Dirtrack Racing Basics

The cost of building an engine for a dirt track race car can vary from $750 to as much as $25,000 depending on the class and how much money that you are willing to spend. The old adage that “racing is cheap but winning is expensive” more true now than ever before. Their are several factors that determine the engine building cost for dirt track racing.

The first thing to decide which class of dirt track racing you want to run in. If you have never raced before, you might want to start in a 4 engine cylinder class or the bomber (pure) class. The overall cost of one of these type cars is much cheaper to build and maintain throughout the season.

The next item is to obtain a rule book from the dirt track that you will race you dirt track car. Many tracks specify types of rods, lifters, heads camshaft lift and duration, intake manifolds exhausts, distributors and even carburetors. Also when you check with the track people, you can often find good deals on parts from someone who may be changing classes or just retiring from racing.

Even though it is great to have all new parts in the race motor most of the parts can be reused and still be reliable. Find a reputable engine shop and pay them to check the block, heads, pistons, rods and crankshaft. I would recommend buying a new camshaft and lifter kit. Also by a new timing chain and gear set. Do not purchase the cheapest gasket set that is available.

When purchasing parts such as rod and main bearings, get a good set that will make your race engine reliable. The machine shop can probably recommend the best selection of bearings as well as the best gasket set. If you have never built an engine before, you have 2 options - pay the machine shop (he might give you a price to put his name on the car!) or find an experienced person to help you on the first one.

Finally make sure you have a good quality oil filter and oil in the race car engine. I use Valvoline 50 racing oil in my street stock car and my engines usually last about 2 seasons before going back through them. I change oil and filter every 4 races.

For more information on engine building Click here for Auto Racing Books or Click Here! for additional technical information on dirt track car race motor building.

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There are many different thoughts about how to set the air pressure for the best handling of a dirt track car. Once the car suspension has been set up, you can fine tune the handling of the car by varying the air pressure in all the tires. To be able to set the air pressure correctly, you will need a good quality air gauge that reads in small increments such as 1/2 pound.  For an example click here

As a general rule in most classes the rear tires can be set between 10 and 16 pounds. I usually have my street stock set at 10 in the left rear and 12 in the right rear. If the car is loose in the heat, I drop the right to 10 or 11. I run about 11 or 2 in the left front and 18 to 21 in the right front depending on how wet the track is.

If you are running a mini stock or bomber class with less horsepower, you may need to up the rear tire pressure so the car can break loose in the corners which enables you yo slide around faster then just steering around the corners.

If the car is tight or wants to”push” in the corner (it does not want to turn) you can increase the difference in the rear tire settings for example if you had 10 lb in left rear and 12 lb in right rear increase the right rear to 13 or 14 lb. If the car is loose (it wants to come around too much) you can decrease the difference in the rear tires for example if they were 10 lb in left rear and 12 lb in right rear change to 10 lb in left rear and 11 lb in right rear.

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There are several classes to start dirt track racing at the local dirt tracks. The amount of money you are willing to budget for this hobby will determine which class you would start your racing career.

Most of the dirt tracks have a “beginner type” class. For the younger people (12-16 years old} there is a junior mini class. These cars are some type of 4 cylinder car and you are limited on engine modifications. Basically you remove all the interior and external parts such as glass, mirrors and chrome. Then you add a roll cage and racing seat and harness. The fuel tank is removed and replaced by an approved safety fuel tank. This class also has a required tire type that is permitted -usually tires available to the public and street legal (DOT tires).

For the adults the beginner class is usually called ” hobby”, “bomber” or “pure stock”. This class is a larger car such as a chevy Monte Carlo.
You have to do similar modifications like the junior mini class but you can run v8 engine. Engine modifications for this class depends on the track rules. This class also usually permits larger tires (still must be DOT) and some modification to the suspension.

The next level class is usually called street stock. (This the class that I run in.) The engine and suspension can be modified much more in this class then the bomber or pure stock classes.

There are several sanctioning bodies such as Nascar and IMCA.

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Many people wonder what is the difference between drag racing, asphalt circle track racing and dirt track racing. Drag racing is a race between 2 vehicles in a straight line. Asphalt circle track racing usually has from 20 to 40 vehicles in a race around a closed course for example around a football field. The highest level of asphalt racing is Nascar on Sundays or Indy open wheel racing. Dirt track racing usually has up to 25 vehicles and the surface is some kind of dirt or clay surface and is also an enclosed course. The highest level od dirt track racing is the World of Outlaws type of cars.

Since the dirt track gives off a lot of dust, they are watered down prior to the start of races. this will cause the cars to slide around. The cars can actually go much faster by sliding around the corners instead of just steering around the turns. they do this by controlling the slide as they go around the corners.

When the back slides out as you are turning left, you have to turn the front wheels to the right to keep from spinning completely around. Hence the famous saying “there aint nothing like turning right to go left”.

There are usually 5 to 7 classes of cars ranging from the junior-mini class which is for kids from 12 to 16 years old to the modifieds and sprint classes. Note: I own and drive a streetstock car.

The race program usually starts with “hot laps” which is a way to test the cars best setup for handling. Next are the heat races. The entrants usually draw for starting position and usually there are 6 to 10 cars in a heat race. how you finish in the heats determine how you lineup for the feature race. If there is a wreck, car stalled on the track or some other problem, the flagman will throw out the yellow (caution) flag and the laps do not count until the race is restarted under green.

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Welcome to the world of DIRT TRACK RACING as seen through the eyes of a Friday nite street stock racer. I will be primarily talking about dirt track racing on the local level. Hopefully I can give out some helpful tips especially for the beginning racers.

I will try to explain some of the things that need to be done for top performance as well as important safety features that can be incorporated in a good race car.

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