Smash-Up Derby Competitions..Who knew

that this was serious stuff?

On the prowl for a front crossmember out of a Crown Vic, I stumbled into the lair of a serious derby competitor. (seems they eat up a lot of crown vics) Turns out there is actually some prize money in this game and a lot of science and rule-interpreting as is common in most forms of auto-sport. 200lb armored wheel tire combo? The "Cages" are quite interesting being built out of 3x3 by who knows what thickness steel. The main hoop (outside of the roof) is the same material.

Anyone here venture into the derby car world?

This is America. There's nothing with wheeled vehicles that we won't turn into an ultra-serious sport.

When I was a kid there was a local guy who entered a demolition derby with a 1959 Chevy. He filled the tailfins with concrete. He did get disqualified after the judges found that out.

I always thought the cars were one event wonders, seems that a bit of crumple is actually a good thing?

You want to crumple the other guy's car, not yours.

NOHOME wrote: I always thought the cars were one event wonders, seems that a bit of crumple is actually a good thing?

they put the crumple into them when they build them now, and sometimes run them all season at all the county fairs in the area... it's not even fun to watch any more, since it's just a bunch of indestructible tanks running into each other until someone gets a lucky hit on a wheel or someone overheats..

they also don't take safety very seriously: those cages do more harm than good to the chunk of meat behind the wheel, and they design their seatbelt mounts to rip out of the floor after the first big hit so that the driver can move around better.. quite frankly, it's just stupid..

you aint seen nothing yet until you've seen 2 rednecks get into a brawl over the placement of a weld right before the main event...

Yeah, the new good battle ground for Demo derbies are compact derbies and Minivan derbies. The body on frame cars are just too tough to be interesting.

Lot of backing into things, cussin, and concussion. Not for me...I'm a puss. The self-preservation is strong with this one.

There huge around here, since the rules changed to 1978 and newer cars its pretty much all crown vics with the occasional wagon.

Theres a local guy who makes his living doing nothing but derbys, he has one car thats won 26 derbys. Its for sale for 13k.

The more interesting stuff now is compacts, stock class cars, windshield cars and full size trucks. The derby guys have made modified boring.

The ones I've seen are so limited space-wise that they barely get up to 20mph or more. Tons of low-speed, low-impact crashes, all while crawling along. IMHO demos are pretty boring.

Now the trailer races, and the figure-8 schoolbus races......that's hillbilly entertainment!

Used to work with a guy who was into it big time. I was amazed at what they do these days to prep the cars. Small block chevys motors that had lots of torque and were specially modified to withstand the hits. He used to pound his fenders into a V shape to withstand the hits. Also had the back of the car set up to actually roll up with repeated hits until (worse-case) it would be all the way to the back window. And it was still driveable!

Some strange looking cars after using them for 4 or 5 derbys.

We entered a car when we were in high school and our prep was breakout all of the windows, chain the doors together and paint it.

I helped my ex-BIL enter an '88 Prelude rust-bucket in one 16-years ago. We did the required prep and followed the rules the way we read them. Needless to say we were rather shocked to find an AMC Eagle on snow tires, with a full NASCAR cage, and solid steel bumpers at each end as our competition. It didn't matter anyway as his half-rusted rear control arm gave way after the first hit, and the hit that soon followed finished it off.

I lovr derbies. And before the big classes went to 78 and newer, i loved that chrysler imperials were banned outright for being too berkeleying tough. But then again, i am perpetually amused by smashing things and shiny objects. D

A surprising amount of prep goes into those cars.

I've heard the regulars build their engines with undersized pistons so they can keep going even after the radiator gets trashed. At the local fair, I saw multiple cars take a hard front impact, followed by a cloud of steam and visible leakage, but they kept on running without any coolant.

I used to like then when I was a kid, but once I realized that a lot of those cars are just unloved misfits that are mechanically and cosmetically sound, I lost interest quick.

There is a small town near me that puts on a combine derby.

http://www.lindwa.com/2016derby%20action%20arena.html

Leave it up to some farm boys to do something rediculous.

maschinenbau wrote: A surprising amount of prep goes into those cars. I've heard the regulars build their engines with undersized pistons so they can keep going even after the radiator gets trashed. At the local fair, I saw multiple cars take a hard front impact, followed by a cloud of steam and visible leakage, but they kept on running without any coolant.

Hmm... That gives me an idea... Dual loop cooling system, boat style. Coolant in engine goes to heat exchanger, keeping the coolant in the radiator separate. That way, if you lose the rad, yeah, it'll get hot if you have no other way to cool it, but you'll still have coolant circulating in the motor so it would live longer than if it were dry.

A friend of mine used to run them preferred certain Oldsmobiles because whatever engine was in it would not die even without the radiator. He actually ran it wihtout the radiator in a few--he said that one time it got so hot that even after he turned it off it kept running because it kept combusting.

I've heard that big block Mopars were banned in a lot of places because they were perfectly happy to run without coolant or oil.

I think demo derby is stupid, but I do have to laugh at some of the build stories. Like the guy who flipped the rearend over so he had three reverse gears and one forward. "Heads turned when people heard him upshift!"

Was following a truck and trailer loaded w/ a stack of identical car frames up a local state highway. They happened to stop at the same gas station as I was so I had to ask what's up w/ the frames, I figured they were building street stock chassis. Nope, demo derby cars. Clean frames, all P71s and they hauled 'em here from two states away. After some explanation of the prep work and holy E36 M3, there's a berkeleying science to this derby stuff.

Kid at my old workplace went on over an hour of how they prepped derby cars. Wheels/ tires, engine, trans, cooling, frame, body etc. Almost nothing was left untouched. Evidently they pay some good money at the top for derbys around here.

Not my bag at all, never imagined the amount of prep work involved for a car that will eventually be destroyed but more power to 'em.

fasted58 wrote: Not my bag at all, never imagined the amount of prep work involved for a car that will eventually be destroyed but more power to 'em.

Well, that DOES describe every kind of motorsports... a racing car that doesn't crash out or simply wear out is a rare beast.

I kinda wonder what happened to all of the high end show cars from the 80s too. Car Craft articles about the Street Machine Nats, huge lots filled with all sorts of awesome metal, where did it all go?

If your ever driving a wagon or cool old 4 door in ohio and someone at a gas station asks if its for sale they likely want to derby it. Ive turned down a few offers and explained too them that its not even a full frame wagon. The old guys know, the young crowd just wants too smash things.