[Blazin383]

So I finally got a chance to get a couple runs in at the drag strip and it was very disappointing to say the least. Ended up only getting to run twice because it was a series event so there were a million race cars there and I had to enter the Sportsman class to even get to run. Anyway, I was there mostly to get a couple runs against my friend and his bolt on 14 Audi RS5.
Our first run was against each other and it was pathetic. FYI, bone stock 16 2SS A8, letting the trans do it's own shifting.

It was a prepped track, so I figured traction would be much better than runs I've done on the street. I ran in Track mode and left the TC on figuring the car would find all the available grip. It has been many years since I've run a car on a busy track so I was actually a little nervous and of course when you put a helmet on it changes the entire environment in the car. All that being said, my reaction time wasn't great at .266. I could feel the TC struggling for grip and the 60' rolled by in a leisurely 2.305. Obviously the rest of the run suffered from there with the 330' @ 6.111, 1/8th mile at 8.948 @ 87.77 mph, and the 1000' at 11.344, with the 1/4 rolling by at 13.345 @ 112.26.

In contrast to that, my friend whipped me with a .043 RT, 2.008 60', 330 @ 5.704, 1/8th @ 8.658 @ 83.97, 1000 ft @ 11.178, and the 1/4 @ 13.297 @ 106.93, beating me by .048. Had I had just a little more track I could have run him down, but no such luck.

Anyway, my second run I decided I'd see if Launch Control would get me out of the hole better. Unfortunately, Launch Control didn't help. I actually had a worse run with the LC on. Run #2 with LC:
Reaction time .053, 60' 2.447, 330' @6.182, 1/8 @ 9.018 and 88.01 mph, 1000' was 11.413, 1/4 13.419 @ 112.34.

All in all very disappointing! One thing I discovered after the runs is that when the dealership changed my oil the previous day, they had inflated the tires to 37 psi. I'm sure that didn't help with grip, but certainly shouldn't have cause the poor launch. I guess the bottom line is I just need some more time at the track to figure out how to get her down the track quickly.

Worst thing is that I let my buddy steal the crown I've held for 25 years!! Ugh! Odd thing is I've run him on the road many times and from a standing start he'd jump out a couple cars but I'd always roll by him pretty quickly and it seemed like Track mode and traction control left on resulted in little drama and quick starts. I would have thought the grip of a prepped track would have been better not worse.

[jdasnt3]

Your car is running just fine. It's all about the launch and practice with this car. The 37PSI in the tires DEFINITELY didn't help. Try lowering the rears to 22 or 20 PSI, then drive around the water box (if allowed) and then do a quick chirp and clean the tires off for a burnout. 2.3 60' times were the reasons for your slow 1/4, but that trap speed shows that your car is very capable of a low 12 second pass. A 1.8 60' or 1.9 will get you into the low 12's and it has been done tons of times on stock tires, just not at 37 PSI.

[z28pat]

The best indicator of the car's performance is the mph, at 112+ the car seems to be doing fine. Work on the launch, get that 60' down to 2 seconds or less and you'll be well in the 12s.

[Blazin383]

Yeah, I knew when I discovered the tire pressure that it certainly didn't help matters. Not sure what the dealership was thinking pumping them up to 37 psi!
I did drive around the water box, and did a quick cleaning of the tires before staging. Oh well, next time!

[zr1chris]

Gotta get that launch down. Almost every time I see someone getting bad times it's due to a bad 60'. A 2.3 is beyond bad. Gotta try to get it under 2.1 which should be possible on stock tires. A pair of drag radials should get you a 1.8 which will make a world of difference in your total ET

[vtirocz]

I have found that launch control is best on an unprepped street surface and works poorly on a prepped dragstrip. My car is an M6 though.

I would definitely run with TC off -- I usually double click it to Competitive Mode (TC off, Track version of stability control on). I've found TC on to be very conservative and pulls back power too quickly.

[lt4camaro]

Here are some suggestions, lower rear tire pressure to 25psi, back into the water (shut off trac control and stability control hold the button down 10 seconds or more) pull out of the water and do a good burnout standing still till some smoke comes from the tires, stage the car and do not think about reaction time, leave when you are ready. Take off as hard as you can without spinning (modulate throttle to control wheel spin by the seat of your pants) you will feel the bite and get the gas to floor hard. With a auto trans you should be knocking down 1.9 60 ft times all day long and running low 12's @ 114mph. Make sure you have been using 93 octane weeks before you try it again and run with a full tank if you have spin issues. And when you stage, just barely turn on the 2nd light, if you go to far just back up and trip the light again very easy. A good rollout is worth .2 ( just touching the 2nd light) Your there to get a good ET, reaction time means nothing so let the other guy go and leave when your ready.

