It's the drag race you didn't know you needed.
Have you ever wanted to see an Audi R8 with nearly 2,000 hp drag race a 1927 Ford Model T rat rod with 960 hp? No? Well, we're here to give it to you anyways, or the madmen over on the Hoonigan YouTube channel are to be exact. One would think the power advantage with AWD would easily make this R8 the winner, but over the course of three runs, you'd be surprised when things don't go as planned.
The brand's beloved drag racing series This vs That has brought us some fantastic competitions like this Acura NSX vs BMW M4 or this 1000 hp RX-7 versus a Nitrous-fed Ram R/T. The brand even pitted the Hoonicorn against the Tesla Model S Plaid, to really see how much instant electric power really helps. This time, it's two vehicles that have no business racing against each other, but they're both so cool you can't help but watch.
In the first corner, you have the 2020 Audi R8 owned by Mike Delahay. Producing a claimed 2,000 hp, the car is powered by its original V10, but now it's been upgraded with twin-Garrett GT42 turbochargers and sends power through a 7-speed DCT auto.
It uses Boostlogic air-to-liquid intercoolers, Boostlogic billet intake manifolds, and even an ice-water box through the intercooler. It also has a titanium exhaust, a parachute, dual-wastegate blowouts, Beadlock wheels, Toyo tires, Adjustable coil overs, and much more.
As cool as that is, its competitor may be even cooler. In the second corner, you have Bradley Saxton's 1927 Ford Model T Rat Rod which is, according to him, the fastest garage-built rat rod in long beach. It uses a twin-turbo 347 LS1 V8 producing a claimed 960 hp through a 2-speed manual. It hand-ported heads, LS9 cams, stock crank, and on and on.
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He says there are so many motors combined here he can’t keep them straight. Seeing him in the car, it looks less than comfortable, and he says all he really tries to do is keep the thing straight as it howls down the track because it’s really hard to get the power it makes to the ground with it being RWD and weighing a minuscule 1,950 lbs.
The cars couldn’t be more different, which is why it’s so awesome to see them finally race. The predictions very obviously lean toward the R8 and its insane AWD power, and in the first run those predictions are proven correct. The first run is 1,000 ft, head-to-head off the line. The rat rod surprisingly gets the jump on the R8 but then loses traction. Once the Audi is able to connect, it shoots off into the horizon beating the Ford by at least 3 seconds.
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The crew then decides to cut the race down to 500 ft and give the rat rod a head start. One would think that this still wouldn't help, but with the R8 botching the launch the rat rod has just enough speed to beat it to the finish line. Not willing to go out on a loss, they run it back one last time with the R8 determined to get the launch right. This time it connects, and the Ford never has a chance to 500 ft.
The Hoonigan crew is pretty thrilled about the outcomes, as this is probably one of the coolest head-to-heads they've ever had.
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Keyword: Watch This 2,000-HP Audi R8 Drag Race A 960 hp Rat Rot