NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Bob Tasca III had no complaints about his Ford Mustang Funny Car, as to be expected from a man as synonymous with Ford as you will find in NHRA Drag Racing. He made two passes in his new car on Thursday, the best of which came out at 4.011. The first pass was a planned shut-off. 

"Everything looks good so far, we're just trying to take it easy and see what this thing can do," said Tasca. 

When he showed up to the pit in the morning he took me on a short tour of the Mustang, talking about the adjusted splitter, the scalloping along the sides of the flopper and the enhanced structural integrity. That makes the car better for a couple of reasons when things got hot in the cockpit. First, should the Funny Car grenade, it should break apart in a way that it can be repaired, rather than sent to the scrap heap. 

"If you look at the burst panel, you can see that below it the chassis isn't all one piece like a lot of the old body styles were," he said, gesturing along the fine lines that make up what's a mechanical marvel. "So the hope is we're giving the fire more places to go, so if something goes wrong, we're talking about a repair and not a total loss."

That improved structure should also make the car safer for much of the same reasons it makes it more cost effective. Every new iteration of body, whether it be Dodge, Toyota, Ford or Chevy strives to achieve those goals -- but Tasca is glad he's got an updated piece to slide into as he chases his first world championship. 

He's not the only one. Cruz Pedregon will take to the track on Friday in a Dodge Charger//SRT Hellcat for the first time after campaigning in Toyota Camrys for many years. The wrap on the Snap-On Tools Funny Car is eye-catching because of its unique layering. Rather than describe it, let's give you a look instead. 

You can see both cars in person for the first time at the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals in Pomona. [Tickets]