93rdcurrent

The US doesn't need such stringent speed limits what it needs is better driver training. Also I think (sorry Polak et al) that unless there are oustanding conditions (like a parent with a serious medical condition) that children under the age of 18 should not be permitted to drive without a parent. Most drivers don't know the rules of the road and some don't care. GET OUT OF THE FAST LANE UNLESS YOU ARE PASSING! I have a better idea than super slow speed limits how about you keep your kiddies out of the drivers seat until they are mentally mature enough and have enough time driving with mom and dad to actually count as some experience. I didn't get my driver's license until I was 18 and I lived in LA. I managed to get around and I am no worse off for it now. So stop whining about your babies and realize that most accidents involving youngsters have to do with inexperience and alchohol and drugs. It would be a more accurate warning to ask you to keep your kids off the road then to assume that my driving style (fast) is the danger if safety is your concern.

ACHILLES

some people get highs from drugs, others from gasoline. Besides, we all gotta go sometime...

jwitzer

devoid,

You are correct. As I've always said, speed does not kill, bad driving does, but speeding makes bad driving worse.

A good sports car (or whatever the RX-8 is) does NOT make YOU a better driver. In fact, especially with the DSC, I'd suggest that it offers false confidence in your own abilities, prompting more agressive driving, and more stupid decisions.

The BMW crowd (especially in Roundel, the club's mag) likes to jaw about how the "other" drivers are so bad and that the "chosen" ones who drive BMWs (I don't) are just that much better at everything, including driving, than the "commoners". Funny thing is, BMW drivers stick out in my mind as some of the WORST drivers (along with SUV's) on the road here in Tampa.

If you really think you're hot (as I once did) get yourself to a driving school. There are several good ones throughout the US. Check AutoWeek or the BMWCCA (their schools are good and cheap). You will soon realize that you are not as good as you think you are and that you CAN become much better at car control - all in an appropriate setting.

It is said that 80% of drivers think they're better than average. In this country (USA) average is WHOLLY UNSATISFACTORY. I'd say that 80% of drivers are inadequately trained and that 30% should not be allowed to drive. That probably (but not definately) applies to this group as well (sorry friends) and possibly to me, too. :-)


93rdcurrent,

While emotional maturity has a lot to do with the decisions made while driving (which has become the essence of this topic), age is only a strong correlation, not absolute. I know a few 17 year olds who I would have trusted with my well-sorted RX-7 on the track and plenty of 40 year olds who haven't made it yet.


ACHILLES,

I fall into the adreneline rush myself, but I know enough not to endanger others who have not chosen to accept the risk.


Attack that on-ramp! Out-brake that Vette! But be smart about WHEN and WHERE you do it.

[gets off soapbox]

devoid

we should adopt indian highway driving code.

1. Might is right (the bigger vehicle has right of way)
2. Those in front have right of way (ie watch out for those in front of you...there is no such thing as being "cut off" you simply should be watching for, and making appropriate manuevers to allow the person ahead of you to move in front of you)

Oh yeah...and there is no such thing as a speed limit...but if you get in an accident and kill a pedestrian and its your fault, they cut off an apendage. I like this one!

Selesti

Hmm ... I live in So Cal and I remember days back then ... There is a nice stretch of the 210 that goes through a mountain pass between Pasadena and SFV, that I tested out the limits of my Passat on late at night in these curvy hills.

BUT - that's only 1. after 1AM in the morning ... 2. where there isn't an onramp for miles on end ... 3. There isn't a SOUL around. My top speed of 1.8T was ~135mph?

This was also when I was 17. Would I do that again now? Probably not ... but let's just say that I was always way more careful when speeding/racing than I was doing routine things like merging in traffic ... and it was the latter one where I total'ed my mother's Camry at the tender age of 16. I was going 45mph on the 605 when that happened and miraculously didn't hit a single other car even though there were ~30 other cars in sight. Since then, I have always been a careful and defensive (if not always lawabiding) driver.

There are a lot of stereotypes and misconceptions about driving, but I definitely think as a rule of thumb ... 1. You don't know your own capabilities and/or mortality until you've experienced a huge accident ... and most young people are guilty of thinking themselves better than they really are. 2. Accidents happen when you LEAST EXPECT IT ... the SECOND you take your guard down you are at risk. There is nothing wrong with going 140 in a safe place and in safe conditions as long as you can handle the speed and are prepared to face the consequences if something goes wrong.

gsdev

I can go 94 mph and stop in the same distance as an SUV at 70 (everyone drives 5 over the speed limit). So just to be safe, I usually hover around 90.

