steel or aluminum driveshaft?

[Mark Ugrich]

I've had both steel and aluminum in my car also, with no noticeable improvement. An aluminum driveshaft looks cool, but I think it's one of those things that in theory makes a lot of sense, but in practice really doesn't make any difference.

[Run to Rund]

There have been several heated threads on yellow bullet; if there is any consensus, it is that the e.t. improvement is slight. I think the bigger point is the critical speed of the shaft, which is a function of length, diameter, and material.

[Jim Caughlin]

Same issue with lightweight rearend parts, gundrilled axles, alum spool, lightened ring gear, no noticable improvement. On the other hand, lighter weight flywheel and clutch made a huge difference. In my case, this is a 4 cyl motor that crosses the finish line at 9200.

[SSDiv6]

Some good reading on the subject:

http://www.dragzine.com/tech-stories...for-your-ride/

http://markwilliams.com/driveshafttech.aspx

[randy wilson]

Carbo fiber. Don't know about improvements in performance, but takes the shock out of the driveline, and is way safer. Ran a 6.20 rear gear for over 100 passes at 3040# with a 5 speed.

[Jim Caughlin]

I agree that carbon fiber is probably better but not legal in SS.

[Nathan Stinson]

I see a few comments about durability concerns with aluminum. Maybe I have been lucky but I have ran a Dynatec aluminum shaft for several season in my car. 3350lbs run 1.11 60' and have not had any issues at all. I do agree that the performance gains were minimal at best compared to a chromemoly shaft.

[1320racer]

Swapped the stock 3" driveshaft in my 3880 lb. Chevelle back in '99 for a 3 1/2" MMC driveshaft from Denny's, worth .04 in the 1/4. Put thousands of passes on that driveshaft without issue or failure and it's still in the car today. Ran a best of 1.28 60 foot with it and well into the 9's.



Further, my 3144 lb. MPR Firebird has a 4" aluminum driveshaft and has been 1,17 60 foot and well into the 8's also without issue or failure.

[flash]

can anybody see a reaction time difference with changing to light weight driveline componets ? I would think it would be very small if you could gauge it at all.

[SSDiv6]

Originally Posted by flash

can anybody see a reaction time difference with changing to light weight driveline componets ? I would think it would be very small if you could gauge it at all.

Like it has been shared on this discussion by many, there are lots of variables involved. One of the main gains that many have seen is switching to lighter rear wheels.