When we saw YouTube videos of Don Garlits making hits in an electric rear “motor” dragster we had to follow up with Big Daddy and get the inside dirt on just how well this brand new machine from High Tech Systems performs. The 1500KW dragster is naked with no body panels and Don reports that since this was the first time out with the car, they only made some launches and 330′ shots.
Here’s what Don Garlits reported to us when we asked him about the machine –
I only did starts, as we didn’t have all the safety equipment installed yet.The 60′ times were; 1.12, 1.13, and 1.14. The eight mile speed was 95 MPH, shutting off just before the 330′, the ET for the 330′ was 3.22
Obviously the instant torque of the electric motors really gets this digger moving. Short times in the 1.1 second range on their first day out lead us to believe that with tuning, this baby will be in the 1.0 second range and that is bad ass quick off the line. That’s the type of 60′ times seen out some very hairy door slammers and dragsters. 1500Kw (kilowatts) translates into something like 2,000hp! YOWZA! We’re looking to follow up with these guys (who we believe are the same electrically charged lunatics that built the crazed electric drag bike that Larry “Spiderman” McBride rode into the 6-second zone in Spring of 2012!)
We’ll never give up our love of internal combustion, zoomie pipes, and header flames, but fast is fast and these guys are getting a real handle on electric hot rods at the strip. Oh, and this is further proof that Don Garlits is the coolest human being to ever walk the face of the Earth. If we do half the stuff he does when we get to his age, we’ll still not be qualified to carry his helmet.
Embedding of the videos is forbidden so hit the links to see the electric dragster of High Tech Systems running at Gainesville with the Swamp Rat at the controls!
VIDEO 3 – Garlits dry hop and launch
Man, that’s WILD!
May be the first time anyone actually heard tire shake. At what point do you pick up the phone and say “Big, we’d like you to drive our electric dragster”?
This just shows how cool he is.
BIG DADDY is the man!
Brian, I like you….you get it. No matter what we do, we really won’t ever be worthy to carry the man’s helmet.
I’d dang sure be honored to, though…
Big is a visionary and there isn’t a person within drag racing that questions his genius. The sport wouldn’t be the same without him.
The challenge for the future is how to transfer the experience (sound and feel) of fuel burning engines into electric powered ones. Drag race fans attend meets because they “feel and hear” the power; not because they can see something go fast.
Don’s old enough to remember the original electric cars . . . . Now that’s some kind ‘o pacemaker!
Bitchin retirement fun.
Of course with a “Reddy Kilowatt” digger, Big’s legendary “fire burnout” might be replaced with a “fire brownout” [rimshot]
“The challenge for the future is how to transfer the experience (sound and feel) of fuel burning engines into electric powered ones”
Strap on a big stack of Marshalls with an MP3 recording of a fueler . . . and occasionally short out the batteries for a big explosion . . . .
With all do respect Mr.Scholz,let’s don’t forget “SMELL” the power ! LOL,
“Swamp” Rat not Swap
Back in the 80’s-92’s I spent a lot of time at Firebird Phx.Az. some guys came out on several Wednesdays with an electric motorcycle,its wierd to hear the tire GRIP/Shake and the loudest niose is the CHAIN .
as for BIG,NHRA would do well to listen to what he has to say about the currenet state of drag racing in the US.
Gents. Hope you like Swamp Rat 37. I feel the same way as the rest of you that say that BIG is amazing. It has and continues to be an honor to make this 200 mph electric dragster a reality for him to drive. Check out http://www.nedra.com for more info. We are in fact the same company responsible for the Lawless Drag Bike that the great Larry McBride crawls on. Stay tuned…… Shawn Lawless
Being a drag racing spectator is for me about the complete sensory experience…and the electric deal just doesn’t cut it.
Innovation says it all! Thats where we started early 60s! Everything we have in drag racing came from innovation! It was saftey bedamned,lets just go faster!
Thats cool as hell from a technology and innovation standpoint, but the silence made it, well, boring. The visceral sound and feeling of fuel cars is half the experience.
Also, my next thought was, what kinda hellish “oil down” cleanup will those things create from batteries??? Yikes.
Imagine an electric track with a near supply of electric available similar to a bumper car track or commuter rail. What if the cars only needed motors and ways to cool them.. How fast could they go.?
Noise is essential, turbo fuelers would outrun the superchargers, but they’re too quiet.
Turbos are illegal in Top Fuel.