Nostalgia FC Dyno Data: The HP Balance chart combines all these detailed calculations for every data point recorded on the racetrack. But this data can also be used to construct the “dragstrip dyno” sheet for the engine. The data points on the dyno chart come from the bottom-up flywheel HP analysis. The engine was operated over a range of RPM’s in both 1st and 2nd gear. It had different calculated HP and torque values at every point, each data point on the graph being every 0.25 seconds into the run. The red line on the NFC dyno chart represents the HP curve of the engine, just like you would get if you ran the engine on an engine dyno. The blue line is the torque curve, measured in ft-lbf. I’ve never been able to put a HP and torque curve together like this for a supercharged nitro engine before, and this one looks very much like I would expect.

So what does the NFC “dragstrip dyno” tell us? We really don’t have any data below 6,900 RPM. It looks like torque decreases as the engine RPM increases past 6,900 RPM. The engine HP does increase slightly above 6,900 RPM. The peak HP for Boychuk’s 482 cid engine is 3,020 HP at 7,900 RPM, that works out to almost 6.3 HP/cid! The observed peak torque is 2,200 ft-lbf at 6,900 RPM. Based on my experience and the shape of these dyno curves, the engine might make more torque, and peak lower than 6,900 RPM. Perhaps it’s more torque than the tires and racetrack can handle.

Boychuk’s run is not the quickest or fastest for a NFC at Bakersfield. At the 2014 March Meet, the low ET was 5.668 seconds by Dan Horan @ 257.83 MPH and Jason Rupert ran a little faster at 258.27 MPH on a slower 5.804 ET. But this analysis from 2013 does give us some clues and insights into how much HP it takes to be competitive today.

Newton’s laws of Physics tell us that with everything else about two NFC being equal (and that’s a big if since we are comparing a Firebird, Mustang and Camaro), on the same racetrack with the same weather conditions:

  • it would take about 16 HP to pick up 0.01 ET
  • and 36 HP to gain 1.0 MPH

Using these simple rules, Dan Horan would need about 136 HP more to go 0.085 seconds quicker in ET than Tim Boychuk, and 194 HP more to go 5.4 MPH faster. That would be over 3,200 HP! Rupert ran faster yet, but at a slower ET? Must be something else going on . . . like figuring out how to actually get down the racetrack and put a number on the scoreboard. Nostalgia funny car racing, like all nitro racing, is a little more complicated than most of the other thing’s Mother Nature throws our way.

So it’s not 4,000 HP like Eddie Hill with his 14-71 blower back in 1988, but getting closer. What about using a “top-down” approach? Could I put the NFC “dragstrip dyno” 3000+ HP curve into the QUARTERjr software simulation... juggle the gear ratios and shift point around a little, and find a little better ET? What about changing...