Motor Trend, February 2005
7500
Approximate peak output, in horsepower, of a competitive 2005 Top Fuel engine. That's almost 1000 horsepower per cylinder.
500
Engine capacity, in cubic inches. The block and heads are CNC-milled from solid billets of aluminum, and the oil pan is titanium.
45.5
Maximum boost, in psi, produced by the supercharger at wide-open throttle. That's more than 3.0 bar, twice the boost achieved by a Mitsubishi Evo VIII.
12,654
Rpm the supercharger spins at maximum engine speed. With the engine at 8500 rpm, just turning the supercharger soaks up 900 horsepower.
165
Temperature in Fahrenheit of the 14-71-type supercharger after just 4.5 seconds of maximum boost.
569
Number of times the engine's crankshaft turns during the entire quarter mile. Each intake valve opens 284 times.
16
Spark plugs per engine. The twin MSD magnetos produce 88 amps. You need just 12 more to power your MIG welder.
77
Gallons per minute the fuel system can pump at wide-open throttle. The engine will consume 22.75 gallons of fuel during warmup, burnout, staging, and the quarter-mile run.
900
Cost, in dollars, of a 55-gallon drum of nitromethane fuel. Current regulations allow a maximum of 85 percent nitromethane in the fuel mix. The rest is alcohol.
58,700
About what you'll pay, in dollars, for a new, ready-to-run Top Fuel engine.
29
Minutes it takes to tear down and rebuild a Top Fuel engine between rounds. Each engine is rebuilt 184 times a year (if the driver goes to the final round at every race).
28
Quarts of oil used during warm-up and quarter-mile run. The oil pan holds 70-weight oil mixed with special thickener.
6
The maximum number of clutch discs in a Top Fuel car. The multistage clutch is timed to progressively lock up during the run. Each $115 disc lasts a maximum of three runs.
2225
Minimum weight, in pounds, of a Top Fuel dragster. That's a power-to-weight ratio of 3.37 horsepower per pound, about 20 times better than the new Z06 Corvette's.
300
Wheelbase, in inches, of a Top Fuel dragster. About 3000 inches of chrome-moly tubing is needed to build the frame, which is left unpainted because of the need to constantly weld cracks.
1082
Greenbacks you'll need to buy a pair of new Goodyear R36x17.5 rear slicks. If you're lucky, they'll last you a bit over a mile--four runs.
58
Bead Lock bolts used to retain each rear tire to the wheel. Tire pressures are set between 6.5 and 7.5 psi.
0.84
Seconds it takes for a Top Fueler to accelerate to 100 mph from standstill. At launch, drivers are subjected to up to 4.75 g--more than a space-shuttle astronaut.
333.08
Top speed, in mph, of the 2004 NHRA Top Fuel Championship-winning U.S. Army dragster. When he pops the parachute at the end of his run, driver Tony Schumacher experiences peak deceleration of 6 g.
12,000
Downforce, in pounds, generated by the rear wing at 325 mph. The downward thrust made by the exhaust gases escaping the headers alone generates 800 pounds of downforce.
85
Distance, in inches, you'll need to be above the header pipes to avoid getting toasted by the nitro flames exiting those pipes.
8.5
Number of inches the rolling diameter of the rear tires grows during a 325-mph run, reaching a maximum of 44.5 inches.
4.441
World-record elapsed time, in seconds, it took Tony Schumacher's Army dragster to cover a quarter mile.
18
Seconds of racing completed if Tony makes the final. If he makes the final in every race, his total racing time for the season will be less than seven minutes.
