nail on the head..
i wouldnt go with 60psi in the rears tho.. heheh.. im nervous about that.. id go 50psi max.. esp if you have older tires.
just dont bog the car down.
what i do is..
hold the RPMS at 2k... then i rev it up to 2500-3000 and slip the clutch QUICKLY... not drop.. as i floor it...
I have outlaunched the following with this..
GTP
SRT-4
Mustang GT.
good stuff
Hey thanks for all of the help guys.... I would probably be the happiest person in the world if my car ran in the 14's but anything worse than a 15.4 and I might be a little bit upset, after it's all said and done I want to be in the 14's with my car.
SuperHO
Mental Patient
like I said, don't be heartbroken when you run slower than you want. My first time out, i think I ran consistant 16.0s-15.8s. I've been once since then, and ticked off a 15.49@[i]96[/i]mph....wheelspin was an issue that evening...
SuperHO
Mental Patient
your launch with either make or break your run. A crappy launch means (unless you're running F/I) a crappy run. it's hard to recover from a 2.7 60ft time.
