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Velvet Digest

What engine is in a Funny Car?

Author

Emily Wilson

Updated on June 08, 2026

Funny Cars are powered by the same supercharged and fuel-injected 500-inch engines as Top Fuel dragsters. Funny Cars are also similar to Top Fuel dragsters in that they do not use a transmission but rather transmit power to the huge Goodyear rear slicks through a multistage clutch assembly that is activated by timers.

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Similarly one may ask, what engine do funny cars use?

Chrysler Hemi engine

Additionally, how many cylinders does a funny car have? Of all the extreme and crazy acts perpetrated via internal combustion, the Top Fuel/Funny Car motor must be the most outrageous. From eight cylinders and 500 ci of displacement, it can make somewhere between 7,500 and 8,500 hp.

Similarly, you may ask, how much does a funny car engine cost?

The cost of a complete top fuel dragster engine is in the $58,000 range depending on options. The engine will be stripped down to the bare block after every run and be rebuilt in a span of 40 minutes.

What is the difference between a Funny Car and a Top Fuel dragster?

Funny cars feature carbon-fiber bodies over a conventional chassis and resemble production cars. Top Fuel dragsters generally have the same horsepower as Funny cars, but are faster because they are lighter with narrow bodies. Funny cars and Top Fuel dragsters are straight-line quarter-mile racers.

Related Question Answers

What is the fastest Funny Car?

Matt Hagan sets a new NHRA Funny Car record with a 3.802 ET at 338.85 MPH.

How long does a Top Fuel engine last?

The rest is alcohol. 58,700About what you'll pay, in dollars, for a new, ready-to-run Top Fuel engine. 29Minutes it takes to tear down and rebuild a Top Fuel engine between rounds. Each engine is rebuilt 184 times a year (if the driver goes to the final round at every race).

What's faster Top Fuel or Funny Car?

Top Fuel dragsters generally have the same horsepower as Funny cars, but are faster because they are lighter with narrow bodies. Funny cars and Top Fuel dragsters are straight-line quarter-mile racers.

How Fast Is a Funny Car?

330 mph

Why is it called a Funny Car?

Graham Light, Senior Vice President of Racing Operations, NHRA: They'd had the rear wheels moved considerably up the shaft chassis. They also increased the size of the rear tires, greatly oversized from stock. And looking at the cars they looked close to stock, but not quite. Hence the name funny cars.

How much horsepower does John Force Funny Car have?

Car Specs
Engine Size: 500 cubic inch
Horsepower: 10,000+
Maximum RPM: 9,000
Fuel Type: 90% Sunoco Nitromethane
Supercharger: 1471

Do Funny Cars shift gears?

A Funny Car also uses the same multi-disc clutch and pneumatic timers as a Top Fuel car, meaning the driver does not have to change gears during a run. However, driving a Funny Car takes exceptionally quick reflexes as the car reacts much quicker to steering input than a longer wheelbase dragster.

Is Top Fuel or Funny Car Faster?

Top Fuel dragsters generally have the same horsepower as Funny cars, but are faster because they are lighter with narrow bodies. Funny cars and Top Fuel dragsters are straight-line quarter-mile racers.

How much money does a Top Fuel driver make?

Today's top fuel and funny car winners will earn $50,000, about half as much as the big-budget teams devout to one car every race. Haddock, who drives a 2000 Hadman chassis, will spend less than $10,000 on the weekend.

How long does a dragster engine last?

The life of an engine of this sort is typically 11–12 runs in a dragster it is completely replaced, but after each of those passes it will be torn down and rebuilt.

How much is a Top Fuel engine?

The cost of a complete top fuel dragster engine is in the $58,000 range depending on options. The engine will be stripped down to the bare block after every run and be rebuilt in a span of 40 minutes.

How does a Top Fuel engine work?

A Top Fuel dragster is a 2,000-pound vehicle that is powered by a V8 engine that produces 8,000 horsepower and burns 17 gallons of nitromethane during its run. It is capable to reach 300 miles/hour in less time that a conventional road car takes to reach 30 m/h!

How much fuel does a funny car burn?

In a typical run the engine can consume between 12 US gallons (45 L) and 22.75 US gallons (86.1 L) of fuel during warmup, burnout, staging, and the quarter-mile run.

How much do funny cars weigh?

2,575 pounds

What is a Top Fuel car?

Top Fuel dragsters are the quickest accelerating racing cars in the world and the fastest sanctioned category of drag racing, with the fastest competitors reaching speeds of 335 miles per hour (539 km/h) and finishing the 1,000 foot (305 m) runs in 3.62 seconds.

What is top fuel made of?

Currently, Top Fuel and Funny Cars run on a blend that's 90 percent nitromethane and 10 percent methanol, according to NHRA rules [source: Davis]. The methanol helps suppress detonation, which makes the fuel more stable.

How many horsepower is a Top Fuel dragster?

As horsepower rose and technology increased, the estimates soared from 2,000 in the 1970s to more than double that in the 1980s to 8,000 in the 1990s, and, a few years ago, computer-modeling evidence was presented to show that the engines had finally eclipsed the 10,000-horsepower mark.

Who Makes Top Fuel engines?

The typical Top Fuel engine displaces 496 cubic inches. They have hemispherical combustion chamber cylinder heads. The block and heads are usually made by Brad Anderson or Alan Johnson. The bore and stroke is 4.310 inches by 4.25 inches with a compression ratio of 6.5-to-1 or 7-to-1.

What engine does John Force use in his Funny Car?

Entering his 43rd season, John Force, the Hall of Fame owner/driver, will set a record every time he mashes the gas on the PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro Funny Car this season.