Nitrous Vs. Turbocharger

The world of any type of grudge racing or “street racing” has been evolving for years to date these days and one of the biggest things to evolve has been nitrous cars versus turbo cars. Five to ten years ago we would have been at the track or on the street watching nitrous cars race each other one after another. Now when we go racing we are seeing an even amount of turbo cars compared to nitrous cars.

We will always have a valid argument on which to use when it comes to a power adder. Both power adders can offer the same benefit, an instant boost in power at moment’s notice however they both come with different setups needed, especially how you tune the vehicle. Either way you have to build the engine to handle the different power adder and how you put the motor together really matters.

A lot of different racers will tell you that it is easier to blow an engine up using nitrous however if you do not put together the correct set up on your turbo car the same thing can happen. If you look at statistics however nitrous is a bit harsher on the motor and its internals. Turbochargers kind of seem to be a bit easier on the motor however can cause the same damage just in a different way. Both will have the same benefits as well, you just have to look at them at different angles.

You can set up a vehicle to run off each power adder and be successful at the local track or street that is closest to you. Both kind of have the same benefits just in a different monster. Nitrous is something that you have to purchase and depending on how much you use during the race is could cost quite a bit by the end of the season. With a turbocharger your wallet takes the hit right away with the purchase right up front. So depending on how long the turbo lasts compared to the nitrous you could save or lose money, but it is nice to not have to fill nitrous tanks every time you head to the track. Also a lot of people think that power is instant with a push of the button with nitrous but it is the same with a turbo. Tunes can be set up to where at the push of a button more power can be obtained.

This argument could go on for years but each argument could be valid to a point. At the end of the day this comes down to preference and how each racer feels about the particular power adder. I for one believe that turbochargers will make a big thrust to the top of the drag racing community.   

Check out the video below to watch a turbo mustang go head to head with a nitrous mustang!

The Great Tire Debate. Big tire vs. Small Tire.

The great debate that seems to be happening at a lot of different drag strips is what size tire should be ran, especially on the street if that is your racing style. The argument involves if there is an advantage to run a big tire over a small tire and vice versa.

Many racers are going to have their own opinion on this, but it does seem the cars running a tire that is a lot smaller than what was once ran. The tire that is being ran is a 10.5 to11.5 inch tire in the 275 class. Before the 275 tire was popular a lot of racers were running tires up to 18 inches wide but lately many racers have found out they can go just as fast if not faster on the smaller tire.

Some of the advantages of the big tires is that they can hook on almost any surface while being in the middle of a snow storm. However they are costly and a lot of modifications need to be done to run a big tire. Advantages for the small tire is they are a lot cheaper, not too many modifications need to be made to a car for them to fit and they can have the benefits as most big tires under certain circumstances. Now think a little bit about those circumstances, a lot has to go right for these tires to hook well but they can do it and they can go just as fast as the big tire cars with the technology that’s out there today.

To help with this debate let’s think about Brad Edwards, Team Z drag racer that is the first person to run in the 3 second range on 275 drag radials in the 1/8^th mile. Brad went 3.99ET at over 190mph. A lot of big tire cars have problems running this fast let alone a car with a 10.5 inch wide tire on it. Racing has gotten a lot more interesting with the popular emergence of the smaller tire and Brad Edwards record breaking runs have proved that you can go just as fast on the small tire.

 

 Let me know what you think about the great tire debate in the comments below and check out the video below to watch Brad go 3.94ET on a 275 drag radial.