Street Car or Race Car?

[Speedy!]

We joke about street car vs race car quite a bit around here, but I'm curious where others think the line actually is? I watch some of those street outlaw flavor of the week shows and laugh at those guys claiming street car on something that couldn't make it around the block without a pit crew in the trunk and that you couldn't drive without hear plugs. I also watch some of those drag and drive events where the cars technically have a vin, and a tow hitch for supplies, and they drive them on the street between tracks, but no way I'd call most of those street cars. Entertaining but it's not something you're gonna hop in and cruise on the weekend.

I used to think the limit was 10.00 for a street car. Below that you needed a cage and a 10.00 car was pretty dang fast. Going below that would have some consequences for street driving. The Hellcat platform has changed that a bit as it only takes a few mods to make them very fast and still very streetable.

My new thinking is 9.00 or 149mph. Once you put a cage or a parachute on a car I don't think it's a street car anymore. Crazy to think a car that fast can easily be driven around on the street with about zero compromises. Mine will probably run a bit below 9.50 at 147 or 148 and I literally drive it around town every weekend.

What do you guys think the limit is?

 

[drag racer]

Once you put a cage and/or a parachute on a car I don't think it's a street car anymore.

THIS!

 

[Marc W]

I think….. 🙃

 

[drag racer]

Another angle (at least for me) as I age is, will the wife be comfortable on a long drive? Heat, A/C, reclining seats, no obnoxiously loud exhaust, no bars to climb over, etc. That's why I love the modern Hemi's and their split personalities that the tech provides....putz along at 85 at 1800 rpm with throttle barely cracked...and when you need it, it comes roaring to life. Perfect automotive engineering.

 

[DGatzby]

I think the same way. It is not so much how quick or fast it is. On the street, of course is it legal? Most important as is said above, will SHE be comfy in it? Does it somehow get decent mileage on the street? With mine, I’ll change the brakes and tires/wheels along with putting a by-pass pipe in it for off street use. That makes it real loud and basically illegal, the brakes are not appropriate for the street, and the tires won’t wear well. BUT, after changing all of that back AND even without modifying the tune I use for the track, it is a great street rod also.

 

[Unholy707]

Neither. Strace car.

 

[Unholy707]

Listen. If it’s registered/insured and you drive it more than 100 miles a year in the street? Street car. Nothing else matters tbh

 

[Unholy707]

If it’s a trailer queen? Doesn’t matter, it’s a race car.

 

[Boris]

I used to think the limit was 10.00 for a street car. Below that you needed a cage and a 10.00 car was pretty dang fast. Going below that would have some consequences for street driving. The Hellcat platform has changed that a bit as it only takes a few mods to make them very fast and still very streetable.

My new thinking is 9.00 or 149mph. Once you put a cage or a parachute on a car I don't think it's a street car anymore.

You kind of nailed it for me.
Had a Malibu with a rollbar and a Nova with a cage.
It gets old quick climbing over the bars to get in and out.

A Hellcat in the 9s is probably as fast as I would want to go in a street car.

An older car would be much slower due to the roll bar.

With that said, i'd drive a car with a 25.x cage in it that would run 7s on the street to a local cruise night but not much farther.

I wouldn't mind trying my hand at a drag and drive event either. But the wife would want no part of that.

 

[jonx96]

well most the time I have a car seat in my car most the time. To me that’s a definition of a street car. I’m doing a parachute because of cracked rotors. It will be easily removed for the street. I have 100 percent stock interior. The only thing on my car riding in it you would think is a race car is how loud the 3.09s are at 55. Besides that it drives like stock.
I will say a cage is for safety and is an interesting line. Heck there are a few people low 8s in hellcats without cages. Does that make them a street car over the guys who put cages in trying to be safe? That is the tough part with the cage rule. But NHRA pretty much said 9.0 is the cut off for a true street car.

 

[45-70govt]

Comes down to how much a guy will compromise on comfort, or reliability and so on. Some guys are just more crazy then others.

 

[Unholy707]

If it’s registered, insured, and is driven to/from track (or around town) - it’s a street car. That’s always been the definition

 

[Speedy!]

100 miles a year a street car?? Man I drive mine 100 miles a weekend!

 

[Unholy707]

100 miles a year a street car?? Man I drive mine 100 miles a weekend!

You sir have a street car then

 

[Unholy707]

Some street car class events require you to drive the car there as well

 

[Speedy!]

I don't think we can base it on street car class rules. I've competed in "supposed" street car classes before and had to compete with obvious race cars.

 

[vortecd]

This has always been an interesting topic, because we all see a street car as something different.

