Drags and Auto's

[calais_304]

hi all,

just wondering (bored as hell) how do people use their auto's when dragging? myself i don't have a way as such, sometimes i'll go through the gears to get the extra revs, if im lazy i'll leave it in drive with economy on and sometimes i'll turn the power on.
My question really is what do people do most? and can there be a technique with the auto?



Mods, can this be made into a poll something like:
leave in drive
leave in drive w/ power on
manually shift through gears

cheers all

[bangers]

to get the quickest time you leave it in drive with the power on. then when/if needed you hit the power button off to give you the extra gear.

[minux]

to get the quickest time you leave it in drive with the power on. then when/if needed you hit the power button off to give you the extra gear.

Not always true, it depends if you have reprogrammed shifts to the auto, i myself do manual shifts simply because i've had times when the auto has shifted too early or a little late, moreso on a worked box over a stocky.

[Jamie_87]

well i no that vs (vr??) onwards that if u have it manually in 1st gear in an auto, it would still change into second even if u left in it 1st @ 5700rpm, thats whats said in my hand book and thats what my car did, same as friends VT. So for those models it be pointless holding gears in a stock box unless its a rolling start. power button wouldnt make any difference as it doesnt give u anymore power it just changes down quickr and holds gear longer with less throttle. For good take take off for a good 1/4 time u could stall it up by pressing both acc and brake pedals at same time. I found the handbrake easier to use for that as if u give it too much revs with the foot brake it would start doing burnout, handbrake locks back wheels so it wont spin. I really dont recommend stalling an auto box up, as it adds alot of strain to it and the rest of the driveline, better off saving for a higher stall convertor.

[WILD VR CLUBBY]

well you dont want to be holding your gears to 5700 rpm any way you got no power at those revs and your just goin to spin a bearing or something then you will wish you never did it.
but if you are dead set on hiting 5700rpm in every gear go buy a stage 3 shift kit

[minux]

well you dont want to be holding your gears to 5700 rpm any way you got no power at those revs and your just goin to spin a bearing or something then you will wish you never did it.
but if you are dead set on hiting 5700rpm in every gear go buy a stage 3 shift kit

I know many engines that keep making power after 5700....so unless your talking a stock application that really doesn't stand.

[WILD VR CLUBBY]

yes i am talking about our stock commodores

[sixshooter]

You put your left foot on the brake

You let your right foot build the revs

You let your left foot off the brake to get rolling

then you flatten the accelerator to the floor

You do a little smokey if you've stalled it up to high

and thats what drag racing's all about !


I just leave it in drive... it makes no difference whether power or econ is engaged @ WOT it still reaches redline just the same.

[shaggerz]

Use drive only and also the power button makes no difference because at wide open throttle it will hold gears the same whether you have the button on or off.

One foot on the brake, other on the accelerator, bring the revs up to 2000rpm (unless engine or trans is non-standard, then different rpm's may give different results) then let go of the brake and push the accel to the floor.

Note that stalling the trans up like that puts strain on the gearbox and torque converter and creates a very large amount of heat. For this reason you should not hold the revs up for more than a few seconds without letting go of the brake or you may overheat the trans... and you wont know about it because theres no idiot light to warn you.

My L67 driven calais requires stalling up to 2000rpm to get the best launch. Immediately flooring it after releasing the brake just results in stacks of wheelspin and no forward momentum at all, so with the L67, open wheeled diff, and 235/45/17s I need to stall to 2000rpm and accelerate gently up to WOT over a space of about half a second... this gives the best launch on a dry road but when I go to willowbank I imagine I will be able to punch it straight to the floor due to their extra sticky surface.

Best bet is to just give it a try and see what works best for you. There is a fine line between doing a burnout on the spot and the perfect launch, and with practice you'll find it.

[Jamie_87]

well you dont want to be holding your gears to 5700 rpm any way you got no power at those revs and your just goin to spin a bearing or something then you will wish you never did it.
but if you are dead set on hiting 5700rpm in every gear go buy a stage 3 shift kit

yeah but if i flatten it with in drive , it wont change into second gear until 5700rpm anyway, onli way to make it change at 5500rpm is if i back off a bit. Does anyone elses vs do that? i thought it was normal? 99% of the time i barely rev it past 4000rpm anyway, i dnt like to thrash my car, i want it to last a few more years