Back to the digs after 30 years, and Line Loc PSA

[MexicanFiestaST]

I finally took my car drag racing at Milan Dragway, Michigan, yesterday. I had not been there since the mid 90s, and back then, I had an automatic car. I had a blast with my 6-speed, but struggled with Line Loc until I figured out what I was doing wrong.

The PSA:
1. after initializing
2. and even after 'charging the icon' with firm brake pressure
3. you still have to hold the brake very FIRMLY to get the system to engage before hitting the final OK.

I had kept my foot on the brake for all attempts, and successfully 'charged the icon' for 100% of those attempts. Leaving my foot on the brake, when hit OK, the system would still sometimes tell me 'Line loc not available' and this was in the burnout box, causing me some panic and forcing me to do an old school dry hops.

After a few passes, I got fed up and practiced a few engagements on the return lane(making sure no one was behind me) where I wasn't under the time pressure of being in the lane. Soon, it was apparent what my problem was. I was able solve to it, reproduce the problem, and the solve it again, back to back. It's not enough to keep my foot on the brake after charging the icon; I have to keep the brake on very FIRMLY, like pushing my ass back into the seat. Pressing the brake 'sort of firmly' is not enough. OK, I got it now, no more panicking in the lane and getting pissed off.

Aside from that driver error, I had a great time. I actually did not intend to burn out at all, and on the first pass(I was the first car, with no one else in the staging lanes), I chose the lane where I could drive around the water box because I wanted to see how badly the car hooked up without a burnout. Not badly, actually, and it was great to hear only my car reverberating from the concrete walls on either side with no one else breathing fire in the other lane. I didn't bother cutting a good light for that pass; I just wanted to go when I was ready, observe the launch, and not fuck up any shifts, but that first pass was the second best of the night: 13.267 @ 113.55mph

Wow, it's great to hear the engine run past 7,000rpm for three gears! I got slight chirp into 2nd, but I was fine with that. I didn't miss a shift all afternoon until the last pass. I was expecting problems going 2nd - 3rd, but I actually missed 1-2.

After that 1st pass, however, the starting line crew sprayed the entire width of the lane, so I was forced to burn out for the rest of the afternoon, and that's when I encountered line loc engagement problems until I figured out what I was doing wrong. The car got hotter, and slower, and I was getting more frustrated until I took a dinner break. Let the car cool down a bit, then did a couple more passes before they shut down the staging lanes.

Best RT: 0.018(I was pretty good at RT when I was here in the 90s), and I think I can do a teeny bit better
Best ET: 13.070, almost into the 12s
Best MPH: 114.226
Best 60'(don't laugh): 2.258

Excuses:

1. Driver error and inexperienced at launching with a stick at the strip
2. It was a pretty hot yesterday, with IAT ranging from 40 C to 60 C(before I took a dinner break)
3. Car is bone stock, 79,000 miles, with aging stock Michelin Pilot Sport 4S PP1 tires(those tires don't have 79k miles on them). I have no intention of buying drag radials or anything like that. I just want to get better at managing launch with a completely stock setup.
4. Launch Control set at 3,000rpm and just dumping the clutch completely without any finesse whatsoever. Did not try any other LC rpm.
5. PP1 diff has 3.73 gears, and during the last 2-3 passes, I felt like I was hitting the rev limiter through the lights. Next time, I may try shifting into 4th just to see what is worse: time for the extra shift or time spent on the rev limiter. I strongly suspect an extra shift will be worse
6. After a few passes, tire pressure had climbed to 36psi, so I lowered it once, to 32psi. I didn't play with it after that

For sure, I expect to get into the 12s with cooler temperatures and no other changes. Driver error will limit how deep into the 12s I can get. MotorTrend boys got 12.6 sec @ 115 mph in 2018 and MagnaRide(which I don't have), so I'm pretty happy with my first outing. I'm not a magazine test driver, but I can do better than 13s.

