We asked Chelsea questions in this thread:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/pennzoil-q-a-chelsea-denofa.384349/
Chelsea's answers are posted below.
Thank you Chelsea for participating!!!
1. When I watch drift races, it sounds like the engine has a rev limiter while in the corners. Is there a rev limiter?
Yes, all of the cars use some type of rev limiter. I would say 75 percent use the normal ignition/fuel cut style and the rest use tuning to limit the amount of power so that you do not over rev the engine. Examples include using the electronic throttle body, bleeding boost, or turning off nitrous to reduce power.
2. Lots of RPMs and not that much airflow in corners likely lead to some really hot engines. How are the engines kept cool? What are the hottest water and oil temperatures normally seen during a drift race?
That is correct, being sideways and wanting to keep the radiator in safe positions make it difficult to keep the engine cool. We rely heavily on very strong fans and directing cool air to the areas in front of the radiator. Many people have the radiator in the rear of the car to bring it to a cooler spot and move weight around. Cooling the oil is also a big part of managing overall temperatures. We’re lucky to only run for 45 seconds at a time, but again when we stop, so does the airflow. Normally we try to keep cars 200-220F on the coolant side and under 240F for oil temperatures, but I have seen over 290F in both in certain situations.
3. How often are the engines torn down for inspection?
PRO cars are torn down yearly as run time isn’t very high, about 10 hours above 2,500 rpm.
Most of the other cars I build don’t require much tear down-related service as we just don’t rev them as high or keep the power levels sustainable.
I do rev one of my BMW S54 engines to 9,000, and this requires a rod bearing service every few years because of the added rpm.
4. Which Pennzoil engine oil(s) were run in the engines?
We run Pennzoil Platinum® Racing 10W-60 in all of our drift cars and Pennzoil Platinum® Euro Full Synthetic Motor Oil 5W-40 in most of our street cars.
5. How did the Pennzoil hold up in the engines?
Personally, I’m amazed at some of the situations we’ve been through and how the cars persevered.We have lost oil pumps or oil belts at 9,000 rpm, ended the lap with ZERO oil pressure, fixed the issue, and gone back on track with the untouched engine. I have left the start line for competition at 300F oil temperatures. Pennzoil has played a large part in helping to protect our engines. We often send our oil to the lab and they are constantly telling us we’re changing the oil prematurely.
6. What type of transmission do drift cars run?
There are a number of transmissions used in professional drifting. The most common, strongest, and most cost effective is the 4-speed, H pattern NASCAR-style boxes such as Andrews A431 or G-Force GSR. Most of these boxes hold 1,500whp, are easily serviceable, lightweight, and very easy to shift. Another option is a sequential straight shift gearbox.
Some people prefer the pull back and push forward shifting and it can be faster at times. It’s also a bonus as you can have five or six gears for dialing in wheel speed. Personally, I have no interest in the sequential boxes because we usually have only one shift in drift, they cost much more, they take more effort to shift, they weigh more, and the serviceability isn’t as efficient.
For my fun cars that are not PRO cars, we usually run ZF320 gearboxes out of 95’-05’ BMW 3 and 5 Series. Very light, very cheap, very small, and very abundant.
7. How long does a set of rear tires last?
For the PRO cars on most tracks, we struggle to get two laps out of rear tires with the power, grip, and heat we put into the Nitto NT555 G2’s.
For my fun cars we build them to get as many laps as possible and run a longer lasting tire. We usually get about 14-18 laps on the same track.
8. What sort of viscosity do you look for in your engines?
We’re almost always running in warm climates with high oil temperatures, so we build everything to use Pennzoil Platinum® Racing 10W-60.
9. How many BMWs do you think you've owned so far?
Way, way, way, too many. Do you want to buy an E36?
10. What is your favorite non-FD track to drift?
Pat’s Acres Racing Complex!
11. What was the biggest challenge related to swapping an Ecoboost in your Fox Body drift car?
The ECU tuning is the biggest hurdle. It’s a very complex engine and we worked with Link ECU to build out a firmware that took years realistically. Direct injection, dual VVT, a fuel pump run off one of those VVT cams, turbo, and drive by wire, in a drift car made it a big learning curve.
12. What chassis do you think will be the next trend for grassroots/ProAm drifting?
I’d like to see more Porsche people involved. With Boxsters below $5,000 and Caymans down to $10,000 it’s a pretty low-cost option to have the same suspension and basis as my 718 drift car. Also LSX engine swaps are becoming popular in them. Drifters seem to copy and paste a lot lately, so I’d like to just see different cars.
13. What is your long-term plan for your Cayman drift car?
The goal is to get in it, drive it, and be happy with what it’s doing on and off the track. I’m really happy with where it is already! But there is certainly more to come!
14. Who are your top 5 rappers?
My top five hip hop artists in no particular order right now are:
• OT The Real
• Vinnie Paz
• Jadakiss
• Killer Mike
• BigXthaPlug
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/pennzoil-q-a-chelsea-denofa.384349/
Chelsea's answers are posted below.
