Well, if youll remember I had a horrible outing at the track with my car a week ago. The car just didnt run the times I thought it should. Well, the main problem, as you all guessed, was me. I need more driving time. However, there was the question of why I wasnt able to get the car to chirp the tires on the 1-2 shift. Well, here is what the problem was. Believe it or not, the car just didnt want to run well on 91 octane gas. I have a Steeda T/A set to 13.* The car just hated the 91. I put a tank of 89 in and it was like a new car. Not only can I chirp the tires, but they actually screech for like 1 or 2 seconds on the shift. This week I also had the fuel filter replaced and the fuel injectors serviced (I live in a pretty dusty area) The car is running better than it has in a very long time. The guy up at AMP Performance in Phoenix put my car on a scanner and wasnt able to pull any codes of any kind. He drove the car around a couple times and said it felt strong. When I told him I ran a 15.1 in it he looked really surprised and told me that if he drove it he could gaurentee a 13 something time. He thought the car felt like it should be running mid to low 13's. Another guy there told me he has a 5.0 that runs mid 12's, and even thought he runs 16* of timing his car does not run as well on race fuel. He said my car just wasnt able to burn the 91 efficiently. He also said I need to get some ET streets or some Nitto 555 drag radials, which of course is what you all said. So, the car is fine but the driver needs some practice
I asked about advancing the timing even further, but the guy there who worked on my car didnt think it was a good idea. He says hes seen some people mess up there motors by running more timing. I think the car would be fine, but I also think the car is running great right now so Im going to leave the timing where it is.
no **** it was the driver? Man, just get some more track time like we said, I was a ****ty driver a year ago. All it takes is some practice, and just run on street tires for now until you figure it out
I knew I was the main problem, but I still wanted to find out why the car wouldnt bark second. Having someone look at the car has given piece of mind (and so has barking second). Now I know its up to me to get the car to run the times. Now I have no excuses.
maybe you should have your A/f ratio looked at. You car will run better the leaner it gets, but it's all fun and games until someone gets a hole burnt in a piston. It seems that it is running too rich with 91, but not lean enough with 87 to through a code or ping. You could have you A/F changed, but then you talking $$$. Just stick with 87, and more $$$ in your pocket. Of coarse you could up your timing a little and go with 91 and I don't think you would have any problems. However, if you get any spark knock or pinging, cut down your timing a little. I think the Steeda T/A is off by 1* on the low side though.
I actually dont think it was a bad batch of gas because I had made this observation before, and even posted about it, but no one replied. It was a post about running 13* of timing and not needing 91 octane gas. I was trying to find out if this seemed wiered to any one, but no one replied.
My advice is to put the timing at 15 degrees and run Chevron 91 like most people do. That is a combination that is known to be safe and effective. Weather and track variations could explain the lack of wheelspin on the 1-2 shift. So could bad gas. You can't say scientifically that your car hates 91 octane, and you're tempting fate IMO to run any extra spark advance without using premium.
