Another "how fast should my car be" thread

[Turbo6Smackdown]

Ok, everyone gets one. Or, an "alibi fire" as we call it in the Army. I never had one yet (i don't think lol) so here goes.

Got the bucket running pretty good. She ran pretty consistent on both set-ups; with the gen 2 translator & stock maf and with the new basic translator w/ Z06 maf. With the gen 2 I was at around 103 octane with the boost at 21 or so with 22 psi in the Hoosiers. Second weekend was with the basic translator & ZO6 maf and 93 pump gas. It was a little cooler out so I got away with an even 20 psi with zero KR. Same psi on the Hoosiers.

Out racing on Saturday night on Woodward. (our local strip) Not a lot of traction, but even when I feathered it, I didn't win a lot of races. I beat a factory 2012 WRX (or sti. I couldnt make it out) and a slightly modded 2002 Camaro. That's about it.
Modded Mustang GT's, basic Corvettes and even an ultra modded 2nd gen Talon on E85 beat me.

Why I ask this silly and relative question is because I see SOO many people on here with the ubiquitous old school setups (stockers or TA49's w/ 42 pounders, restalled D5's, dutt necks, 9" K&N's stuck onto the ends of their stock mafs, power plates, afpr, down pipe, engine tie down strap and pass side air bag on 275 radial ta's buldging off of the little skinny 7" factory rims) telling stories of how they just destroyed ZO6s, Mitsu Evos, Mustang GT's, etc etc. and I have twice that and can't beat a Mustang GT.
There's a few things happening I think. All my data on my gauges is wrong (20 psi at high tens afr at wot) and my car's not actually running right, most kill stories on this board are lies, or you guys have some REALLY weak compeititon. I've done a fair bit of travelling in my time, and been to many small towns. When speaking with the local hot rodders I see a total different side of life. A much simpler side. I've seen the "fastest car in town" and it was an LS1 Camaro with intake and exhaust. I've seen small town kids mod up their ricers and say 200 hp is REALLY cookin'... Is that what you guys are racing? Or is it just the opposite? Am I coming up against the best of the best in the Motor City? I'm ok if I lose to a ZO6. That's a no brainer. The higher end Corvettes or GT500's are hard to beat no matter what you're in, but how are standard Mustangs beating me? If I had a boost leak, would my map still read the proper psi? Where should I be at 20 psi? I know it's not much, but it's no micro turbo either.
And I know my traction isn't the best, but hell, I shouldn't NEED 12x28" slicks to be beating these cars. THEY don't have the slicks, so why would I need them? How are they beating me on street tires?

 

[fast86gn]

So what were the ET's sixty ft's etc. A 2011+ 5.0 is a mid to high 12 sec stock at best on street tires. A freind of mine has one and runs 8.20 to 8.30's on DR's in the 1/8.

 

[trixdout]

If your signature is correct, you need to tune your car for alky and 93. Have you increased fueling in the chip and alky some and cranked up the boost? 20psi is nothing when going up against those cars. you need 23-24 psi to even contender. Just tossing in the chip and setting the boost til you get knock won't cut it. You have to go in the chip and tweak it some and crank up the boost.

This is not a carbed car where you put together parts and mash the pedal and it goes fast. You have to tune it.

I was in your same boat until I cranked up fueling in my brick and jumped 6 psi just by adding fuel.

 

[krom]

Stock heads, are springs new? What RPM through the traps? I would rather have a 3000-3200 stall, you should still be able to run fast enough to beat a stock 5.0. Never had a 61 turbo but I suspect the sweet spot may be a few lbs more than 20. Post your time slips so we can see what mph you are picking up at the top end.

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

I think Woodward is a street not a dragstrip. He's street racing.

You have the hardware to be competitive. More boost and some tuning are required. Maybe some different driving techniques might help. If you are street racing like I suspect then it's anyone's game. These newer cars have launch control etc which makes an average racer a good racer. Get the car tuned and get these guys to the track.

 

[Amelio]

From a quick glance of your sig you have a solid mid to low 11 sec car on 25psi.....the cars you mention should not be a problem at all with a good set of tires!

