In the Car and Driver shoot out, most were running in the mid 12s in the quarter mile. Seems odd by the fact that stock vipers will do that and some even a few run in the high 11's. Was it because they used stock tires? I would be surprised to spend an extra 30 to 75 thousand only to have my car run mid 12's. Lets face it, most people are not going to drive around with slicks on, for everyday cruising. But I guess I would put chains on my tires if it meant I would go faster!
650Hp to 800Hp = mid 12s ?
- Thread starter King RT10
- Start date
S
SUN RA KAT
Guest
I'd suspect a better driver would have found a way to put the right amount of power down to get mid-low 11's. If the traction isn't there, then more horsepower won't make you faster.
1TONY1
Enthusiast
The Lethal guys have explained this in several posts: It was 1/4 mile straight on this road course. I think it was measured via satellite, but I missed half of what they were saying during that part. You can bet had it been at a dragstrip even with radials the times would have been much better. All the cars were to slow.
Although I can't speak for anyone else, I can tell you that we did run in the mid 11s at over 130mph. The numbers quoted in the magazine reflect only 1 run; the fastest overall run for the event. Whatever your times were for this particular run, were the ones quoted. Although this run (#4 of 5) proved to be the fastest overall time, it was our slowest 1/4 mile time (the driver missed a shift).
We used a Car and Driver editor; most other tuners brought professionals. Also keep in mind that this was NOT a dragstrip, but a marked portion of MIS oval. Based upon the times that the LPE and a few other cars ran at the dragstrip prior to the C&D event, it seems that the 1/4 mile speeds at the C&D event were about 4-7mph slower than a dragstrip time.
Here are the overall best times for the 3 Vipers and the LPE at the event:
APEX Lethal 750
Best 0-60 3.62 sec.
Best 0-100 7.34 sec.
Best ET 11.68
Best MPH 130.34
Best 150mph-0mph 670.81 ft.
TNT Serpent 555
Best 0-60 4.41 sec.
Best 0-100 8.89 sec.
Best ET 12.54
Best MPH 123.57
Best 150mph-0mph 766.43
Hennessey Venom 800TT
Best 0-60 3.93 sec.
Best 0-100 7.36 sec.
Best ET 11.82
Best MPH 137.73
Best 150mph-0mph 725.56 ft.
Lingenfelter Twin Turbo C5 Corvette
Best 0-60 4.53 sec.
Best 0-100 8.15 sec.
Best ET 12.29 sec.
Best MPH 132.25
Best 150mph-0mph 673.34 ft.
Hope this clarifies things.
-Wayne (LTHL VPR)
We used a Car and Driver editor; most other tuners brought professionals. Also keep in mind that this was NOT a dragstrip, but a marked portion of MIS oval. Based upon the times that the LPE and a few other cars ran at the dragstrip prior to the C&D event, it seems that the 1/4 mile speeds at the C&D event were about 4-7mph slower than a dragstrip time.
Here are the overall best times for the 3 Vipers and the LPE at the event:
APEX Lethal 750
Best 0-60 3.62 sec.
Best 0-100 7.34 sec.
Best ET 11.68
Best MPH 130.34
Best 150mph-0mph 670.81 ft.
TNT Serpent 555
Best 0-60 4.41 sec.
Best 0-100 8.89 sec.
Best ET 12.54
Best MPH 123.57
Best 150mph-0mph 766.43
Hennessey Venom 800TT
Best 0-60 3.93 sec.
Best 0-100 7.36 sec.
Best ET 11.82
Best MPH 137.73
Best 150mph-0mph 725.56 ft.
Lingenfelter Twin Turbo C5 Corvette
Best 0-60 4.53 sec.
Best 0-100 8.15 sec.
Best ET 12.29 sec.
Best MPH 132.25
Best 150mph-0mph 673.34 ft.
Hope this clarifies things.
-Wayne (LTHL VPR)
Yeah. It looks like HMS was similar to us in that their fastest overall time did not necessarily reflect their optimum acceleration, 1/4 mile times.
However each of our relative speeds given our rwhp makes perfect sense. It may be confusing because some tuners chose to use rwhp numbers and others chose to use engine hp numbers.
-W
However each of our relative speeds given our rwhp makes perfect sense. It may be confusing because some tuners chose to use rwhp numbers and others chose to use engine hp numbers.
-W
Gerald
Enthusiast
everyone is so fixated on E.T... MPH is the indication of HP.....
but..... a low ET is niiiiice
but..... a low ET is niiiiice
mystic
Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Gerald:
everyone is so fixated on E.T... MPH is the indication of HP.....
but..... a low ET is niiiiice
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Correct, ET just means he was on slicks or a great tire and is a great driver. MPH is a indication of how much HP (as Gerald said) When i took my supra to the track I would never launch my car hard...i only took it to the track to see what I was trapping and then I could tell how well my car was running w/o having to put on a dyno.
everyone is so fixated on E.T... MPH is the indication of HP.....
but..... a low ET is niiiiice
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Correct, ET just means he was on slicks or a great tire and is a great driver. MPH is a indication of how much HP (as Gerald said) When i took my supra to the track I would never launch my car hard...i only took it to the track to see what I was trapping and then I could tell how well my car was running w/o having to put on a dyno.
