Mods I accidentally posted this in the "General" section, & I think it belongs here in Performance... could you please lock or remove the dupe post in General... sorry about the error..



I have an 05 (A4) with a stock converter, but it has Kooks Headers, 160 T Stat, tune and 18" Drag Radials...

It has run a best ET of 11.98 @ 117 mph... I "DON'T" want to change converters but was thinking of a better cam... Reasons for leaving the stock converter are the car will leave the line "softer" or "easier" and thats less traction problems, also the 05s rear are not the best so I thought a stock converter would be easier on the rear...

Another reason it I've been racing this car over 4 years, and the 60' time never varies more than .005 on any given day, and seeing that I'm a "Bracket Racer" and NOT after a new Personal Best, I would have more consistency with a stock converter..

I can always dial it .02 or .03 slower if need be...


My reason for asking about a cam is 1. I know a converter will help my 60' times & I'll run 11.7 (about) but my MPH will be the same or slower.. HOWEVER if I go to a good cam that will pull hard after 3500 rpm I am (just guessing) with a 102 FAST intake I might see 120 + mph....


This would make it harder for my opponent to judge the closing speed if he has the lead at the 1000' timer & I'm going 6-7 mph FASTER would know my ET but he would be guessing at how fast I'm closing...

With all this said, I'm "Thinking" (I know that is dangerous) my car will leave the line easy (giving my opponent a lead early in the race, but after 330' I'll start to pull HARD and have a strong TOP END CHARGE...

Am thinking in the right direction or have I been taking too many drugs
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The vast majority of worth while good cams require a hi stall T/C. Yes you can get away a very small mild cam with a stock converter. But IMHO I wouldn't go to the trouble or expense of swapping cams under those circumstances. A good cam needs a converter not only for better performance but also better driveabilty. What gears are you running.

 

I'm racing an 05 (A4) with 3.15 gears, but I have a 100 mile drive EACH WAY to and from the closest track (Englishtown or Lebanon Valley each track is 100 miles from me..

I know a lock up converter will lock up and save gas, but I still am hoping to keep the launch "soft" to go easy on parts, I'm retired and on a budget...

My thinking was leave soft, and pull hard after the 330' the post above that suggested 1.8 Rockers sounds like it may help a little, I realize I'm not going to be a low 11 sec car with what I'm planning,

But I'd like to run 120 -122 mph but not worry about breaking the rear on the 05...I want a car that will pull hard in the second 1/2 of the track...

I may be asking the impossible... NO2 was suggested but I "Nixed" it right away because as I said before I bracket race, and to win consistency is the name of the game, & I won't get it with NO2...

 

A cam small enough to work with a stock converter won't give you much at all. Plus you will need headers and they are expensive.

Just get a converter. They are reliable and nobody breaks rears with automatics.

 

If you are on a tight budget leave your engine stock or get just the converter. As Joe G mentioned you won't get much added performance with a VERY mild cam needed to run a stock converter. You can actually run slower with the stock converter and a the wrong cam.

 

What about supercharging it? That will leave easy and pull hard down the track?
Jeff

 

A Comp XER273HR behaves well without a converter change and will give you that top end charge you're looking for. Supercharging/Turbo charging will give you a lot more power but the cost compared to a cam (with lower HP) is the real down side.

I would also consider intake porting and cold air options if you haven't done that yet.

 

I already have KOOKS Headers, and a Vararam CAI.. + a tune by Cartek... & after reading the above posts, I am agreeing, a cam wont give me much of an improvement without a converter to go along with it.

That being said, I probably would be better off going with a converter (nothing crazy) maybe a 3200 and see where that puts me...

I just got home from Lebanon about 1 hr ago .. made two time trials ... the corrected Alt. was 1700' and I was DEEP staged and ran 12.359 and 12.351 and in the first round went .033 "RED" but ran it out to a 12.470 I knew the air was not as good (my weather station showed I'd run slower)

So if I have enough $$ to buy food this month, I'll talk (Read BEG) Cartek to put in a 3200 converter with a "Stacked Plate Cooler" I'm sure that will give me at least .2 tenths and when $$ permits I can go cam... but with just the converter I should be a solid 11 sec car at E Town (yes a High 11 but thats ok because I'll have the starting blocks for an 11.5 car when $$ permits...


I searched the forum and it does seem that most of the 05's that break are stick shift, and many have street tires (that = wheel Hop & a broken rear....

So I guess my plans are a converter, and maybe (I'm just guessing) to go to 1.8 rockers .. wont that give me a little more lift, and they are not a big job to install.

 

I woud install a 3600. Nearly everybody that installs a 3200 goes back for a 3600. There is virtually no downside and substantial upside for the 3600.

Ask Justasheet and Theofel if you don't believe me.

Don't bother with 1.8 rockers. You need new springs which makes it expensive, and even with the new springs, it's a marginal gain for a lot of money. Very marginal.

If you want to go .1 faster consistently get some GTO front wheels and narrow tires. I drive 85 miles to/from the track on the temporary tires that come on the wheels for 2+ years now, so has Theofel and many others. They are fine. If it rains you have to slow down, or, change them out at the track. If you want to go .15 to .2 consistently, leave your passenger seat at home.

Converter and skinnies and weight reduction are guaranteed the best bang for the buck mods. You'll be a 11.5 in decent weather with that set up.

 

I'd normally agree but I think jpee wants to try and retain the use of Nitto 555R drag radials because he drives 200+ miles to/from the track over 12 times per season and they do tend to last longer than M/Ts or other 'more dedicated' drag radials. As it is the Nittos might not 'hold' with even a 2800 stall on a cooler day if the track/ground is cold and the prep is marginal (which does happen at E-town) but the higher he goes in stall the less likely he'll be able to use the Nittos. If he goes back to M/Ts like he'd once used then the higher stall is definitely the smarter move.
And John, it might be even smarter yet to sell the 18" wheels as a whole package and put that money towards some cheap 17s (some polished 17x8.5 thin spokes just like your 18s perhaps?) as the 17" drag radials are cheaper than those 18s, this applies to both the Nittos or the M/Ts. The slightly shorter 275-40-17s might also help your overall gearing a tiny bit as well. Possibly a little extra cost up front but it could actually start paying you back your initial outlay in the long term after about 3 sets of tires.






I've been telling him that for years now but he will not change tires out at the track (I don't blame him, I hate doing that (and won't) as well) and he just doesn't want to pull the seat and/or drive on skinnies all that way. I've done it (I'm only 35 miles from E-town but roughly 75-80 miles one way to Atco) as have others.

 

Oh I agree if he wants to go faster 17's are the best way to go by far. And a ton cheaper. I find the Mickeys last me a long time, a couple of years, and I drive 160+ to/from. They don't need much of a burnout which helps a lot with longevity.

But it will require a tuning change or he'll hit the rev limiter. Then on the street tires he'll short shift under WOT but that doesn't really matter as who goes WOT with street tires?:toe tap:

I have zero issues driving on skinnies...I go a similar distance.

But I agree, I gave up on that swapping tires a long time ago, about the third time I got caught in the rain swapping tires as I recall!

 

Where can you order the converter being mentioned, what is the cost, and will a need another custom tune? I currently have a CAI, magna flow mufflers and custom tune, but thinking about getting the DHM cutouts also. My exhaust guy mentioned some things we can do by working our way up from the back to the front before going to headers.