I've had my 5spd max for about 4 months now and I consider myself a pretty decent 5spd driver. I went out tonight to work on my launches, and the results....if I launch at too low of rpms, I get too much lag. If I launch at anything above 2500, way too much wheelhop or/and wheelspin. I tried letting the clutch out slower, but no luck. I feel if I take to long to slip the clutch out, I will have worse results. PLEASE help!

 

There are cars that would die to have this problem. Keep at it.

 

I wish i COULD get rid of my auto low end lag. I guess that's why i'm ordering the UDP tomorrow.

 

its just you i launch at 4000 RPM.. no problems.. little tire spin

 

Ok, geez, thanks for the help, even if is just me, maybe you could give me some insight on what I need to do to be able to launch at 4k like you. My p6000's only have about 7,000 miles on them, so i doubt it's that.

 

Bigger wheels and tires with more grip work.

 

I've been trying many different methods and the best I have so far is to drop teh clutch at 2500 and then let off the gas for a second then floor it. I get 2.2s almost all the time with that. Times and launch tech. depends on the road surface and track.

 

i have been working on my launches also. i take the revs up to 1.8rpms and slip the clutch slowly. i tried higher revs but i end up with too much wheel spin or the nasty clutch smell. i have had pretty good launches but am yet to go to the track.

 

Thanks THEblue, I'll really keep your method in mind! I give anyone props that can run a 14.8 with being almost stock! Beats my 15.0 w/ intake and y pipe! Thanks, anyone else have techinques they would like to share?

 

while we are on the subject... tire pressure is VERY important... at the track I run the fronts at 23, and the backs at 35. Back when I started doing this, I dropped from 15.2 to 15.0 instantly, just because of the tire pressure.

 

OMG! I haven't even thought of that. What do you keep the pressure at for normal driving? 25-30psi???

 

don't remember... about that... I do whatever it says in the armrest thing.. I figure Nissan knows best about their rims for daily driving.

 

Screw the car, nice house! That yours?


Sounds like Maximas are just as hard to launch as SHO's. Smoke or bog, smoke or bog, smoke or bog........the story of an SHO's life. Im sure glad I dont have that problem.

Later,

 

haha, I wish that was my house. It's a friend. You like his house, look at his ride! He runs 12's! 2001 Trans Am Ws6 w/ ram air, y pipe, headers, and borla exhaust. Made for one thing:
HAUL A$$!

 

After over 40 1/4 mile passes, I've learned that you need to launch high to get an honestly good start. I considered myself a good driver until I went to the track and realized I didn't know squat on how to drive this car. Believe me, I can feel the difference between a 2.2 60 foot and a 2.3 60 foot. If you've got a Y-pipe, intake, exhaust, then you want to be hitting 3500+rpms when you come off the line (no joke). If I launch at 2500-3000 at the track, the tires spin a bit and the rpms fall to 2500-2800 which induces a bog that you really can't feel. If this happens when I race, it's an instant 2.35+ 60'. I might as well not even finish. If I launch higher, say 3500-3800, and rpms fall into 3200-3500 rpms right off the line, then I'm in the 2.2s. I did a 3800rpm launch last night and got a 2.28. I always spin and get some wheelhop, but the trick is to keep forward motion.

Here's my technique (and I'm still working on it). First, weather is very important. If it's hot and humid out and your engine is hot, the car is going to be sluggish and the tires are slightly more grippy which means you'll have to rev up more. Second, if the surface is slick, forget get it. FWD cars can't launch well on baking asphalt. Don't kid yourself. Try launching a concrete area like a backroad bridge or something.

-I rev up to 3500-3800 (depending on how gutsy I feel) and release the clutch right before it's engaged

-when it's time to go, ease the clutch out about 1/2" so that you feel it catch and dip into the throttle 1/2" at the same time.

-then quickly release the clutch and feed it gas and when you feel like it's just about hooked up, hammer it. You'll probably only use true WOT from 5000-6500rpms. If you get too greedy, you'll smoke'em too much.