If you do a proper burn out, with 25 psi pressure (warm) full tank of fuel, on a decent prepped track, you should be able to launch from idle and mashing the throttle when your ready and that will flash the converter for a nice launch. Remember, shut off traction control and stability control so you can do a burn out (hold it with the brake) and leave it off. The 455 HP SS doesn't really have enough to get you in trouble on a prepped track and a prepped car.

[Joshinator99]

Originally Posted by z28pat

The best indicator of the car's performance is the mph, at 112+ the car seems to be doing fine. Work on the launch, get that 60' down to 2 seconds or less and you'll be well in the 12s.

Yep, this.

[lt4camaro]

Originally Posted by z28pat

The best indicator of the car's performance is the mph, at 112+ the car seems to be doing fine. Work on the launch, get that 60' down to 2 seconds or less and you'll be well in the 12s.

What your saying is truthfull, but 112 trap speed is on the weak side. The car should be trapping 114mph. Another thing regarding trap speed is during a poor launch and a poor 60 ft due to excessive spinning can a lot of times result in a higher MPH trap and poor ET versus a perfect no spin hard launch and a all grip run thru 1000 feet which a lot of time results in a lower MPH trap but much better ET. ET wins races, not trap speed.

[Martinjlm]

Originally Posted by vtirocz

I have found that launch control is best on an unprepped street surface and works poorly on a prepped dragstrip. My car is an M6 though.

I would definitely run with TC off -- I usually double click it to Competitive Mode (TC off, Track version of stability control on). I've found TC on to be very conservative and pulls back power too quickly.

Yeah, that’s what I’ve found to work best for me too.

Originally Posted by lt4camaro

What your saying is truthfull, but 112 trap speed is on the weak side. The car should be trapping 114mph. Another thing regarding trap speed is during a poor launch and a poor 60 ft due to excessive spinning can a lot of times result in a higher MPH trap and poor ET versus a perfect no spin hard launch and a all grip run thru 1000 feet which a lot of time results in a lower MPH trap but much better ET. ET wins races, not trap speed.

Interesting. I haven’t really figured out the correlation between trap speed and quarter time. When I ran my vert at Milan, my best time was 12.837 @ 108 mph. My highest trap speed was 109 and that was on my two highest quarter times...12.9 something and 13.1 something. I assumed the slightly higher trap was because of the longer duration on the track, even though only a couple tenths of a second.

[protovack]

I would actually expect a tuned RS5 with bolt ons to beat a stock SS. You guys were still super close, I would say within the margin of driver error. You are being pretty dramatic about the difference there, or perhaps fishing? I'd call it a draw at a 13.3 to a 13.3. Not what I would call a "pathetic" showing. Also, someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but to see the true potential of your car you would need to run in a PTM mode. I believe on just regular track mode, the traction control still rules, and it messes up your launch.

[Snowblind]

Buy some drag radials

Look for the "Dragstrip and Launching" section on this forum and grab some popcorn, you'll learn a bunch and then proceed to get your crown back.

[Blazin383]

Originally Posted by protovack

I would actually expect a tuned RS5 with bolt ons to beat a stock SS. You guys were still super close, I would say within the margin of driver error. You are being pretty dramatic about the difference there, or perhaps fishing? I'd call it a draw at a 13.3 to a 13.3. Not what I would call a "pathetic" showing. Also, someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but to see the true potential of your car you would need to run in a PTM mode. I believe on just regular track mode, the traction control still rules, and it messes up your launch.

Not sure what you mean by “fishing”, but his Audi has Cold air intakes, exhaust, reprogrammed engine and reprogrammed transmission, as well as he took a 5 gallon can of high octane fuel (not sure what it was exactly, he was secretive about it), but I’ve run him on the road several times and walked him easily from anything but a standing start. From a dig his all wheel drive gave him the jump by a couple cars, but I had no problem pulling by him. The launch control on his car is programmed to launch at 6,000 rpm which along with his all wheel drive gives him a serious advantage for the first 60’ at least. If I’d have dropped my tire pressure and had a couple more runs to practice I think I’d have beat him. He got 3 runs to my two and had a best of 12.97 @107.

[jdasnt3]

Originally Posted by lt4camaro

What your saying is truthfull, but 112 trap speed is on the weak side. The car should be trapping 114mph. Another thing regarding trap speed is during a poor launch and a poor 60 ft due to excessive spinning can a lot of times result in a higher MPH trap and poor ET versus a perfect no spin hard launch and a all grip run thru 1000 feet which a lot of time results in a lower MPH trap but much better ET. ET wins races, not trap speed.

A hot day and a high DA will definitely keep this car "on the low side," so not all 6th gens will trap 114 at every track and condition. For example, most stock 6th gens trap about 111 to 112 at Bradenton Motorsports in the heat even though we have an elevation of 12 feet. Our density altitude is typically 3000 plus during the hot days and nights here.