'98 9psi SC'd 4.5gen w/ Spec-V 6spd - Story of my first track pass with a clutch
10-28-2012, 11:59 AM
#1
'98 9psi SC'd 4.5gen w/ Spec-V 6spd - Story of my first track pass with a clutch
It's been a little over a month since I made this pass at this year's NOPI Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. Even though I'm still a little disappointed to post it, today I really felt like sharing the whole story about it - hope you enjoy the read. 
I had no intentions of running the car down the track at all when we went. Keep in mind I was only able to make one pass, but let me go ahead and get all the excuses out of the way - which there are a ton...
First off, I have never launched a manual car on the street from a stop, let alone at the track with hundreds of people watching, so I was extremely nervous. Second, the car was heat soaked from driving all over God's creation at the track trying to go through tech and get signed up to run. The car also runs very rich because I haven't done any tuning at all other than basic old-school base FP tuning (AFR's average 10.2-10.4 in the midrange and lean out to about 10.8 at redline). The trunk of car was full of both Grant's and my luggage/gear for 2 days, the gas tank was full, and I did the run on my 19's which have very little usable tread/traction left (right at the wear bars). With all that in mind, let's go back through the pass.
Grant and I both thought the smart idea would be to start in second gear, since first gear, with the Spec-V final drive and the amount of power the car puts out, is almost completely useless. While I was waiting in the staging lanes, I watched a couple cars get good launches, and the track seemed like it was pretty decently prepped from where I was at. I was still going to start in second, but then I got really conflicted, because I was now able to see that there were a ton of people in the grandstands (honestly upwards of a thousand). I really didn't want to stall the car for the only pass I was going to be able to make, especially in front of all those people. The car before me was a SC'd K-swapped Honda Fit (nasty little car), and he got a good launch out of the hole, so I just decided to start in first gear and pray I didn't spin like hell and short shift into second. I originally was going to bypass the water box, but I was so busy thinking about what to do, that the next thing I know I'm rolling right up to it. I figured, what the hell, and did a pretty decent burnout (the first one I've ever done btw) and rolled up to the lights.
I ended up being lined up against a modded G35 coupe (mostly bolt-on's) that I had seen running mid/low 14's earlier in the day, so I knew I had a good chance of winning if I was able to get off the line well enough. Then it hit me that I had no idea what to hold the rev's at to get a good launch without just spinning like hell. Which brings me to another problem - I don't have a working tach in the car... Not a big deal, I've owned/driven Maxima's since I was 15 (28 now), so I know almost exactly what RPM the car is at based on the sound of the motor/exhaust. Gut reaction was to hold the car at around 3-4000rpm and gingerly slip out the clutch.
The G35 staged and the lights started running down and I took off and it honestly felt really good... for the first 20-30ft... Then torque won out over the traction and I bounced off the rev-limit a couple of times.
I shifted into second gear, but I was really amped up and didn't work the clutch as smoothly as I could and continued to spin going into second. I feathered the throttle slightly and got traction back and mashed on the gas again. Then when I hit the peak power band, I lost traction at the top of second and hit the rev-limiter again. The G35 was still in my field of view to my left, but no big deal, just shift into third and we'll be good. I absolutely beasted the gear change (best I have ever shifted into third) and got a slight bit of spin going into third gear and the car finally started taking off like a rocket - bye bye G35 
Third gear was over really quick, but the adrenaline was really kicking in, so I accidentally kissed the rev-limit. It felt like I had hit the brakes, but with a quick change and chirp I was hauling @ss in fourth gear. I was going much faster than I thought I would be, and I realized that I was going to run out of gear before the traps... It was too late to do anything at that point, and I hit the rev limiter about a good 200ft before the traps. The sudden deceleration really unbalanced the car, but I white knuckled it all the way through the traps and then started braking.
The track uses the crappy printer slips like everywhere else, and the numbers have all but disappeared now, but here's the slip written out:
Car____:_G35 Coupe__|____My '98
Lane___:___Left_____|_____Right
Dial____:___N/A_____|______N/A
R/T____:___.732s____|_____.606s - .500 tree - Not bad for first time launching with a manual
60'_____:__2.579s___|____2.563s - WTB: Traction
330'____:__6.751s___|____6.606s - Re: WTB: Traction
1/8th___:_10.065s___|____9.656s
mph____:_73.87mph__|___82.85mph
1000___:_12.966s____|___12.208s - I would have loved this as the ET...