PS: Why did I not plan to use the burn out box initially? Street tires, even after burn out, can bring water to the launch pad, which the serious drag racers with drag radials or slicks don't appreciate. That's why I learned to drive around it back in the 90s(I had a slow car anyway, and traction was the least of my concerns back then). Heck, at Milan yesterday, for those of us in lanes 5-6, they put a cone on the starting line to get us off the tire patches at the launch pad. This makes my traction problems worse, but I didn't list that as an excuse. That's how they run cars like mine, so I have to deal with it, so did everyone else in lanes 5-6. I still had a great time.

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[Whitedevil95]

I had that same issue when I first did my line lock. I thought I was gonna break the dang pedal off.

 

[Adam the Lighting Guy]

Well written and detailed post first off.

I have a couple of questions if I may.

Traction (I assume) was your biggest challenge based on your 60' times. Was the 60' greasy or sticky? Your MPH is indicative of a mid to high 12 second time.

Had you tried going around the water box, side stepping the clutch and doing a short dry burnout? Street tires will fling H2O onto the wheel wells and that will drip down while you stage. I was cutting the same 60' times with a bone stock 2008 Toyota Tacoma X-runner on the OEM 255/50/18's. A pickup truck with no weight on the ass end and a propensity to wheel hop.

I realize you are back after a 30 year hiatus, but even with your frustrations, it sounds like you enjoyed yourself and that's what it all about. Having fun.

I probably would have aborted the line lock and done a pedal dance myself. Shoot,,, this past Sunday, I launched my Vert for the first time (did 3 of them to get a feel) in an industrial park. No Judgement Zone over here.

Adam

 

[MexicanFiestaST]

Well written and detailed post first off.

I have a couple of questions if I may.

Traction (I assume) was your biggest challenge based on your 60' times. Was the 60' greasy or sticky? Your MPH is indicative of a mid to high 12 second time.

Had you tried going around the water box, side stepping the clutch and doing a short dry burnout? Street tires will fling H2O onto the wheel wells and that will drip down while you stage. I was cutting the same 60' times with a bone stock 2008 Toyota Tacoma X-runner on the OEM 255/50/18's. A pickup truck with no weight on the ass end and a propensity to wheel hop.

I realize you are back after a 30 year hiatus, but even with your frustrations, it sounds like you enjoyed yourself and that's what it all about. Having fun.

I probably would have aborted the line lock and done a pedal dance myself. Shoot,,, this past Sunday, I launched my Vert for the first time (did 3 of them to get a feel) in an industrial park. No Judgement Zone over here.

Adam

Adam,
Thank you.

Yes, traction was the main problem, but I would not say that the track was greasy. Plenty of other(and faster) cars completely hooked up; one of those drivers was telling me he was surprised his car was hooking so hard that night(race engine, slicks, cutting 10s). My technique of clutch dumping resulted in lots of wheel hop. The magazine guys(and talented drivers here on the forum) don't dump; they modulate with some amount of finesse. I don't have enough practice(and maybe not enough skill, to be honest) to do this effectively at the drags. Yet. Once the car hooked, though, I was gone. As you noticed, the MPH suggests I should be in the 12s. I just need to get better at launch, and I'll have the ET.

No, once the water box was wet all the way across, I did not bother driving around it. There was no point, as far as I thought. I was committed to wet tires, and burn outs. Good point about flinging water onto the wheel well, but I don't think that was my problem; I'm chalking it up to lack of skill. If water was it, I think would have spun(not hopped) my way through first gear.

Yes, you're right: I had a blast overall, especially that first, no pressure pass! Thanks for your response.

 

[Adam the Lighting Guy]

Adam,
Thank you.

