(EDIT BY BEN: Here’s another Out of Left Field by Patrick Callahan. Patrick keeps me guessing with what he’ll write about next… )

Patrick’s post:

Back in ‘01 or so someone in GM decided it would be a good idea to get involved with import drag racing which was booming at the time. From a boardroom perspective, the championships earned with Ladwig and Gardella may have seemed like the perfect way to win the hearts of people who fit the “tuner” demographic and show them the benefits of their darling ECOTEC. Unfortunately, GM’s head-in-the-sand approach of shelling out money until they won contributed greatly to the sport’s demise.

In my mind, the problem was that FWD drag racing didn’t make sense to begin with, unless you’re racing a Honda. Honda’s are light, simple, cheap, easy to work on and well engineered. That’s a recipe for giant killing and exactly what made FWD Hondas so popular. Honda tuning had already become a lifestyle by the time GM decided to go for a piece of the pie. To a point, improving the performance of a FWD car is not illogical and using the drag strip to test parts for improving performance is also not illogical. However, taken to extremes the drag racing loses relevance to those street cars and becomes entertainment. There’s no problem with using entertainment for marketing purposes except that FWD drag racing really isn’t that entertaining. The only reason the NHRA’s premier classes are so entertaining is because of physics defying, 300mph, nitro burning cars that make your eyes water and shake the ground. An FWD 4-cylinder just can’t compete.

However, I think GM could’ve done things right and made a much larger impact on the tuner scene. I already talked about why GM couldn’t take on the FWD Honda lifestyle but I believe they could’ve successfully taken out a legend with parts that had already been designed on a much lower budget than their FWD efforts. That legend would be the JZA80 Supra and, like it or not, it was cemented by TFATF in 2001 or about the time GM decided to go racing. While FWD drag racing was losing relevance, street class RWD cars were possibly gaining relevance to their street counterparts with numerous developments being used even today by powerful street Supras. Back in 2001, the only RWD vehicle featuring GM’s Ecotec was the Opel Speedster. It could’ve been used as an FWD racer turned backwards, but since it was never sold here it would be somewhat pointless. However, when GM debuted the Solstice, they had a car which I believe could be very succesful.

The 2JZ-GTE is one of the most famous engines of all time because of how stout it is. How could GM compete? Their drag ECOTEC engine is apparently making something like 1400hp these days, enough to top all but the most powerful 2JZ’s. All the hardware might be a tight fit in a Solstice, but should be possible considering how open the engine bay is. Interestingly, many drag Supras are running GM automatic transmissions. While it might make sense to see a regular turbo hydramatic transmission behind the engine, I think it would be a huge advantage to move the weight of the transmission that much further back and use an automatic transaxle from a Corvette. This favorable weight bias combined with the significantly lower minimum weight for 4-cylinder cars could really make the ECOTEC look good. It could also be done for a fraction of the cost of GM’s current drag or drifting programs.