1/4mi__:_15.401s____|___14.314s -
mph____:_92.84mph__|__110.66mph - picked up almost 30mph in the second half
I was expecting to be in the 13's, and was very disappointed at the time, but looking back at everything I had to deal with, it honestly isn't all that bad. I went ahead and checked on the DA so I could run the NHRA time/mph conversions. At the time I ran down the track, the conditions were horrible compared to earlier in the day. Here's all the info:
Temp_:___82*F___Density Altitude_____:__2958ft
DP___:___60*F___NHRA ET conversion__:__.9646
Press_:__29.95___NHRA MPH conversion_:_1.0374
Elev__:__1002ft
Converted/Standardized ET and MPH: 13.807s @ 114.80
I need to get some stickier DR's/Slicks. The clutch is good to almost 500 ft.lb's of torque, so I could conceivably slip it out even in second gear with slicks (if the axles will hold up to that). The only problem is getting them sized right (height wise) so I could stay in 4th through the traps and also keep my BBK. Had I put on the Rota's for the event, even with over-sized 26.8" tall 245/45-18 KDW 2's on them that you can see in my signature, I might have honestly had better results... We'll just have to wait until the next time I hit the track
I had no intentions of running the car down the track at all when we went. Keep in mind I was only able to make one pass, but let me go ahead and get all the excuses out of the way - which there are a ton...
First off, I have never launched a manual car on the street from a stop, let alone at the track with hundreds of people watching, so I was extremely nervous. Second, the car was heat soaked from driving all over God's creation at the track trying to go through tech and get signed up to run. The car also runs very rich because I haven't done any tuning at all other than basic old-school base FP tuning (AFR's average 10.2-10.4 in the midrange and lean out to about 10.8 at redline). The trunk of car was full of both Grant's and my luggage/gear for 2 days, the gas tank was full, and I did the run on my 19's which have very little usable tread/traction left (right at the wear bars). With all that in mind, let's go back through the pass.
Grant and I both thought the smart idea would be to start in second gear, since first gear, with the Spec-V final drive and the amount of power the car puts out, is almost completely useless. While I was waiting in the staging lanes, I watched a couple cars get good launches, and the track seemed like it was pretty decently prepped from where I was at. I was still going to start in second, but then I got really conflicted, because I was now able to see that there were a ton of people in the grandstands (honestly upwards of a thousand). I really didn't want to stall the car for the only pass I was going to be able to make, especially in front of all those people. The car before me was a SC'd K-swapped Honda Fit (nasty little car), and he got a good launch out of the hole, so I just decided to start in first gear and pray I didn't spin like hell and short shift into second. I originally was going to bypass the water box, but I was so busy thinking about what to do, that the next thing I know I'm rolling right up to it. I figured, what the hell, and did a pretty decent burnout (the first one I've ever done btw) and rolled up to the lights.
I ended up being lined up against a modded G35 coupe (mostly bolt-on's) that I had seen running mid/low 14's earlier in the day, so I knew I had a good chance of winning if I was able to get off the line well enough. Then it hit me that I had no idea what to hold the rev's at to get a good launch without just spinning like hell. Which brings me to another problem - I don't have a working tach in the car... Not a big deal, I've owned/driven Maxima's since I was 15 (28 now), so I know almost exactly what RPM the car is at based on the sound of the motor/exhaust. Gut reaction was to hold the car at around 3-4000rpm and gingerly slip out the clutch.
The G35 staged and the lights started running down and I took off and it honestly felt really good... for the first 20-30ft... Then torque won out over the traction and I bounced off the rev-limit a couple of times.
I shifted into second gear, but I was really amped up and didn't work the clutch as smoothly as I could and continued to spin going into second. I feathered the throttle slightly and got traction back and mashed on the gas again. Then when I hit the peak power band, I lost traction at the top of second and hit the rev-limiter again. The G35 was still in my field of view to my left, but no big deal, just shift into third and we'll be good. I absolutely beasted the gear change (best I have ever shifted into third) and got a slight bit of spin going into third gear and the car finally started taking off like a rocket - bye bye G35 Third gear was over really quick, but the adrenaline was really kicking in, so I accidentally kissed the rev-limit. It felt like I had hit the brakes, but with a quick change and chirp I was hauling @ss in fourth gear. I was going much faster than I thought I would be, and I realized that I was going to run out of gear before the traps... It was too late to do anything at that point, and I hit the rev limiter about a good 200ft before the traps. The sudden deceleration really unbalanced the car, but I white knuckled it all the way through the traps and then started braking.
The track uses the crappy printer slips like everywhere else, and the numbers have all but disappeared now, but here's the slip written out:
Car____:_G35 Coupe__|____My '98
Lane___:___Left_____|_____Right
Dial____:___N/A_____|______N/A
R/T____:___.732s____|_____.606s - .500 tree - Not bad for first time launching with a manual
60'_____:__2.579s___|____2.563s - WTB: Traction
330'____:__6.751s___|____6.606s - Re: WTB: Traction
1/8th___:_10.065s___|____9.656s
mph____:_73.87mph__|___82.85mph
1000___:_12.966s____|___12.208s - I would have loved this as the ET...
