Drag Illustrated Issue 153, February 2020 | Page 56

PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT
ATI PERFORMANCE
PRODUCTS
Todd Tutterow puts
ATI’s new engine
damper to the test
BY JOSH HACHAT
defending champ Ryan Martin, Tutterow, Alex
Laughlin, Craig Sullivan and others to start,
showcasing the benefit the damper can have on
crankshaft life no matter the class.
“Can you imagine spending $4,500-$5,500
every eight runs for a new crankshaft?” Lane
asks. “If we can take something and teams that
use it can double the life, people will be excited
and I think that’s what we can do. We all want
the best and want success, and if we can design
a damper to handle 11,000-horsepower, we can
handle anything.”
The impact on crankshaft life is immediate
and easily noticeable, but there’s also a wealth
of additional benefits with the new damper,
including increased valve train life, pushrod life,
and spring life. That yields more consistent cyl-
inder-to-cylinder fuel trims, and better tuning
ability with increased valve control.
For Tutterow, it gave him more time to fo-
cus on other areas of the car, knowing he had a
part he could rely on. It carried over into every
aspect of the car’s performance as well, giving
him added confidence in the high-stakes NHRA
Pro Mod world.
“They’ve helped crankshaft life 300 percent
and that’s been amazing,” Tutterow says. “But
when it would break, it destroys everything. This
just gives you confidence and you don’t have to
worry about it. You’re still going to check it, but
now you’ve got that cushion. It’s not smoke and
mirrors, that’s for sure. I’ve been amazed at how
much of a difference it’s made.”
ATI has put significant resources into it, trust-
ing their top minds to come up with a state-of-
the-art product. All parties have been impressed
with the early returns, but it’s a damper that will
be as versatile as the classes it runs in.
Included in the features of the new damper are:
■ 4140 HT Splined hub with and without bear-
ing support options
■ 2024 Billet shells that are the lower blower
drive “pulley”
■ Optional Titanium hub available
■ Will offer 63-72 teeth to start
■ Integral crank trigger with 1-24 magnets avail
That variability is key, as it opens up possi-
bilities to use in a multitude of cars. Lane said
they had previously shied away from a spline,
but this damper will have those options, as well
as the variety in teeth.
The next step is making sure everything is
engineered in a way where customers can simply
pop it on with no work. But Lane and the com-
pany can feel the wave of momentum starting to
build and ATI couldn’t be more thrilled.
“It’s exciting times. Imagine if you could cut
that cost of crankshafts in half and what you
would be able to do with that,” Lane says. “Todd
was the test and it took him from a headache to
fixed. There’s no better advertisement.
“When we put something out, it’s going to
be the best it can be,” Lane continues. “When
someone asks us what makes our damper better,
we’ll be able to tell them there is no competition.
They are going to have absolute protection.”
DI DI DI
T
he latest and greatest in
technology can often come with
plenty of hype but little in the ac-
tual way of substance or data to
back it up.
With a new integral blower drive
Super Damper from ATI, Todd Tutterow has
the incredible numbers to back up just how
revolutionary this product could be. Facing a
litany of crankshaft problems and breakage,
Tutterow went to ATI, who developed a damper
to use on his blown Pro Mod Camaro.
The results since then have been remarkable.
“You’re talking about a $4,500 crankshaft
and I was getting maybe 8-9 runs on them,”
Tutterow says. “You might get 30 if you’re lucky.
After installing the damper in the car, the last
one I took out of the car had 85 runs on it and it
was still good. It’s been amazing the difference.
This thing, we beat it to death. The first run I
hurt the motor, but the crankshaft was still good.
It’s been a blessing to work with them and have
them develop this thing.”
It’s been a product John Lane has been high
on for years, and he spearheaded the exclusive
partnership with Tutterow for the 2019 sea-
son. The results have been nothing short of
extraordinary, and ATI was met with univer-
sal praise when they released the news of the
product at PRI.
With the damper set for a 2020 release, the
impact could be massive throughout the sport.
ATI will be working with the likes of Clay Milli-
can in Top Fuel, Street Outlaws: No Prep Kings
DI DI DI DI
DI DI DI
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