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LLWatson
10-22-2004, 06:03 PM
For an MM equipped with the Trilogy SC, MMX Drive Shaft, and Kooks Headers, and no other mods, what is the top speed that could be expected? (assuming that any computer-based governor had been unlimited)

What is the limiting factor?

For what length of time or mileage could the car be driven at that speed?

Thanks,
Laura

Smokie
10-22-2004, 06:16 PM
What is the limiting factor? Thanks, LauraLaura the limit would be the road you are on, not the car.
I realize that is not what you are looking for, but is the truth.

If you want a hypothetical answer, the car can do 150 mph, I don't know for how long.

merc406
10-22-2004, 06:34 PM
Laura the limit would be the road you are on, not the car.
I realize that is not what you are looking for, but is the truth.

If you want a hypothetical answer, the car can do 150 mph, I don't know for how long.



How long?, till it runs out of fuel.......

Wagonmaster
10-22-2004, 06:45 PM
Laura, your rear gear ratio would likely be the limiting factor. keep in mind that the factory equipped tires are speed rated at 168mph. Thats measured at a constant speed. I dont think you'll be approaching that speed any time soon.

LVMarauder
10-22-2004, 06:48 PM
Why doesnt someone throw in some 2.73's or 2.03's , put some down force up front and back and find a legitmate track to find out. I would but alas, no trilogy, and too busy with school

Smokie
10-22-2004, 07:06 PM
The stock rear end gears can produce 210 MPH at 6200 RPM'S in 4th gear.....but the rest of the car....well, you know.

jspradii
10-22-2004, 07:33 PM
The stock rear end gears can produce 210 MPH at 6200 RPM'S in 4th gear.....but the rest of the car....well, you know.
Might as well put wings on it. Still, the approach would be rough and THE LANDING DISASTROUS.....this car was not built for more than 160mph, unless it's in a straight line.

LLWatson
10-22-2004, 07:44 PM
Let me ask it this way....

For a car equipped similarly to the one I described above, on a long straight road or track, what is the fastest that anyone has gotten their MM up to and for how long?

Out west they have hundred mile long road racing events where people take ZR-1 Corvettes and drive 175 mph. How would the MM do in such a race?

Thanks,
Laura

SergntMac
10-22-2004, 07:46 PM
Seems like I'm reading these "refreshing" questions once every twenty-four hours now...Zup?

CRUZTAKER
10-22-2004, 08:09 PM
These top speed threads always get ugly.....

Utilize the search feature and you will find a plethera of threads on this topic.

Here's a start....CLICK HERE (http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?t=12666&highlight=TOP+SPEED)

SergntMac
10-22-2004, 08:21 PM
Let me ask it this way....

For a car equipped similarly to the one I described above, on a long straight road or track, what is the fastest that anyone has gotten their MM up to and for how long?

Out west they have hundred mile long road racing events where people take ZR-1 Corvettes and drive 175 mph. How would the MM do in such a race?

Thanks,
Laura
Nevermind...Not interested in the question, or answers. Carry on without me.

LLWatson
10-22-2004, 08:34 PM
Nevermind...Not interested in the question, or answers. Carry on without me.Hi Mac,
I'm a new member and am interested in the performance capability of the MM.

Just because I am asking these questions doesn't mean I'm trying to cause trouble. It doesn't mean that I am going to go drive any car at 140mph nor would I suggest that anyone else do it either.

I've never even had a speeding ticket in my entire life.

My posts are not intended to offend anyone, but just to gather information. I have read a lot of posts from a lot of other members that are spending tens of thousands of dollars with the obvious goal of going much faster than stock. I'm simply curious what the results of all these modifications are.

Thanks,
Laura

LLWatson
10-22-2004, 08:36 PM
These top speed threads always get ugly.....

Utilize the search feature and you will find a plethera of threads on this topic.

Here's a start....CLICK HERE (http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?t=12666&highlight=TOP+SPEED)
Thanks for the information. I had no idea this was a touchy subject or that it had already been addressed so many times. People discuss this topic all the time on the Corvette Forum and I've never seen anyone get upset about it.