All this should be feel like one motion with the pedals.
This is as close to a "side stepping" the clutch as I think is possible. If you truely side step the clutch, all you'll get is wheelspin due to all the power "shocking" the drivetrain. Use a little wheelspin to your advantage. You could always feather the clutch off the line, but it's extremely hard on the clutch and you'll be buying lots of clutches. I've got 68000 miles, well over 40 1/4 mile passes and my clutch has NEVER slipped or got soft.

Keep practicing. That's all you can do. I've got to relearn my whole street launch now because of my UDP (way too much wheelspin).


Dave

 

um... no.. i only drag with my stock hub caps and 15 inch wheels

 

Sorry Steve..

i usually get 2.1 60fts.. i have squeezed a 2.09 .. but.. i missed third

First off let me say a combination of Adam aka MY 4DSC and Phuong aka got rice? gave me pointers on how to drag..

As soon as i am full staged and ready to go and the light is about to drop..

I put the car in 1st Gear.. bring the RPMS up to 4000 RPM..

as soon as the 3rd Yellow light.. i start letting the clutch out slowly.. then as soon as i hook.. i start getting off the clutch faster, but not fully off the clutch.. then press the clutch again for 2nd.. so i am not exactly FULLY off the clutch for 1st gear..

 

Its an easy way for him to control his launches for right now, but I completely see your point.

 

talking to me?

 

Yes. Were you expecting sarcasm?

 

were you trying to be sarcastic?

 

NO!!

 

I forgot to mention. I run on 16" Kosei K1s with 215/55 Yokohama Avid V4. This setup weighs about 1lb lighter than the stock 15" setup.

Don't let anyone tell you that running bigger rims and lower profile tires will help your launch. It's BS. The only reason they feel like they are launching better is because of the bog the bigger wheels. Low profile tires are horrible for drag racing and I've experienced this first hand on and off the track when I had my 17s with 235/45s. Low profile tires have great lateral grip for cornering, but they are too flat and stiff to plant on a launch. Too much of the contact patch is on the shoulders and not the central part of the tire (ie the contact patch is wide and narrow). With taller and narrower tires, the contact patch is long and narrow therefore more tire is put down while accelerating. It's a tradeoff. Point is, you should be able to launch pretty good with the stock 15" setup and decent tires.

What's the condition of your shocks? Last year when I was racing, my rears were toast and the weight transfer to the rear of the car was horrible. This took all the weight off the frontend and induced lots of spin. If you want to hook up, you need a nice set of firm shocks.

At the track, I take my Konis to full stiffness in the front. 28psi in the fronts and 42 in the rear. That's all. Konis in the front and KYB GR-2s in the rear.


Dave

 

Making the assumption that bigger rims and tires weigh more, I igured that that would slow him down a little and help to control wheelspin. Will it help his times? no. Will it help his wheelspin? yes.

 

Ok????

 

NO!!!

 

Man, Sprintmax, those are some great 60's. Can't get much better than that! Thanks guys for all your input, it has really given some new things to try. Now when I go out to try, I hope I dont burn out my clutch. Later

 

ok??

 

NO!

 

I know what you mean Sprint, I can drop it at 4k and get very little wheel spin and a great launch, I am running on stock SE 16 inch with 215/55ZR16 (Kumhos) and they are great for launching

 

Sprintmax, what were your 1/4 times with a 2.09 60' and what mods? nitrous? supercharger? motor only?

I dont got a maxima but we are talking the same type of thing.

If the track is sticky i work my way up from a 3,800rpm launch to a 4,200rpm launch by my last run. My best 60' was 2.067 and this was with 20 psi of air in my tires. Killed my top end a little but helped my launch so well that it made up for it and then some. I figure 4,000 or higher is where i wanna launch at. I launch at 4,000rpm or so, feather the clutch a little till you get full grip and then drop it. Your tires should spin a tad bit to get your momentum going.

 

thats funny.. my drag tires are also Kumhos