Robert Hight explosion

[none]

If the body was dragging behind the car it seems to me that it would interfere with the parachutes, and you need them to blossom, with no downforce from the body, you effectively have no brakes until the car slows way down, the parachutes make that happen.

Alan

 

[stitcherbob]

I have an idea that will end any body flying off and the serious consequences it can entail....some may not like it, but lives may be saved

see, the bodies are much smaller and wouldn't contain fire or blow off.....problem solved
Besides, people don't think the current Funny car bodies look anything like what you would buy from a car dealer anyway.....

 

[Dennis]

Made the Daily Mail.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6212111/Dramatic-moment-car-explodes-high-speed-race.html

 

[PJ]

Parachutes on the chassis to stop the driver and on the car that automatically opens if it leaves the car. That way it will land softly in the stands as an awesome souvenir for someone to take home

 

[Nunz]

I have an idea that will end any body flying off and the serious consequences it can entail....some may not like it, but lives may be saved

View attachment 4830

see, the bodies are much smaller and wouldn't contain fire or blow off.....problem solved
Besides, people don't think the current Funny car bodies look anything like what you would buy from a car dealer anyway.....

I don't get the "look like what you can buy from a car dealer" argument anymore. The cool thing about drag racing, is we have a big variety of cars, many of which DO look like stock cars. But today's fuel FCs run 330mph, they are the product of 50 years of development, who cares if they look don't like a street car? They're the fastest race cars on the planet, I have no problem watching them even though they are far removed from their origins. JMO

 

[Cliff]

I have an idea that will end any body flying off and the serious consequences it can entail....some may not like it, but lives may be saved

View attachment 4830

see, the bodies are much smaller and wouldn't contain fire or blow off.....problem solved
Besides, people don't think the current Funny car bodies look anything like what you would buy from a car dealer anyway.....

Did anyone notice that a header is missing, front of the engine. This is actually a famous photo, just cuz of that.

 

[Cliff]

I don't get the "look like what you can buy from a car dealer" argument anymore. The cool thing about drag racing, is we have a big variety of cars, many of which DO look like stock cars. But today's fuel FCs run 330mph, they are the product of 50 years of development, who cares if they look don't like a street car? They're the fastest race cars on the planet, I have no problem watching them even though they are far removed from their origins. JMO

Years ago, people wanted to run streamlined dragsters. Too heavy and idea was shelved. Along came the funny cars, and they really ARE a front engine, short wheelbase, streamlined, Top Fuel Dragster. I always wondered what would happen if F/C and T/F became one class, one weight, etc. Current school of thought says rear engine, short wheel base won't work, so the class would become front engines again, narrower bodies, maybe 160" wheelbase, and probably wouldn't look too much different than todays' F/C.

 

[mick]

just look at the object of the exercise......put a driver and a bomb under a $75k closed carbon fiber shell.....now try to invent safety mechanisms in event of explosion,
which will happen, at 300mph, next to a competitor......seemed like the least damage and instant loss of ENTIRE body was before the front latches, when the entire body would flip up and off in one motion. now the body is latched in front and rear and the concussion of the explosion is somehow supposed to be absorbed by some sort of hatch
or latches?......i don't think so. what you have now is very high fuel and air volume that are creating enormous explosions ripping a carbon fiber shell in half rite in front of a
fairly? protected driver.

 

[mikebcurve]

John Force actually had that in the early 90's as part of a body blow off system. In the early 90's Austin Coil had a system that when John activated the fire bottles, there were a couple air rams that would knock the body off the car to get the fire off of him. The idea was to get the body off, and then let it trail behind the car with a tether to keep the body from flying off to who knows where. It also would release a 3rd parachute. They ran it on the car only a couple times and that was it. It never got

Interesting. I don't remember anything about that. Thanks

 

[mikebcurve]

If the body was dragging behind the car it seems to me that it would interfere with the parachutes, and you need them to blossom, with no downforce from the body, you effectively have no brakes until the car slows way down, the parachutes make that happen.

Alan

Good point. That's why I should never touch a fuel car,lol

 

[DrRocket]

I always wondered what would happen if F/C and T/F became one class, one weight, etc. Current school of thought says rear engine, short wheel base won't work, so the class would become front engines again, narrower bodies, maybe 160" wheelbase, and probably wouldn't look too much different than todays' F/C.

Some time ago, before the "real name" days, there was someone here who (vociferously) espoused this very idea. He'd decided that the T/F car was no longer viable, and should be eliminated.

 

[NITRO JUNKIE]

Years ago, people wanted to run streamlined dragsters. Too heavy and idea was shelved. Along came the funny cars, and they really ARE a front engine, short wheelbase, streamlined, Top Fuel Dragster. I always wondered what would happen if F/C and T/F became one class, one weight, etc. Current school of thought says rear engine, short wheel base won't work, so the class would become front engines again, narrower bodies, maybe 160" wheelbase, and probably wouldn't look too much different than todays' F/C.

I wouldn’t like that very much

 

[Paul]

How's Hight doing? I saw a picutre of him with his arm in a sling and said he was resting. I assume his injuries aren't anything that will keep him out of the seat?

 

[NITRO JUNKIE]

How's Hight doing? I saw a picutre of him with his arm in a sling and said he was resting. I assume his injuries aren't anything that will keep him out of the seat?

No he said he be back at Dallas.

 

[fueller42]

What ever happened to that deal Wilk was working on with the fender area being used as a type of burst panel?

 

[Jack]

Anyone hear what failed to cause the explosion?

 

[none]

Too much fuel, not enough ignition............

 

[SoCal Racer]

<snip>There is not a burst panel in the world that would have kept Robert's body on, or any of the more violent ones lately.

I hate to say it, but taming the engines is probably the only way to prevent the bomb. Look at engine explosions from a decade or so ago and they look like a firecracker compared to the recent atomic bombs.

 

[SoCal Racer]

I have an idea that will end any body flying off and the serious consequences it can entail....some may not like it, but lives may be saved

View attachment 4830

see, the bodies are much smaller and wouldn't contain fire or blow off.....problem solved
Besides, people don't think the current Funny car bodies look anything like what you would buy from a car dealer anyway.....

No, no, NO! Bob..... those were banned because they were too dangerous </sarc>

 

[stitcherbob]

I hate to say it, but taming the engines is probably the only way to prevent the bomb. Look at engine explosions from a decade or so ago and they look like a firecracker compared to the recent atomic bombs.

umm....except for....