What is a Slingshot? | 60's Front Engine Dragsters Explained
What is a Front Engine Dragster?
Nothing embodies the “Wild West” spirit of the early days of organized drag racing like front engine dragsters. These often beautiful, usually unruly, and always exciting machines dominated mid-century American dragstrips and were almost always the fastest cars at whatever drag event they happened to be at. Think of them as the grandfather to the modern Top Fuel dragster.
So just what is a front engine dragster? A majority of drag cars position the engine ahead of the driver, right? Altereds, funny cars, and stockers are all “front engine.” What we’re talking about here are dragsters, also called rails, with the driver hanging out over the rear axle and behind the engine. These cars are also often called slingshot dragsters. What is a slingshot? Well imagine an overhead view of one of these cars. The driver is positioned far behind the slicks, looking much like the rock in a slingshot.
History of the Slingshot Dragster
How did these outrageous creations come to be? Drag racers have always been a group of adventurous and creative individuals, willing to do just about anything to cover 1320 feet as quickly as possible. As drag racing was exploding across the country in the 1950’s, innovation was constant. There was no tried and true recipe for what a drag car should be, and experimentation was everywhere. It was an exciting time that many of us can only wish we had been around for.
Since everything was new and innovative ideas were being tried out in backyard garages, midnight street races, and fledgling dragstrips across the country, it’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment that the slingshot dragster was born. Many credit enterprising hot rod pioneer Mickey Thompson with the idea to maximize rear weight bias by using the driver as ballast, positioned as far back in the chassis as possible. As his “Lakewood Muffler Special” was successful in the early 50’s, the idea began to spread and the next couple decades would see a slingshot arms race that culminated in some of the wildest machines ever to cover a quarter mile.
Drag racing history is colored by thousands of brilliant tuners, clever fabricators, and fearless drivers who conspired to make the sport what it is today. Among those legendary names, one seems to rise to the top as one of the most influential and prolific; “Big Daddy” Don Garlits. Garlits was around at the beginning. He was catapulted to fame when, as a relatively unknown east coast racer, he upset the seemingly unstoppable Cook and Bedwell team at the World Series of Drag Racing in August of ’57. He then went on to be the first to go 170mph in November of that year and would exceed 180 by the end of ’58.
In these early days, slingshot state of the art consisted of a 392 Hemi swilling nitro through a handful of Stromberg carbs that had been designed in the 1930’s. Technology and speeds increased quickly, even through the infamous NHRA fuel ban that lasted from 1957 until the beginning of the ’63 season. Let’s continue to use Don Garlits as our yardstick to measure slingshot evolution. With nitro back on the menu for NHRA races, Garlits was one of the first to turn a 200 mph trap speed with a 201.34 pass in August of ’64. There were exceptions to the rule, but by the time 200 mph speeds became common, most of the fast slingshots were running blown Chrysler Hemis on nitro. Slingshot dragster chassis were growing ever longer to keep wheelstands under control, and quarter mile long burnouts through locked multi-disc clutches were the norm. This made for exciting racing that packed the stands, but also made piloting these wild fuel “diggers” a dangerous proposition. The most obvious issue was the driving position in the slingshot dragster cockpit. The driver is literally sitting on the rearend housing, straddling the clutch, and only a few feet behind the engine. As power levels and traction increased, these parts were being stressed to the max and failures were common. As “slipper” clutches became common practice, clutch explosions were especially common and dangerous, with white-hot clutch pieces slicing through the front engine dragster cockpit with devastating results.
In 1967, Garlits won the US Nationals with a 6.77 pass. By this time, front engine dragsters were regularly turning trap speeds over 220 mph. Over the next couple years, what had been a steady march upward in speeds began to taper off. Always innovative, racers began to experiment with rear engine layouts. Many of these early experiments ended badly and these cars were dismissed by most as a swing and a miss. Garlits himself was making test passes with a rear engine Swamp Rat dragster, but it was sketchy at the top end and sponsors were pressuring him to abandon the experiment before he got hurt. Then, on the fateful day of March 8, 1970 came the Don Garlits accident that would forever change drag racing. Garlits was launching his front engine dragster when the experimental two-speed transmission exploded, cutting off half of his foot and literally sawing the car in half. This dramatic moment was the beginning of the end for the front engine dragster.
