Those Aussies are fearless :good2:
http://newatlas.com/top-ev-electric-drag-racing-top-fuel/50741/ (http://newatlas.com/top-ev-electric-drag-racing-top-fuel/50741/)
"....We're talking about enough potential power, mounted within a foot behind my head, to run a whole suburb of houses with lights and appliances switched on. The electro-chemical energy density of the battery pack is equivalent to more than 18 kilos of TNT. If that's to short circuit and dissipate all the energy in the power pack, you're dealing with 18 kilos of TNT essentially, plus high speed and stability at those high speeds you're pressing the boundary of....."
I would miss the visceral kick to the rib cage I got from being in the grandstand. The sound pressure and the noise from the Top Fuel monsters just go right through you. To me that physical impact is a huge part of the experience of being track side, especially Trans Am and IMSA.
I only went along to one drag race in my life, didn't have a clue what I was getting into and lucked out. 1978 at Cayuga and who is there? Shirley Muldowney with her pink rail and Linda Vaughn, Miss Hurst, as the main distraction. LOL. Two names I already knew. A race film at the top of my list is "Heart Like A Wheel". What a day.
I wonder if this technology will hurt the sport. What happens to the crowds when a silent electric drag racer ends up beating all the competition? No more thunderous roars from the engines, no more violent explosions from a car half way down the track as a supercharger self-destructs, etc. I think half the fun of watching a drag race is all the noise and chaos.
Quote from: fjbiker84 on August 04, 2017, 07:33:52 AM
I wonder if this technology will hurt the sport. What happens to the crowds when a silent electric drag racer ends up beating all the competition? No more thunderous roars from the engines, no more violent explosions from a car half way down the track as a supercharger self-destructs, etc. I think half the fun of watching a drag race is all the noise and chaos.
+1
This is the best thing that could happen to electric cars.
These guys are going to make advances which, if they filter into consumer market, will actually make electrics more attractive than IC cars.
I'm sure my great-grand kids will enjoy the show
Quote from: Rich Pleines on August 04, 2017, 07:41:50 AM
Quote from: fjbiker84 on August 04, 2017, 07:33:52 AM
I wonder if this technology will hurt the sport. What happens to the crowds when a silent electric drag racer ends up beating all the competition? No more thunderous roars from the engines, no more violent explosions from a car half way down the track as a supercharger self-destructs, etc. I think half the fun of watching a drag race is all the noise and chaos.
+1
+1
I just attended the NHRA Drags at Sonoma last weekend. It will be a LONG time before an electric car captures the race fans the way a top fuel dragster does. They are absolutely soul-shattering. To see, hear and FEEL that power going by is unbelievable. I'll be glad when the electric fad runs out of juice.
They still race horses, for those who thought racing would be ruined when you could no longer look your vehicle in the eye.
I dont think the electric thing will fade away. That being said there aint nothing like sitting in the bleach box getting ready to do your burnout and listening to open headers. The rubber smoke, the noise and the feeling will never be replaced by an electric car. It just aint the same. I really miss my 67 Mustang and drag racing. Heres to top fuel and funny cars and the rush they produce, nothing better
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 04, 2017, 03:22:47 PM
I'll be glad when the electric fad runs out of juice.
Denial takes many forms.
https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040 (https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040)
I know when my little lithium battery blew last year there were shiny pieces of metal flying through the air -- pieces of foil vice pistons and rods, but still something for the crowds to cheer when there's a catastrophic failure at speed.
It will be sad to lose the aural thrill of a highly tuned engine though. I always run outside at work whenever one of the big radial engines planes is in the pattern - can't beat the sound!
Exactly right ZOA- I hate electric vehicle anything, The motor is most of what its all about! I want to bring back the two cycle engine- Honda and many others are working on an efficient fuel injected two stroke motor and I can only imagine a 4 cylinder square four 1000 cc two stroke street bike! Please God, Please.
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 04, 2017, 03:22:47 PM
I just attended the NHRA Drags at Sonoma last weekend. It will be a LONG time before an electric car captures the race fans the way a top fuel dragster does. They are absolutely soul-shattering. To see, hear and FEEL that power going by is unbelievable. I'll be glad when the electric fad runs out of juice.
I'm pretty sure it will prove to be impossible to shove the amount of current through the battery/controller/motor necessary to be competitive with anything approaching the level of Top Fuel. Shit will melt or blow up. I'd be surprised if they could compete with pro stock in the next 10 years.
Having said that, doing it for 1000 ft. may eventually be attainable, but anything approaching a SS1000 is years and years away.
