I'm planning to switch over to an alcohol carb setup. I really like the setup from ProSystems. I know some of you guys are running alcohol. What setups are you running (including fuel pump)? Thanks!

 

I run a dual Ron's Flying Toilet mechanical injection system. I won't go back to a carb for alcohol.

 

Why alchohol? I don't really see any advantage for you...you have a small enough motor you shouldnt have any cooling issues...and youll probably only drop. 1-.15 in et.

No disrespect intended...just curious...

 

I've seen 12 second cars running on alcohol. It's a wonderful race fuel and if you need to run race gas, it's a lot cheaper. Alcohol will run in 8:1 to 15:1 engine but it's happiest in the 12-13 range right where you would be needing race fuel.

 

Im just not a fan...i dont like the smell...or the condensation on the manifold...i LOVE my t111 race fuel smell.

To each their own i suppose!!

 

It's hard on part's, fuel dilusion in the oil is horrible. Maintenance will go up, and I have seen on multiple occasions consistency go down. The only suitable application IMHO is sprint car's and forced induction mechanically injected engines. Alcohol carb's work like poop, and the flying toliet's are worse in my opinion. Ive seen the damage methanol does to cylinder wall's, fuel system's etc. You wouldnt catch me dead running it.

 

Many of the racers around here run it. I have seen the consistency it can give when tuned properly. Currently my car really swings with the weather and it is much cheaper.

One of the guys at my track us running the ProSystems carb and regulator. It has a special vacuum setup that changes the fuel pressure under engine load. This prevents oil dilution and the added maintenance that normal alcohol carbs can cause.

As I see it, drop ET, 1/2 the cost of my VP race gas and more consistent. Sounds like a win, win to me.

 

Alcohol will make more torque so if the stock parts you use can't handle the extra power then they'll get damaged.

If you're milking your oil with alcohol, you're dumping far too much into the cylinders. I change my oil once a year just because I feel guilty if I don't. My oil doesn't get diluted with alcohol.

I run a belt driven vacuum pump to help pull condensation out of the crankcase. I used to use an electric pump to help when the engine was off and it was still enough but couldn't handle the crankcase pressure at WOT. If you don't run any sort of vacuum pump then a header evac will still do the job. The best way to keep the oil clean is to get the oil temperature up at the end of the day. Alcohol will evaporate out of the oil at something like 172 degrees F so all you need to do is lean out the fuel to get the engine hot and pull the breathers at the end of the day if you have them in your valve covers.

There are maintenance requirements for all fuels. Alcohol isn't that hard to maintain. The little extra work involved can easily offset the better performance, cooler running engine, lower cost etc. Carbs are not too bad since they have accelerator pumps. Injected alcohol is hard to start a cold engine. A simple gas primer system gets my engine started when it's cold.

My engine makes somewhere near 1000 hp. Never had it on a dyno so it's only a guess based on performance results. If I'm lucky, I can get the engine up to around 160 degrees at the starting line and my entire cooling system only holds 10 liters (quarts) of water. I hardly ever turn the fan on.

Yank out that big heavy 4 core rad and drop in a smaller 1 or 2 core just to keep some coolant in the system. My rad/fan is out of a Pontiac Firefly that comes with a 1000cc 3 cylinder engine.

Emergency fuel. Methanol is simply methyl alcohol, wood alcohol or methyl hydrate. Need some emergency fuel, just run down to your local Walmart or Home Depot and buy all their methyl hydrate. It'll cost a little more buying it in smaller containers but it's still good for emergency race fuel. My sponsor buys mine by the barrel whenever I need some more from a local industrial supply house. I dump a half bottle of alcohol lube into a 205L barrel.

 

Personally I preffer alky over gas, I'm even running alky in our nitrous combo. - If you're having consistency swings and/or milking the oil, then your carb/fuel system is simply not adjusted/working properly.

If I were considering an alky carb, hands down it would be a Rupert. - We still have a 1250cfm Rupert that he built for my dad in the mid 70's that to this day has performed flawless every time we've bolted it on something, even combo's very different from the one it was built for. Dad talked to him last year & George was still able to tell us everything about the carb based off the number he stamped in it.


That said, injected alky is the way to go IMO. My definition of "cold" is likely very different from Alky Iroc's, but my hodge-podge set-up starts, idles, & runs great. The only time I need any sort of primer is the first time we go to fire it for the weekend, as the system is drained/cleaned after our last run of whatever prior event/evening. We simply squirt a little fuel in the butterflies & light it off though. After that it's simply a matter of turning the fuel/ign on & hitting the starter.

 

To add to my above:

I tow up & back, so we don't even have a cooling system on the car. I have water in the motor & a set of quick connects that allow me to hook-up to a tank under the trailer if there's a need to cool it between rounds(usually not, unless we're going right back up). I stage around 150*, & go through the traps 180-190ish depending how hard we're spraying it. - The blown combo has no water in it at all, cyl head temp is usually 130-150ish when staging & 200ish at the traps.

I change the oil after every race, be it when we run gas or when we run alky. Unless I have the alky overly rich for some reason, the oil comes out the same as when we run gas.

 

i switched from gas to alky a year ago. its way cheaper. my car is pretty damn consistent. there is some maintenance that you have to do. i run a belt driven fuel pump and a rupert 950cfm carb. im planning on going rons injection soon. as far as milking the oil goes, well i installed an oil heater in the pan. that helps. but i also have a lean out valve as well to help build heat in the motor. by the time im going up the return road the motor is at 180. also have a vacuum pump. i change my oil every 6-8 passes and thats more so to keep a close eye on the engine and its condition.

 

I switched mine over to E85 3 years ago for a different reason than most. My car see's a lot of street time, and with 13.8-1 compression it becomes costly when running race gas. I set up the carb myself. If you know your way around a carb it isnt that hard. A good wideband gauge is a good tool to help in tuning. Love it. Car is dead consistant with none of the problems that people are constantly bs about.

 

I've run alcohol since 2006. No more maintenance than on gas if you get a good carburetor. Mine is an AED 750 with an edelbrock mechanical pump and a Barry grant throttle controlled bypass. Idles at 3psi and 10 psi wot. I can buy 55 gal of alcohol with upper lube and scent for around $135