140+ in an old FL Highway Patrol Car (69 Plymouth with a 440) back in 1976 on Alligator Alley somewhere between Naples and Miami. Heading home from college...open road....no other traffic seen for miles.....curious what it would do. Buried the Certified 140 mph speedo and it just kept going. Looking back at it now, not the brightest bulb in the pack that day. Had we had a blowout or hit something on a two lane road with swamp on both sides, we'd have been gator bait for sure. Still brings a smile to my face when I think of it, tho.
When people tell me where a speedometer needle was pointed I just yawn, blink, and change the subject. What a GPS indicates I believe. Did see 168 on Garmin in nephews Viper with the Venom conversion. Guy I bought my 46 Ford coupe from had slips showing 196 on some kind of Jap bike in the Texas mile and was butchering a pristine 53 Studebaker coupe to make it into the 200mph club. Do a search on The Texas Mile which is exactly one mile with a STANDING start; street legal 235mph Camaro and 300mph Ford GT come to mind.
Warp 9.9. But in a car, don't really know. Didn't want to look away from the road, cause I was afraid I was going to either die or get arrested.
Was going about 105 on my old Harley Lowrider when I backed off because my eyes were watering so bad I couldn't see anymore. That thing was just waking up at 70. You could roll on the throttle in high gear at 70 and it would just grab you. Dam I miss that bike.
440, Hemi Torqueflite tranny, 2.73 rear end and massive discs. Speed rated tires too. And the speedo was the kind the cops used to write tickets in the days when they followed to match speed(hence the “certified” designation on the face).
135 in my uncle's former 3000GT VR4, and I wasn't in sixth gear yet...yikes! Did 90-95 in my 1960 VW hotrod through the tunnel in Hartford CT on the way to a car show in Terryville once. Speedometer goes to 80, but the needle was pointing towards the generator light...it will go faster, but I don't dare to find out how much faster.
Around 140ish in my first car:a 64 impala with a warmed over 283 pg with 3:08 gears. Wasn't smart enough to be scared another time I woke up in the back seat and I could tell we getting it. When I told the guy driving that the cords were showing on the front tires, he turned white as a sheet and slowed down gently
I am a bit slow compared to you guys way up in a mining town in Aussie I drove a E Type Jag at 120mph,I was about 20Y/o in 1971 on trips to USA the most I have driven at would be 100mph in a rental Chev Impala up in Nevada . did get caught doing 80mph in 70zone, in Nevada but it was a work zone doing repairs cost a few dollars that did
155 in a 1970 duster hit a bump an left the ground an decided time to slow down an realized didn't have much in the way of brakes . yes an oh shit moment
145 in a turbo VW 14psi of boost, factory was 8psi. Interstate, no one for miles. Then had that thought....my tires are only 120mph rated, and if I have a blowout I'm pretty much dead! Dont think it had much more, 160mph speedo for whatever accuracy it actually had.
My 63 was 127 mph, my son's dragmaster front engine dragster with a 327 he gos 145-147 every time down the strip---we race them both all the time--see my avatar
Hello, There has to be some inkling about speedometer calibration and going fast. We had our 58 Impala calibrated with the stock tires and rims. It turned 98 in the quarter mile and the speedometer needle was pinned to the right side of the gauge. Past 120mph. No burning rubber at the start, only good traction and shifts throughout the ¼ mile run. We realized that the tires spin, making the speedometer relatively useless in the quarter mile races. We mounted a small aircraft tachometer on that side of the dash gauge, under the lip, but covering the 110 to 120 listings on the speedometer. If we accelerated at any time, the needle went over and we knew we were going fast, but at that powerful acceleration, who cared? It was the end game that was exciting and fun. There was never a statement as to how fast we ever got in the Impala. It was just a "throw you back in the seat back" upon acceleration type of powerful car. A neck snapping shift during our C&O Stick Hydro days made you hang on, not look away from the prize. Jnaki One time on our way to Davis, California to see my brother, my wife and I were in her small sporty car and we were on Highway 395 through the deserted, inland portion of California. Mountains on one side and the desert on the other. The road is very straight and the passing lanes have a great sight line to safely make a pass on a slower moving car. She had the sporty car in 5th gear and passed several cars, flying by at a high rate of speed. Who looked, other than down the road for any oncoming obstructions. The wind was blowing past quite fast and we were moving along, passing those cars like they were standing still. The top speed was useless as the needle was over to the right side. So, for those that think they have gone fast, think again, unless you have a top speed timing certificate. Like Bonneville, El Mirage, or those silly 200mph speed runs on a Texas airport track that actually allow going as fast as the car will go.
The Jalopy Journal