Rocket/turbine powered dragsters have been around for decades and they're not threatening Top Fuel. No more than circus sideshows
I don't know how to provide a link.
Look up. Lightning's electic motorcycle dominates Pike's peak.
[Edit]
https://www.wired.com/2013/07/lightning-pikes-peak-2013/ (https://www.wired.com/2013/07/lightning-pikes-peak-2013/)
Quote from: Pat Conlon on August 04, 2017, 06:18:30 PM
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 04, 2017, 03:22:47 PM
I'll be glad when the electric fad runs out of juice.
Denial takes many forms.
https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040 (https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040)
The headline should say "UK & France start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars by 2040"
The electric vehicle fad is a steaming pile of shit and denial about the realities of its limitations. The only good thing is the old "instant torque" mantra. Nobody EVER talks about how the electricity still needs to be created. Most of it is by coal. So much for the "cleanliness" of electricity. It's horseshit. Wait till the batteries start to fester in piles at your local dump.
In your anger you've managed to mis read the news article
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 07, 2017, 01:17:16 AM
The headline should say "UK & France start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars by 2040"
Feel free to read it again.
https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040 (https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040)
Hint: No, they won't "start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars", because they won't be allowed to be sold.
Re: Dirty electricity and electric cars, if the Trump fan boys had their way, all electricity in the US would be generated by burning coal. However, they can't recind the law of economics. (Let alone Obama Care)
Good news is : Coal is dead and "Clean Coal" has been proven to be an illusion.
Quote from: Pat Conlon on August 07, 2017, 01:44:13 AM
In your anger you've managed to mis read the news article
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 07, 2017, 01:17:16 AM
The headline should say "UK & France start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars by 2040"
Feel free to read it again.
https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040 (https://www.transportenvironment.org/news/uk-and-france-end-diesel-petrol-car-sales-2040)
Hint: No, they won't "start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars", because they won't be allowed to be sold.
Re: Dirty electricity and electric cars, if the Trump fan boys had their way, all electricity in the US would be generated by burning coal. However, they can't recind the law of economics. (Let alone Obama Care)
Good news is : Coal is dead and "Clean Coal" has been proven to be an illusion.
Buying and selling are two different things, Pat. I'm talking about the consumers. Unless you're suggesting those countries will ban imports.
Got any ideas about where to dispose of all the spent lithium?
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 07, 2017, 01:17:16 AM
The headline should say "UK & France start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars by 2040"
The electric vehicle fad is a steaming pile of shit and denial about the realities of its limitations. The only good thing is the old "instant torque" mantra. Nobody EVER talks about how the electricity still needs to be created. Most of it is by coal. So much for the "cleanliness" of electricity. It's horseshit. Wait till the batteries start to fester in piles at your local dump.
78% of French electricity is nuclear. They don't have their head up their ass about it like US does.
EV batteries are very recyclable. The stuff they are made of is too expensive to be put in the dump. "Spent lithium" really isn't a problem.
Quote from: JPaganel on August 07, 2017, 10:32:53 AMQuote from: ZOA NOM on August 07, 2017, 01:17:16 AMThe headline should say "UK & France start buying foreign diesel and petrol cars by 2040" The electric vehicle fad is a steaming pile of shit and denial about the realities of its limitations. The only good thing is the old "instant torque" mantra. Nobody EVER talks about how the electricity still needs to be created. Most of it is by coal. So much for the "cleanliness" of electricity. It's horseshit. Wait till the batteries start to fester in piles at your local dump.
78% of French electricity is nuclear. They don't have their head up their ass about it like US does. EV batteries are very recyclable. The stuff they are made of is too expensive to be put in the dump. "Spent lithium" really isn't a problem.
Batteries are not the only way to go, either. You can make very clean electricity at home, from solar cells or wind power. I got a kick out of a guy in Denver, which is about as poor a wind-power site as you can find. In the 1980s, he was running his car entirely on the hydrogen that he cracked from water, using a common US$1000 homestead windmill. They had an article in the papers about him. He told them something like "Oh, yeah, they tell me my set-up wastes energy all over the place, lousy system, all that crappola. Hey, everybody, all of my hydrogen is FREE, and the windmill and equipment have paid for themselves several times over, so far."
I can imagine that people like him will be running their hydrogen into fuel cells, powering everything from the house to the car with home-made electricity. With the advances in hydrogen generation, solar cells, and windmills lately, this would be a very efficient way to go.
