Not a bad evening here in Houston Friday February 1, 2008. The weather was changing fast with the humidity coming up and the pressure going down. Still air density was running on average of about 1000 below sea level, perfect for drag racing!
___60__¼ET__Mph_RaceWeight_Comments #1 2.450 15.259 93.21 3550Lbs manual shift over revved both shifts points (Brake torque 2000Rpm) #2 2.461 15.331 93.09 3550Lbs auto shift @ 6500Rpm (500Rpm under redline) (Brake torque 2000Rpm) #3 2.428 15.267 93.16 3550Lbs auto shift @ 6500Rpm (500Rpm under redline) (Brake torque 1000Rpm) #4 2.440 15.149 93.95 3545Lbs manual shift @ 7000Rpm (Perfect!) (Brake torque 1000Rpm) #5 2.576 15.350 93.71 3545Lbs manual shift @ over revved both shift points (Brake torque 1000Rpm)
First the good news; the 2007 Accord EX-L coupe J30A5 automatic weights only 200Lbs more than my 2004 EX-L 2.4L manual sedan when I had it at the track March of 2007. It can also Mph in the ¼ with the 2003 TL-S (TL-S 94.07Mph / Accord 93.95Mph). This means that they have the same power to weight ratio. This DOES NOT mean that they put down the same horsepower numbers as the 2003 TL-S had a race weight of 3705Lbs to the 3550Lbs of the Accord. Still, once moving, the 2007/2006 will run dead even with a first generation Acura TL-S.
Now the bad news; the Accord cannot 60 to save its life! The best 60 time I could muster was a 2.428. Thats .134 SLOWER than the 2003 TL-S! Thats also .111 SLOWER than the 2.317 60 I pulled out of my 2004Accord EX-L manual 2.4L sedan last March. In drag racing we conservatively say that any decrease in the 60 time will eliminate about 150% of that decrease in the ¼ mile. This is a pretty conservative number because the slower you run the greater the overall impact on the ET. So using this formula, if the Accord could have run the same 60 as the TL-S, it would have cut the same ET as the TL-S.
So what happened? The conditions were actually better for the Accord Friday night. It had been running 93 octane in the tank. The track was as sticky as could be and this causes a problem as there is NO WAY to spin the tires no matter what you try (Of course VSA has off!). My guess is down to either a tighter torque converter that reduced the stall speed of the motor or possibly the DBW throttle cable? I really dont know what else it could be. This was very disappointing to me, but its just not going to go any faster in pure stock condition.
Next good air density day or evening will be for my 2007 Accord EX-L sedan K24A8 manual. With lower air pressure in the front tires I fully expect to see some 15.70s or less.
