Yesterday it was announced that Holley would be the sole provider of EFI equipment to the NHRA pro stock world for 2016. Immediately we had questions on the specific components that teams would be running, what they would have leeway on and what would be locked in as mandatory equipment. We picked up the phone and hounded Holley’s Robin Lawrence until he picked up and shared the answers we were looking for.

There was a misnomer in the original NHRA release about the EFI change for 2016. The release misused the term throttle body and it was in a context where people thought that the teams would have to run a TBI style system. This is not the case. As was mentioned in yesterday’s news, the injectors have to be in the intake runner meaning that this will be a port injection system.

Major questions from fans remain. The biggest one? How will this save teams money? We have the answer below. Read on to know exactly what we know about NHRA Pro Stock fuel injection in 2016 —

Question: What are the components that NHRA Pro Stock teams have to purchase from Holley?

Answer: The three major components that you’d expect. There’s the throttle body, the ECU, and the injectors. Those three parts will be supplied by Holley and Holley only. Each of the parts are laser etched and logged with the records of purchase being shared with NHRA to keep track of who bought what. In the case of the ECU it will have both an external and an internal ID number that match to prevent tampering. NHRA tech will be randomly checking these things we assume.

Question: What’s the deal with the ECU? What model is it? What does it do? How much does it cost?

Answer: The ECU is virtually identical to the one used by ARCA teams currently. It is a modified HP ECU that will have locked unique firmware in it controlling the 10,500 RPM mandated rev limiter. This information cannot be changed, unlocked, or reflashed as it is part of the new rules package for 2016. The ECU (as shown in the photo above) will be colored red to aid in identifying it and teams receiving early models will have the Beta version of the software that they can use for dyno testing and tuning their new engine combos. Cost for the ECU? Holley says that it will under $1,000 per ECU. Our guess is that teams may have 2-3 in the trailer as backups/spares.

Question: How is the air getting into the engine? What is the story on the throttle body?

Answer: The throttle body you see in the photo is the one that teams will be running. The thing is about seven inches wide and 4.5-inches tall. As you can see there is an outward facing flange where teams could mount a bell mouth or some sort of other intake tubing if they so desire. The new NHRA specs mandate that it is forward facing. Top of the intake? Your guess is as good as ours. Cost for the throttle body? Holley says that it will be under $1,000 per unit.

Question: What is the spec on fuel injectors? Where do they have to be? Where are they sourced?

Answer: The injectors are being bought through Holley but they are Bosch units. According to Holley they flow 160lbs at 43 psi and 220lbs at 90psi and NHRA has set a pressure limit of 90psi. Holley receives the injectors from Bosch and flow tests them all to make sure they are within 1%. They are then laser etched with a Holley PN and a serial number that is recorded and shared with NHRA as they are sold. Tech will be checking the ECU’s to make sure that teams are within the 90psi spec on the injectors. Cost for the injectors? $1400 per set of 8.

Question: When will teams be able to buy this stuff?

Answer: Holley’s Robin Lawrence told us that they will be supplied with a near surplus of everything within the next two weeks. Injectors, throttle bodies, and ECUs will all the available for teams to buy and Holley says that they are making sure everyone has an opportunity to buy before they start selling multiples to specific teams. Of note is that the early throttle bodies will be fine for dyno testing but they will be lacking the required markings for the teams to use in competition. Holley says that the phone has been ringing lots from teams that want their stuff to start dyno testing and development now.

Question: Will the ECU Control anything outside of the fuel injection?

Answer: Yes. The ECU will also have control over the ignition system as the engines will be moving to a coil near plug system. Like most modern production cars, the engine will use a coil pack per cylinder and the ECU will control spark timing as well as the fuel system.

Question: How does this save the teams money? 

Answer:  We have had direct conversations with pro stock crew chiefs that have told us their current carburetor budget is in excess of $30,000. If a team decides to buy three sets of injectors, three throttle bodies and three ECUs they will spend $10,200 (or less because pricing on ECU and TB are slightly under $1,000).

Question: So what do the teams have control over now?

Answer: The simple answer is that they have more finite control over their engines than they have ever had before. They also have control over stuff like injector placement, intake manifold design, and of course all of the other stuff they are messing with now on cylinder head and camshaft fronts, bore and stroke, etc.

Question: Will teams be hiring EFI tuners now? 

Answer: Believe it or not most of the pro stock teams have some experience messing with this stuff or they have already grabbed onto the guys who are known in the industry as talented EFI tuners to get them moving in the right direction. One of the interesting things to see in the development of this package will be how the teams that are factory supported receive help. Obviously companies like Chrysler and Chevrolet have talented engineers who live, breathe, and speak electronic fuel injection every day of their lives. Will some of those people be spending time in the pro stock dyno cells? You can bet your sweet ass they will.

Question: Will Holley have people at the races to help teams in 2016? 

Answer: The answer to that question is a definitive yes. According to Holley’s Lawrence, the company will have multiple people in the pits for the first few races of the 2016 season before evaluating what they need for manpower to support the pro stock contingent. There will be someone at all the races the only question is how many someones will be around. It will apparently be based on the needs of the class.

Question: What does this move say about the class, about Holley, and about EFI?

Answer: What it says about the class is that it is moving in a more modern direction. There are more fundamental changes that fans would love to see but we think that this is a stepped process that is moving in the right direction. Start here and continue forward. If any fan thinks that this is where pro stock changes stop we think that they are dead wrong. What it says about Holley is that they have been aggressive about taking their product racing at a high level. From the ARCA stock cars to the COPO Camaros, and now NHRA Pro Stock, this is big time stuff and they have been working hard. What does it say about EFI? Not that this is a shocker to anyone who is under the age of 50 but EFI has exploded in the hot rodding realm over the last 10 years. The system going on pro stock cars is actually a scaled DOWN version of the Dominator system you can put on your street or race car today. Holley made a huge commitment to EFI several years ago and the fruits of their labor concentrating on being a fuel delivery company as opposed to a carb company are showing now on all levels. Electronic fuel injection is no longer some sort of niche business as it was a few years ago. It is as mainstream as it gets and the tech that is available for your street car is as powerful as that being used by racers in the highest professional levels of drag racing.