Exactly! You can have a 800-1000 rwhp car but if you can never get traction then all that power is wasted since you can't put it to the ground. There is only so much power you need for a street car. After a certain point the car just belongs on a prepped track with sticky tires.

 

^ I'm running 15 psi and I plan to NEVER make a track pass. *shrug*

Moreover, I bet you I will put it to the ground, carefully of course.

 

Good luck with that.

 

I seriously doubt it.

 

what are you making for power???? high 600's???? What tires are you running??? Auto or Manual trans????

 

Well, since I've had rides in MUCH higher hp Supras, Cobras, Vettes etc. here in Miami on the street with a damn good row through the gears several times, I must say your doubt holds little to no sway for me.

 

It's around there on pump/15 psi. Tires are just Nitto DR's, 12 bolt 3.42's, Adj. Torque Arm, SFC's, LCA's, Adj. PH rod, Koni SA's etc. a FULL suspension.

500 rwhp got VERY controllable for me after a couple of weeks. High 600's will be a learning curve OF COURSE, but I plan on maybe having first gear useless but going hard and steady from there. With 500 rwhp, I was able to get out of first pretty smoothly... On a good day, I could pull out from a dig damn near WOT squealing very lightly but pulling like a train... A car has to be set-up properly, of course.

 

Okay, I agree that 800+ rhwp would be a waste on the street for an F-body... There are limits to the car, but I think that high 600's can be done with some common sense and familiarity.

 

With a suspension like that I think that your should be able to manage that power very well. If it was a stock suspension car that would be a different story..

 

This thread was about 1000 HP street cars (I'm assuming it was 1000 HP to the wheels). A 1000 RWHP street car isn't going WOT at any lower speeds on the street. Thus they are not putting that power to the ground.

If someone has say 675 rwhp and has to feather first and learn how to gradually go into wot during second then guess what? They are not putting all that power to the ground. My new setup should be close to 675 rwhp on a 200 shot but I have no delusions of being able to spray on the street under 50 mph with any traction.

Of course I wouldn't spray on the street anyway. I am a firm believer that there is a time and place for racing. For me that time is Friday nights and that place is New York International Raceway park. It's cheap, legal and relatively safe (medical personal standing by).

Is it April yet?

 

1k to the wheels on a street tire would be very "challenging."

By that logic, however, going to 400 rwhp on bolt-ons, H/C, etc. is not putting it to the ground either, yet we still mod our cars THAT way and drive on the street. I think it must be a given that first gear is not going to put all the power down on the street with street tires be it 450 OR 700 rwhp.

The day that a local track opens that allows me to run without a cage ('vert here), I'd run maybe once or twice. However, my car has been been set-up to look like a factory, cherry 0 mile car. Nothing has been hacked (that can be seen or can't be concealed), and I can go back to EVERYTHING stock in one weekend. I always have my original front plate in my trunk to throw back on at Pontiac shows, which makes my car look like a completely nondescript F-body. This is more important to me than drag racing.

However, I still like speed. Why should a beautiful car be built only to drag race and turn to **** years later? Not mine... Not my prized possession. I'm sure there are others here whose F-body's are more than just a fun car to beat on the track, especially in the appearance section, that still like and want speed.

There are a couple of nice cars around here that drive 1k rwhp on the street... Not F-body's , though... And they pull surprisingly steady from low speeds (40-50 mph). Remember, if we're going to criticize not putting all the power down in first gear, then there are many power levels that are "useless," some even cars at their stock power output.

 

Yeah, with stock suspension our cars are a handful to drive with just bolt-ons!

 

I'd call that mission impossible. Where's Tom Cruise when you need him

True. But a lot of people do strip/street cars. So while they can't put all thier power to the ground on the street they still can on track day. This is why it's possible for a 700 rwhp car to lose a street light to street light race to a 300 rwhp car because the traction just isn't there at slower speeds.

On Friday nights I can launch a 1.7 60'. Saturday thru Thursday it's probably closer to 7.1

Here is the problem that I see. If you have 600+ rwhp then traction in first (and perhaps even second) is limited or even non-existent. So lets be realistic about this and say what that kind of a street car was built for. High speed street racing and or high speed WOT runs. Most of these guys are starting races/runs at 50-65 mph and not letting off till 130+. And they are doing this with no personal safety equipment, limited traction and often times no regard for public safety (seen many race on crowded highways and was almost hit by one).

And the ones who build these real fast street cars and don't do these high speed runs/races are either lying or wasted a whole lotta cash on power that isn't really being used. And it is possible to make a car look nice even with a roll bar. The trick is to match the roll bar (or roll bar padding) with the interior color. As long as you put all the carpet and panels back it can look real nice.

Absolutely. There are stock cars that can't put all the power down from a dig. But most stock cars can put all the power down from a 15-25 mph roll(which is still first gear). That's a little different then a 700 rwhp car that can't do a full blown WOT at anything under 45-50 mph.

 

Tony... my car makes 500+ WHP all motor then add the nitrous, i drive my car every single day rain or shine.

 

Ideally, this conception of a "street/strip" 700 rwhp car has always been my goal. If I have to comprmise though (Well, I do since I don't want to cage my car), I'd rather give up its "strip" qualities in favor of street.

This thread prompted us with the idea of how appealing certain power levels are, one of them being 1k hp on a street car. Good or bad, there are quite a few of these churning out, especially around here. Additionally, they fall under the "street" category only because so many of them refuse to drive on a track, primarily due to the lack of quality tracks in the southern portion of the state and the general lack of tracks PERIOD.