BUD
Enthusiast
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by King RT10:
In the Car and Driver shoot out, most were running in the mid 12s in the quarter mile. Seems odd by the fact that stock vipers will do that and some even a few run in the high 11's. Was it because they used stock tires? I would be surprised to spend an extra 30 to 75 thousand only to have my car run mid 12's. Lets face it, most people are not going to drive around with slicks on, for everyday cruising. But I guess I would put chains on my tires if it meant I would go faster!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I loved the editorial BLASTING Hennessey!!
In the Car and Driver shoot out, most were running in the mid 12s in the quarter mile. Seems odd by the fact that stock vipers will do that and some even a few run in the high 11's. Was it because they used stock tires? I would be surprised to spend an extra 30 to 75 thousand only to have my car run mid 12's. Lets face it, most people are not going to drive around with slicks on, for everyday cruising. But I guess I would put chains on my tires if it meant I would go faster!
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I loved the editorial BLASTING Hennessey!!
KenH
Enthusiast
One question though. WHY CAN'T ANY OF THESE MAGS PUT THE CARS ON A CHASSIS DYNO AS PART OF THEIR TESTING? It's probably the easiest possible test to do and they just never seem to do it, instead just quoting whatever BS the mfrs (or tuners) serve up. When a car fails to live up to it's performance claims, they just attribute it to something like poor traction rather than verifying whether the car even actually makes the claimed power. Just seems like a simple thing to do to put a lot of questions to rest.
Ken-
I totally agree with you! We brought our dyno run from just 2 days earlier, and we inquired with Car and Driver about setting up a dyno event to measure the REAL POWER these cars were putting to the ground. They replied that there was no dyno nearby and that the AWD car (Porsche, GMC truck) would not be able to use it.
Maybe next year. I believe we were the only company to bring a dyno of the car. I think some of the other tuners (LPE, HMS, and TNT), may have actually understated their car's performance by using rear wheel numbers. I think HMS said they were making around 800rwhp and TNT around 580 rwhp. We were at 650rwhp, so the numbers are right on; they reflect these differences.
The LPE car was toting the 650TT package, but I believe they also had a water injection system allowing them to run more boost and make significantly more power over the standard 650TT kit they offer.
-Wayne
I totally agree with you! We brought our dyno run from just 2 days earlier, and we inquired with Car and Driver about setting up a dyno event to measure the REAL POWER these cars were putting to the ground. They replied that there was no dyno nearby and that the AWD car (Porsche, GMC truck) would not be able to use it.
Maybe next year. I believe we were the only company to bring a dyno of the car. I think some of the other tuners (LPE, HMS, and TNT), may have actually understated their car's performance by using rear wheel numbers. I think HMS said they were making around 800rwhp and TNT around 580 rwhp. We were at 650rwhp, so the numbers are right on; they reflect these differences.
The LPE car was toting the 650TT package, but I believe they also had a water injection system allowing them to run more boost and make significantly more power over the standard 650TT kit they offer.
-Wayne
1Bad-
I do agree that MPH in the 1/4 mi. is a solid indicator of horsepower at the dragstrip. I wish the Car and Driver test was performed at the strip; I think the numbers would be more realistic if they had. For the sake of the article the 1/4mile times and speeds were recorded from a dash-mounted, satellite positioning system at Michigan International Speedway (oval track).
However, even that being said, there are certainly differences between dragstrips as well. For example, there is a dragstrip locally at Sears Point Raceway. The strip has a slight incline (uphill), and usually has about a 15mph headwind. Consequently, the times and mph are noticeably slower than a more ideal dragstrip. I know one of our Mustang Cobra customers who frequents this strip typically gets 3-4mph slower than strips down in LA.
In the end, the driver is the single biggest factor in achieving ideal times and speeds at the strip.
As a side note, I was told the LPE car had recently run around 137mph at the strip before the C&D event. Yet, at the event, it ran around 132mph. I think this article is best served to compare the cars with the other cars in the event as opposed to comparing the times from these cars to times someone achieved at the strip. Otherwise too many factors come into play.
-Wayne
I do agree that MPH in the 1/4 mi. is a solid indicator of horsepower at the dragstrip. I wish the Car and Driver test was performed at the strip; I think the numbers would be more realistic if they had. For the sake of the article the 1/4mile times and speeds were recorded from a dash-mounted, satellite positioning system at Michigan International Speedway (oval track).
However, even that being said, there are certainly differences between dragstrips as well. For example, there is a dragstrip locally at Sears Point Raceway. The strip has a slight incline (uphill), and usually has about a 15mph headwind. Consequently, the times and mph are noticeably slower than a more ideal dragstrip. I know one of our Mustang Cobra customers who frequents this strip typically gets 3-4mph slower than strips down in LA.
In the end, the driver is the single biggest factor in achieving ideal times and speeds at the strip.
As a side note, I was told the LPE car had recently run around 137mph at the strip before the C&D event. Yet, at the event, it ran around 132mph. I think this article is best served to compare the cars with the other cars in the event as opposed to comparing the times from these cars to times someone achieved at the strip. Otherwise too many factors come into play.
-Wayne
