djcr99

Lets just say that last night was not the best night to test my 04 TL at the track for the first time since I bought it.....
1. It rained all day around Palm Beach Gardens so we had humid track conditions.
2. Because of the rain, Bracket Racing Cars were pushed back to start at 8PM leaving sportsmen class autos (me) to run only two 1/4 mi. runs for the night.

So basically, conditions were not good.. but since I drove 100 miles to the track, I just had to at least see what the car would do at these conditions...

STOCK 2004 TL, 6MT, HP Tires w/ Nav
Temp was around 78 Degrees
Humidity was between 70%- 80%
(Gas Tank was almost at empty so I figured I had like 5 gallons in it still......)

1rst Run
Reaction Time ......... 1.171
60 .......................... 2.560
330 ........................ 6.822
1/8 ......................... 10.188
MPH ....................... 73.90
1000 ...................... 13.019
1/4 ........................ 15.398
MPH ....................... 95.03

Right before setting up at the start line, I turned off my Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) and A/C, and I did a 3 second burn out on some water they set at the track just before the start line. I don't know if this was a good idea considering I dont really have slick tires, but I did it anyways since everyone else was doing it.... (Should I have done it??? I have the factory HP tires). Right before I got green, I let my revs go up to about 6 and then let my clutch out completely at green. I probably got like a 2.5 second burnout before I finally decided to put it in 2nd gear. I noticed that when the tires were spinning, all I could feel were the tires making a banging noise untill I put it in second gear (Is that normal with the VSA off??? or could it have just been the humidity of the track?) After that I pretty much got revs up to the redline before shifting and crossed the 1/4 mile line just when I put in 4th gear. I also never "powershifted", meaning I let the gas pedal out everytime I shifted for an instant in contrast to just leaving the gas pedal in. Overall, I felt I had too much burnout time but my shifting was OK.

2nd Run
Reaction Time ......... 0.578
60 .......................... 2.397
330 ........................ 6.545
1/8 ......................... 9.847
MPH ....................... 74.98
1000 ...................... 12.649
1/4 ........................ 15.026
MPH ....................... 94.60

My second run started out much better. I thought my VSA was off since I had turned it off from the last run, but I was wrong. Since I turned off my ignition between runs, the VSA engaged itself automatically without me noticing it. This time I did a shorter burnout on the wet part of the track (about 1 sec), probably because the VSA kicked in. Right before green I let my revs up to the red line and then let my clutch completely out. From the results of reaction time of 0.578, I would say that my time was almost perfect (Is .500 perfect reaction time????), and right when I got green, the car only slipped for about a third of a second. I shifted from 1rst to second right at the red line, and did the same from 2nd to 3rd without noticing any slip between gears. Just as I was to hit 4rth gear, I noticed that my revs were around 7 and I was almost at the finish line. I then decided to ride out 3rd until the finish line but just about 100 feet from it, I hit the red line at 7.5 and the cars revs backed down to 6.5, up to 7.5 again in an instant, and then I decided to go into 4th realizing that the car did not let me go higher than that. (Does the VSA control also how high I can go on revs???) I really feel that if I had not ridden out 3rd gear and hit the redline, I would have easily broken 15 sec. It felt really good to have shaved off almost 400/1000 of a second though. I ended up noticing that my VSA was engaged when I got back to parking lot... oh well, something for compare and contrast I guess.

Conclusion:
Track conditions were not optimal (very humid)..., this was my first time at this track..., this was my first time testing out the TL..., and I only got to run it twice..., but overall I felt allright considering that Edmunds Tests rated it at 14.96 @ 90.71 MPH on their performance track with a professional driver... whatever that means.

Let me know what you people think about all this and give me some feedback on it. Also post some times if you got em. I also want to to return to the track some time soon, so any other Floridians out there who wanna get a group together and go let me know too.

Champcar1

A couple of things here...
First run, way way too much tire spin.
Your speed on the second run dropped off probably because you hit the rev limiter when you were in third gear. Your RT was pretty good on the second run.
A perfect light now is .000. It used to be .400 but the NHRA chgange it a couple of years ago to make it a little more logical. The tree still sequences at .400 sec between lights, though.
The VSA does not control the rev limiter unless it senses tire slippage. I'm sure you were not experiencing tire slippage in third gear at that rpm.
Actually those track conditions sound pretty good. Cool air and high humidity will normally produce a bit more horsepower.
Sounds like it was a lot of fun.

sgtgreg

I'm no pro, but it seems to me that launching at those high revs would hurt your time rather than improve it. I have an '04 DGP/Parchment/5 auto and though I've never had it at the track I feel I could run 14's. Mine is bone stock except for a K&N replacement filter. I smoked a 40th Aniversary Mustang GT convertable. (On the highway). Happy motoring!

SpecialFX

Your times sound ok. Reaction time is a bit long. VSA should be off but you don't want too much tire slip. Spinning tires do not accelerate the car. You just want the tires to break loose a little to keep the engine from bogging down, then they should hook up. Your second run sounds much betting in that area. Your trap speeds are much faster than those quoted from Edmunds.

On a side note:
Why would you treat your car this way? Thank God I'll never buy your car used. This is not good for your car. The "banging" you heard was axle tramp. Basically the tires gaining and losing traction and the resulting driveline trauma. CV joints can't take too much of that type of treatment. Nor can the clutch take too many 6K drops. I replaced CV joints on one of my cars because it was too fun to resist. Thank God I don't do that anymore. Gets expensive in a hurry.

fla-tls

Yeah - I wouldn't beat on your car like that. It doesn't help your time, and can get very expensive. I was reading your post, thinking "Ouch! That poor car!"

I'm not sure what to think about the time. I thought the 6 speed '04 was faster than that, but the humidity would have definitely had an affect.

