NASCAR is all about speed, I mean, how else could you have a car run between 140 and 180 MPH all day long, put them on a banked oval. The current NASCAR speed record was set by a 1987 Ford Thunderbird with NASCAR driver Bill Elliot behind the wheel at Talladega Super Speedway, and stands today at 212.089 MPH. Another blue oval badged car will be attempting to break that record, this time using an alternative fuel. Bill Elliot with have another shot behind the wheel, this time in a Mustang FR500C running on E85.
The combination of an FR500C and the Mustang Cobra Jet engine has already proven itself to be fast, the combination clocked a 252 MPH top speed run in Bonneville. But the salt goes on for miles; Elliot will have to remember to turn right every so often so he doesn’t take flight thanks to the 33 degree banking.
If you thought that Mini made smallest cars in Britain, just have a look at this thing. 26 inches wide and 39 inches high, those are the measurements of the world’s smallest automobile. Built by Perry Watkins, this transformed children’s toy was reinforced with a steel frame, a 150 cc gasoline burning engine, mirrors, lights and even windshield wipers in order to get the ex Postman Pat ride MOT approved.
It’s official; thanks to the U.S. based World Records Academy this British mini car has earned the title of “the world’s smallest car.”
Personally, I’m a little partial to the engine scoop and flames.
If the executives at Porsche became flustered when Nissan announced their previous GT-R Nurburgring record, they should now be ready to explode in frustration. Back in April Nissan set a single lap record around the 12.9 mile Green Hell of 7 minutes and 27 seconds in their GT-R equipped with a set of SpecV rims. This time Godzilla negotiated the 33 left and 40 right turns of the ‘Ring in only 7 minutes and 26 seconds.
Previous Nissan GT-Rs have recorded lap times of 7 minutes 27 seconds on April 15, 2009, 7 minutes 29 seconds in April, 2008 and 7 minutes 38 seconds back in September of 2007.
According to Kazutoshi Mizuno, Chief Vehicle Engineer and Chief Vehicle Specialist for the GT-R: "This record demonstrates our commitment to the continuous evolution of the Nissan GT-R. We would like to continue delivering the passion and pride of ownership to our customers by improving its performance every year."
Nissan just ruined Porsche’s summer vacation. Instead of having some quiet time to work on the 998 generation of the 911, Porsche is now going to have to try and recapture bragging rights at the Nurburgring from the 2010 GT-R.
There has been some bad blood between Porsche and Nissan lately over the legitimacy of the 2009 GT-R’s 7m 29s run around the Ring. Porsche claims the car was heavily modified, and Nissan claims Porsche is a sore loser over the slower GT2.
Just to prove its point, Nissan took a 2010 GT-R (which got a 5 hp bump and a few other minor tweaks) back to Germany. The result: a lap time of 7m 27.56s, which now even beats Porsche’s top ring time of 7m 28.71s in a Carrera GT.
Nissan says it’s not done making lap record attempts. The next stop is the Corvette ZR1’s 7m 26.4s time, but that’s still a far cry from the production car top spot of the Dodge Viper ACR’s 7m 22.1s.
The American tuners Hennessey, who made a name for themselves turbo charging Dodge Vipers, are now the proud owners of the world’s fastest Nissan GT-R. This past March at the Texas Mile, Hennessey drove their 700 HP GT-R through the traps at 193.7 MPH. Owners of Nissan’s Super car can purchase the Godzilla 700 kit for $18,500, or $24,500 installed.
Vaughn Gittin Jr, Drift alliance founder and Mustang drift extraordinaire, recently took a trip across the U.S. in a stock Ford Mustang GT. Along the way he took in some sights and broke some records. During a brief pause at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway JR set out to lay down the world’s longest drift.
The Bugatti Veyron makes the 0 to 60 mph sprint in 2.5 seconds, and the Ultima GTR does it in 2.6 seconds, but that’s only good enough for second place now when drag racing Maxximus G-Force. The G-Force hits 60 mph from a standstill in 2.1 seconds, which make it the quickest supercar according to the World Record Academy.
The car was developed by Marlon Kirby and backed by David McMahan (both pictured above). It starts with a modified Ultima GTR chassis and drivetrain, and then added a 1600 hp 7.0-liter engine sourced from Chevrolet. The result is not only a car with the best 0 to 60 time, but it can also hit 100 mph in 4.5 seconds and go 0-100-0 in 8.8 seconds.
There is one little hitch...to put one in your driveway will cost $3 million.
Only 22 total 250 TRs were made over a two year period. Although this one spent its racing career in the Americas at tracks in Brazil, Cuba, and Portugal, this is the model that led Olivier Gendebien and Phil Hill to a victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1958. So its desirability is understandable.
“This legendary 250 TR is one of the most exciting motor cars ever to be presented in auction history,” said Max Girardo, Managing Director of RM Europe. The event will take place in Maranello, Italy on May 17, 2009.
Back in the early 90s, the Jaguar XJ220 was considered a supercar. It’s 500 hp engine made it the fastest Jaguar ever produced with a 1992 top speed run of 217.1 mph. Now flash foward 17 years later where that record gets shattered by a sedan. Jag took its new XFR to the Bonneville Salt Flats to record a top speed of 225.675mph.
The new XFR is powered by a 5.0-litre V8 engine developing 510 hp and 625Nm of torque. But Jaguar did admit that the record setting car had minor aerodynamic and safety modifications to meet the requirements for a Bonneville run, as well as additional horsepower was “liberated” by a remapped ECU, a modified air intake, modified exhaust, and revised supercharger settings. Still, no internal engine components were changed and the six-speed automatic transmission was standard, including the gear ratios.
But don’t despair, the factory-fresh version should be no slouch either. It makes the 0 to 60 mph sprint in 4.7 seconds, but that car will hit an electronic limiter at 155 mph.
Sedan drivers wish they were driving supercars. Usually a need for space to haul kids and clients means a Bugatti is not in the driveway. Well rich dads of the world can now unite and get the little ones to soccer practice in record time. German tuner G-Power took a BMW 5-Series and turned it into the world’s fastest sedan.
G-Power now says that it has documented a 228.4 mph top speed on its M5 Hurricane RS. The Hurricane RS seems to accomplish this using brute force, as the V10 engine is massaged to make 750 hp (250 hp more than a stock M5.)
While 228 mph is a great accomplishment, it’s amazing considering that it is only about 29 mph shy of the all-time record set by the SSC Ultimate Aero. While the M5 is based on a sedan built for everyday use, the Aero is a completely custom car that has the aerodynamics and engine specifically built for speed.
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