Thanks,
Laura

MI2QWK4U
10-22-2004, 08:48 PM
Let me ask it this way....

For a car equipped similarly to the one I described above, on a long straight road or track, what is the fastest that anyone has gotten their MM up to and for how long?

Thanks,
Laura

Check the following pictures. I have had my Marauder up to 150+ MPH at Michigan International Raceway this past July. There were two 15 minute sessions on the track, part was the infield road course, but a larger part of it was wide open on the high banked oval track at MIS. It was a blast and the Marauder handled like a dream on the oval, like a brick on the road course. On the oval, not much could pass the Marauder, the guy in the Cobra was stunned when I passed him at over 150mph at the start/finish line! Not sure how it would handle a sustained drive that fast, just never been done with a supercharged Marauder. As far as I know, this is the fastest run with a Marauder, if only for the 15 min sessions.

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/data/500/694DSC_0159-med.jpg

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/data/500/1366P7039410.jpg

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/data/500/1366P7039429.jpg

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/data/500/1366P7039634.jpg

MI2QWK4U
10-22-2004, 08:51 PM
Thanks for the information. I had no idea this was a touchy subject or that it had already been addressed so many times. People discuss this topic all the time on the Corvette Forum and I've never seen anyone get upset about it.

Thanks,
Laura


Its not a bad question to ask, and shouldnt be a touchy subject. Some people here sometimes read more into things. To spend so much time talking about building and modding your car, and not talk about speed is ridiculous. Get used to touchy subjects and people getting upset over something. That being said....
Welcome aboard!!

jspradii
10-22-2004, 09:09 PM
Hi Mac,
I'm a new member and am interested in the performance capability of the MM.

Just because I am asking these questions doesn't mean I'm trying to cause trouble. It doesn't mean that I am going to go drive any car at 140mph nor would I suggest that anyone else do it either.

I've never even had a speeding ticket in my entire life.

My posts are not intended to offend anyone, but just to gather information. I have read a lot of posts from a lot of other members that are spending tens of thousands of dollars with the obvious goal of going much faster than stock. I'm simply curious what the results of all these modifications are.

Thanks,
Laura
Qiut trying to be nice! Ask away! Those of us who have braved these venues will be more than happy to talk to you.

David Morton
10-22-2004, 10:30 PM
The stock rear end gears can produce 210 MPH at 6200 RPM'S in 4th gear.....but the rest of the car....well, you know.I'm dreaming of the day when I do just that. I plan to organize a group of guys to split-up the rent for a couple of hours at Daytona or Talladega to see what we can do and I've scheduled modifications for that purpose.

1)Brakes. (next Monday, Dennis will be getting off an order for KVR 4-wheel setup for me)
2)Forced induction. I'm probably going to go with Dennis' Vortech or possibly his new Procharger system. The centrifugal type supercharger does better at the higher rpm range. I may go with the turbo system that's available and use a nitrous set up to give a short shot off the line until the turbo spools up, although I don't like the idea of an extra fueling expense.
3)MMX driveshaft and loop.
4)Differential stud kit and girdle.
5)Aerodynamics and ground effects. Air dam, blocked off front grille (thinking of a scene of B26's on a bombing run), small GT40 style hood ports to exhaust underhood air pressure and a functional, 'real' rear spoiler. Melded into the plan is a sidepipe design I've been going over in my mind. 4" round at the front, tapering into a box that doubles as a side skirt. They will be coming from electric exhaust cutouts taking off from the header collectors, so no restriction from the cats.
6)Roll cage. (duh)
7)210 mph tires. (DUH!)

210? It's possible, things are hap'ning ev-ry-day. :D

(That's from "Bedknobs and Broomsticks" to you young pups)

rayjay
10-23-2004, 12:53 AM
David, 210mph without a roll/safety cage??? No thanks...

