At What Point Should I Shift? Drag Racing My ‘94 Camaro…?
Okay so I want to take my 1994 Chevy Camaro out to the Martin Dragstrip in Michigan this coming summer and I want to know how to get the most out of my car. I’ve already raced her a couple of times and she’s not the fastest but she’s okay for me. She’s the 3.4L V6 and I haven’t gotten anything done to her yet. I know her specs: 160hp, max torque – 3600rpm, max hp – 4600rpm, etc… Since it has max hp at 4600 rpm, would that be the best time to shift? I figure that if it gets the max hp at that point then there is no point in staying in that gear any longer, right? Any other racing tips would be great; yes, I am a girl, and when I go next year, I want to be able to prove that girls can race just as well as guys. Thanks everyone!
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November 14th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
Hey – there’s absolutely no shame in racing the 6cyl Camaro! And its great to see a girl stepping up to the action.
You should shift right at the ‘tip-over’ in horsepower – somewhere between 4800 and 5000. While there’s still debate on this (several guys insist that the torque max is the optimal shift point), you can’t go wrong with the higher shift – it keeps the engine in a more ideal horsepower/torque range when you hit the next gear (this is even more critical with your 6 cyl; too low and you’re wasting time building the torque back up.
The tips I’d give for starters is this – make all the mods you can afford to. Cold air kit, high flow cat, cat-back kit, headers if you can. Valvetrain improvements will allow you to shift at higher rpm, improving your trap speed.
Install a shift-light to help you. While looking at the tach is fine for starters, you’ll want a light so that you can focus at the end of the track without looking down.
Check to see if you have the restrictive orifice in the hydraulics. Once you get to ’speed shifting’, you’ll likely find your Camaro balking at the 2-3 shift because of poor hydraulic bleed down – check the camaro forums for the detailed fix on this, and your shifts will be faster.
If you are more into the racing than the driving, get 90/10 style shocks on your car. If your a street/strip type, get adjustable shocks. You’ll want to be able to soften up your front shocks and tighten your rears (slightly) so that the weight transfer is improved. I’ve noticed with my ‘95 Z28, the autocross-style shocks I have allow too little weight transfer to get my tires to bite. Getting a greater weight- transfer at the strip would greatly help my 60 foot time.
Finally, find a hardcore strip racer to show you how to shift under full power. The faster you shift, the more your engine will stay in the power band, and the less time you’ll lose.
You’ll have to post some video of your efforts! Best of luck to you!
November 15th, 2009 at 12:21 am
first off to prove that girls can race get a v8 with some horsepower
shift right before it redlines too far you’l chirp the tires on a v8 on a v6 you might not hear it.
another tip heat the tires up good and get a good launch
November 15th, 2009 at 3:57 am
you should be able too tell that the car has stoped pulling,and thats probably where you would want to shift around 5 grand.
November 15th, 2009 at 8:47 am
junior nailed it!
November 15th, 2009 at 8:58 am
when your tachometer hits 6 grand
November 15th, 2009 at 11:57 am
Glad to hear you are going drag racing! I’ve been racing for 25 years and I love it, although all my spare change goes into my car.
I assume you have a manual transmission. Since max power is at 4600rpm, I would shift at 5000rpm. Even though this is well past the peak power rpm, when you shift, the rpm won’t drop below the torque peak. If you shift at 4600, the engine will have a harder time getting to the torque peak in that gear.
A good rule is to shift when the engine stops pulling hard. It may rev well beyond that, but you will not get the quickest E.T.(elapsed time).
For the launch, do a burnout in 2nd gear. Rev to about 3000 rpm, let off the clutch quickly, floor the gas and jam the brake. This will get the rear tires spinning fast enough to generate some heat and smoke. Hold for 5-7 seconds and let off the brake. This gets the tires soft and sticky so you don’t spin too much taking off. Don’t roll past the starting line doing this or you will look like a newbie.
As you wait for the christmas tree to flash down, rev to about 3000 rpm and take off on the last yellow. Don’t wait for the green because that will give a bad reaction time. Don’t let off the gas until you are past the finish line. Watch for the return road coming up and watch the other driver. There you have it.
Oh, if you have an automatic, just do everything with the shifter in Drive. Learn the basics first, then experiment with manually shifting.
Have fun and Good Luck!
December 7th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Absolutely with you it agree. Idea good, it agree with you.
December 10th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
Amazing! Not clear for me, how offen you updating your draghub.com.
Have a nice day
Bottomless
December 15th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Every Day