How fast will it go?
Doing all of these "power mods" left me wondering how much of an effect they would have. Dyno graphs are one thing, but an actual measure of performance really tells the story. So, I decided to visit a local dragstrip to see what the Foz can do.
The local track, New England Dragway, requires a "Snell 95" helmet for any car faster that 14 seconds. So before my track visit I stop at a motorcycle shop and pick up a helmet for $69. It's not the Snell rating, but DOT. Considering the use, I figured it would pass muster.
The temperature was in the low 70s with moderate humidity. During the tech inspection, I'm asked how fast the car is. I just shrug and say that this is the first time I'm tracking the car, but in case it is faster than 14 seconds, I have a helmet. He takes a look at the helmet and tells me since it has no Snell rating, it's not acceptable!
"Just don't go faster than 14 seconds" is the statement by the inspector.
The track is pretty crowded (notice I'm #289) -
Not only that, but I ended up waiting almost an hour because the track crew had to clean up a blown transmission. So while we're all waiting, I knew I would only get one sub-14 second pass. I decided that if I launched badly, I would dog it the rest of the way and make sure I didn't go faster than 14 seconds and take another run. But as the wait grew longer and longer, and the line of cars grew behind me, I figured I might not get another run in if someone else pukes their tranny/engine/rear end on the track again. So with my turn coming up, I decided it would have to be just one run.
I lined up with a Mustang (you can see it in the photo above to the left), I'm in the left lane. I get staged and gradually start to bring up the RPMs while power braking. But, the tree sequences faster than I was adding RPMs and not wanting to let the Mustang off without a good run, I go on the green -
and bog off the line. I probably was only at about 2000 RPMs when I "launched" (if you want to call it that). Pedal to the metal, the VF48 spools up within a second and now I'm blasting down the track gaining on the Mustang. I pass the Mustang and as I cross the 1/4 mile marker, I note that my speedo indicates about 105 MPH.
And here is the result (#289, left lane) -
With a geriatric launch and a 60' time of nearly 2.2 seconds, I still mange to hit 13.422 at 104.4 MPH on my only run of the night.
So, I'm thinking that in its present state of tune, with a good launch that the car has 12s in it. I think 12s will be pretty easy next time with the Aquamist system installed. I will also exchange the helmet for something they will accept so the next time I go, I can take more than one pass!
I expect to go back to the track in June, with the water/meth injection system installed and re-tuned.
