Are thirdgens really that bad racing from a roll? All i hear is race 'em from a stop. My car seems to do quit well going 35mph,60 or even higher.

 

I always prefer to race from a dead stop...

TPI systems are brutal in the low end.. and I've walked just about everything I've come across thru 1st and 2nd.. and even 3rd most of the time..

Once I get to about 65mph - 70mph, that's when I begin to feel the power begin to slip.. these systems just seem to run outta "umph" by the top of 4th gear (or past 4500 RPMs)..

It still pulls decent in the top end, but not compared to most other (and newer) systems.. which is what most of us come across these days..

-LJ

 

They don't do bad from a roll, if the gearing is right. The stock T5 does have a giant gap between 4th and 5th, but if you're starting a race anywhere under 70, you're fine. My little 305-and-a-half was a dead heat with a new turbo 'stang on a roll-off from 30, but my lack of posi made me look stupid running from a stop....he just left me whilst I made smoke.

 

Its a V8 and its not an LS1 so most of your power will most likely be down low. The race em from a stop thing comes from the the fact that most new cars that we have to worry about (imports for the most part) make most of their power higher up in the rpms so if you go from a stop you get a pretty good advantage over all but maybe the awd's. Although some of use (stock rs L03's with an auto) do decent up top because we have the oh so stupid 2.73's so we don't have any real advantage until the upper end and by then you are damned close to the limiter. Although the ability to run at an average speed of 90mph and get 26mpg on a 420mile trip is not bad.

 

i dont to seem to have much luck racing cars in a roll.

for instance a newer mustang gt, we were going around 40 and i wot in drive and i hardly pulled on him; nose to nose.

however i feel at a light i would of had the hole shot on him.

 

I love racing from a roll, about 25 mph for 1st gear, 40 if I'm going into 2nd, gone up to 65 for a 3rd gear drop, never gone from a higher roll. The combination of parts in my car makes for a brutal 3rd gear, I would have thought 1st or 2nd would be the strongest, but the hardest pull is 3rd gear. I had a guy ask me once if I sprayed him once I hit 3rd, its that strong. but then again, I'm not stock TPI

 

I don't know about all of that. I usually end up racing from a roll. I beat a 93-98?! Mustang GT with exhaust the other day. I don't know if it is just my car or not. I have no idea what gears I have. I just know the rear end is posi. My throttle response from 60+MPH is pretty good. But when I do hit the 4500RPM mark my car does feel like it's losing power.

But from a stop light your right. TPI is killer.

 

I still haven't lost a race from a 40mph roll. With my cam and gears I can stay in first gear until 50mph, so when I throw it back into 1st at 40 my rpms jump to 5,000 where I make the most of my power. I even chirp the tires now since they are losing a lot of tread. My car is terrible from a stop because of the mismatch of gears, cam, and stall. Once I get the 3.42s or 3.23s and the 2,000 stall, my low end will be much better, but not spectacular. My new cam, head work, manifold, carb rebuild, and tranny will make my topend even better. So I am assuming that once my car is where I want it, because I have a carb and not TPI, my topend power will be better than my lowend.

~Matt

 

i dont seem to have much of a problem with speeds above 60-70mph. I have gone from 60-80 in no time at all and then it keeps going untlil i hit about 135-140 then it starts to loose a little power but still pulls me upto about 160mph but a little slower cuz its at like 5800RPMs. Is 3.27 gearing better for racing from a roll? I heard its good from both a stop and a roll? Thanks for all the replys.

 

3.27s aren't bad from a stop, but if you want better launching you need a little more gear. 3.27 and 3.42 are about the best midrange gearing. My 2.73s keep me up in my high powerband longer than a higher gear would, but I am crap off the line. I am going with probably 3.42s, because I don't really care what my top speed is. I want to be thrown back at the launch too. I won't be seeing it in the 1/4 mile or from stoplight to stoplight anyway.

~Matt

 

I hate racing from a roll. If I have any money on a race, I will not do it from a roll. It is way too inaccurate of a race. Someone always seems to get the jump, and then it seems you have no chance to catch up if it anywhere near an even match. Just screwing around like that, I have taken some cars that should have killed me and lost to some easy wins. If its not a 1/4 mile, I don't consider it a real drag race!

 

Roll, stop, It usually doesn't make any difference for me.

 

I went 14.02 in my '88 with 2.77's and pulled 2.07 60fts. with just DR's. It was untouchable in 1st gear. After midway through 2nd though, you could tell it was dying. And yes the reason for the race from a stop is the TPI, killer torque, not much else. I think you'd be surprised what you could hang with in 1st gear.

 

Is there any way to tell what gears my cars has without taking the diff cover off? My car just has a tag on the rear that says limited slip. The cover has no marks on it whatsoever. Also I can't find RPO's for my car. I have looked almost everywhere in or on the car.

I don't seem to have any problems at all racing from a stop or from a roll. My car is not super modded or anything. She pulls fine from a roll and from a stop it can burn rubber pretty good.

 

A new turbo stang?

 

Well if you have a tach and its accurate, you can get a decent idea by putting the car in drive and running up to either 50 or 60mph. (D not OD, D is a 1:1 as i remember or close to it.)

 

I have a V8 that isn't a LS1 and most of my power is not down low. Lots of people like to run from rolls because of traction problems also.

 

Yea, Jokerman is talking about the 70mph test. At 70mph, drop it down into D and the rpms should read pretty close to your rear gear. Mine say 2650rpms at 70 mph in D Damn broke posi and teeth. My first gear is so terrible. 2.44 60ft because of mismatched driveline, 2.73s, a carb, stock stall and broken posi.

~Matt