So uh, I'm a little confused with my car after taking it to the track for the first time. Never played around with it much at all and all runs were done with the car in D5.

Its a bone stock 02 TL Type-S with the trans replacement.

Times in magazines and such (I'm an avid Car and Driver and Motor Trend subscriber) for the quarter miles are typically in the high 14's with trap speeds of 95-97mph.

The best run I could get out of night at Edgewater was 15.22@93.4mph. It was about 84 degrees and seriously humid tonight so I'm sure that didn't help and my 60' times were around 2.42 on that best run.

My worst was a 17.9@89 lol. I gunned it, spun completely through first gear to get the early upshift/bog into second and turned in a 2.97 60'. That has to rank as one of the worst 60's of all time hahaha.




With those horrible launches, I see high fourteens clearly possible, but what is up with those low trap speeds? The engine runs healthy and pulls good, but I'm thinking the weather had something to do with performance as most cars tonight were running relatively slower than usual. What do you guys think?

-Bryan

 

read this thread.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=176715

 

There are too many factors, the wind speed/direction and weather conditions alone can affect your car by a lot. Also you mentioned that you put it in D5, problem is if you leave it in D5, even when you floor it, the car would shift a few hundred rpm early before the redline, and that alone would cost you a lot of time and trap speed. I don't know about your car, but for my stock 02 TL-S, it would shift at 6500rpm, while the redline is at 6900rpm.


Given the conditions, the fact you left it in D5 only, this was your first time at the track, I say you did pretty well! I think you should be able to obtain at least 2.3s 60ft and 2.2 is not uncommon either. Go to the CL forum and perhaps those guys can help you more as they tend to be have much faster times than people here.

Also, did you empty your trunk, less than 1/2 tank of fuel, tire pressure adjusted properly, etc?

 

I calculated the density altitude for last night (I figured that's when you ran). Conditions were in the 2,500' range which means your car was only making about 92% of it's available power. Those conditions are sucking out about .4 seconds and 2 to 3mph compared to more ideal sea level air like you'd find in the cooler months.

Some words of advice. Don't bother racing in the temps above 70 degrees because the conditions are always working against you. 40 to 50 temps with high baro pressure (30.00+) is ideal and you'll run your fastest times.

Read my drag racing tips. There's no reason you can't get your TL-S to 60 foot in the low 2.3 range. For every .1 seconds you shaved in 60', you'll see a .15 second improvement in the 1/4 mile.

In fall air and with a low 2.3 60' (which isn't good at all), your TL-S should be able to do 14.6-14.7@95-96mph.

Everyone thinks they're a badass driver and their car is quick until they experience the drag strip and see just how wrong they were. We've all been there. It takes practice.

 

There you have it, your car is running normally

 

Exactly why I'm waiting until Sept/Oct to run mine. Maybe I can find a set of DR's and used TL wheels between now and then too.

 

i have some stock 16's i no longer want. they are curb rashed, but if youre just going to use them for the track. they will be great. pmme

 

Yeah last night it was confirmed 84 degrees and 90% humidity. . . Track temperatures were probably horribly high also.


I have track experience with all of my previous cars. My last car was an modded 93 Prelude JDM H22, bolt ons, some headwork and a dyno tune. I've never gotten a 2.1 60' at that track lol.



I figured the car was running properly because it still felt peppy and strong just not very strong on the track as if the ECU was pulling timing to compensate for the temps. Most cars last night were running slower than normal. I'll take it back on a cooler day and shoot for better runs.

Thanks guys

 

You can find the historical conditions in your area for any over the past 10 years at wunderground.com. Last night, the temps were in the 80-83 degree range, barometer in the 30.00 range, and humidity in the 40-45% range. 90% humidity in 80+ degree air is basically impossible. Humidity is relative to temp. As temps go up, less water vapor is held in the air. 80 degrees and 45% humidity isn't comfortable at all nor is 95 degrees and 25% humidity.