simple question, i am going to race my car this thursday at irwindale is it best to run with the tailgate up or down?

Down, more weight transfer

thats what i was thinking. thank you very much

But up gives less wind resistance and the tailgate is still in the same place for weight.

It can really go either way. If I were to do it, I would leave mine up just because it would make me feel better/I would forget to put it down.

Leo is right. tailgate up.

Up! You don't want the bags of cement to fly out...:???:

A local Hero here runs with his tailgate up on a Chevy Pickup. It runs low 10's, so it is no slouch. On a given track, it is supposedly good for a few hundredths and a couple of MPH. On an El Camino your mileage may vary :smileyb:

Have you considered trying some back to backs (tailgate up and down) and comparing times?

How does having the tailgate up on an open bed give LESS wind resistance? I got a lot less resistance by adding a bed cover so I would think gate off would be the best to let the wind flow right through. You get a swirling wind effect in the bed without a cover and the gate up. Throw a few leaves in there and take it for a ride on the highway. You'd think the leaves would blow out but no, they don't. You can watch them in the rearview mirror swirling around. Which means the wind is staying in the bed and therfore holding you back.

up, down this is right that is right... I don't think it matters because NHRA tech says you WILL run with the tailgate UP, or you will NOT run. If Irwindale or any other track allows you to run with it down,, well not everyone follows the rules. Check with tech as they inspect your car before you get sent down the return road, instead of the race track.

There is an old popular mechanics article where they tested a 1/2ton pickup in the same stretch of road, tailgate up and tailgate down, and got better fuel mileage with it up. At highway speeds the tailgate will create a 'bubble' of high pressure air in the bed and all other air is supposed to 'slip' over it. The wind tunnel proved it, the highway mileage test proved it, but yet like opsuper3's local track star,, everything is always subject to the exceptions.

OK well I'm no scientist but if the air is blowing over a bubble in the bed then why is the wind swirling in the bed? Is the swirling the trapped bubble or the air passing through?

dont any one watch mythbusters? they did it on one show & the ball of air in the bed caused the air flow over the cab to slide right over the bed of the pick up they used.

dont any one watch mythbusters? they did it on one show & the ball of air in the bed caused the air flow over the cab to slide right over the bed of the pick up they used.

Man, you stole my thunder! :You_Rock:

OK well I'm no scientist but if the air is blowing over a bubble in the bed then why is the wind swirling in the bed? Is the swirling the trapped bubble or the air passing through?

The bubble of air in the bed circulates as the air passes over it is why the swirl in the bed! Think about it and look at the rotation! It circulates clockwise and pushed any debris to the front of the bed!

If it's a test and tune night, try to make two passes. Do one up and one down and log all your data and see how it compares.

Mythbusters rock!!! Tailgate up! But on my 74 I drove with it down because people would not ride my bumper because they couldn't see my brake lights. 1 police officer stopped me and made me put it up but the next day if was down as usual. Drove most of 20 years that way.
But myth busted tailgate down does not reduce but increases wind resistence.
Donny

well in either case make sure you put it up if you're on the road...unless you want to get pulled over for trying to cover up you expired tags....*cough, cough*...:smileyb:

Id say down like it matters, Hell i think i drove with mine down once ( i forgot the plate was on it Damn 5th Gen) trying to clean ot the bed after haulin trash 2 burn!) but if you dont have a bed cover id say down! It wont matter a whole lot have fun im sure u did!!!!!!!:You_Rock:

I vote to RUN it ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ah -- never mind --- What do I know ? :poke::beer:

Well I don't know about drag racing with it up or down but I know I wouldn't drive it "down" around town. Many (many) years ago when I was a lot younger (way before mythbusters was on TV!), I drove a fairly new Dodge Ram D50 all the way across the country with the tailgate down thinking I would save gas on that long trip. I don't remember if I saved gas or not but when I got to where I was going, the tailgate was a mess! It was full of road grim, tar, & a chip or two; it looked liked the underneath of a car! I had to use rubbing compound and buff it out to get it back to original condition! So I learned the hard way & never did that again with any pickup, especially my El Caminos! To this day when I see a tailgate down on the interstate, I think "man, that guy is going to be pissed when he gets home"!