BTW - a perfect light at the track here in Orlando is .500 (not .000). They must use different timing for us track newbies.

WiLLs TypE S

nice run...get new tires...and pray for the 40-50 degree temperature to hit in...and make sure its dry...therefore result in 14's - mid 14's. =)

JetJock

Guys, I know this is all fun and games, but it's destroying your car. Hope you don't get on the forum in a few months and start badmouthing Acura when things start to break. We have a sport luxury car built to drive not race. Have fun but know it comes with a price later. Flame away!

J RIDE 81

Poor car =(, hey it's your investment though, you can do whatever you want!

djcr99

Thanks for all the replies, this is great feedback.

I believe what really hurt me was that the track itself was not completely dry. They did not seem to do a good job of drying the track off because of time pressure.

Ha, I know.... I felt bad about it (for 2 seconds...) , but oh well you live and you learn, hopefully thatll be the last time I get that. It did not happen on the 2nd run at all (prbly cause the VSA engaged...) I shall be more careful when I try it again with the VSA turned off, (start off slow, work my way up, see what my limits are). The excitement of testing it out for the first time was prbly the main cause....


Yeah- that was basically the word aorund the track.

Warranties are awesome.... in 4 years ill prbly be driving an 08 model.

Champcar1

Ya know, I think you are correct on the RT being .500 for amateur and sportsman. I think the .000 is only for the pro-start.

djcr99

I just found out someone videotaped my first run from last night!! I don't know the quality of the video but I shall post the link to it when he sends me the converted mpeg.

Aegir

I'd pass on the wet burnout. Odds are you'll just end up carrying water to the line with street tires. IMO, a quick dry hop to clean the tires should be sufficient. Third gear is definitely not tall enough - you have to shift to fourth. Sounds like that killed your second run.

Provided owners abstain from abusive practices like high-rpm launches, bouncing off the limiter, and powershifting, I see no reason why a TL can't provide years of reliable service with occasional trips to the track or other spirited expeditions.

fla-tls

Right. The pros get the two yellow lights - and then BANG the green.
Stage 1 -> Stage 2 -> Both yellows -> Green

The amateurs get the yellows individually.
Stage 1 -> Stage 2 -> Yellow 1 -> Yellow 2 -> Green

tommyt37

Hey great job looks like you had fun.... To all the others in here complaining about what you will do to your car screw them. It's your car do what you please.

2K2SilverTL-S

These J32 motors on the TL love to be pushed hard. There's nothing wrong with having some fun at the track. However, your numbers are pretty bad.....i probably would have never went to the track with those conditions. I'd defintely go back and try again when the conditions are better. Good luck with your TL.

rescueswimmer

Just a little fyi for you. Doing a burn out on street tires. Is not going to give you the performance gain you think. The only thing you will get is some used up tires. Now if you had some street/slicks for you race fans out there. Then I could see the significance of the burn out.

djcr99

What numbers SHOULD Id be getting then ?

ONAGER

Car and Driver got 14.4 @ 99 mph. how they got that, i dont know. my car has a date with the track a little later this year. will tell you how it goes. dont launch at those high rpms i found you do nothing but spin. i would say 2500-3000 feathering the clutch a bit (longer u spin the slower you go, vsa prevented that on the second run, also why your 60 foot time was almost .2 seconds faster)only problem with vsa is that it cuts power if it detects spin . a short dry burn out is better for street tires (based on conditions, cold tires yes, hot tires no really necessary) "bleach boxes" are really for slicks and drag radials which require heat, and alot of times arent driven to the track. shift to 4th is required for those trap speeds. high 14s would be gaureented if you had made that shift sooner. with better launches and conditions a mid 14 pass is very likely

as long as he doesnt continually dump the clutch his car should last quite a long time, the motor is easily able to handle those rpms, and as long as he doesnt power shift i dont see the tranny giving up the ghost either. and as long as drag radials arent used i even think the half shafts are up to the demand

either way, your car, you make the payments, driving as you see fit

happy motoring

ayethetiense

ok, first of all i thinks IT SUCKS THAT EVERYONE IS CRAPPIN on you for doing this. i don't know, have not checked of anyone else taking it to the track and giving details of what they did. more power to you. most people woulda had something stupid like...

~start of post~

o ya, im rad, i took my car to the track and... i drove it... and i got such-and-such seconds. ya im rad.

~end of post~

im glad you had that info. and not scared to ask questions....

first of all. doing a burnout on street tires... not worth it.
.500 is perfect for reaction time... so that was good for ur 2nd run...
if i understand what VSA is, i think it should have been on... im not completely sure though
the perfect amount of traction that you put on the ground is just before it starts to peel out...

now, its hard to get that because you'll prolly end up not giving it enough power. so, the easiest way to make the closest perfect traction is to make the wheel spin out for less then a fraction of a second. a good chirp with the powerband going up in your revs is good. not perfect, but the closest you can get and be able to notice....

you can deffinitely do a lot better... your 2nd run was hampered by you not shifting to 4th. the reason you just shifted into 4th during your first run was cause you were slower then your second. so that made it feel like the 3rd was long enough.

correct me if im wrong, but isnt redline at about 6800????

flnsx

Lets go again this Friday!

Xpditor

Hey.... I'll meet you guys there!

This thread will be moved to Cars & Bikes section on Friday for better exposure. -XP

djcr99

Yes you are correct. I stated the numbers a bit off on my first post.

All these replies are great, hopefully they'll help out not only me but everyone out there wanting to release the TL's full potential at the track or on the street.

SouthernBoy

Best time I've ever seen for a new TL was an A-Spec version tested by Car and Driver earlier this year. They managed a 0-60 in 5.6 seconds with a quarter mile of 14.3 seconds at 99 MPH. I have the article since I am a subscriber and you can get it on their website.