HalfTrac, Lord of the FWD deathbox wrote: Not meant as a jab to either of you, but i don't really understand the thought process that seems to point to a turbodiesel attached to an automatic being the best drivetrain for anything.
Not everything, but the problem with a clutch type drivetrain (which I love over an auto any day for normal cars) is that it is necessary to either bring the engine near zero RPM for a short time or come up with a slippage method. Pro Stock cars do this with finely tuned weights, some people try to use the pedal, but on something like that, you'd need to slip the clutch until the wheel speed was wherever 6K RPM brings it. Even with really deep gears, that means slipping the clutch to something like 40 mph. An auto with a torque converter that might be able to do that just makes more sense. Not to mention an auto's ability to keep the engine in boost (no lift shift) that non but just a few very expensive (although $$$ doesn't seem to be an issue for these guys) can claim.
Now, from what I saw of those graphs (just looking briefly) is that the HP under 5K is like 100-200. My Volvo does better. At 6K it starts it's rapid ascent into greatness, and indeed seems to be near 400 at 6k. An engine that goes from 200 to 1000 hp within 2-3k RPMs is going to require a very specialized drivetrain. I am a drag racer at heart, so that's fine, but don't go thinking of a street car with this kind of motor, it would suck.
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