The door car strut is available for several different applications and will help optimize suspension travel for any form of racing.
What these struts will provide to a racer is the ability to make solid adjustments with just a few clicks of the dial. Now, the racer can allow the front end of their car to move quicker when it launches to get more traction, control wheel speed, and become more consistent. The racer will also be able to make the extension of the strut stiffer to slow the rotation of the chassis when they have more traction available.
These are all critical items that a racer can use to help dial in their car in for specific track and weather conditions that will assist in making their car infinitely more predictable. Having that kind of control at their fingertips will make putting together a solid run much easier, therefore increasing their chances of winning in changing conditions during the racing season.
AFCO has beefed up its steering arm considerably, including where the tie rod attaches to the new struts, for extra rigidity.
The New AFCO Chassis Car Strut
With the rising popularity of Top Sportsman, Pro Mod, and oher forms of fast door car racing, AFCO decided to design a new strut that was dedicated to the chassis car market. This strut has a shorter stroke in a mono-tube design that also uses a double-adjustable canister. The strut is unique because of its size, tube design, and use of a canister all mixed into the same part. Thinking outside of the normal confines of strut design allowed AFCO to create a unit that can cover multiple applications with ease.
In this screenshot from the Racepak that was taken on the first run with the new struts, the green (shock movement) and red trace (engine RPM) lines represent the front struts moving when the car launches. This shows the struts are able to quickly extend when O’Neal releases the transbrake at the start of the run. Since this run was made during the heat of the day and on a marginal track, the goal was to get the weight to transfer as quickly as possible for a baseline to make more adjustments.
The strut will come in three different lengths that can work in a variety of situations for different racers. A 2.5-inch travel strut is the first one that racers can choose that will replace struts of the same length, and it will provide a variety of adjustment points. The next strut will have 3.5-inches of travel, and this length can provide the tuner additional travel upward to give more performance and traction.