BillyGman
10-23-2004, 03:07 AM
To spend so much time talking about building and modding your car, and not talk about speed is ridiculous. Get used to touchy subjects and people getting upset over something.
I agree. And Supercharging a car just so you can drive it slow and rope it off somewhere at a high class car show is like taking Viagra just to have somebody take your picture. It's just pretense.

BTW, I think those are really cool pics of Dave and his car at the track. But just a little warning here for some people who want to drive their Marauders on an oval track, let me just point out that the centrifugal force of driving fast around an oval track can push all the oil to one side in the oil pan, and render your oil pump inopperable for several seconds now and then, and there's been engine failures of some cars from that. That's why circle track race cars have either dry sump oiling systems (Like the new 2005 Ford GT does) or they have baffled oil pans which prevent the oil from being pushed to one side of the pan during a race.

MI2QWK4U
10-23-2004, 04:14 AM
David, 210mph without a roll/safety cage??? No thanks...

I never said anything about 210 mph! I dont see any way this car would handle that much speed. I will tell you that when I had my Marauder at Michigan International Speedway doing 155-160 mph the car felt real steady and smooth. It's weight helps it handle that type of speed, no shimmy, shakes, rattles, etc. That being said, it would be interesting to see what one of these cars would do on a straight away or high speed oval with a cage and other safety equipment to push it to the absolute top speed and see if 200 is possible.

rayjay
10-23-2004, 04:31 AM
To be honest about it, I think 150-160 without NASCAR type safety equipment is risky. Drivers have been killed on local circle tracks at slower speeds with full safety equipment. What equipment did you have to have on the car to be allowed on the track for a speed run?

jstevens
10-23-2004, 05:25 AM
IMHO
You can get killed on Michigan freeways at 65mph.

So to me, 110mph is a blast which I do sometimes.

David Morton
10-23-2004, 07:07 AM
David, 210mph without a roll/safety cage??? No thanks...Perhaps you missed #6 which I edited in right after the initial post.

And thanks for reminding me about the dry sump BillyGman, I knew there was something I would forget.

And Rayjay, as I remember from the early '70s when Susie took her stock 390 '69 Mach 1 to Daytona and ran 153 she had to get an approved racing driveshaft and have a loop for it.

Smokie
10-23-2004, 07:18 AM
Thanks for the information. I had no idea this was a touchy subject or that it had already been addressed so many times. People discuss this topic all the time on the Corvette Forum and I've never seen anyone get upset about it.

Thanks,
LauraThere is nothing wrong with the question that you asked, and I am very glad that one of our members that has experienced what his car can do in a race track responded with pictures and facts.

What we are all very concerned about is, that sometimes when talking about the top end some of the stories that pop-up are tales of sheer recklessness and lawbreaking, I think that most members here love speed, but we have a responsibility to ourselves and our communities not to promote behaviour that could lead to innocent loss of life.

Welcome to our club, carry on, ask away and don't be offended by replies that seem curt, as you get to know our members and their personalities you will see that overall we are a very friendly bunch.:D

MI2QWK4U
10-23-2004, 12:33 PM
To be honest about it, I think 150-160 without NASCAR type safety equipment is risky. Drivers have been killed on local circle tracks at slower speeds with full safety equipment. What equipment did you have to have on the car to be allowed on the track for a speed run?

They had a rigorous Tech Inspection, much more involved than when you run to your local 1/4 mile drag strip. If i recall, it took them 15-20 minutes to do the Marauder. I remember them checking the brakes, suspension, shocks, rims, tires, steering, etc very throughly, for excessive wear, play, movement, leaks, etc. Trunk had to be completely empty, nothing loose whatsoever inside the passenger area of the car, etc. Had to wear helmet that was compliant with their strict rules and a nomex fire hood underneath. Had to run with the front windows down. After tech we went to a track safety class, then drivers meeting to discuss track rules and safety protocalls. It was very intense and well thought out, im sure due to liability reasons. No other specialized equipement was needed. Not many cars there were capable of reaching those speeds, you were never alowed to just run the oval part of the track. You ran 3/4 of the oval, then ducked into the infield road course, so you never had the chance to run lap after lap on the oval, the road course got in the way of really opening it up for a long time. My Trilogy Marauder was so fast coming out of the road course, probably at 60 mph or so heading onto the oval, by the front stretch i was able to get it up to 150+, where I passed that Cobra you see in the picture. I will tell you that it killed my brakes by overheating them slowing from the oval to duck into the road course, so the Baer brakes are a good idea!

