Some background first. Back in late '98 I bought my '99 2.5GT, put a few thousand miles on it, then took to Lebanon Valley Dragway in NY in the summer of '99. In essentially bone stock configuration (K&N, synthetic fluids) it ran a 16.027 @ high 83s/low 84s with a 2.127 60' time (dumping the clutch at 6000rpm, and I think I was powershifting, too - I was young and stupid then). I can't remember the actual trap speed, but I vaguely recall barely breaking 84mph.

OK, '99 2.5GT was totalled, and was replaced with a '97 2.5GT a couple years ago. The '97 now has 116,600mi on it, and has been enhanced with Cobb Stage 1 heads, Street cams, an Injen intake, a CM Stage 1 (I think?) clutch, a Fidanza aluminum flywheel, a full MRT header/cat/cat-back exhaust, and an S-AFC. All together it has shown about a 40hp gain on the dyno. I've been curious what that translates to on the track, but with the tracks being so inconvenient when I was stationed in CT (3hr away) it just wasn't worth the time to go find out.

Last night I hit the strip for the first time in 3yrs. I was definitely rusty, and only got in 5 runs (only 1 of which was "good"), so I'm sure there's a bit left in the car. That 1 good run was a 15.437 @ 87.19mph with a 2.078 60' time (launched at about 5000rpm I think). Not too shabby at all, methinks. I was hoping for mid to low 15s, so I was pretty happy with how it did. All my other 60' times were 2.25 or higher, so that was the only good launch I got. Trap speed was pretty much the same on every run (as expected) in the high 86s and low 87s.

One thing worth noting is that I've been lazy this week and never got around to swapping from my auto-x rubber back to my street rubber. As a result I was running my 225/50-15 Kumho V700s on Volk TE37s. The combo weighs probably 5 or 6# less than my street setup at each corner, plus the tires are a full 1" shorter than a stock 205/55-16. That effectively changes the final drive ratio from 4.11:1 to 4.29:1. Both the lighter rolling gear and the gear ratio change would make the car quicker - how much quicker I intend to figure out next Friday night, as I'll be hitting the strip again with the street rubber.

Pat Olsen
'97 Legacy 2.5GT sedan

 

I don't know about rusty. Your launches were killer.

I saw you whoop a Camaro for an entire 1/8 mile. Got my attention.

Pat - the other Mick w/o the red hair.

 

sweet man.
How much does your car weigh?
I was pullin 15.5's on the stock rubber.
Now that I added the cams I'm going to give it a shot and see what I pull.

 

Good job!

I saw you out there last night. I noticed your wheels and the well-worn rubber

 

Actually, it was a Mustang, but...

From what I saw there were an awful lot of guys there that don't know how to launch a RWD car worth a damn (or FWD cars, for that matter). Granted, the track surface is far from ideal, but still... The last time I took my Mustang to the strip (about 4yrs ago I guess), on street tires, with a 5-speed, my worst 60' time was a 2.12x and my best was a 2.023 (yes, I still remember that number even 4yrs later ). That was in a nearly stock GT convertible that weighed in at 3680# with a full tank of gas (for traction) and me. The Mustang GT that I nearly beat in the Subaru last night pulled something like a 2.6sec 60' time. It's all about throttle control.

According to the curb weights listed in each Owner's Manual the 2.5GT is (I think) 275# heavier than a GC8 Impreza, and something like 40# lighter than a WRX. I'd love to see what my drivetrain would do in a GC8. I worked out the numbers once and the power-to-weight ratio would be essentially identical to a stock WRX. Hell, I'd love to drop that 275# for auto-x/open tracking, too!

Pat

 

ooooooohhh
that's why there is such a time difference. I was wondering.

Oh and technically I'm a GM6. Or so some self acclaimed guru told me.

C is for 4 doors
M is for 2 doors
8 is for EJ20
6 is for EJ25

Sounds funny to me.

