I have a trade offer that includes a sharp front engine dragster. It should run low 9s, high 8s.
Does anyone know the rules regarding running these times, certifications, etc?

Here are some pictures of the car (1 meg each, but well worth it)dragster pics

 

That brings back some memories.
I had one of those back in the mid '80's. It weighed about 1400 lbs, and ran 9.0's @ 150 mph with a 355, "double hump" heads, and a Hillborn injection. Initially, I was concerned about the 8 3/4 Chrysler rear between my legs, but after the first launch, it never bothered me again. The car was a lot of fun to drive. Sitting that close to the ground really added to the sensation of speed. I'm not sure about certifying the car now. Back then, mine had the same style of cage, a trans shield, a shield over the drive coupler, and a chute. It passed tech at the various tracks I went to.
Good luck ....... I'm sure you'll enjoy the car if you decide to get it.

 

Here's my opinion - and it is just that... my opinion.

I'm not sure about safety equipment requirements and NHRA rules for the car, but I'm sure you'll need a chasis cert.

You'll need a special license to run a car under 10 seconds.

There are a couple of things that I'm uncomfortable. I don't like the idea of the engine right in your face and the rear right between your legs. That just scares me.

The other thing is that front-engine dragsters are outdated. They're great for Nostalgia races and such, but for bracket racing they're very inconsistent.

Again - just my opinion.

 

I love front engine dragsters! One of the coolest cars I know of belongs to my friends, Bob and Sean. It's a 110" wheelbase front engined "Altered" with an alcohol blown hemi. Man, does it take skill to drive that thing! Runs mid 6's at ~220mph. The rear engined cars are way boring in comparison.

As far as rules go, don't buy it except under the condition that it must be certifiable. You will not be able to run it otherwise, you will need a competition license, full fire-retardant suit, etc. Get a copy of the rule book from the sanctioning body (IHRA or NHRA) where you plan to run to be sure the car is "legal".

Rich Krause

 

If it can't be certified, you can still race it slower than 10.0 and have fun.

That looks real close to something I want except I want an alcohol injection instead of that carb.

 

It's a nice looking car. Like said before determine what class you would run the car in and make sure the car is certified by NHRA or IHRA. The front motor cars are a ton of fun even if they are a little less consistant than dragsters.

We have a 125" wheel base alterd running a blown alcohol small block with a mooneyham 14-71 blower. I can tell you it is one hell of a sight sitting behind that thing and seeing nothing but blower and hat directly in front of you. You have to be careful when driving it so you don't get your renob jamed in the steering and end up in the grass

 

Here's a local blown alky altered. Set a Comp Eliminator record for AA/AM 6.55 at 206.55 mph.
http://www.hardtail.com/6180.jpg

Here's a video of a run http://www.horsepowerheaven.com/feat...lar/jirka.html

 

Nice vid, thanks!

BTW: Bob and Sean's car has a 125"WB, 110" would be really hard to drive.

Rich Krause

 

Hey Stephen,

Let's sell the camaro's and get a couple altereds or nostalgia cars!

Nostalgia would be in my price range though, and I think an altered would scare the crap outta me too.

 

I find the rear engineed dragsters way boring (unless they are top fuelers!). They don't look cool and they are so predictable they are boring. Even with a basic big block Chevy a short wheelbase front engined dragster puts on quite a show. Put 1500+hp into one of them, and it's an experience. I have driven one with a 700-800hp big block, and it's a lot of fun. I seriously thought about getting one this year, but I'm in for one more round of modding the Camaro, for now.

Rich Krause

 

Mr. Kaplan sure does have the car movin'

I could not get the video to play BTW. Is there a certain program I need?

 

The video needs a Quicktime player plugin.

Tweaked Zed: I'd love to run a Nostalgia dragster in Comp Eliminator. A/ND, 410 cid max, Allowed 3.5 pounds per cid with a 1300 pound minimum weight. Most run a Hilborn stack injection. Most run at least mid 7's to qualify. The record for a A/ND is 7.09 at 186.44 mph. Like any other Comp car there are a lot of restrictions as to what you can do. They all have iron heads etc.

That's not saying you can't just run a nostalgia dragster is ET brackets. As I mentioned above if it's slower that 10.0, it doesn't need a chassis certification and you don't need a competition license to run that slow. My engine in a 1500 pound dragster would probably run mid 8's. A mild small block should have no problems running low 10's and wouldn't be a grenade waiting to go off.

Find a rolling chassis for a cheap price and add your own engine to suit the speed you want to run. I've even seen a snowmobile powered dragster that ran low 12'

 

I dunno much about front engine dragsters except them seem dangerous. I wouldn't want an engine to ever be running in front of me with little protection. I run a rear engine dragster and i love it. For high speed applications, i guess i would go rear engine, but that's just my opinion. And you do need a licence to go below 10 sec., but that's easy to get. Just 6 runs in the car.

 

RED is faster, more consistent, and probably safer as well. But way boring unless it's running nitro. Just IMHO though. Even with nitro, wouldn't you rather watch a Funny Car run than a Top Fuel car? I would.

Rich Krause

 

That's a sweet car. I would love one of those some day!