Today I called the local oval track about an upcoming race. They also have a drag strip and I discovered that every other Thursday the "run what ya brung" races start at 2:00 pm. It is only a 1/8 mile drag strip but what the heck...the nearest 1/4 mile track is over 100 miles from my house and over a range of mountains. So, I thought, "Why not!" The wife was busy with our daughter, so I jumps in the Jag and off I went.

When I got there I was a little taken aback since there were many cars towed in on trailers, and almost everyone was running modified engines with big loping cams and loud exhaust systems. There were a few of the modified import coupes and a couple of stock Mustangs. I was mainly interested in what my car would do so off I went.

They were not grouping cars by class. Instead they were "hot lapping". You do your pass and then you just get in line for another one. You race whoever ends up next to you. On my first pass I was lined up next to a Mustang one class up from mine. In other words, a faster car.

I had read on Jaguar forums that you just turn on the "sport" mode and floor it to get the best times. When we went off the line I seem to have timed it just right, because I immediately pulled out ahead and beat the guy! My time was 9.689 and I crossed the line at 72.44 mph. The Mustang did 78.79 mph in 10.060 seconds. My reaction time was 0.1 seconds faster which explains my win. On a 1/4 mile track he would have passed me.

The rest of my races were against highly modified cars that turned in the 90's and low 100's. That meant it was taillight viewing time for me. But it was all fun. My best speed was 74.50 in 9.624 seconds. Although I have driven much faster on the interstate or highway, you are driving down a narrow 60 foot wide track between concrete barriers and must concentrate on staying right in the middle of your own 30 foot wide lane. The sensation of speed is incredible. Sort of like what happens when you drive a go-kart.

The Jag was the best looking car there and turned many a head. Lots of interest since people don't know much about them. Now I know why so many folks on this forum drive supercharged models.

I did not use the J gate to shift. I was afraid that I would over-rev the motor since I did not want to take my eyes off the road. Aluminum and concrete barriers do not play well together.

All in all...a hoot!

Tom

 

its always nice to win a race especially when its against a car thats designed to be a sports car. is your jag supercharged?

 

Hi there Josh,

No my car is normally aspirated, not supercharged. Since the supercharged cars report 1/4 mile times in the low 13's, I expect that my times would have been down in the high 7's or low 8's.

Funny thing is, in my old built flathead I could turn about the same speed as I did yesterday, on in a full 1/4 mile! Times were in the low 17's, which was ok for the late 50's.

Several people asked me if I had a Chevy engine! There are quite a few XJ6 Jags around my neck of the woods that have had the XK6 or the AJ6 removed and replaced with a Chevy 350. My understanding is that the 350 weighs about the same as the Jaguar in-line 6, but offers more HP stock. With speed equipment you can get a couple of hundred extra horses, which can turn an XJ6 into a real sleeper.

Back in the day there were a number of Jaguar specials racing at sportscar races in So. California. Then you began seeing the same cars with small block Chevy engines. The saying went, "There is no substitute for cubic inches, except more cubic inches."

When doing my passes I left the traction control on. I did not do burnouts. Tires are expensive! A question, if you know...can you do torque braking (or whatever you call it) in a Jag? I have a memory of sitting in the middle of the street with my drive shaft spinning and bouncing around under my 57 Ford 312 after I had twisted it in half while "torqueing up". I definitely do not wish to damage my beautiful cat.

Tom

 

I went to the drags again last night. The temperature was much cooler than the day I went back in April. 68-70 Degrees F.

Here are my speeds/times from last time:

This time my times were: 9.674, 9.744, and 9.665.
My speeds were: 75.37, 75.47, and 75.33.

Remember this is a 1/8 mile track.

So...I had a 1 mph better average speed this time. The denser air at lower temperatures seems to make a difference.

Tom

 

Good to see you getting out there & having some fun.

Just as a reference here's the X350 XJR 1/8mile runs in the UK earlier this year;

Me, 8.6073 @ 83.65mph
Davey, 8.6806 @ 84.11mph
Jerry, 8.9093 @ 82.45mph
DjDex, 9.1862 @ 82.60mph

So you're not doing too bad for an XJ8 with 100HP less than us! Well done!

 

Cambo351,

Thank you very much for those times. So that means the supercharger would get me e/t's about 1 second better.

The most numerous stock cars at the drags were Mustangs, Camaros and Challenger R/Ts. They turned in times like 9.1-9.4...just a little too quick for me.

Maybe my next Jag........

Tom

 

For reference, my stock '06 Mustang GT ran a 9.45 at 78.54 the first year I had it. Last summer, with a few mods, (CAI, shorty headers/exhaust and a premium tune), it ran a 8.91 at 80.93 in the 1/8 (13.71 at 103.45 in the 1/4). I'm interested to see what my XJR will run, but that won't be until next season.

 

Drag racing is fun no matter what you are in. I do enjoy the looks you get when you bring a Jaguar out to drag race.

 

Well I finally got out to a 1/4 mile track. This is the only 1/4 mile dragstrip in this end of California. There were folks there from all over the area: San Diego, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara.

The track is located near San Bernardino in a town called Fontana. It is part of a large motor sports complex that includes a NASCAR track, drag strip, go-kart track and some others. Today there were 5 events going on at the same time. There is a road racing course inside the NASCAR track that uses part of the oval. Today some motorcycle clubs were using it for a track day. There was a big go-kart race going on on another track. There was also a Mustang show.

Fontana is in an area that gets hotter than the coastal cities. So, racing starts at 9:00 am. And temperature makes a difference. My first run was at 9:45 AM, and the Jag turned 93.11 mph in 15.216. That was my fastest run all day. I figured my car should do at least 95 mph, but that was the best I could do. BTW, my 1/8 mile time on that run was 73.66 mph. That is 2 mph slower than what I ran on a 1/8 mile track at night.

My last run was at 12:15 PM. On that run I turned 92.91 mph in 15.234.

Don't get me wrong, it was all fun, especially when I beat a 69 Malibu with a crate engine in it. How did that happen? I figure it was excessive weight and an outmoded 3 speed powerglide transmission, plus my reaction time of .231 and his of .444.

As the Terminator said, "I'll be back."