We can criticize how wise, or unwise, it is to build this sort of car. At a glance, it seems silly to me too... Yet I am building one myself (Well, 700 not 1k hp). Why? Because I spend HOURS detailing my car, and the track eventually destroys cars. Drivetrain, motor, paint all wears away, with things you can do to lengthen this degradation or delay its effects... The track lengthens it. Just the thought of smoke billowing around the rear wells gives me chills. My goal of keeping a "clean" car and prolonging the original quality of showroom appearance is very important to me. However, I am a speed enthusiast; thus, why the idea of a 1k rwhp STREET (looks good, full weight, AC, PRISTINE paint) car appeals to me... And others. There are MANY enthusiasts in Miami who share this goal, import and domestic equally, who have no interest in drag racing.

Say an F-body owner wants to put a cam and bolt-ons in his car. But, in his country, there are no tracks... Is it a waste because he wants to enjoy the power but it's not going on a track? This is a sincere question. I don't know the answer. At what power level do you say, "This is now a waste on the street"? 400, 600, 800? Personally, I think for an F-body, a 699 rwhp cutoff is that level for me (mainly because of fueling, ala race gas now becomes necessary/good idea). For other cars with different designs, this can be more for me or less, too. Anyhow, because I think this way, I tried to reach that (~700 rwhp) as a goal.

That last sentence sounds about right although I'd honestly like to think I can lower that minimum speed for WOT to 40-45. For out of the hole, feathering will have to do, and for the track, well, now there are little to no limits... But it will always be more street than strip for my TA. That's not to say I don't like drag racing and maybe build a little strip warrior one day. However, I would never do this with my TA... I love it too damn much. It's a supremely exculsive dream car, desired by all, in my private, insane world.

 

That's pretty funny you say that since I have always wanted a 700 rwhp street/strip car also. Only mine will be setup a little more for the track since I absolutely love drag racing and figure that is a place where all the 700 ponies can be used safely and get put to the ground.

I guess I am lucky with that since I have a great track just 30 minutes away. But that still wouldn't stop me from traveling 1-2 hours to a track if I had too. I shiver at the thought of making my wife a widow and putting my kids future at risk so I could get some kicks on highway X doing 140 MPH in a close race with a Mustang, import, ect.

I disagree that a track destroys cars. You just have to build them right. If you use a 12 bolt, well built transmission, tranny cooler (autos), right suspension and forge the bottom end then the car itself should be pretty reliable. As far as being "clean" goes you can always wash the car after you leave the track.

BTW my car will have full interier, full weight,"pristine paint" and still go to the track. But what I wonder is how prestine that paint job will look if the car gets wrapped around a tree. I've seen pics of many peoples pride and joy mangled on the back of a flatbed.

I don't think that question is that simple. IMO a lot depends on how the power is achieved. For example, a 347 LS1 attaining 450-500 rwhp is going to suck driving on the street because it would require a huge cam. I would say that car is not streetable because of all the bucking and surging it would do in regular city traffic. But a 408 can achieve 500 rwhp with decent heads, intake and a mild cam so that car would be just fine in heavy traffic.

Then there are power adders like N20. If you have a 408 making 475 rwhp and a 200 shot of juice then that car should do pretty well because you would obviously only spray when you are in a race, have open road ahead and are at a high enough speed to not lose traction over it. But take that 408 and go with a huge cam and turbo and all of a sudden that car loses a lot of its street manners and makes lower speed wot runs a bit of a challenge in the traction department.

But IMO whenever a LS1 reaches north of 600 rwhp (in a 408 CI motor or smaller) then it is crossing a threshold of too much power for too little traction. That number could go up with 427+ CI engines or it could go down with 347 CI engines but the basic idea stays the same. When a street only car finds traction is impossible, street manners suck and a "need for speed" exists then they greatly increase thier risk of jail, injury and god forbid even death.

I hear you man. I just hate to see anyones life cut short or freedom taken away for something they could do safely at a track. And just a little FYI. M/T street radials require very little burnout per thier own website. If you were so inclined you could get a pair, go to a track, do a small burnout that won't create a smoke show and get one decent run in.

Now they will kick you out for no roll bar but at least you would have a timeslip to see where your car traps. Plus Coach will give you a cool new name. 10 second club, 9 second club, ect.

Good luck and stay safe out there.

 

Just a side thought. If you want to continue this discussion then maybe we should take it to PM's and not continue to flood nineballs thread with long posts on this topic.

And let me just say once for the record.......

F*** Nick Saban!!!!

In the immortal words of Patrick and spongebob.

"Liar, liar, pants for hire".

"Patrick, it's pants on fire"

"Well you should know it........ Liar"

Yes I am a disgruntal Miami Dolphins fan

Just thought I would throw that out there since I notice you're from Miami.

 

I agree, I hate when people go back n forth and dissect each other's replies.

 

On topic: There are people that like speed (duh, why we are here). Out of this group, there are people that will build high hp cars. Some of these people are not interested in the track with that specific car. In Miami, change SOME to MANY. This is the bottom line, like I said, wise or unwise. I've done ALOT dumber things in my life, so I'm not worried about this AT ALL, just like the many that have built similar cars. As testament here, the group that has voted the most is 500+ rwhp street cars. I just take it one step further by more greatly avoiding the track due to being a 'vert and wanting to keep the car pristine.

Some of you may not know how **** I am. I don't park anywhere at night in Miami due to the condensation of "dirty" humidity unless there is an ultra-bright light over to keep the condensation at bay. I take car covers to throw on my car during the day at the mall to avoid excessive UV light on the car's pait and interior. I could keep going. So TO ME, the track destroys cars.

 

That's kind of scary. The biggest problem with that philosophy is when you do finally worry about, it's usually too late.

And TO ME (along with a few others) the track does not destroy cars. But the track does offer a relatively safe enviornment to enjoy a great sport.