It sounds like you have a tuning issue as mentioned....you have an alky kit so use it......20 psi can be accomplished on straight 93 (for most cars) you need more boost! If you car is working right it should leave pretty hard and stay out front!

New 5.0's do run very good but I have not seen one click off mid 12's on street tires....in full street trim the best I have seen is low 13's.

if you don't have one....get a power logger....make some pulls through 3rd and post them up....there is a lot of really good tuners on this board that can pin point where you need to adjust.

I also run low boost on my car 17ish psi which the car will click off a mid 11 sec pass at that amount. There are some real good running cars in my area....I have some friends that have 500 plus hp super charged roush's and my brother has a very stout LS3 in a 2000 model TA.....none of them can hang with me from a dig they have bad traction issues. Also how are you launching........there is some technique for launching on an unprepared surface.

With that being said there are some very fast cars that I can not hang with unless I turn up the wick.....but I don't really care if I'm the fastest or not......there is always someone with more money than me who is blistering fast!

 

[vader87]

Have you done anything to the rear? You and I have have basically the same build and I have no big issue with traction. I have adjustable uppers, Metco lowers and air bags. I also run drag radials. Sure there is some tire spin but she hooks great on the street.

 

[Turbo6Smackdown]

Never taken her to the track. This is a street we all cruise on. At the time, there was no meth to be had. I just now got a five gallon bucket but now my tires are shot so I'm dead in the water but my main question is if 20 psi on my set up is nothing, then how is everyone else's TA49/TE44 car whoopin' everything alive on 20 psi then? I remember when (NOT long ago) when a 42pph injector/ta49/restalled D5 on 20 psi would beat MOST cars on the road. Why is my combo any different?
My tunes not bad, it's just my traction sucks and my boost is down low. Though I didn't think 20 psi was low lol. It's in my very inexperienced opinion that if you need 30 psi to beat an intake/exhaust mustang, your car's broken. Am I that far off? Are our cars that shitty? I need 30 psi to beat most cars?
I launch with zero psi/rpms and just mash it when the light turns green. When I start to get wheel spin I start rolling into it slower. But still gettin minor wheel spin. My heads are stock, but they were gone over by Lonnie Diers when he did my block. New springs. My stall is where it's at just because of my traction issues. If I went with a 3000-32oo rmp stall I'd NEVER, EVER get ANY traction then lol. I have a solid plan for improving traction, but didn't think I needed more than 20 psi to be competitive on the street. I remember doing CFM calculations (back when I was good at it lol) and I forget which psi, but there was a psi that with our stock turbos we were moving as much air as a 454.

What happened to the old crush the regulator with pliers, put slicks on, turn the boost all the way up, throw in 4 gallons of xylene, ditch the cat, put in one air bag and run 12.20's all day? And that was with the stock chip lol. If with the stock setup our cars have 12.20 power, how am I getting beat even with a soft launch?

 

[fast86gn]

My son's car pretty much has my old set up (my old parts lol) except for a better IC he has a front mount. TE54, MSD 50's, DW300 pump, TT93 chip, THDP, 3K stall at 20lbs of boost runs 12.0's-12.20's at 110 mph on slicks of course.

My son runs 7.70-7.80's @89-90 mph in the 1/8 and that will kill a new 5.0, now in the 1/4 I think the 5.0 will mph better but he has to catch you. So traction makes a big difference.

 

[TTA976]

Hello, get Razor's Alky Kit and raise the boost to 25/26 psi. 18/19* timing up top and a good amount of boost. 20psi is nothing. There is not a huge difference from 15psi to 20psi. Now, go from 20psi to 25/26psi and it's huge! Mines set at 26psi with 18.4*(verified) up top (3rd/4th) 93/alky.

Every car is different. 10:5 and even 10:8 is too rich for my car. Mine pulls cleaner and harder at 11:3 a/f seems to be the sweet spot. I am on top of my tune all the time. But every car is different concerning a/f but I wouldn't go any leaner than 11:3.