Thank you Chelsea for participating!!!
1. When I watch drift races, it sounds like the engine has a rev limiter while in the corners. Is there a rev limiter?
Yes, all of the cars use some type of rev limiter. I would say 75 percent use the normal ignition/fuel cut style and the rest use tuning to limit the amount of power so that you do not over rev the engine. Examples include using the electronic throttle body, bleeding boost, or turning off nitrous to reduce power.
2. Lots of RPMs and not that much airflow in corners likely lead to some really hot engines. How are the engines kept cool? What are the hottest water and oil temperatures normally seen during a drift race?
That is correct, being sideways and wanting to keep the radiator in safe positions make it difficult to keep the engine cool. We rely heavily on very strong fans and directing cool air to the areas in front of the radiator. Many people have the radiator in the rear of the car to bring it to a cooler spot and move weight around. Cooling the oil is also a big part of managing overall temperatures. We’re lucky to only run for 45 seconds at a time, but again when we stop, so does the airflow. Normally we try to keep cars 200-220F on the coolant side and under 240F for oil temperatures, but I have seen over 290F in both in certain situations.
3. How often are the engines torn down for inspection?
PRO cars are torn down yearly as run time isn’t very high, about 10 hours above 2,500 rpm.
Most of the other cars I build don’t require much tear down-related service as we just don’t rev them as high or keep the power levels sustainable.
I do rev one of my BMW S54 engines to 9,000, and this requires a rod bearing service every few years because of the added rpm.
4. Which Pennzoil engine oil(s) were run in the engines?
We run Pennzoil Platinum® Racing 10W-60 in all of our drift cars and Pennzoil Platinum® Euro Full Synthetic Motor Oil 5W-40 in most of our street cars.
5. How did the Pennzoil hold up in the engines?
Personally, I’m amazed at some of the situations we’ve been through and how the cars persevered.We have lost oil pumps or oil belts at 9,000 rpm, ended the lap with ZERO oil pressure, fixed the issue, and gone back on track with the untouched engine. I have left the start line for competition at 300F oil temperatures. Pennzoil has played a large part in helping to protect our engines. We often send our oil to the lab and they are constantly telling us we’re changing the oil prematurely.
6. What type of transmission do drift cars run?
There are a number of transmissions used in professional drifting. The most common, strongest, and most cost effective is the 4-speed, H pattern NASCAR-style boxes such as Andrews A431 or G-Force GSR. Most of these boxes hold 1,500whp, are easily serviceable, lightweight, and very easy to shift. Another option is a sequential straight shift gearbox.
Some people prefer the pull back and push forward shifting and it can be faster at times. It’s also a bonus as you can have five or six gears for dialing in wheel speed. Personally, I have no interest in the sequential boxes because we usually have only one shift in drift, they cost much more, they take more effort to shift, they weigh more, and the serviceability isn’t as efficient.
For my fun cars that are not PRO cars, we usually run ZF320 gearboxes out of 95’-05’ BMW 3 and 5 Series. Very light, very cheap, very small, and very abundant.
7. How long does a set of rear tires last?
For the PRO cars on most tracks, we struggle to get two laps out of rear tires with the power, grip, and heat we put into the Nitto NT555 G2’s.
For my fun cars we build them to get as many laps as possible and run a longer lasting tire. We usually get about 14-18 laps on the same track.
8. What sort of viscosity do you look for in your engines?
We’re almost always running in warm climates with high oil temperatures, so we build everything to use Pennzoil Platinum® Racing 10W-60.
9. How many BMWs do you think you've owned so far?
Way, way, way, too many. Do you want to buy an E36?
10. What is your favorite non-FD track to drift?
Pat’s Acres Racing Complex!
11. What was the biggest challenge related to swapping an Ecoboost in your Fox Body drift car?
The ECU tuning is the biggest hurdle. It’s a very complex engine and we worked with Link ECU to build out a firmware that took years realistically. Direct injection, dual VVT, a fuel pump run off one of those VVT cams, turbo, and drive by wire, in a drift car made it a big learning curve.
12. What chassis do you think will be the next trend for grassroots/ProAm drifting?
I’d like to see more Porsche people involved. With Boxsters below $5,000 and Caymans down to $10,000 it’s a pretty low-cost option to have the same suspension and basis as my 718 drift car. Also LSX engine swaps are becoming popular in them. Drifters seem to copy and paste a lot lately, so I’d like to just see different cars.
13. What is your long-term plan for your Cayman drift car?
The goal is to get in it, drive it, and be happy with what it’s doing on and off the track. I’m really happy with where it is already! But there is certainly more to come!
14. Who are your top 5 rappers?
My top five hip hop artists in no particular order right now are:
• OT The Real
• Vinnie Paz
• Jadakiss
• Killer Mike
• BigXthaPlug