BillyGman
10-23-2004, 08:09 PM
That's some very interesting commentary there Dave. Thanks for your insight on that!!!

gpfarrell
10-25-2004, 06:27 PM
Not many cars there were capable of reaching those speeds, you were never alowed to just run the oval part of the track. You ran 3/4 of the oval, then ducked into the infield road course, so you never had the chance to run lap after lap on the oval, the road course got in the way of really opening it up for a long time. My Trilogy Marauder was so fast coming out of the road course, probably at 60 mph or so heading onto the oval, by the front stretch i was able to get it up to 150+, where I passed that Cobra you see in the picture. I will tell you that it killed my brakes by overheating them slowing from the oval to duck into the road course, so the Baer brakes are a good idea!

That's a great description of M.I.S. in the "road course" configuration. I drove it during the OneLapofAmerica in 1999... busy infield, abrupt transition to Nascar turn 3, and then do whatever it'll do until it's time to gather it up and slam down into turn 1... the transition from superspeedway to road course is, ahem... abrupt there.

Not much would hit 150 on the front straight. We had a radar gun, and a hotshoe in a Viper was in the low 160s. I was driving a BMW 3 series (think butterknife at a gun fight), and struggled for 140. Takes lots of hp to go from 140 to 150!

We were killing the brakes on that car too.

chrish
10-25-2004, 07:14 PM
those are great pictures ........is your front end always this low or is it auto do to the speed.......the first shot with the black cobra looks great....how did you get these great shots of the car in motion?
how much was that to do the course..& do other similar venues offer things like this ,do you know?
why would the front window need to be down?

teamrope
10-25-2004, 07:41 PM
Check the following pictures. I have had my Marauder up to 150+ MPH at Michigan International Raceway this past July. There were two 15 minute sessions on the track, part was the infield road course, but a larger part of it was wide open on the high banked oval track at MIS. It was a blast and the Marauder handled like a dream on the oval, like a brick on the road course. On the oval, not much could pass the Marauder, the guy in the Cobra was stunned when I passed him at over 150mph at the start/finish line! Not sure how it would handle a sustained drive that fast, just never been done with a supercharged Marauder. As far as I know, this is the fastest run with a Marauder, if only for the 15 min sessions.
Dang Dave, I wish they would have let us do that ant Indy. :D

(PS. Mrs TR is jealous too.)

MI2QWK4U
10-25-2004, 09:24 PM
That's a great description of M.I.S. in the "road course" configuration. I drove it during the OneLapofAmerica in 1999... busy infield, abrupt transition to Nascar turn 3, and then do whatever it'll do until it's time to gather it up and slam down into turn 1... the transition from superspeedway to road course is, ahem... abrupt there.

Not much would hit 150 on the front straight. We had a radar gun, and a hotshoe in a Viper was in the low 160s. I was driving a BMW 3 series (think butterknife at a gun fight), and struggled for 140. Takes lots of hp to go from 140 to 150!

We were killing the brakes on that car too.