Yes, traction was the main problem, but I would not say that the track was greasy. Plenty of other(and faster) cars completely hooked up; one of those drivers was telling me he was surprised his car was hooking so hard that night(race engine, slicks, cutting 10s). My technique of clutch dumping resulted in lots of wheel hop. The magazine guys(and talented drivers here on the forum) don't dump; they modulate with some amount of finesse. I don't have enough practice(and maybe not enough skill, to be honest) to do this effectively at the drags. Yet. Once the car hooked, though, I was gone. As you noticed, the MPH suggests I should be in the 12s. I just need to get better at launch, and I'll have the ET.

No, once the water box was wet all the way across, I did not bother driving around it. There was no point, as far as I thought. I was committed to wet tires, and burn outs. Good point about flinging water onto the wheel well, but I don't think that was my problem; I'm chalking it up to lack of skill. If water was it, I think would have spun(not hopped) my way through first gear.

Yes, you're right: I had a blast overall, especially that first, no pressure pass! Thanks for your response.

Hey, another thing about going to the track and also being Internally competitive. We adore our cars (most of us, most times). Making the decision of commitment to either the lowest ET the car can produce versus "I don't want to blow my shit up and be flatbedded home" is always a lingering decision. Kinda of like playing slot machines. One or two more pulls will hit the jackpot mentality.

I used to do almost all of my own wrenching. It was frustrating, especially if I had to repair or modify something multiple times for a satisfactory end point. This would drive me nuts ( example,,, I did a shift kit on a C-6 Trans on a dirt driveway. No way I wanted to do this messy ass adventure more than once. Guess what? I F'ed up and misplaced a ball bearing somewhere in the valve body. End result, mushy shifts & I was pissed. Not so pissed that I would again lie in the dirt, dealing with a case of ATF running down my arms into my armpits. I lived with it but in an annoyed state everyday since. I was deeply disappointed in myself.)

So, with that being said, myself I hold in reserve with what's the best I can accomplish in a timed event. As long as I had fun, didn't break or terribly abuse anything, then it was a good memory making day.

I've yet to drive a manual S550. I need to make a few friends who will offer me the opportunity to do so someday. I would think based on how the power rolls in on mine that a moderate slip of the clutch with about 2500-2700 RPM's on slightly warmed street tires running 24-28 lbs of pressure may net you better results. Easier said than done with limited seat time for sure.

 

[NGOT8R]

Sounds like you had fun and that’s the whole point. Great runs for such a long break from the drag strip. It’s harder to ET than many people think it is with a manual tranny.

I’ve struggled for the past two years in my 2019 Bullitt which is a FBO and nitrous car with a 3.73 gear. I’ve been 12.30s N/A several times in mine with MPH ranging from 11-116. Best 60’ has been a 1.7 on sticky tires.

I’ve tried it all, including shifting to 4th gear and I can tell you that will certainly hurt your times.

Be careful with wheel hop, it can lead to broken axles.

 

[Blue By You]

The most interesting thing about this thread is that it was originally posted in September of last year and nobody bothered to reply until this past week lol.

OP your MPH is indicative of a lowER 12 in a perfect world. Back in the day I had a '01 Trans Am M6 that was mostly stock that went 12.7 @ 109 with a 2.0 60ft and slipping clutch.

Anyhow, another former drag racer here. Haven't been to the track since the early 2000's. I actually had plans to go this past Friday but rain shut that down. Next opportunity for me is the first week in June, per track schedule. I live 15min from a nationally recognized track so unless I want to drive a couple hours (I don't) I'm stuck with their schedule.

You can see my car in sig, pretty much stock but auto. I've had pretty good luck with mostly/all stock cars in the past. I've seen a few videos on YouTube of cars just like mine touching 11's so that's what I'm hoping for. I know it's capable of it.

I've read of some issues with folks not understanding how the factory LL works. Your write up was fantastic.

I have not messed with mine yet but I really need to before I go to the track. Not going to be doing any real burn out, just haze the tires to clean them off. Im well aware of driving around the water box with radials.

I live out in the country so finding a deserted road to play around with the LL shouldn't be a problem, just gotta go do it.


Anyways enough rambling. Your car is definitely capable of more. Keep practicing and you'll get there.

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