Dragster Forces

Newton's second law tells us that decreasing mass will increase

(a)  

• acceleration
• deceleration
• volume
• weight

The total mass of your car includes the mass of the ​ (a)   and the CO₂ cartridge

• wheels, axles, bearings
• gravity
• upper, lower profile
• catridge hole
• cartridge hole

Mass = Density x Volume. So if a car was made of balsa wood and the volume was 3 grams, then what is the mass?

Mathematical Equivalence

ON

The center of mass is a point. Its position from the ground affects the ​ (a)   of the vehicle. Its position from the ​ (b)   determines the distribution of ​ (c)   between the front and rear axle assemblies.

• stability
• rear
• mass

Race car designers try to keep the center of ​ (a)   low and as close to the middle of the wheel base as possible. If the center of mass is located in the ​ (b)   of the wheelbase, the car's mass will be evenly split between the front and rear axles, resulting in ​ (c)   cornering.

• mass
• middle
• better

A wider car is less likely to_______when raced.

• Stop

• Flip

• Slide

• win

There are two types of forces that will affect your design — positive forces and negative forces. Positive forces ​ (a)   the dragster off the starting line. Negative forces ​ (b)   the dragster away from the finish line. The cartridge force is a ​ (c)   force, while surface friction and drag are ​ (d)   forces.

• accelerate (or push)
• decelerate (or pull)
• positive
• negative

​ (a)   force is a resistive force that must be overcome to move your dragster forward. Once in motion, friction also ​ (b)   your car down. If there were no resistive forces, your dragster would continue to travel at its maximum ​ (c)   forever.

• Friction
• slows
• velocity

​ (a)   is a force that resists the motion of wheels. It will slow your vehicle but it is much less than ​ (b)  

• Rolling friction
• sliding friction.

The ​ (a)   on the axle is caused by the ​ (b)   and ​ (c)   rubbing together.

• friction
• axle material
• bearing