up, down this is right that is right... I don't think it matters because NHRA tech says you WILL run with the tailgate UP, or you will NOT run. If Irwindale or any other track allows you to run with it down,, well not everyone follows the rules. Check with tech as they inspect your car before you get sent down the return road, instead of the race track. .i have raced my camino at a NHRA track for more than 12 yrs. every weekend & have never heard of that B.S.tailgate rule & can`t find anything in the NHRA rulebook stating that either!!! i always run with the tailgate down to increase the weight transfer to the rear not to mention i`ll get 1-2 MPH more on the top end...et`s are the same though..who cares about gas mileage at the track anyways ?????????.http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y198/elkyman/klause.jpg

Man I like the (twist) on those tires!!!
Donny

i have raced my camino at a NHRA track for more than 12 yrs. every weekend & have never heard of that B.S.tailgate rule & can`t find anything in the NHRA rulebook stating that either!!! i always run with the tailgate down to increase the weight transfer to the rear not to mention i`ll get 1-2 MPH more on the top end...et`s are the same though..who cares about gas mileage at the track anyways ?????????.

elkyman,, I'm going to have to say you are 100% correct!! I went on a search and can't find anyting in the rule books all the way back to 2005. All I can say is when I built my 66 pickup I was told 'Up' , a net, or NO tailgate,, but not down.. I'm going to have to assume that was a local track rule and not NHRA. I built this thing in the beginning of the ProStock Truck era (circa 1995) and maybe there was something in the PST rules that Firebird took to heart,,, don't know but.... I stand corrected.

The lane dirrector is still at Firebird so you can bet,, I'm going to find out *** he was baseing his instruction on!

maybe the only reason the tech told you that is because some pic-ups the tail-gate is removeable with the flat links holding it up instead like a camino where it won`t come off unless you un-bolt it ???

Man I like the (twist) on those tires!!!
Donny 1.65 second 60 ft. times results in slight wrinkling of my hoosiers:secret:

(Slight)? any more and they would be folded up.:poke:
If my tires looked like that I would be braking out the jack and lug wrench!!!Ha-Ha
Great shot. great time
Donny

(Slight)? any more and they would be folded up.:poke:
If my tires looked like that I would be braking out the jack and lug wrench!!!Ha-Ha
Great shot. great time
Donnythe tire pressure i usually run is about 14 psi...any less than that & its almost on the rims !!!

maybe the only reason the tech told you that is because some pic-ups the tail-gate is removeable with the flat links holding it up instead like a camino where it won`t come off unless you u-bolt it ???

I really don't have a clue. On the 66 the hinges have to be unbolted for the gate to come off unlike the newer trucks that will lift off at 45°. They did tell everyone they had to run 'tailgate up' and being a bracket racer like you,,, we do what tech asks without argueing. Obviously they are not always 'right' but argue about 'one little thing' and you will be argueing with them every stinking weekend about something. As you know... not worth the hassle of having tech picking at you. But,,,, Dick More is still there as senior inspector and was our area NHRA tech for chassis certs. I WILL find out why he told me that,, and 'that' you can bet on ;) At the time it really didn't matter to me,, I wanted to ditch the tailgate in favor of a net anyways to show off the tin work. but that's another story.

Not as tho it really matters, the correct info that you can run 'up' or 'down' is what matters, and I do thank you for setting me straight on that.

tail gate UP!
my el camino IS faster and has better mph with the tail gate up.
did a mileage run getting ready for drag week gate up was worth almost 2 more mpg!

Tailgate up

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Tailgate Down

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Tonneau Cover

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thats pretty cool but...:poke: