Delay Box - Regulation

Regulation

The tampering became so widespread in the 1990s that the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) required delay box manufacturers to make the delay boxes harder to modify by end users, and shrink enclosures so there was no room for additional contents. Sealing the delay box enclosure so it would be easy to see if it was tampered with was also part of the process. The NHRA also created rules specifying how a drag racer electrically wired his race car, requiring racers to leave wires unbundled so they could be quickly and easily traced by eye. Rules were also created limiting how many interconnects could attach to the wire between the delay box and the transmission. NHRA track officials were empowered to inspect the wiring to insure it met with the new rules. The NHRA also began requiring delay box manufacturers to pay a fee and submit delay box designs for the NHRA's approval. Then the NHRA instituted rules which allowed only NHRA approved delay boxes at its race tracks. This included revealing trade secrets to the NHRA, while the NHRA refused to enter into Non-Disclosure Agreements with the delay box manufacturers. Once submitted for NHRA approval, and paying the fee, delay box manufactures were not allowed to make any changes in design for any reason without resubmitting to the NHRA for re-approval and paying another fee. To obtain the NHRA's approval, delay box manufacturers had to accommodate the NHRA by making any design changes the NHRA mandated. Essentially the NHRA was now designing delay boxes by proxy. Furthermore, drag racers were prevented from using any delay box they made themselves at home. This is changed the face of drag racing in a huge way. Traditionally, grass roots drag racing was where racers could build their own chassis, engine, transmission, differential, vehicle plumbing & vehicle wiring, etc. Skilled racers could build their own race car with their own hands from parts wherever they acquired them. Racers were not required to buy anything pre-made if they didn't want to. Those days became history almost overnight. Virtually any racer innovation (electronic or mechanical) now came into question and could cause disqualification. An NHRA track could deny the ability to race at their track if they saw something homemade on a race car. The path to racing with the least worry about being disqualified was to buy everything for the car from approved NHRA manufacturers (other sanctioning bodies quickly followed suit, such as the IHRA, NMCA, and others).

Only a few delay box manufacturers were willing to pay NHRA delay box approval fees and submit designs for the NHRA's approval without getting a non-disclosure agreement. Nor did many delay box manufacturers wish to be forced to comply with NHRA design change demands. These manufactures promptly went out of business or transitioned into non-racing related markets. As a result, very few companies manufacture delay boxes for drag racing today and each design is close in functionality to the next. The reduced competition allows these few companies to enjoy the entire market to themselves. Innovation has virtually ceased in the market. The approved manufacturers of delay boxes also enjoy a bonus of reduced competition in the market for their other on-board race timers such as: throttle stop timers, data loggers (data recorders), shifter timers, RPM switches, electronic nitrous oxide injection controllers and other devices. Delay box manufacturers that do not receive NHRA approval are shut out of the entire drag race electronics market.

As mentioned above, in the paragraph one under "Controversial Use", many drag race track operators began dividing race day into "box" and "no box" classes, with "no box class" being prohibited from using any type of delay box in their race cars. However, electronic track timing systems were still used for the "no box class" meaning that a racer willing to cheat could rather easily conceal a delay box somewhere in his car (or on his person), and have an unfair advantage over his competitors. Race track operators therefore created a monumental task for themselves in enforcing rules against electronic devices in Bracket Racings "no box class", and as such, rarely pursue enforcement. On the occasions a track operator does attempt to catch cheaters with delay timers in the "no box" class, the enforcement task can be significantly complex and the results are usually controversial. This creates tension between all racers and between racers and the track operators as well.

The popular United States cable television program "Pinks" (Speed Channel) uses the TV shows host as a flagman with an arm drop technique at the start line (plus finish line human spotters, and camera "photo finishes" similar to those used in horse racing and dog racing). This simulates drag racing's historic roots of post WWII street racing of the 1940s, and non-electronic drag strip racing of the 1950s and 1960s. The delay box is useless in Pinks, since the first pass is run with the Pro tree (.400 three ambers) instead of the Standard Tree (.500 per light), and the second pass and all eliminations are run with an arm drop, which forces the driver to launch at the host's order, and not by a delay box.