StewC625

Well, I've had cars on public roads out to as fast as 170 mph, and let's just say that's not the smartest thing in the world to do (that was in a Porsche 930 turbo in 1985) - even when you're on a deserted highway in eastern Colorado with 10 miles of empty, visible road in front of you.

Here in the Chicago area, we have our own little version of the autobahn - it's call the Tri-State Tollway between the Wisconsin State Line and O'Hare airport. When it's not backed up with traffic, the prevailing rate in the MIDDLE lane is 80+ mph. The other morning (6:00 AM on a Tuesday) I was headed to O'Hare Airport for a flight out, and was faced with three lanes wide of open road for more than 1/4 mile in front of me. I was already going 91, so I downshifted to 3rd, pulled the redline, upshifted to 4th and pulled long and hard, and when I was few football fields length away from catching the pack in front of me I jumped off and watched the speedo digits dropping through 120 mph.

So, I'm guessing I was out around 125 or so. That's fast enough for me. I have three kids I have to think about all the time.

My favorite speed in this car is between 45 and 75 - in the lower/mid gears - 2nd, 3rd, 4th - the car pulls like an F-16 on afterburners. For that matter, it sounds like one too.

To the guy that said "no room in Chicago", give the Tri-State a try ... just don't do it in traffic.

Oh, and Saturday and Sunday during the day sucks because that's when all the cheeseheads from Wisconsin are passing through going 66 mph ("because you know, for cripes sake, that the speed limit is 65, fer sure.") in the left lane, getting confused at the toll plazas and shaking their hands at all the FIB's who are blistering by them at 80+ mph.

Like me.

rotten42

I agree its all about where and when. I haven't checked the profiles but I would lay money on catagorizing the responses by age. I think the older you get the more aware of the world around you. Maybe its because you've had more experience at beating it back. Maybe its because you are aware of the outcome of your actions. I'm a father of two young kids. If somebody took those kids from me because he needed to know how fast his car could go I would also hunt him down.

That being said, there can be a time and place for testing your limits as well as the car's limits. You will probably hit your limits first. Most people aren't as good as they think they are. I will find a stretch of highway pavement that is clear so that if I screw up, the only person who bites it is me.

Chrisbert

Speed doesn't kill...

Massive deceleration does! :p

Rob Tomlin

I was wondering how long it would take before somebody made that quote!

Jeffjett

Like the guy who fell off the cliff as he was falling he kept saying "so far so good, so far so good"

CUE2's RX-8

Let's not kid each other . . . we all want to know how fast our 8s will go. If I had open road, or a racetrack, I would love to see what our cars are capable of doing. Who wouldn't ?

BlackRotarySE3P

Well guys (and girls)... today im going to see what this car tops out at. If I can video tape it, i will (might have to tape the camera to the steering wheel)... I have hit 152mph already and it was still pushing... but the turn up ahead made me take my foot off the gas. I'm going to Ocean Parkway today (about 15 miles of straight almost deserted highway out on Long Island) for this little speed test. Hopefully I'll bring back a video.

gansan

You're absolutely right--they are probably young. I am willing to bet that the people who drive foolishly like this are also the ones that have never been to the racetrack to push their cars and skill to the limit as well. After six years of racing, I find that the the limits of street cars in general are quite low, and it doesn't take much more than a twitch at speed (like dodging an obstacle) to send you off the wrong way. As a result, I drive pretty slowly on the street, because of my acute awareness of what the car can and can't do, and my desire to maintain some safety margin in the loads I put on the car. Anyone who keeps chanting "speed doesn't kill" may be technically right, but the deer, driveshaft, or odd tire carcass lying on the road WILL if you are going 140.

HeelnToe

And again, I'll point out that C&D tested it already for ya at 150mph, and R&T tested it at 148mph.

Whew! And you guys thought YOU had to go find out for yourself on public roads. What a relief, huh?

cpchester

I was in a accident on this stretch of road as a passenger and spend 9 days in the hospital with internal bleeding on my brain and other injuries including a 30 percent loss of hearing. It was because of another driver going too fast, simply put. Anyone who speeds in this road is putting others at risk. It is a two lane road with toll plazas every 10 miles. I drive from Wisconsin to CT every few months and this small stretch of highway is the WORST stretch of the 980 mile trip!!!! I can not beleive you would call it the autobahn.

BTW two people were killed in the accident which happened on the stretch across from the dodge neon plant in rockford IL. This highway also has more fatal accidents than any highway in IL.

gsdev

Risk vs Reward. I have spent some time driving my 8 at the track and still think its crazy to go over 120 on the street. Know your limits and the limits of the car. The risk is high and unless you peak and orgasm at 150 then I don't see the reward.

