what am I doing wrong???

stealth · 06-19-2006

Hello all, I just posted my into in the introduction place, but my name is Dwayne, and I purchased a 1992 police LX 5.0 in October. I have since then done all the simple mods IE removing air silencer, advancing timing to 14, reset the TPS to .98v, K&N aircleaner, added a centerforce clutch, new 8mm MSD wires, autolight plugs, new cap rotor, replaced all the lubes with Synthetic....Mobile 1 10-30 engine, Dyson racing in trans and rearend. removed stock fan and clutch and replaced with Flex-a-light fan and spacer, it already had headers, and I have dual stainless pipes straight to Flowmaster mufflers. 17" ICW racing wheels and Riken Raptor tires. also added a set of air shocks to the rear. added all new guages, and tach. Now here is the problem. I took it to the drags for the first time yesterday, and the best Time I could get was 15.410 my average is 60' @ 2.342 1/4 @ 15.552 @ 91.58mph. My brother watched and found that the tires are spinning like mad untill almost 2nd gear at around the 60' mark. but my reaction time is high around .349 but the car sits in the same spot for around that amount of time, spinning the tires. I thought these cars were faster....I raced a 70 GTO and a 69 Elcamino in the past and was down into the 13's I have seen alot of people claim 10 to 13 seconds with these cars, and the NHRA rates them at 13.24 so what the heck am I screwing up on, or what do I need to do next to make this a rocket...my brother runs a 1976 Mustang 2 with a bored and maxed out 260CID and is running a 15.6 with slicks...I should be faster. Could you all give me some hints on what to do next to make her scream...hate to sell it, and buy something better

dollarbill · 06-20-2006

Try launching the car as if you are on the street and don't want to spin the tires just take off fast, then as traction allows squeeze the throttle. Your 60' is killing you big time. The air shocks could also be screwing up the rear suspension. How do you launch it? Drop it or ride the clutch out? The best way is to ride the clutch out as traction allows but it is a fine art and takes awhile to master. I usually drop the clutch at a certain rpm (1500-2500)and feather it out from there. Practice makes perfect, and I'll bet you could get a mid 14 with more practice.

stealth · 06-20-2006

thank you, now as I am remembering it, I was reving to about 3500 and doing the old drop the clutch and hit the hammer. with the rough streets around here that is ok, but the track was really slick saturday. guess I should leave the testostrone at home and bring the brain....thank you..

93mustang · 06-26-2006

The first thing you should do is buy a set of drag radials.
I have Nitto's and they hook hard with my car. I usually get 1.9 60' times. Also, line lock so you can heat the tires up so they grab. One quick rip through the water box, stop, hit the line lock, rev to 4k, dump the clutch(make sure your in 2nd gear or the tires won't spin quick enough) spin the tires untill you see a good amount of smoke, let off the line lock with your foot still in it and roll out of your burn out. This is for manual transmission. If you have an automatic it's even easier. Start in 1st, then shift into second and even 3rd if your car has the power.

I found that for me 4000 rpms is the best to launch at. I tried 5 but the tires spun and my 60' time was not as good. As soon as you see the yellow before the green, let the clutch out with your foot still on it as fast as you can(don't dump it) and your right foot should be going to the floor as fast as you can on the gas.
I shift at 5300,5400 rpms. A shift light is another inexpensive way to keep your times fast and consistant.

If you choose not to buy drag radials and just use your street tires,
make sure your drive around the water box and don't do a burn out no matter what anyone tells you. You'll just drag the water to the starting line and spin like crazy. Your street tires will grab the best by driving around the water box and going directly to pre stage. Street tires actually get slick when heated up. They are a hard compound , unlike slicks or drag radials that have soft compound that gets sticky when heated up.
I would not launch above 3000 with street tires.

Anyways, practice, practice, practice!!!! .Listen to everyone's advise, but always, only do what works best for you!!!
I hope this helps. I couldn't break 15 sec. and now I'm running 14.3 and I could probably even go a little lower.

1993 GT Mustang / Stock 302 EFI / Edelbrock 5.0 Upper and Lower Intake / 75mm Throttle Body / C&L Cold Air w/76mm Mass Air / K&N Filter / Electric Fan / BBK Underdrive Pulley's / A.C. Removed / BBK Headers / Flowmaster / H-Pipe / T-5 / Alum. Driveshaft / 3.73 Gears / Eaton H.D. Posi / Moser 31 Spline Axles/ Subframe Connectors / Line Lock / Driveshaft Loop / B&M Short Throw Shifter / 16" Chrome Cobra Wheels / Nitto Drag Radials Rear / BFG G-Force Sport Front / Racing Upper and Lower Control Arms / Lakewood Adjustable Drag Shocks/ Holley 190 lph Fuel Pump / Holley Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator / MSD EFI Blaster Coil/ Stock Heads/ 19# Injectors

Darkside77X · 06-28-2006

Get better tires.. drag radials or even slicks..dont be scared of it.. i used to run 26x10.50 MT ET drags on my car, and would get consistent 1.7 60ft's on a 99.9% stock suspension..