Home fuel cells, about the size of a washing machine or refrigerator:
https://www.h2-international.com/2015/09/21/ene-farm-installed-120000-residential-fuel-cell-units/ (https://www.h2-international.com/2015/09/21/ene-farm-installed-120000-residential-fuel-cell-units/)
Fuel cells in cars:
http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/hybrid-electric/news/a26867/hydrogen-cars-toyota-murai-honda-clarity/ (http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/hybrid-electric/news/a26867/hydrogen-cars-toyota-murai-honda-clarity/)
People who say it can not be done, should please stay out of the way of people who are doing it.
:biggrin:
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 07, 2017, 01:17:16 AMNobody EVER talks about how the electricity still needs to be created.
My wife wouldn't let me put a "POWERED BY COAL" bumper sticker on her Leaf when she got it; coal was the largest source of power in Georgia then. As of April 2017, though, coal-fired generation had been supplanted by natural gas as Georgia's leading source of electrical power, now >36%. Coal is 29% and nuclear is 26+%. (Amusingly, renewables are over 5%.) I would have to make my own bumper sticker that says "POWERED BY CHEAP ELECTRICITY THANKS TO FRACKING - SORRY ABOUT YOUR TAP WATER, RURAL PEOPLE!"
An electric motor may not make the hair stand up on the back of your neck the way a fun IC engine does as it pulls toward redline, but a 2-stroke's smoke and racket never really added anything to my dirtbike experience; that would have been even more fun if I could twist the grip and jet off silently. And even my exciting IC engines aren't doing anything exciting much of the time; they're sort of slowly cooking themselves to death waiting for traffic to move.
Wasn't this thread supposed to be about an electric-powered dragster? I mean God damn!
...and that's why we call it a digital campfire.....
:Facepalm:
I've said my piece. Enjoy your silly battery powered toys.
Remember that modern aviation started with a machine made from twigs and canvas with a motor barely able to create enough lift to get off the ground.
Within 50 yrs the sound barrier was broken. Then 20 yrs after that we were on the moon.
The rate of technological change is going so fast now that most of us cannot comprehend the possibilities coming down the pipe.
EV technology will accelerate at an even faster pace. The IC engine is a marvel of human ingenuity that has basically remained unchanged for almost 150yrs. But it's time has come. This is lamentable by most of us here as we have experienced nothing else.
I just hope it's a gentle passing of the torch. Considering the ability of people to keep the oldest of vehicles still running safely, even if IC engines were banned tomorrow, they could still be on the road for another 50yrs - in gradually dwindling numbers.
Unless the Motor Police come and take it to be crushed. :cray: But until then get as many klicks in as you can. :good:
Maybe even the wheel will become redundant one day.
I think Neil Peart summed it up best in Red Barchetta. (Trigger warning for all you Rush haters out there :blum2:)
My uncle has a country place, that no-one knows about
He says it used to be a farm, before the Motor Law
Sundays I elude the 'Eyes', and hop the Turbine Freight
To far outside the Wire, where my white-haired uncle waits
Jump to the ground
As the Turbo slows to cross the borderline
Run like the wind
As excitement shivers up and down my spine
Down in his barn
My uncle preserved for me an old machine –
For fifty-odd years
To keep it as new has been his dearest dream
I strip away the old debris, that hides a shining car
A brilliant red Barchetta, from a better, vanished time
Fire up the willing engine, responding with a roar!
Tires spitting gravel, I commit my weekly crime...
Wind in my hair –
Shifting and drifting –
Mechanical music
Adrenalin surge –
Well-weathered leather
Hot metal and oil
The scented country air
Sunlight on chrome
The blur of the landscape
Every nerve aware
Suddenly ahead of me, across the mountainside
A gleaming alloy air-car shoots towards me, two lanes wide
I spin around with shrieking tires, to run the deadly race
Go screaming through the valley as another joins the chase
Drive like the wind
Straining the limits of machine and man
Laughing out loud
With fear and hope, I've got a desperate plan
At the one-lane bridge
I leave the giants stranded
At the riverside
Race back to the farm
To dream with my uncle
At the fireside...
Quote from: ZOA NOM on August 08, 2017, 08:09:39 AM
I've said my piece. Enjoy your silly battery powered toys.
This "car" fad will never take off. All a man needs for transportation is a good mare.
:blum1:
Bah! Everyone knows you need to build a fire, tend the fire, boil water with the fire, and then use the steam for power, like a locomotive. This "internal combustion" fad will never take off. How are you gonna control the fire, when you can't even *see* the fire, for Pete's sake?