 

Based on the fact that everyone on the i-Club/NASIOC Forums refer to the old models as GC8s, that sounds funny to me, too. I'm sure if one of us was really motivated we could search and find out what the "truth" is about model designations, but I don't think either of us really gives a damn, so....

Just to wrap up my experience on Friday night, here's the run-down of my 5 runs:

(1) My first time at the strip in a few years and of course I get lined up next to a 10sec crotch rocket. I don't have my timeslips in front of me (I'm at work right now ), so I can't give exact numbers, but I cleared the 1/8mi about 2/10sec before he finished the 1/4mi. I was just laughin' as I cruised down the strip. Time was disappointing, a 15.903 or something like that, but the trap speed was promising - high 86s (compared to the high 83s with the stock car three years ago). Slow time was due to a bad 60', 2.325 or maybe even 2.375, I can't remember.

(2) Tower lane was being cleaned up, so I got to run solo. Launch felt quite a bit better, but my 60' was still only a 2.2xx, so not all that great. Time was a 15.69x in the high 86s again.

(3) Matched up against a current generation Prelude riced-out with the unpainted bodywork and CF hood. (No, I'm not saying CF hoods are ricey, I'm saying unpainted body kits are ricey. ) I pulled him out of the hole big time with my best 60' of the night (2.078) - he pulled a 2.6xx . By the end I could see in my side view mirror that he was starting to pull on me, and sure enough the timeslip told the story. I ran a 15.473 @ 87.19, he ran a 15.6xx @ 90.19 - a full 3mph faster at the top end. I don't know what kind of mods (if any) he had engine-wise other than the obvious aftermarket exhaust, but we should be about equal power-wise. I think his trap speed shows just how crappy the gearing is in my car - too big a drop from 3rd to 4th, so I cross the line at around 5600rpm, definitely not ideal.

(4) I think this run was against a Corolla or something like that. Wasted him off the line and never saw him again. However, the launch wasn't as good (back up a 2.2xx) and the ET showed it, I think it was a 15.800.

(5) My last run was against a red '99+ Mustang GT convertible. It sounded like it might have been blown, but the ET and MPH sure don't show it so maybe he just had some sort of intake on it that was making it whistle/whine funny. It also sounded like it was an automatic. Once again, I hole-shotted him, as I figured I would. I stayed ahead of him a lot longer than I thought I would, but I knew it was just a matter of time before he caught me. I would say it was around the 1000' point that he finally pulled alongside, and by the 1/4mi he probably had 3 or 4 car lengths on me. Once again, my 60' wasn't that great (another 2.2xx), resulting in another 15.8xx run. He ran a 14.7xx @ 97.xx (I think - I know it was a 14.7, not sure on the MPH, but it was mid-to-high 90s) - definitely not indicative of a blower. If I had run exactly what I ran against the Prelude (same RT and ET) the Mustang would have still nipped me by about 0.1sec at the line - I would have been on his bumper. Oh well, maybe next time.

I can't wait until I get my Mustang out here, although that looks like it won't be until the end of next summer. I expect it to run into the 12s easily on street tires and a road-race suspension. Running the Legacy is nice and all, and I'm sure I'll be out there a few more times, but there's just so little drama with running a pretty slow AWD car. Running the Mustang will be fun!

Pat

 

Pat,

Great times in your Legacy! Way cool to have anouth "Subie-head" ad thet rack...

re: your Mustang running 12's on street tires easily...

As the former owner of an 11-second blown Mustang I'd have to say you're in for a bit of a chore launching that puppy here at HRP! Even with the gobs of power you can get out or a blown blue oval, hooking up is just an exercise in futility!

I've only raced on 2 dragstrips in my life - HRP and Sacramento International Raceway - both of which have a reputation for being "slippery" tracks and let me tell you SIR is FLYPAPER compared to HRP for high horsepower cars.

My 11-second Mustang only mustered a handful of high (12.8 and 12.9) timeslips and that was on nights where the track was sprayed with VHT for an upcoming event...

True, I've never run the car on drag radials - but for pure street tires it's gonna be tough!

Aloha,
Richard...
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