Originally Posted by
Roelof
As mentioned in another topic I was lucky to messure some today's engines and I must say that the Flash Tuned 2009 is made for getting as much mixture in and combusted gasses out. The crank intake and the total exhaust port are huge compared with an engine from a few years ago.
And yet, I bet you that if you measure the ACTUAL MILEAGE, not run time but mileage, the Flash with today's typical set-up would actually have better mileage than a top motor from 8-10 years ago with a period appropriate set up.
Remember that while the Flash may not run as long on a tank, it is in a faster car on a faster track so it is covering more distance.
Look at it another way. Let's go to a track ten years ago. The TQ is 15 laps, 5:01.00 and no one has runtime issues. Nearly everyone could go at least one more lap. After this race, the track owner makes a change. From now on, qualifiers will not be five minutes, they will be 15 laps. Whoever does 15 laps in the quickest time will be TQ.
Fast forward 10 years. Exact same track, exact same format but all our modern gear. Are any drivers running out of fuel? No, they have no trouble going 15 laps. Of course, they are doing those 15 laps in 4:20.00 now. Even if they can still do that one extra lap, they are still running out around 4:40.00. Fuel mileage is practically the same, but they can't go 5 minutes.
You say the Flash is designed to only go 3.5 minutes yet I see Flashes go 5 all the time, on tracks as slow as the ones we raced on 10 years ago. And it's not the timing. I have a mod motor from 8 years ago timed just as high that had no trouble making time then. The Flash gets better runtimes than many of my older motors.
The point is that the motors are actually getting as good or better mileage than they ever had. It's everything else that has killed runtimes.