Thread: Top speed you've gone before backing off.

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I've asked this questions among people at shows and thought I'd throw it around you people. I've hit 138 MPH in my 65 chevy supersport back in 1971 and I have the ticket to show for it. Must admit I was pissed at my girl and had to much to drink and really took it out on my car. Had a good friend(a state cop) who clocked me at 138 and didn't even try to catch me. Must admit it didn't take to long to get it to 120 but the front end really started getting squirrely after that to where the front actually started floating and thats when I backed off. Now I was running a 327 with dual 4 that was putting out 345HP but what was really amazing is that I was runniing 4:11 gears with a 4 speed M-21 and since I was trying to keep the car on the road, I never did get a look at the tack, but it had to be in the mid 7's and to this day I don't know why the engine didn't let go. Those 327 were great engines.

I went 132 in my '57 'Vette, on a 1970 interstate. It was also a 327, out to 331, with the usual speed parts.....high rise, holley, fuelie cam, 11 to 1s, balanced, double hump heads, headers, etc., with a muncie and 3:70s.

It was still pulling hard, but I started thinking about the thin rear tires, and backed off. I know...I know...a woosy!

Does the old Alcohol Dragster count?????



If not, 140 and change in the Mustang, but not counting dragstrip stuff nothing real spectacular....

You mean there's a time when you supposed to back off?....

When I was young and very dumb I had a 78 Camaro with a 3.08 and 29 tall tires that would pull 5,200 in drive.
Someone due the math please.

With today's speeds, 130-140 doesn't sound like much, does it? :-) Seemed pretty fast then!

Does getting sideways between the bigblock 'Vette in the other lane, and a row of parked cars on the right count as fast?

How about if you beat the other 'Vette, and did not hit anything?

My '79 Mustang with a '69 HiPo 351 would turn 5400 in top cog, 2700 was 75 mph. That should be 150 mph, the dial ran out of numbers. Smoke would puff out the scoop at 5500, so I would back off a tad and let 'er live, valve float isn't nice.

back in the early 6o's on a new stretch of state hiway JUST OPENED that nite, I almost got the red all the way to the end of the speedo on my 56 Pontiac before the smell of burning oil made me backoff.About 115.Topped that since but today around here there is traffic all the time and more staties to be wary of. And a point system so u pay for years to the ins. co. for speeding. Not like most states , just pay the fine and thats all.

Back in the old days 70's There was a 2-3 mile strip of four lane to get onto the interstate. It was one of those deals that wasn't finished so there wasn't any traffic on it usually. Three of us guys went to DesMoines one weekend and on that stretch we opened 'em up to see who was fastest There was a 454 Chevelle that just edged ahead of me just inches at a time. I don't remember what the speedo. said but the tach was floatin' around 64-6,500. And that was it, it didn't have an ounce more.

It was a 66 GTO.

You guys would just call BS so I'm not gonna say.
It was in 2003 at the Yakima Indian Res and my car
was a slightly modded Corvette ZR1.
Never been faster since....

DT

I have a Mclaren, my wife and I were clocked at 205 in Barcelona Spain, with the air on
Ken

69 Cuda Fastback Formula S Hemi, about 145. Speedo could have been wrong, but probably not by much. Backed off when I remembered tires weren't rated for anything over 125.

Fastest ever traveled as a passenger; 165 in a 1965 Ferrari 330 GT, at night, on the way to Chicago for a Ferrari event. Trust in the driver is key to low stress and happiness.

'68 Charger 130 on the Garden Grove freeway. I had the '36 bouncing between 125 and 135 coming in to San Juan Capistrano on 101/5 when it was two lanes in each direction.

I've been faster, but the one time I backed off was at 130 driving my tripower GTO. I was street racing a Mach I and it was like we were welded side by side........I couldn't pull him and he couldn't gain on me. My speedo went to 120 and we were down past that, and my buddy is screaming to get out of it. He finally took his cigarette lighter and threated to light up my sunvisor, so I backed off. I guess he didn't want to die or something like that.

Now that I look back, those redline tires were not the best ones to be doing that stuff on.

Don

155 in my '93 Vette. The advertising slogan that year was "Life Begins at 150.