trying to find the best way to get my car to hook and launch. ive tried foot braking around 1500 but usually lay tire. i always have to "roll" into it and wait til about 4000 in 2nd to really mat it. i have a 98 z28 with lcas,373s, and 275/40/18 falkens. not really trying to buy drag radials as they get pretty expensive for 18s.

 

I've got the same problem here man. I don't think there's much hope for us really though. More traction is whats really needed, and the only way to do that is with wider tires, or DRs. Otherwise a slow rolling start is the only other alternative I can think of... Suspension mods could also help, but those get pricey as well. Lower control arms, torque arm, subframe connectors....

 

Drag radials (not nittos), there is no way around it....

 

I launched it with traction control on once.....and ran my best time of 13.1

 

OP, do you mean at the track?

Eh, regardless... street or track:

1. First off, ditch the 18" rims. Too many guys trying to look cool with big wheels and they bitch when they can't hook up any more. To launch your car you need MORE sidewall, not less. My track car rolls on 15" wheels and pulls the front tires.

2. Tire compound. You need soft and sticky. For example, Mickey Thompson DR's are the bomb. You can drive down the highway to the track on them, hook and run great times, and then drive home.

3. Suspension, suspension, suspension. Bigger rear sway bar, solid tubular LCA's and an adjustable torque arm that mounts to the cross member and not the trans. If you want to get really serious, ditch your front sway bar and get adjustable shocks like QA-1's all the way around.

Do these things and then prepare to hang on!

 

i already have lcas, sfc's, and ta relo cross member. planing on an adjustable ta soon and want to keep stock ride height. i was thinking about lca relo brackets but heard they affect cornering ability. also whats cornering like with DR's and hows the tread life? o yea no traction control here. ill be doing more red light racing than track time

 

You need a STALL!! And drag radials you will hooked for sure!

 

Track Prep is a big part of what makes you hook. Hooking on the streets is not easy from a stop. You could have all the mods in the world and be on some sticky mickeys but if you catch loose gravel you wont hook.

 

Tires and practice. Nothing else will help. Good luck let us know how you run with some good DRs. Remember the harder you hook the shorter your 10-bolt will live.

 

Find a cheap set of wheels (15 or 16's) for the rears if anything. and put some Mikey Thompsons on the rears. drop the pressure to about 16 lbs roll to tha light and stall it up to about 3500 and when the light turns green, mash it. Sometimes if the track is preped well, you can just stab the throttle and blast off.

 

My car is the same way on the street. I baby it off the line and get into it at the top of first, but it still gets squirrelly. Foot braking it until the point it rolls isn't going to help you hook better if you can't hook already.

Once you do get tires, I don't think that method is the most beneficial. You're pre-loading the suspension and making it squat, which will reduce suspension travel when you leave the line. This should make it spin. Instead, why not stall it up just a tad off idle, then punch it and let if flash all the way up as you leave the line. This will allow the suspension full travel and give the weight somewhere to transfer to, not to mention prevent bog and get you to your powerband quicker.

Keep the 18 inchers for your street duty, then swap something smaller out for the track, be it stockers or 17" wheels. I cut 1.9s on my stock 16" wheels with 245mm Kuhmos last season. I might get a drag radial for my extra pair of ZR1s this time around.


A well prepped track is going to make your average street seem like it's slathered in ice. If you want to run them constantly, look into Nittos. They don't have quite the bite of Mickeys or BFGs, but they last a lot longer.

 

I've ran a 12.84 @ 107 with stock 245/16s.....with a 1.999 60ft. DA was -300

My best on DRs [ Nittos ] was 12.91 @ 107 with a 1.9 60 ft but Da was + 300

I have tried flashing the stock convert, brake stalling it to the point where it almost pushes through the tires.

My car like being brake stalled to 1100-1300 rpms, then mash the gas on the green light.

Honestly, my car hates DRs with the stock stall...

 

Brake gas to 1300 3rd light green let off brake snap back in your seat as your ball jump back mash the gas and it works well depending on tires mash the gas slower LOL I pulled a 1.9 60 with street tires on 18s at 18psi

 

call my good friend mickey thompson

 

+1 for stall and M/T E.T. drag radials.. if some people can hit 8' with them, they'll work for your ride too.

3000-3400 seems to be the recomended daily driver stall.

 

I just brake it to 1k, and smash the gas.

It doesn't hook in 1st, but I don't really care.

 

i thought i heard our a4 cars stock had a stall that was about 1200-1500. so foot braking would be unnecessary...

 

m/t et streets

 

E.T DRAGS will work.....Just heat em up.....

 

a cheap fix that may help are LCA relocation brackets, they change the angle of the control arms to help a little with grip, i quickly read through the posts and didnt see anyone mention them, but you can get those for less than $100