sethdavis17

so what is the significance of trap time? two cars have the same 1/4 mile time, but one traps at 120 the other at 100...

one car just doesnt launch as well, but makes up for it down the stretch? is the trap time a reflection of power being either high or low in the power band?? what is the significance of it anyway?

uedlose

MPH is Horse Power. ET is how well the car goes down track and if it spins and so on. But if you spin the wheels a little bit MPH can go up. Kind of like getting a running start. But to much wheel spin and MPH will fall off also. there is much more to it but this is some of the things I have learned from racing over the years and reading. 2 cars with everything 60ft weight and all being the same but run diff. mph is HP one car making more then the other. go to a PRO Race NHRA and watch Pro stock there you will see some crazy close racing where ets are the same alot but MPH will diff. Also it is E/T = elapsed time and trap speed = MPH

MU71L4710N

i donno about all that but its also got to do with where in the RPM band your car makes power. a vtak could have the same ET as a v8, but the vtak wont make power until it gets moving, so its going to be running a higher MPH time than the v8 because it had to catch up once it started making power.


hell when i was at the track (8th mile track) last weekend, some jackass dumped oil down the entire track cuz he wouldnt stop trying to hammer it even after he almost hit the wall off his launch (gained control, hit the gas, lost control, gained control, hit the gas, etc...). they were mopping the track for an hour and finally let us race again. when i hit second gear there was still oil on the track and my tires broke loose and i went strait to redline, well i shifted to third right there and i still trapped about the same MPH as when i hit second gear and dont spin...but my ET was an entire second slower (how that works i dont know...cuz it was basically a first to third shift)