Garlits knew that the rear engine design was inherently safer, and his accident inspired him to give it another try. “Big Daddy” and his crew went back to the drawing board and figured out that rear engine cars needed a slower steering ratio than the slingshots did. This proved to be the key, and Garlits went on to win the ’71 Winternationals with a series of 6.70 passes in the new rear engine car. The writing was on the walls and the end came quickly for the slingshot front engine dragster. The last national event win for a slingshot happened in August of 1972.
Front Engine Dragster Racing Today
Though you won’t find any front engine cars in the staging lanes of a contemporary NHRA Top Fuel race, front engine dragster racing is still going strong on the nostalgia circuit. Advances in technology and safety have made slingshot drag racing far less dangerous than it was in the 60’s.
There are racing series across the country to give drivers and spectators a taste of what it was like in the good old days. You can still see top fuel front engine dragsters at NHRA events thanks to their Hot Rod Heritage Racing Series. There are eight of these events on the NHRA calendar for 2024, so there are plenty of opportunities to catch the insanity. Our friends at Goodguys host nostalgia drag racing at their Pacific Northwest Nationals. The Nitro Chaos and sister Funny Car Chaos series tours the country with fuel Dragsters, Funny Cars, Altereds, and ProMods in fierce competition. Just like the old days, these are fierce head-to-head battles between drivers and crews who show up to run hard and break the beams before the driver in the other lane.
Even governed by rules to prioritize safety, modern front engine top fuel dragsters are turning times that would have been unheard of in the 60s dragster days. NHRA Nostalgia Top Fuel cars are running mid-5 second passes in the 270’s. Nitro Chaos slingshots are turning mid-3’s at over 240 mph in the 1/8th!
How to Build a Vintage Slingshot Dragster
Astonishingly, many successful front engine dragster chassis from the early days were built on the shop floor by amateur builders. It’s likely that such an attempt these days will be sketchy at least and likely not pass tech. Today, there are many builders out there putting together slingshot dragster frames and associated components that are designed to be safe, fast, and up to snuff for all the major vintage racing organizations.
Most series will use the NHRA rulebook to govern any front engine dragster build. The rules for Nostalgia Top Fuel show guidelines that are clearly there to mitigate the inherent risks of the front engine design. Engines are limited to 470 inches, with no lightening of the block permitted. Those bottom ends must be covered with an SFI 7.1 “lower engine ballistic restraint device” and blowers must be covered with SFI restraint systems as well. Ballistic shields cover the transmissions and the entire driveline has to be covered with a steel or aluminum guard. If you’re interested in competing at this level, it’s recommended that you work with an experienced chassis builder who knows the nostalgia slingshot dragster rulebook forward and backward and can guide you through the process.
Front Engine Dragster Parts
Top-flight fuel dragsters are going to use purpose-built components that are often specific to cars from each chassis builder. But one of the great things about drag racing is that there’s a class out there for just about everything with wheels. Thanks to the popularity of nostalgia events across the country, it’s possible to build a vintage front engine dragster that keeps speeds and expenses down, but still captures the glory days of the 60’s front engine dragster. We’ve seen front engine dragsters powered by everything from flathead Fords to late-model GM LS engines, with single 4-barrel carbs and tech that’s manageable for just about any of us. You don’t have to mount an assault on the Nostalgia Top Fuel record books to put together a fun nostalgia dragster.
Speedway Motors offers plenty of parts for an entry-level front engine dragster build. Any slingshot is going to need a pair of drag slicks (learn more about drag slicks vs. radials). The engine will likely mount in the chassis using an engine plate, and zoomie headers are a must. Depending on the class and transmission being run, a steel bellhousing may be used. Spun aluminum fuel tanks capture the look of the 60’s, and radius rods and friction shocks are period-correct ways to locate the front axle.
Slingshot drag racing is alive and well if you know where to look. Just as it was in the 60’s, seeing one of these cars making a fast pass, spewing nitro fumes from the zoomie headers is one of the greatest experiences in all motorsports.
