Shipping weights

[Charley Downing]

Can someone explain to me why we need shipping weights for Stock and Superstock anymore? I would love to hear one good reason. I mean a combo can already move up or down one class from its natural class. If someone can get extra weight out of a car/combo why should they be forced to run a heavier class. Or here is a though just rewrite the current rule to make it where you can move up or down 2 class's higher or lower then your natural class. you people are making this way harder then it needs to be.

I mean no shipping weights for cars in SS/GT appear to be working with no issues. Why not just eliminate factory shipping weights all together?
I mean its pretty simple take your (NHRA HP) x (that class weight) plus 170lbs and that's your min for that class. Pretty simple

I can’t see people adding 200-400 lbs to make their cars slower. I believe this was brought up a few weeks ago to the SRAC committee and Kent Hanley and Mike Crutchfield were the major reasons this was shot down. Which is funny because they both compete in a SS class where factory shipping weight are not used.

[Herbie Null]

Charley, stop trying to make it to easy for them lol, I’m very surprised Hanley and Crutchfield were against it if that is true. Makes sense to just get rid of the shipping weights, solves all the problems and makes everything fair.

[Charley Downing]

Herbie I was told from 3 different people that set on the SRAC board for stk and ss that it was easier to agree with the 2 of them and move on, then waste 45 more mins of the call. I have no problem calling them out. Maybe they will post here and clear things up. I mean they both email D1 and D2 racers notes from these calls

[tstickff]

I agree, they wonder why the newer generations aren’t interested in stock and super stock, they make it a Math test to be able to figure out just what class they can run, maybe it was useful in the old days but I know guys racing for the last 30 years that still have a hard time trying to figure this out, why can’t we just simplify things? Oh, because that’s too simple

[442OLDS]

This is actually a good post.I was thinking the same thing.
Stock Eliminator has got so far away from it roots,that it really doesn't matter anymore.
What I would like to see is the elimination of the 170 pounds for the driver in the minimum weight.
Example: My horsepower rating is 350.G weight break is 350x11=3850 pounds.Just weigh 3850 and forget about another 170 pounds for driver.How many people weigh 170 pounds anymore and who cares anymore?
When class racing started,it was advantageous to build certain cars like convertibles because they "FIT" certain classes.
But now,you can go up one or down one.If someone wanted to go up two or down two,I don't see what difference it would make at all.

[nssracer]

I agree with getting rid of the shipping weights. Stockers today can weigh much less stocker from years past. Lighter transmissions, replacement seat, aluminum heads, the list goes on and on. These old shipping weights just are not aligned with todays race cars.

[GTS340]

All the Mopar cars I've built. They are real good when it comes to the 50/50 scale number I'm looking for in its natural class. If I work at it I can make it a good car in the lighter class given. Getting a 340 1971 Duster down to 2680lbs is out. So all the A/SA cars can rest at ease.

Paul Haszlauer

[countrypuppy4865]

I said this last week all they have to do is get rid of shipping weights. Either allow two classes up or down or if they want a limit make the lightest the car can be x amount of lbs less than shipping weight (gt rule is 2670 minimum but most stockers tend to be heavier cars) The shipping weights will never and have never been 100% accurate. The reasons I’m sure could be from politics to just plain errors. Even on older cars, it seems that older numbers being 100% accurate seems unlikely.

[Herbie Null]

I understand them going back to the old shipping weights because of cars that have been running for over 50 years would now be gone, that would not be fair. What’s not fair is cars that have been in the guide for over 40 years wrong and they correct them and then change them back knowing they are wrong. I will just have to summit my review of the car I have because it has the wrong shipping weight and is in the wrong natural class. Two wrongs do not make a right, get rid of the shipping weights and keep all combos in the guide is the only way to fix this mess.

[Larry Hill]

From what I have seen on the AMA sheets not all manufacturers use the same formula to figure shipping weight. Some use curb weight minus gas and coolant, some used a figure they turned into the states for licensing and tax purposes, some appeared to use 95% of curb weight. An earlier car of the same manufacturer’s was figured differently than a later vehicle by the same company.