What has changed in Pro Mods that have made them so much faster? (1 Viewer)

[4g63rwd]

It was not so long ago that a 6.20 at 230mph was ABSOLUTELY the class of the field in Pro Mod. My question is: What changes were made that allow these cars to consistently be in the 5's? Nowadays you will not qualify in the top half of the field if you don't run 6.00 or quicker. We're seeing turbo cars run 250+, supercharged cars in the LOW 5.90's, nitrous cars in the mid 5.90's at 240+. We're also seeing an increased amount of crashes in this class (Shelly Payne multiple times, Melanie Troxel yesterday, Stivers, Laird, Engel, Gibson.......there are more but you get the picture). I love Pro Mod as a class, but I'm a lowly 4 cylinder turbo guy, so I need you guys to fill me in on what has changed in the last few years that have made these cars so crazy fast! The only thing I do know is that the nitrous guys now have 900+? cubic inch engines and can weigh considerably less than a supercharged car....is that right? Please fill me in Maters!

 

[Buzzz Miller]

The horsepower numbers have increased dramatically. With billet blocks and CNC machines, the engines have gone to 5.0 bore spacing, to 5.200 and now 5.300 bore spacing. (Advantage for nitrous cars.) Not to mention added cubic inches. And yes, they can weigh almost 400 pounds lighter than the blown counterparts.
The blown deals are getting better and more efficient blowers. New clutches are managing the increased power. Weight actually adds to the problems. A car rolled out of my shop an hour ago with a new front wheel assembly from Lamb that actually goes back to mounting off of the five lugs for strength. Some of the blown cars are sitting almost 2800 pounds. And when the outlaws are running 5.73 and 252mph, the problems start. The struts are certified to 2700 pounds, but they cars weigh more than that. These babies shake the tires as hard as any car on the planet as they continue to shake rather than shake into smoke like a single gear clutch car like a fuel car. The certers have ripped out of a few wheels in the past. ie. Kuhlman, Rocca, (And possibly this weekend is another). It is just a matter of the parts needing to catch up to the speed and the wieght. And don't get me started on 1000 feet race tracks as the fuel cars basically 'prep' the track for other classes down track as they are some of the only cars that REALLY lay rubber that far down. So these guys are running the last 320 feet with less prep than they are used to.

 

[Toejam]

As for the Blown cars, the Heads and Blowers are Much better then 5-6 years ago! I asked this question to Chuck Ford about 2 years ago. They are also turning 9,500-10,000 RPM now that they didn't do when they ran 6.20's either! As for the Nitrous cars, they allow much bigger motors now than in 2002!

 

[Draw 3D]

It was not so long ago that a 6.20 at 230mph was ABSOLUTELY the class of the field in Pro Mod. My question is: What changes were made that allow these cars to consistently be in the 5's? Nowadays you will not qualify in the top half of the field if you don't run 6.00 or quicker. We're seeing turbo cars run 250+, supercharged cars in the LOW 5.90's, nitrous cars in the mid 5.90's at 240+. We're also seeing an increased amount of crashes in this class (Shelly Payne multiple times, Melanie Troxel yesterday, Stivers, Laird, Engel, Gibson.......there are more but you get the picture). I love Pro Mod as a class, but I'm a lowly 4 cylinder turbo guy, so I need you guys to fill me in on what has changed in the last few years that have made these cars so crazy fast! The only thing I do know is that the nitrous guys now have 900+? cubic inch engines and can weigh considerably less than a supercharged car....is that right? Please fill me in Maters!

Probaly the same thing that has affected TD and TS, more cubic dollars?

 

[4g63rwd]

Thanks for the replies, guys! I've always been curious about how these guys are making (and putting down) so much more power than they were in the past. Please keep 'em coming!