There more than 200 classes of hot rods in NHRA Drag Racing competition. Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle are four of the main classifications. Furthermore, these groups are placed into 15 different divisions. All of the selected categories are under the NHRA Drag Racing officials’ authority.
There are certain specifications and eligability for each of the NHRA Drag Racing classes. These range from the type of vehicle, it’s engine size, the machine’s weight and it’s aerodynamics. The four professional categories are Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Top Fuel:
Top Fuel dragsters are some of the fastest cars on the planet. These monsters can generate over 10,000 horse power. They are referred to as the “Kings” of the sport because of the speeds that they achieve. Top Fuel dragsters cover the quarter-mile race track in under four seconds at over 330 miles per hour.
The Kings’ 500 cubic feet motor burns up to 15 gallons of nitro-methane in a single pass. The hot-rod’s bodies weigh 2330 pounds and are 25 feet long. The vehicles shells are made up of extra-strong chromoly tubed frames and carbon fiber composite bodies. The giant tires at the back of the car and smaller front wheels are a tell tale sign that racing thunder is on it’s way.
Funny Cars:
The NHRA Drag Racing Funny cars are similar to their Top Fuel cousins but have a smaller wheel base. They stand out to viewers because their carbon fiber body resembles a production automobile. Funny cars can achieve speeds of 330 miles per hour in less than four seconds on a quarter-mile stretch.
The cars are driven by the same super-charged, fuel injected, 500 cubic inch engines as Top Fuel dragsters. Furthermore, they operate a multi-stage clutch assembly that is triggered by timers. The power is then sent to the Funny Car’s large, slick rear tires.
Pro Stock:
Pro Stock machines are often called Factory hot-rods. The speedy cars also resemble production based models. This division may be the most technologically advanced of the 15 main categories. The Pro Stock’s power is placed into a chassis with a four-link rear suspension.
The hot-rod’s engines use electronic fuel injected systems with spec gasoline. The 500 cubic inche motors can produce up to 1300 horsepower. A Pro Stock car runs the quarter mile in a six and a half seconds at 215 miles per hour.
Pro Stock Motorcycle:
Pro Stock motorcycles can fly through the quarter-mile in under 6.8 seconds at more than 195 miles per hour. They feature a sleek body and a lightweight, aerodynamic replica of the original frame. The Pro Stock Motorcycle class has a wide variety of makes, models and engines.
Some of these include the V-Twin by Harley Davidson, the Victory and the inline 4-cylinder Suzuki and Kawasaki models. The engine sizes can vary greatly. They can range from 92 to 160 cubic inches and fuel injection is allowed. Only spent gasoline can be used to power these freaky fast bikes.
Super Stock:
Super Stock machines look like ordinary old passenger vehicles but in reality they are highly modified dragsters. This division hosts late-model sedans and vintage muscle cars. Furthermore, the entries are labeled by a system that divides factory shipping weight by NHRA Drag Racing factored horsepower.
Major changes to the vehicle’s engine are also allowed but the vehicle must have it’s correct engine block, cylinder heads, and carburetor. The race cars use the index system as a handicapping mechanism and the break-out rule is always in effect.
COMP:
The Comp division has more diversity that any category in the NHRA Drag Racing Series. Dragsters can be Coupe Sedans, Roadsters, Sport Compact Cars and also Trucks. The melting pot of metal is jumbled into 75 different classes. The variety of the engines can be just as different as the cars.
There are turbo-charged four and six cylinder engines, Pro Stock V8’s and nitrous-oxide equipped motors. Most of the divisions are also given an index based on what a well-built car should run. The races are also handicapped according to those indexes. The dragsters are labeled by using a formula that divides Total Car weigh by cubic-inches of it’s motor.
