Launching in 2nd gear

[KenH]

Just curious if there is any value in launching off the line in 2nd gear, especially in the cars running higher HP or lower rear gears in order to minimize wheel spin and # of shifts. I've never seen this discussed (or I just missed it). Other than perhaps a little more clutch wear, would this be likely to cause damage to the tranny?

 

[King GTS]

No.

 

[FUSCUCLA1]

I asked this once before and no one responded, I just assumed that saving the time of an extra shift wasn't enough to make up for the time saved accelerating in 1st gear.

 

[KenH]

I keep hearing that you must take out the 3.55 gears if your running many mods in order to get off the line without just going up in smoke. Seems to me that the basic problem is excessive torque multiplication. Starting in 2nd would seem to help get things back in better balance, but perhaps I'm just not understanding the dynamics well enough.

Trey, I'm not sure what your saying NO to. No benefit or no damage?

 

[onerareviper]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
Wake up and smell the rubber, get a better gear and turn you snake into a monster. THATS NO BS.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

ViperJim,

That's what I'm talking about!!!! I've been telling people this for a while now, and some people just resist, resist, resist... I would guestimate that the vast majority of the people that have changed gears love it, and would not ever think of returning to 3.07's. That would be an interesting poll. I doubt many people go back to stock....

That being said, I am probably going to purchase the Roe S/C at some point. I now have 3.73's in my GTS. This may be overkill, but I may have to give it a shot before returning to a lower numerical gear.

Later

 

[jcaspar1]

Onerare,
According to Jim's calcuations the "perfect" rear end gear ratio for the Viper is 10/2.66= 3.76. So the 3.73's are actually still a little too high!

 

[ElDiablo Viper]

But if you are in to road racing it would be better to stay with stock gear ratio or you'll wil be shifting a lot more.

 

[jrkermode]

Actually, for road racing, where you shift is more important than how often you shift. You really want to avoid shifting while exiting a corner. Thus, the "best" gear can change depending on the course you're running.

 

[ElDiablo Viper]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by jrkermode:
Actually, for road racing, where you shift is more important than how often you shift. You really want to avoid shifting while exiting a corner. Thus, the "best" gear can change depending on the course you're running.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


Yes but with closer gears you will end up shifting a lot more. At Watkins Glen I needed only 3rd and 4th and could ony go to 5th on one strait. A friend with 3:73 had to go to 5th many more times than me.

 

[Eddie N]

ive actually heard of someone that ran their viper from a stop in second and he ran a one second slower time than starting in first..

- eddie -

 

[onerareviper]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
According to Jim's calcuations the "perfect" rear end gear ratio for the Viper is 10/2.66= 3.76. So the 3.73's are actually still a little too high!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

jcaspar1,

So what your saying is I need to go perform a couple burn outs!!! Remember, as the tire gets shorter the gear gets lower. That's all I need, a reason.....

 

[onerareviper]

Viperholics,

Actually, it is impossible to have a perfect ring/pinion gear for every track. Some tracks 3.07's will be better, some 3.55's, some 3.73's, etc... Sooooooo many variables. This is the exact reason professional racers change them so frequently.

I also think a lot depends on the skill level of the driver. I don't think an experienced racer would have a problem with a couple extra shifts around a road course. Sure, you may lose 1 second for the extra shifts, but you would think you could make that up in acceleration out of corners, staying in the power band more frequently, etc... Could go either way on the track.

For the street, AWESOME!!!!

Later