1/4mi__:_15.401s____|___14.314s -
mph____:_92.84mph__|__110.66mph - picked up almost 30mph in the second half
I was expecting to be in the 13's, and was very disappointed at the time, but looking back at everything I had to deal with, it honestly isn't all that bad. I went ahead and checked on the DA so I could run the NHRA time/mph conversions. At the time I ran down the track, the conditions were horrible compared to earlier in the day. Here's all the info:
Temp_:___82*F___Density Altitude_____:__2958ft
DP___:___60*F___NHRA ET conversion__:__.9646
Press_:__29.95___NHRA MPH conversion_:_1.0374
Elev__:__1002ft
Converted/Standardized ET and MPH: 13.807s @ 114.80
I need to get some stickier DR's/Slicks. The clutch is good to almost 500 ft.lb's of torque, so I could conceivably slip it out even in second gear with slicks (if the axles will hold up to that). The only problem is getting them sized right (height wise) so I could stay in 4th through the traps and also keep my BBK. Had I put on the Rota's for the event, even with over-sized 26.8" tall 245/45-18 KDW 2's on them that you can see in my signature, I might have honestly had better results... We'll just have to wait until the next time I hit the track
10-28-2012, 02:06 PM
#2
Your trap speed tells me you should be dancing in the 12's which is a good thing. Your 60ft sucked but that was due to running the 19's and hitting the limiter will hurt your times too. all that into consideration with a better tire and tach you should vastly improve your time. You have extended rev limit ? If not reving up 4/500 more might be enough to not have to pedal through the traps.
@ the 110mph trap, obvious traction problems. 103-105mph with a decent launch is usually a very low 13. I would be worried about breaking stuff at the track thou.
10-28-2012, 03:06 PM
#4
if he was to get traction his mph wouldnt drop 5 mph...maybe 1 or 2. On a good day without the luggage and heavy a$$ wheels i could see thi car trapping 115
10-28-2012, 03:30 PM
#5
Your trap speed tells me you should be dancing in the 12's which is a good thing. Your 60ft sucked but that was due to running the 19's and hitting the limiter will hurt your times too. all that into consideration with a better tire and tach you should vastly improve your time. You have extended rev limit ? If not reving up 4/500 more might be enough to not have to pedal through the traps.
But you're right, most guys trapping around 103-105 usually run mid to low 13's...I think Crusher meant that based on the trap speed I should be running in the 13's. If I would have known I was going to run out of gear that early, I would have short shifted into 5th. Doing that, I don't doubt I could/can trap 115-118
10-28-2012, 04:04 PM
#6
Ahh so youve swapped the sc over? Nice. Im sure all the extra weight in the trunk, especially underneath the spare tire cover doesnt help. Which, might i add, you could DEF use to your advantage!
10-28-2012, 04:13 PM
#7
Haha, yep, everything has been swapped over. I did actually use the air to my advantage and added some pressure to the rear at the line to help with weight transfer. As for the weight, oddly enough, the compressors and tank weigh less than the spare tire. When you factor in the JL Stealthbox, the false floor and the other pieces of wood the air bits are mounted to, it's probably only about 40lbs more than it would be stock in the rear.
10-28-2012, 06:03 PM
#9
Nice setup OP... As stated by others, more seat time will help.. Also, speaking from experience, traction @ Commerce (Atlanta Dragway) is almost non existent unless you run SLICKS, drag radials don't even do well there.
A couple of my friends ran .4 to .5 faster w/ the same exact setups on their cars, in Reynolds(Silver $ Raceway) compared to Commerce.
A couple of my friends ran .4 to .5 faster w/ the same exact setups on their cars, in Reynolds(Silver $ Raceway) compared to Commerce.
10-28-2012, 08:55 PM
#10
your car is hot. a lot of shifting going on with that final drive though. having to shift into 5th at only 110mph is brutal.
try to get to the track on a normal test and tune day so you can get some seat time and get in the groove.
try to get to the track on a normal test and tune day so you can get some seat time and get in the groove.
10-29-2012, 03:08 AM
#11
11-01-2012, 05:32 PM
#14
exactly what i was thinking. Loosing momentum which can result in a slower 1/4 mile. I always thought a Sentra se-r final drive would be better for a n/a maxima....not a boosted one. The car is still quick but maybe be even quicker with a 02 maxima final drive and extended revs
Yeah, I did a quick check and if I had my 18's on, I would have trapped at about 116-117mph if I had gone through 4th on them. The longer effective gearing might have helped make the wheel spin be a little less off the line.
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