How fast have you...

[Ed62]

I had a '52 Olds that had the speedometer top out at 120mph. I buried it, but I'm just a little brighter now. It's hard to believe how stupid I was when I was at the age where I couldn't die.

Ed

[Mr__Bill]

I had a 69 MGC GT and heading home, northern Minnesota, I crested a hill and found myself behind a long line of cars with a slow motor home at the lead. There was a long straight stretch down into the valley and then up again. It took a long time to get it there but I was at 126 by the time I passed the line of cars. The beast was still accelerating as I climbed the hill on the other side of the valley and I decided I really did not need to know how fast it could go. I have to say that I was lucky not to have hit a pot hole or someone else that decided to pass.

Bill, who now has a truck that just feels like it's going fast.

[docrowan]

(Read this using your best Larry the Cable Guy accent)

You guys with the muscle cars are all wusses. The pucker factor doesn't depend on the absolute speed, but the ratio of speed to inherent safety of the vehicle. I got a 4 cylinder 1.5L Mitsubishi Mirage up to 97 riding on bald 15 inch tires on a Louisiana highway. I had the engine revved so high I couldn't even hear it anymore, but my dog had his paws over his ears. The scariest bit wasn't the speed or bald tires, it was the Louisiana highway.

[lrogers]

Car driven-105
Car passenger-125
Motorcycle-108

[billwmeyer]

Speed

On my 200cc Bridgestone motorcycle, I got up to 95, but it started to float at 90, being a real light bike, so I backed her down to 85.

In my 1965 Chevy SS Impala, 327-300 Horse, I hit about 150 as close as I could figure. I popped a hill and there was a cop with someone pulled over at the bottom. I was sure glad he was out of his car. I never got it to top speed. Those were the days!

Bill

[sparkeyjames]

140mph in an old Chrysler police intercepter I bought used back in 1980. The speedometer went to 150. I had juiced the car with a new cam, headers and a Holly racing carburator. I think I had another 1/2 inch of throttle pedal left too but the car was starting to shake a bit so I backed it down to the legal limit.

Edit: I also forgot the Trip I took in a Dodge 2 door Omni coupe/hatchback where I proceded to watch the speedometer indicator bounce off the 90mph (I think) speed limit end post for around 20 or so miles.

[Kristofor]

The highest speed I've witnessed while driving was 105+ (where the speedo stopped).

But the scariest was a trip (passenger) from Saint Paul to Chicago in just under 4 hours, 10 minutes (who needs high-speed rail) for an average rate of over 95mph. That included one gas stop and several slow downs for State Patrol, so peak speeds were higher. I wouldn't do that myself today (safety, stress, cost, etc.), and probably not back then either...

[Slik Geek]

Car driven-95 mph (continuously for miles on interstate between South Carolina and Illinois, had to slow down when we reached Illinois)

Car passenger-??? I was too busy watching the road and the approaching intersection to look at the speedometer as my friend showed me the power of his Porsche 911 Targa. A moment later he showed me how incredibly good the brakes were.

Motorcycle-110 mph with a some downhill assist on my 1976 Honda CB550F. When the front wheel started to "shimmy", I coasted until things got stable again. Never dared trying that again.

[Bill Stock]

I was just a passenger in my brother's hopped up Road Runner, be we hit about 160. It had roll-control, slicks, holly carbs, special cam shaft, new heads, new pistons, new rotor and plugs with fancy wiring, special gears and tranny. I ain't never seen the trees go by so fast.

It only got about 8 gallons to the mile though.

[germdoc]

bad news buddy, 140 kph is only 87 mph

No wonder I didn't major in math...

In that car it sure felt fast!

[toolguy1000]

how fast? i really don't know. had a 1971 12 cylinder series 3 e-type jaguar. just after buying it, i thought i'd stretch its legs. last time i saw the speedo was at 130. then i buried the accelerator. **** thing was still pulling when i ran out of road between 1 and 2 minutes later. only time i was ever scared behind the wheel. looked just like this one, only fire engine red.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1971-...1%7C240%3A1318

[twistsol]

According to the Minnesota State Highway Patrol, 143MPH in my dad's 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood. 472 Cubic inches of leaded gas guzzling power. It took forever to get it there and even longer to stop it.

I never drove that car again and didn't drive anything for over a year after that.

[LCHIEN]

i recall an article in some men's magazine where they took an exotic super car for a high speed run on some highway where they did about 168 MPH for a while. Then they had to stop for more gas after about 15-20 minutes. Think about that!


Me, I broke 100 once long time ago. Followed a porsche 911 and an accura at 90+ for about 60 miles on I-10 not too long ago.

[gjat]

150+ in my ex-boss's BMW (535i I think) scooting accross Alligator Alley almost 10 years ago. It cruised at that speed. After a minute or two, I could relax enough to breathe.

[DRAGBOAT]

I know you didn't include a boat in your survey but I am rather fond of the water, on this pass I ran the 1/4 mile in 5.788 seconds and yes we were on fire almost the entire way. God I love Drag Boat Racing, I am just getting into woodworking and am hoping it is going to be a cheaper hobby.