For the street, don't just mash it because you will spin. I'd footbrake just till the rpm climbs a little and gradually go WOT when the light turns green. Don't just mash it. Find the sweet spot your car likes without spinning.

Good luck,

Joe

 

[Turbo6Smackdown]

My son's car pretty much has my old set up (my old parts lol) except for a better IC he has a front mount. TE54, MSD 50's, DW300 pump, TT93 chip, THDP, 3K stall at 20lbs of boost runs 12.0's-12.20's at 110 mph on slicks of course.

My son runs 7.70-7.80's @89-90 mph in the 1/8 and that will kill a new 5.0, now in the 1/4 I think the 5.0 will mph better but he has to catch you. So traction makes a big difference.

On your son's car, what does he have for heads/cam? And that's about what I'm used to seeing around here. 20 psi and netting around 12.0's. That makes sense to me.

And TTA976, I do have Razor's kit. I just didn't have any meth all of last month. And I agree, I think there's a little more on the table for me as far as leanin' her out a little more. I was on my way to leaning her out more but my tires ran out lol. Though I think I'm close. I can feel it.

Anyone else? Tell me what times your mild builds are netting you. (and by mild I mean small to mid size turbos with SLIC's and 60lbs and under injectors)

 

[rmar]

Lean is mean...... But if you start squeezing it at 20 psi and no alky you are probably riding a line u may not want to ride.

 

[TTA976]

On your son's car, what does he have for heads/cam? And that's about what I'm used to seeing around here. 20 psi and netting around 12.0's. That makes sense to me.

And TTA976, I do have Razor's kit. I just didn't have any meth all of last month. And I agree, I think there's a little more on the table for me as far as leanin' her out a little more. I was on my way to leaning her out more but my tires ran out lol. Though I think I'm close. I can feel it.

Anyone else? Tell me what times your mild builds are netting you. (and by mild I mean small to mid size turbos with SLIC's and 60lbs and under injectors)

What is the alky gain on? At 20psi, the 6 will be too much.

Joe

 

[toomanymodz]

My old combo: stock unopened (short block) engine, heads got mild port and new springs but everything else was stock, original MAF, headers etc. Injectors were 42#, front mount IC, PTE52 turbo and 3200 stall. On pump gas at 20 psi, the car would run 12 teens at around 106 to 108 trap. Throw in some 110 octane, up the boost to 25, install a race chip (bumps timing up to around 24 degrees instead of 18) and the car would run 11.40's at around 118 trap. Suspension was stock except for upgraded rear brakes, air bags, 90/10 front shocks and front sway bar removed. 60 ft times were in the 1.6 range.

 

[fast86gn]

On your son's car, what does he have for heads/cam? And that's about what I'm used to seeing around here. 20 psi and netting around 12.0's. That makes sense to me.

Stock heads and cam.

 

[hensleyt]

Went 11.8 @ 25 boost 114
Went 12.3 @20 boost 112 with new setup
I don't street race but at the track if it's got mufflers I'm not afraied no one
I'll be turning up the boost soon Ricers are the only ones how will ling up with me lately
Traction on the street is to unforgiving

 

[hensleyt]

11.8 was with 206-210 cam stock long block heads and intake

 

[SCOOBY DOO]

Seat of the pants won't tell you anything. Get out to the track and 'dial' the tune in.

 

[3.8L V-8 eater]

Your combo sounds like it is a work in progress....You admit your traction sucks and boost is only at 20, so you need to work these issues out before beating yourself up over losing races....These cars now of days are no joke. Technology has come along ways with turbo charging v-8's, aftermarket tuning tools, tires, you name it!! You will not win a lot of races on 20lbs of boost and a traction problem....Now if you had a stage 2 or stroker 109 with good heads and traction than 20lbs is a different ball game...Turn up the boost and watch the tune. Your damn near wasting that meth trying to suppress knock at 20lbs...Good luck and keep at it!!

 

[we4Mateo]

It takes closer to 30psi on stock heads and the right tune to get the power. Going from 20 to 27 could be good for another 50-100rwhp but you still need to not spin if you want to win. I win most of my steer races by simply having better resistance to simply flooring the throttle.