340 Dart disappointing time slip

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MrBubbles211

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Well I made it to the track for the first time this is my car

1969 340 Dart bone stock 340 with 4500 miles on it. With a 4 speed, 3.91 gears, 24 inch Redline tires, and no tach so not sure Rpm for shift points.

First of all it was brutal to get off the line. Smoking the tires was no good so.... I pretty much had to leave at idle

I was leaving on the 3rd yellow.


Reaction 0.475, 0.506, 0.314
60ft 2.2157, 2.423, 2.2639
1/8 mph 76, 75.5, 76.35
1/4 et 14.7, 15.09, 14.78

I did have some issues it seemed with my clutch not coming up very quick... seemed to take a while for it to engage.. would this be part of the reason for the slow reaction and 60 ft times.

ALSO I did have some bogging

I would have liked to do better is this about as good as I can expect for my combo

I know slicks would improve my times


Any advice would be appreciated
 
Wallace Racing - Automotive Calculators
I don't know if this will meterialize as a link or not .. Asphalt plant operator .. Not computer whiz .. lots of math/calculators for fun and knowledge .. Practice .. Practice .. Practice .. launch RPMs .. Slip the clutch .. Tire pressures .. When it really hooks up it's going to bog a little .. All about the Fun Baybee .. Find that desserted road outside of town and tell your Homie in the passenger's seat "Hang on!" .. Although I'm not suggesting or condoning any illegal activities .. Right about 3rd gear you should be at the posted speed limit ..
 
If your car is as cool as it sounds, you should be done with it's drag racing career. Too nice of a car to be slipping clutches and beating on at the strip. Just my take of course.
 
Thanks for the compliment I guess I'm curious what it will really do. Just a good way to test it... the clutch never really did feel right

Only a couple of trips to the track. Keeping it stock
 
Smart guy. I would like to take my 66 Dart down the track a couple times. I'm not concerned about traction just about breaking it. It's got a 4 speed too. Side stepping or slipping the clutch is not my game. I have tried power shifting 2nd. and had the pedal stick to the floor. Scary deal.
 
Well I made it to the track for the first time this is my car

1969 340 Dart bone stock 340 with 4500 miles on it. With a 4 speed, 3.91 gears, 24 inch Redline tires, and no tach so not sure Rpm for shift points.

First of all it was brutal to get off the line. Smoking the tires was no good so.... I pretty much had to leave at idle

I was leaving on the 3rd yellow.


Reaction 0.475, 0.506, 0.314
60ft 2.2157, 2.423, 2.2639
1/8 mph 76, 75.5, 76.35
1/4 et 14.7, 15.09, 14.78

I did have some issues it seemed with my clutch not coming up very quick... seemed to take a while for it to engage.. would this be part of the reason for the slow reaction and 60 ft times.

ALSO I did have some bogging

I would have liked to do better is this about as good as I can expect for my combo

I know slicks would improve my times


Any advice would be appreciated
here are my thoughts:
  • When you leave will not affect the E.T. slip, only reaction time
  • You are correct in wheel spin kills E.T. time. 60 ft times, although 2.2 isn't awesome, I've gone 13's with a 2.2 60 ft with a Duster/340.
  • Your MPH will indicate what your car is making for power. I didn't see what your 1/4 mile mph was.....?????
  • Yes, bad tire spin, a "bog", and a "slipping clutch" will all result in a disappointing E.T.
  • Yes, I agree, the car would/should have more in it. And I believe it does.... :)
 
here are my thoughts:
  • When you leave will not affect the E.T. slip, only reaction time
  • You are correct in wheel spin kills E.T. time. 60 ft times, although 2.2 isn't awesome, I've gone 13's with a 2.2 60 ft with a Duster/340.
  • Your MPH will indicate what your car is making for power. I didn't see what your 1/4 mile mph was.....?????
  • Yes, bad tire spin, a "bog", and a "slipping clutch" will all result in a disappointing E.T.
  • Yes, I agree, the car would/should have more in it. And I believe it does.... :)
 
1/4 best was 96 mph and best time was 14.7 sec
96 mph for a 100% stocker isn't a bad mph at all. If you could hook up with the 4 gear/3.91's I bet you would be very low 14's, and with all else going right you might hit a 13.99 at 97-98 mph. That would be just about right on "Q"
 
With those tractionless tires, you are probably not hurting the drivetrain much. Hookin' up causes the strain. LOL
 
With those tractionless tires, you are probably not hurting the drivetrain much. Hookin' up causes the strain. LOL
sure enuff..... :D Depends on which redlines he has, some of them will "bite like a slick" but ya gotta heat the snot out of 'em
 
1/4 best was 96 mph and best time was 14.7 sec
I tracked my low mileage 1970 Swinger 340,4spd/3.55s in summer of 71. It went 98@14.4 on stock E70-14s.It scaled 3330 that day, car and driver. This translates to a W/P of 13.5 and so 247 hp. I wasn't the fastest or quickest 340 car around but the engine was very strong. And yes there was a lotta tirespin.

