In a message dated 2/24/02 10:54:41 AM Central Standard Time,
owner-ax-digest@autox.team.net writes:
<< I'm not sure I understand why this is a safety issue at all... Why is
using nitrous on an autox course dangerous? Doubling the horsepower?
What about prepared cars or turbo cars or any number of other cars that
have _way_ more horsepower than stock? >>
Most nitrous systems are very abrupt and could easilly yank the steering
wheel out of your hands in a front driver with torque steer. One of my
friends (who has NEVER autocrossed) keeps telling me to make a proportional
nitrous setup using PWM just like fuel injectors. Instant no lag response to
about triple the non boosted power. I agree it could be made to work, but is
not allowed in the rules. Could be a fun one to sell SCCA on for an AMod
though. But this is a different issue.
Whether or not it is safe to drive, is not the real issue at all. Even a
seriously huge 200 hp shot a civic would only be a short term off course,
that would probably end in the driver laughing and never trying it again.
The far more real concern is the high pressure bottle. To save weight many
Nitrous bottles are thin wall, aluminum, even carbon fibre. The safety margin
of these bottles is no where near what is required of welding gasses. Nitrous
also has the very bad habit of much greater increase in pressure with heat.
Add these two together and you don't want the bottles sitting around in the
sun.
<< I can understand a classing issue, but the safety one doesn't make sense
to me. People do stupid things with gasoline too, but we don't ban
that... >>
It is just loike any other rule, SCCA says no compressed gasses, we have to
abide by that. Use of nitrous as a power adder is also specifically banned,
so there really is no question that you are not to use it in the car. They
don't need to give a reason.
Another poster gace this not and link
<>
When this happened, it was all over the internet, and the owner of the car
was going to Sue the maker of the system (I won't name the company here, they
build quality, safe systems) for his losses. The company was sent the link to
his web page and immediately investigated the story. A member of another list
I am on, happens to work for the company. I am relaying this only second
hand, not bad for an internet story.
What the company found was a seriously wrong installation. The first thing
was the bottle heater was connected directly to battery power, not even
switched, let alone using the supplied safety cut off. The system uses a
bottle pressure switch to turn off the heater at a safe level, this was not
connected at all. The bottle valve has a mechanical relief valve, this was
removed and a pipe plug was screwed in it's place. The owner said he put the
plug in because it kept leaking. The system was installed in the car the day
of the explosion.
Actually, the incredible strength of this particular tank is why the blast
was so bad. The very strong tank allowed the pressure to go much higher
before the failure. Since this event, most manufacturers now have an
intentional weak point in the bottle structure, so that it will fail at a far
lower pressure, and in a single tear without chunks of metal flying in all
directions.
In any case, leaving a bottle of nitrous out in the sun is a bad idea. In a
glass hatchback may be an even worse idea. I will recomend that our local
clubs add a note on the web pages to not bring the bottles to the events.
Most of our new people are finding us on the net.
Gary M.
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