Top Alcohol refers to two different classes in professional drag racing : Top Alcohol Dragster and the Top Alcohol Funny Car . Commonly known as "alky" cars, both are akin in design to the premier Top Fuel classes, but less powerful (about 3,500 bhp (2,600 kW; 3,500 PS)). In both classes, the cars are either supercharged ( "blown" ) engines, burning alcohol ( methanol ) or can burn nitromethane and be normally aspirated, fuel injected engines. Top Alcohol Dragsters and Funny Cars resemble their nitromethane (Fuel) counterparts, with about half the power of their respective classes. Each car uses a three-speed transmission.
6-482: Engine displacement is limited to 456 cubic inches for nitromethane engines (with a minimum weight of 2,125 pounds), 466 cubic inches for screw-type superchargers (1,975 pounds), and 528 cubic inches (2,050 pounds) for roots-type superchargers. Top Alcohol was devised in the 1970s as a replacement for the Top Gas class, which was similar but burned gasoline . Initially, alcohol dragsters competed against Funny Cars in
12-615: A Top Gas record (average of two passes) of 162.22 mph (261.07 km/h). Like Top Fuel, Top Gas dragsters experimented with twin engines, including Freight Train and the Motes & Peters digger . It also saw a number of streamliners, including Sidewinder III (in BB/GD) and Scuderia . Driver Ray Motes and owner R. C. Williams, based in Russell, Kansas , ran "one of the most successful Top Gas dragsters ever". Motes would win
18-667: A category known as Pro Comp , before a separate class, Top Alcohol Funny Car, was created in the 1980s. It was within IHRA 's version of this class use of ethanol fuel was pioneered with great success by Mark Thomas, an Ohio farmer who became a five-time champion within that organization. Despite this, ethanol has failed to capture the imagination of racers; the majority opt for more traditional methanol. Today both Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car compete in NHRA drag racing. They are classed not as professional but as sportsman within
24-502: Is a former NHRA drag racing professional class. Analogous to Top Fuel , Top Gas was a pro class, and allowed dragsters (T/GD) as well as bodied cars. Several noteworthy cars ran in Top Gas. One of the early streamliners , Scuderia , made her debut at the 1963 NHRA Winternationals at Pomona, California , recording a best pass of 8.83 seconds at 169.17 mph (272.25 km/h). At Arlington later that year, Scuderia set
30-576: The Springnationals and the Top Gas national title in both 1970 and 1971. Williams, then owner of Freight Train (driven by Walt Rhodes), would win the 1971 Gatornationals . Late model cars were first allowed in the Gas classes in 1967. Other notable drivers who started or drove in Top Gas include Gordon Collett , Jim Bucher , Eddie Hill , and Jack Moss, while teams like Frakes and Funk, and Schultz and Jones, had many fans. The last event
36-665: The USA but in Europe they are classed as a professional category within the FIA Drag Racing Championships. Top Alcohol classes also compete outside of North America, most notably in Australia and Europe. In Europe they are called Top Methanol Dragsters and Top Methanol Funny Cars . This motorsport-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Top Gas Top Gas (T/G)
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