Your 96 translates similarly,but I think the 69 cars were a hair lighter.
96mph is a 14.4 W/P. So if car and driver were say 3250,then 3250/14.4=226hp. But if you had some junk in the trunk and scaled at 3450, then 3450/14.4=240hp.
The trap time is very little affected by anything except power,and weight,and at what horsepower you get into the window.
Your trap rpm with those little tires might be right on at 5260 in 4th.
Your weight might have been minimal.
So your 340 might be down some, but seems almost typical of the era.
If you did scale light at 3250, then I'd have to guess the low mph could have been Short-shifting.
I don't think lack of timing is worth 25hp; it woulda had to have been way off. But, might lack of secondaries be on the table?
 
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I tracked my low mileage 1970 Swinger 340,4spd/3.55s in summer of 71. It went 98@14.4 on stock E70-14s.It scaled 3330 that day, car and driver. This translates to a W/P of 13.5 and so 247 hp. I wasn't the fastest or quickest 340 car around but the engine was very strong. And yes there was a lotta tirespin.

Your 96 translates similarly,but I think the 69 cars were a hair lighter.
96mph is a 14.4 W/P. So if car and driver were say 3250,then 3250/14.4=226hp. But if you had some junk in the trunk and scaled at 3450, then 3450/14.4=240hp.
The trap time is very little affected by anything except power,and weight,and at what horsepower you get into the window.
Your trap rpm with those little tires might be right on at 5260 in 4th.
Your weight might have been minimal.
So your 340 might be down some, but seems almost typical of the era.
If you did scale light at 3250, then I'd have to guess the low mph could have been Short-shifting.
I don't think lack of timing is worth 25hp; it woulda had to have been way off. But, might lack of secondaries be on the table?
 
Thank you that's one of my guesses too .... you really cannot hear or feel the secondaries coming in

Right now I'm running a QFT 750 Slayer carb on it. Hmmm
 
24'' tires and 3.91 you could be running out of rpm or close to it .
 
Guys, per post # 10, the car went a best of 96@14.7
Well,3.91s and 24s calculates out to 5257@96mph, in 4th gear. And the 268/276/114 factory cam peaks right around there, perhaps a tad sooner. But I don't think any sooner than 5000, so trapping at 5257 is pretty-much ideal,IMHO.
28" slicks might help the 60ft, but would bring the Rs down to 4500, thru the traps.
The slow 60fts may be helped by the slicks, but without other complimentary suspension work, it might not amount to much. And the time you gain in the 60ft might be lost at the other end,cuz she's so far off the power .
IDK, but 96 ain't so bad for a combo of that era.
 
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Guys, per post # 10, the car went a best of 96@14.7
Well,3.91s and 24s calculates out to 5257@96mph, in 4th gear. And the 268/276/114 factory cam peaks right around there, perhaps a tad sooner. But I don't think any sooner than 5000, so trapping at 5257 is pretty-much ideal,IMHO.
28" slicks might help the 60ft, but would bring the Rs down to 4500, thru the traps.
The slow 60fts may be helped by the slicks, but without other complimentary suspension work, it might not amount to much. And the time you gain in the 60ft might be lost at the other end,cuz she's so far off the power .
IDK, but 96 ain't so bad for a combo of that era.


well A.J your exceptional math skill's beat my *** every time . but your math is right . I should have done it before I opened my pie hole .
 
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@MrBubbles211

Try leaving the line at a rpm that doesn't spin the tires.
Do not "Stomp" the gas pedal, ease into it. Roll the foot into the throttle.
Temporarily hook up a tach (even if there is a stock tach.) and shift at 5400 for a test. Then try 5700. See if you went faster or slower.
Slower, try 5600.
Slower @ 5600? Try 5400.
This is finding the sweet spot.
Try and avoid tire spin. Some is OK. Less is better.
Talk to others that have the same tire to see what the tire likes for burnouts in the water box.

"Some people" here can write Scientific automotive bible thick books on this subject but none of it means JACK! until you actually do this at the strip.
 
Guys, per post # 10, the car went a best of 96@14.7
Well,3.91s and 24s calculates out to 5257@96mph, in 4th gear. And the 268/276/114 factory cam peaks right around there, perhaps a tad sooner. But I don't think any sooner than 5000, so trapping at 5257 is pretty-much ideal,IMHO.
28" slicks might help the 60ft, but would bring the Rs down to 4500, thru the traps.
The slow 60fts may be helped by the slicks, but without other complimentary suspension work, it might not amount to much. And the time you gain in the 60ft might be lost at the other end,cuz she's so far off the power .
IDK, but 96 ain't so bad for a combo of that era.
 
Thanks AJ

I see where this is about all that car will do... once you calculate the rpm it's is pretty close to running out.

Next time I might just throw a tachometer in the to see what I can get just by changing shift points.

So the main other issue was the clutch I can't seem to remember from my younger days but was it not for the clutch to float like that... I mean a halt a second for it to release from 3rd yo 4th under WOT

E
 
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