My 87 mustang was my daily driver. I remember a friend telling someone my car ran 9s (early 2000s) and the guy says no way, I see that car driving almost every day. Around 2008 I put meth injection on the car and with 93 ran low 9s. I had a full cage with stock interior, full exhaust and an AOD trans. At 70 mph it was hard to figure if the wind or exhaust was louder. I knew guys with 8 and 7 seconds cars that would drive down the road on the weekends but for the most part I was known for having one of the fastest real street cars in our area

My stand is could you and would you want to drive across the country in it? Are you able to buy fuel at any gas station? This can even get interesting on an e85 car where you could go along way without finding a station with it but you could put in a 93 tune also. I did not have a/c but the factory seats were reupholstered and they were comfy. I drove to Anderson Ford a few times, 300 miles one way for their dyno shootout

Now would I want to have a cage in my car now, no. I always thought if I got into an accident in the mustang I could have been hurt or killed if my head was to bounce off of it. I had a 5 way harness in it for the track but I also had the stock seat belts in it for daily driving.

My friend Tim has been 7s in his coyote powered 86 mustang. He drives it to work and on the street once in awhile but his racing seats don't look to comfortable to me. He has done drag weeks and will be doing Sick Summer next week. So the car can drive on the streets but comes down to would you want to everyday?

For me I would have to be able to drive it anywhere and be comfortable doing it being a/c or heat. Can you put a time on it, I don't think you can. Jon has been 8.8s and think he can go faster. I think a mid 8 second Hellcat can be built to run like stock and maybe you never go to the track so having a cage isn't something you would need. Transplant the drivetrain into something much lighter and 7s could be had and you would still have everything you had in the Hellcat

 

[Boris]

I don't think we can base it on street car class rules. I've competed in "supposed" street car classes before and had to compete with obvious race cars.

Larry Larson's S10, switched out all the doors, fenders, hood, you name it when he did Drag Week.

Unlimited class cars are Pro Mods with a VIN plate and can run 2,000 miles before needing a rebuild.

 

[jonx96]

This has always been an interesting topic, because we all see a street car as something different.

My 87 mustang was my daily driver. I remember a friend telling someone my car ran 9s (early 2000s) and the guy says no way, I see that car driving almost every day. Around 2008 I put meth injection on the car and with 93 ran low 9s. I had a full cage with stock interior, full exhaust and an AOD trans. At 70 mph it was hard to figure if the wind or exhaust was louder. I knew guys with 8 and 7 seconds cars that would drive down the road on the weekends but for the most part I was known for having one of the fastest real street cars in our area

My stand is could you and would you want to drive across the country in it? Are you able to buy fuel at any gas station? This can even get interesting on an e85 car where you could go along way without finding a station with it but you could put in a 93 tune also. I did not have a/c but the factory seats were reupholstered and they were comfy. I drove to Anderson Ford a few times, 300 miles one way for their dyno shootout

Now would I want to have a cage in my car now, no. I always thought if I got into an accident in the mustang I could have been hurt or killed if my head was to bounce off of it. I had a 5 way harness in it for the track but I also had the stock seat belts in it for daily driving.

My friend Tim has been 7s in his coyote powered 86 mustang. He drives it to work and on the street once in awhile but his racing seats don't look to comfortable to me. He has done drag weeks and will be doing Sick Summer next week. So the car can drive on the streets but comes down to would you want to everyday?

For me I would have to be able to drive it anywhere and be comfortable doing it being a/c or heat. Can you put a time on it, I don't think you can. Jon has been 8.8s and think he can go faster. I think a mid 8 second Hellcat can be built to run like stock and maybe you never go to the track so having a cage isn't something you would need. Transplant the drivetrain into something much lighter and 7s could be had and you would still have everything you had in the Hellcat

Right and stock engine and trans is pretty hard not to be a street car. Unless you have some wildly pour tune. My car is a street car 100 percent 0 doubt. I could daily it but I chose not to. Nice days I take my bike. Every day this week I’ve rode that

 

[Jroc]

I've really wondered about this a lot over the past few weeks, especially trying to decide whether I am going to take my car over that race car line.

For me I would have to be able to drive it anywhere and be comfortable doing it being a/c or heat. Can you put a time on it, I don't think you can. Jon has been 8.8s and think he can go faster. I think a mid 8 second Hellcat can be built to run like stock and maybe you never go to the track so having a cage isn't something you would need. Transplant the drivetrain into something much lighter and 7s could be had and you would still have everything you had in the Hellcat

This is my thought process behind it as well. Does it have a VIN? Can you go at least 100 miles on a tank of fuel? Can you drive the car in traffic without it overheating? Is it at least somewhat comfortable to drive? If yes to all the above I don't think ET really matters, I'd consider it a street car.