We love you though. Give a call if you need to make bail.

smd3

Yeah, that's the maximum speed the computer on a 1.8t will allow you to go. I had mine (APR programming) up to 144 before it stopped. (not enough power to get any higher) Mine was a GTI, which is about as aerodynamic as a shoebox.

I've had my RX-8 to 130.

StewC625

Well, actually, CPChester, you're confused between the Northwest Tollway - which is I-90 and is exactly what you said - a two-lane hell of bad, rough pavement with toll plazas every 15 miles for extra fun, and populated with nothing but trucks (that sound like your road out by Rockford?); and the Tri-State Tollway - which is I-294 and 94 - the run from O'Hare to Milwaukee.

The particular stretch where people really seem to "air it out" is from the Lake County IL line south to about Golf road - along there, the road is brand new pavement, three very wide lanes wide, with wide shoulders and a double-width left shoulder and a large "jersey barrier" in the middle.

At the time I blasted down there, I had just crested the hill southbound just south of Lake Avenue, and could see ahead three miles - the road runs wide and smooth through a long, shallow valley - up to about Golf Road, and the traffic "pack" was at least 1/4 to 1/2 mile in front of me.

I was going 91 mph in the left lane which was slightly, and I mean SLIGHTLY faster than everyone else - it took me a 1/2 mile to pass the last guy in the middle lane next to me, and then there was no one across all three lanes for the next open stretch.

OK, if we want to get technical, if the car decided to barf a tire at that speed and I spun, I could have jumped the center divider and killed a bunch of folks. You're right about that ... but on smooth pavement in a straight line, with no one around me, why not.

For the record, in traffic, around town, etc., I'm the most docile driver on the road. I've had a large amount of "seat time" in real race cars over the years and have no need to drive like an idiot all the time.

The reason I call it the autobahn (and believe me, not alone) is because the prevailing speed on that stretch of road is so fast - again, if you're not going 80 mph, you're getting passed a lot.

Out by Rockford, the pace is still about 80, but I won't exceed the flow out there.

Hope you have safe travels.

UAwream

note the fact i said it was 4:45 in the morning in the middle of no where mississippi. i dont know if you have ever driven through mississippi in the middle of the day..the roads are still empty. and there arent many families out at this hour. its not like i was on a city street. this was pure country setting. i may be dumb for doing a top speed but im not retarded enough to do with other lives in danger. and another thing if you pass a stopped cop at 145...hes not gonna know what kind of car or be able to catch up fast enough to know which car it was. im not some brand new driver out to play in my new car. ive done driving schools, i know not to be dumb.

i thank you for your concerns though. everyone wants to see limits of thing they own whether its a car, a tool, or anything that is meant to be used. its human nature. but once agian thank you for your concern. i dont plan on making the top speed a weekly thing. the car was broken in and i figured i would test its limits.

UAwream

thank you. i totally agree, which is why i posted the thread to begin with. i mentioned i know my car and how it handles. dont just go buy a car at top speed it the way home. since i got the car a month ago ive done 2 9 hour trips a 12 hour trip and plenty of city driving and back country roads. ive tested it out in parkin glots on straight-aways. always learn your car people.

on another note, i know a car is different on track or on a straight away. that is why i plan on trying it both places and getting used to both conditions. so for the people out there who say top speed is nothin...it is something, its knowing your possessions and enjoying and respecting what they can do.

as for someother questions i saw while trying to read the responses after ebing away, its a manual. as for handling, it was like floating on glass. maybe it just my 8 but even when im in the coty i can feel little bumps once and while, so the small bumps i felt why driving that fast, felt normal. other than that it seemed to squeeze the road.

UAwream

it about expirencing it for itself. just like the 0-60, your telling me you havent tried it out, or tried to get close? manual tells you what the nav can do...yuou not try it out? just because someone else already did it dosent mean not to do it. if power or something faster than the 4x4 truck i used to have didnt matter than i wouldnt have cared.

RX-Dreamer

Unless some 8's have defective ECU's... There are alot of lying pieces of **** in this thread. :D

foxman

Well said, it is not about the speed per se. There was a great show on the History Channel a few weeks back all about the Autobahn which contained some great info, including the fact that there are less deaths per mile traveled on the Autobahn then there are on US interstate highways.

Macdad

152 MPH, I don't know what the RPMs were but it felt like I was hitting the rev' limiter or whatever it is.

BTW: I am a 59 year old male. I only slowed down when my false teeth fell out, I didn't feel safe looking around on the floorboard for them.