Quote:
Originally Posted by RACrappieman
Ray3, I’m curious why the maximum cubic inch limits are different between usac and badger, or how/why those two cubic inch numbers were arrived at between sanctioning bodies. Also, I assume that the Badger group disallows porting to keep costs down? Just curious.
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I appreciate the question. The only DOHC engine that USAC allows now is the Honda. In Badger they allow any production engine including DOHC engines. So they have not only Honda but also Mazda, Chevy, Ford, Nissan, etc. Therefore, we chose a size that could accommodate most engine makes. The bore spacing on the production engines is really tight. Manufacturers do this to keep the physical size of the engine small and short to fit into the passenger car. It also keeps them lighter weight for fuel economy. To get to 154 CID on the Honda you have to sleeve the block with aftermarket sleeves and you have to bore it out to max (stock the Honda is only 143.66CID). This means it is no longer possible to run the stock sleeves even if you want to. This also means new sleeves or new block every time you scuff a cylinder wall or rebuild the engine. In the interest of cost, we made the max 148.82 because that is the biggest you can go on the stock sleeves. This also allowed the Chevy engines (Chevy is 145.49 CID stock) two piston sizes above stock so they don't have to throw away a block just because they scuffed a cylinder wall. I know that is a long answer but I hope that helps people understand why.
And yes, Badger does not allow porting to keep costs down. Its not just the initial porting that we are concerned about. Its also subsequent new designs that continue to add cost by requiring a new head every time and other parts like cams, and fuel injection. New fuel injection units can cost up to $4,000 new.
Contrary to what some people will tell you, the Badger engines are super fast. They get lumped into D2 in some peoples minds which is a huge mistake. D2 engines are very slow only making 200hp max. By comparison the Ford Focus Midget series made 180hp. Badger engines are 325-350hp. So, that means at Angell Park for instance they turn laps as low as 14.4. The track record for USAC at Angell Park was set by Rico Abreu at a 14.3 and for Badger it was set by Jerry Coons, Jr at 14.1 before the new engine program. If Badger went to USAC's 154 CID number that would give us approximately 12 more hp on the Badger engines. Its not worth the extra money and reduced life of the engine just to add 12 more horses.
Check out this video to see how awesome the action can be with the Badger program.
https://youtu.be/Nvu5pWMQ47E or check out the 6/26/22 FloRacing Race of The Week which was the KO Classic Badger race from Angell Park Speedway. It was a fantastic race that went green to checker and the passing for the lead was incredible and intense.