does anyone know how or if they ever have dynoed a top fuel car whether it be chassis or engine dyno. how do they know they make 8000 hp i cant find any info on this. -tony-

 

they run over 300 mph in the 1/4 and hurt youre ears so i would say yeah they make that much but have no proof

besides the fact that they shake the ground and every inch of youre body when they go by. nitro is a gift from the gods

 

its a guesstimate. nobody actually knows for sure.

 

I think the 8,000hp is a mathmatical figure with weight and what the vehicles run.

I gotta tell ya the first time I went to one was just 2 years ago and I did not expect my vision to get blury....it was like fast and furious in real life...LOL

 

i believe its based off of the sensors around the clutch that can measure torque, there is no dyno in the world that can measure the power of these beasts....nitro is such a beautiful thing....

 

hmm that makes sense, sensors on the car possibly.thats what i was kinda figuring also just a mathematical guestimate. but when the engine builder builds it i wonder if they put it on an engine dyno just to tune it but clearly not full throttle it.(the first initial build, not the rebuild they do between every race).

 

I do believe they base the HP ratings off of FUEL CONSUMPTION!
This is the true and correct way to measure HP ratings on any engine.

 

how is this true? cause my dodge ram has less horsepower than my 2000 trans am did and my trans am got WAY better gas mileage. please explain. -tony-

 

They rebuild them after every pass between rounds.

 

sorry i meant every race as in every pass.

 

I wasn't trying to nit pick ya, it sounds like you are doing some research and I didn't want you to have your facts mixed up.

 

i got ya thanks. i just thought it would be awesome if there was a monster dyno out there for a top fuel car and there was a video or something.

 

Got to factor in aerodyamics, gearing, etc into fuel mileage.

Anyways, that's load of crap about measuring the amount of fuel an engine uses as a reliable source of hp. I know that black soot that diesel truck bellow is mostly unspent fuel.

 

Bsfc/bsac ?

 

Imagine this video times 100. That's what you can imagine a top fuel car would be like on a chassis dyno, that is if they could make one that could measure that much power. (Which they don't.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Jkwt...eature=related

 

.

A while ago they were trying to build a fuel motor dyno. I believe Kenny Bernstein was footing the bill.
I believe they were trying to use parts or designs from giant ocean type engines.
Don't remember how far it got or who exactly was building it.
Maybe someone a lot smarter than me can figure out how to google the articles??

As for the 8000 HP, it is a estimate using all of the information available.
ET, MPH, fuel used, difference between 8 cylinders and 7 cylinders pass, data recorder ect ect.

.

 

Most probably know that hp is a calculation. Not measured. They need to find torque because h is torque vs. Time. There still isn't a dyno to measure that torque! I am sure it is mathematical equations but I am sure it is rather accurate.

Fuel usage is a very accurate way to measure hp. I don't know the science but energy released from fuel equals hp. Then they calculate losses from friction and what not. I would say if you could dyno the motor they are within 500 hp of the calculated value.

 

It mathematical of course.Just look at the FACTS.A fuel car accelerates from the 1/8 mile mark 660 ft to the old 1/4 mile mark in 1.5 seconds and goes from 275 to 325, 50 mph increase in 1.5 seconds.Im not a mathematician,but im sure this is somewhat how it is figured.

 

actually they measure the exact amount of torque produced by using a strain gauge on the shaft to the rear end.When you know the makep of the shaft you can calculate how much torque it takes to twist it a certain amount.The strain gauge measures the amount of twist,giving you the amount of torque produced.This is a really accurate way of measuring torque-we use it quite often to measure prop curves in boats.

 

, but you can measure force, distance, and time.