Thanks,
But that is exactly it, you enter the superspeedway from the road course just before turn 3, if I hit the angle just right I could exit the road course with steady increase in acceleration, then just drop the hammer with Wide Open Throttle, I never lifted off the gas going into turn 4. Once I found a line that let me take turn 4 at WOT, I was set! I had to let the car drift a little up the track coming out of turn 4, but the track was clean up there and by the time I hit the start finish line I was well over 150. I know this because the guy in the black cobra in that first picture told me he was buried at a little over 150 mph and I made a quick clean pass on him in the straightaway. THe car did very well on the superspeedway, her legs just never gave out, and it felt like the car had more in it, but I couldnt get there with the road course there, the tach had a little bit left in it! GP is right about the transition from oval to road course, abrupt is an understatement! shortly after the start finish line they make you do a real tight turn right after the pit row, and let me tell you this...4500 pounds of marauder doing 150+ mph doesnt want to stop...at all! And the day we were there I know of 3 cars that hit the wall, and another that didnt make the transition from oval to road course and hit a cement wall head on. Fortunately no one was hurt, and it looked to be a case of too much car, to little driver, or cars not really up for high speed passes. It was a blast and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Thanks for explaining it a little better for everyone GP....

MI2QWK4U
10-25-2004, 09:32 PM
those are great pictures ........is your front end always this low or is it auto do to the speed.......the first shot with the black cobra looks great....how did you get these great shots of the car in motion?
how much was that to do the course..& do other similar venues offer things like this ,do you know?
why would the front window need to be down?


I have the eibach springs and lowered rear suspension, so it sits lower than most by a couple of inches. I'm sure there is some major downforce on it perhaps pushing it down a little more. We had a professional photographer there that took those great shots. Me passing the cobra is my favorite picture of the Marauder, sitting above my fireplace! Cost 100 bucks for 2 15 min sessions, and trust me, 15 min of fighting with a 4500 pound Marauder in a road course is draining and exhausting. All of us with the marauders were sweating and beat after 2 sessions! No idea about the window.
I did have an in car camera for those runs, and it turned out awesome! you can hear the tires squeeling in the road course, getting back on it with the Eaton whining, then the open track where you hear the Eaton whine up and I called off speeds untill I ran out of speedo. That blower is spectacular to listen to....

drwhy
10-26-2004, 10:00 AM
I did have an in car camera for those runs, and it turned out awesome! you can hear the tires squeeling in the road course, getting back on it with the Eaton whining, then the open track where you hear the Eaton whine up and I called off speeds untill I ran out of speedo. That blower is spectacular to listen to....
Any chance we could get .wmv files of those videos?

RoyLPita
10-26-2004, 10:11 AM
Let me ask it this way....

For a car equipped similarly to the one I described above, on a long straight road or track, what is the fastest that anyone has gotten their MM up to and for how long?

Out west they have hundred mile long road racing events where people take ZR-1 Corvettes and drive 175 mph. How would the MM do in such a race?

Thanks,
Laura

I was a behind a MM that was doing 145 with just a Reinhart chip.


Welcome aboard, DrWhy.

Just my .02 and then some.

MI2QWK4U
10-26-2004, 12:58 PM
I was a behind a MM that was doing 145 with just a Reinhart chip.


Welcome aboard, DrWhy.

Just my .02 and then some.

Roy, we have had several Marauders with chips and assorted gear selections up to 150mph to check drivability. Its now how fast it will go, but how long it takes to get that fast. I guarantee that my Marauder would get to 150+ a heck of a lot faster than a stock marauder with a reinhart chip.
Just my .02, now we have .04!

stevengerard
10-26-2004, 01:29 PM
Window needs to be open in case of a crash, if the car's on fire and the door is stuck closed you have a potential quick point of exit. yes the window could be broken but I'd prefer to not have to waste time trying to do that.

jgc61sr2002
10-26-2004, 02:09 PM
drwhy - Welcome aboard. :D :welcome:

RoyLPita
10-26-2004, 04:27 PM
Roy, we have had several Marauders with chips and assorted gear selections up to 150mph to check drivability. Its now how fast it will go, but how long it takes to get that fast. I guarantee that my Marauder would get to 150+ a heck of a lot faster than a stock marauder with a reinhart chip.
Just my .02, now we have .04!

Dave,
With the Trilogy setup, the MM is like a rocket ship- as long as you have grip.
Low to mid 12's are impressive for a 4200lb car.