Freaky Carnage Video: Fuel Altered Stuck In Reverse, Flips Over the Push Truck!By Brian Lohnes Posted 02/15/10
AA/Fuel Altereds are without question, the most stupidly brutal and maladjusted cars to ever set slick on a drag strip. Essentially an engine stand with a supercharged fuel burning engine bolted to it, their lack of wheelbase causes every whack of the throttle to become an unpredictable test of the pilot's driving ability. Here's the crazy part. Apparently, these things will try to kill you going backward as well as forward.
As this video starts we surmise that the driver has completed his burnout and had backed up. Apparently the reverser is stuck and will not disengage. As the driver and a crew man struggle with the car, it either overpowers the feeble rear bakes or they fail and the driver becomes the pilot of an unguided, rearward moving missile.
The announcer seems to indicate that everyone makes it out of this ordeal OK. You really have to see it to believe it though. It is wild stuff and shows one of the true nightmate drag strip scenarios, a runaway car.
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Written by Brian Lohnes
Feb 15 2010
The dragster that climbed the altered. That was wild.
Written by FIREBALLMONZA
Feb 15 2010
[quote author=Brian Lohnes link=topic=19934.msg372480#msg372480 date=1266287501]
Jon, what do you think, did the thing just drive through brakes? If pulling the fuel handle woulda made it worse, what could he have done? Anything?
[/quote]
He could have tried the big red button( I think that the car has a supermag) and try to ground the mag which he may have. Some Lenco reversers have a neutral not sure if he did or not probably wouldn't have been able to move the shifter anyway. This same thing happen to the Rear Gear's nostalgia F/C on its debut. I'd think by the time you realize whats happening you've already hit something which sucks. Ive never been faced with a situation like that myself but I could only imagine what he was thinking. I was shocked when i watched the similar deal happen at NED in 08
Written by Brian Lohnes
Feb 15 2010
Jon, what do you think, did the thing just drive through brakes? If pulling the fuel handle woulda made it worse, what could he have done? Anything?
Written by FIREBALLMONZA
Feb 15 2010
That was Tim Hay in his Hayride AA/FA out of Texas. He had fixed the car and was out a month or so later.
Pulling the fuel shut-off in that case would have only been worse. When you pull the shut-off the motor leans out and the RPM goes up. With the centrifugal clutch he would have hit the truck at a faster rate.
Written by Super Sport Feb 15 2010
I don't even pretend to understand the classification system. Much was made about a guy (Ellis?) at the Winternationals the other day running a car classified AP, where the P stood for Planetary, I think, but having never done any sanctioned (or legal) drag racing, I don't know.
I do know that it must have translated to pain, considering how common it is for track staff, crew, friends, etc to occupy the area directly behind a car after a burnout. Hope no one was there, but the video quality was a big rough.
Written by oldrustycars Feb 15 2010
I'm not saying I could drive one...but modern Fuel Altereds are just funny car chassis with a roadster body, no? Seems like they should handle about the same as a funny car. Obviously they dont have the aerodynamics of a full body, I suppose that means less downforce and therefore maybe poor handling. But they go slower than a modern FC. A proper, 95 inch wheelbase, direct drive fuel altered is what Brian describes, but I just don't see it with the current so called AA/FA's. I think some circuits even ban what they call "transformers".
In this case, why not pull the fuel shutoff? Could it be the same reason for poor handling moderen Altereds, which would be less experienced drivers? Again, I'm not saying I could drive one, I wouldn't even try.
Written by studemax
Feb 15 2010
I saw it, I believe it - and the video is so bad it doesn't matter.
Written by BangShift Forum Admin Feb 15 2010
http://www.bangshift.com/blog/Freaky-Carnage-Video-Fuel-Altered-Stuck-In-Reverse.html
Man that's been around for a while. That was at North Star up in Denton. Stuff happens, especially with FAs. IIRC, his reverser just stuck. Here's a pic I took of Tim going the right direction at Abilene:
[img]http://raceabilene.com/misc/HVHayMaker_FA.jpg[/img]