The dyno challenge
A discussion of dynos would seem incomplete without a word about our experience with the DTS dyno products used for testing in the Engine Masters Challenge. The heart of the World Products testing facility is made up of three dedicated test cells, each equipped with a DTS dyno. While the Engine Masters event is a test of engine-building skill, behind the scenes it is also a test of an engine dyno's capabilities-and that is a challenge unto itself. We walked away impressed with the stats surrounding the equipment. With over 650 dyno pulls in the course of two years' competition, the events proceeded without a single aborted run or dyno-related problem-quite a testimony to the durability of these units.
Durability is important, but accuracy is absolutely vital in an event such as this. Competitors need data to find the smallest change in power during the "tune-up" phase of the event, and the equipment needs to be up to the task of pointing the competitors in the right direction with accurate information. Here again, the DTS dynos at World Products were up to the task, clearly showing the effects to the power curve resulting from the often-hectic tuning efforts. Just as importantly, the repeatability has to be outstanding to provide quantitative information on changes, often on the basis of a single dyno pull. Repeatability also comes into play when comparing data from day to day, and probably most impressively, from test cell to test cell on different dynos. We saw first-hand the repeatability here, as the engines moved from their qualifying cells, to the second cell for the finals.
Another point that became evident at the Engine Masters event was the ease of use encountered with the DTS configuration. The crew at World had rows of engines to test in qualifying, with only days to work through the field. The engines in the competition ranged over virtually every type of big-block put out by the Big Three, including Buick, Cadillac, Pontiac, Mopar's wedge, Ford's 385-Series and FE, not to mention the ubiquitous Chevy rat. The flexibility and ease of use of the DTS platform, aided by the versatile docking cart system, was a big help in getting through testing these different engine types in a remarkably efficient manner.