Top Speed ?

[GrySql]

This takes me back to my very early days of drag racing and then my hobby/career in sprint car racing.

There are sure a lot of intelligent, interesting members on this forum, with an amazing array of experiences.

I must have slipped thru the application process somehow. :boring:

[hermans]

There are sure a lot of intelligent, interesting members on this forum, with an amazing array of experiences.

I must have slipped thru the application process somehow. :boring:

My racing career ended when the first kid came along. My wife had no problem with my law enforcement career, but going like hell and turning was the end of the line. A couple of years after I stopped racing I was shot in the leg by a crazy old man - go figure.

[Boat Racer]

I just finished a cross country trip from CA to MO and back with my FFH and had the opportunity to test the top speed on a very lonely highway in the Nevada desert. I could see a long stretch of straight open highway for about 10+ miles ahead of me with no traffic. I accelerated from my 80 mph cruise speed to 120 mph before it hit a pre-programmed speed limiter. I was pleasantly surprised at how rapidly the car accelerated and how stable the car was at that speed. I think it had the power to go faster if the speed limiter had not kicked in.

 

I also have a modified supercharged C6 Corvette that I take to the Mojave Mile and Mojave Magnum (1.5) mile events where they shut down one of the runways at the Mojave airport and let us see how fast we can go from a standing start. I found out that car also has (had) a pre-programmed speed limiter of 186 mph due to the tire speed rating. I have since changed that limiter to 220 and will see what it will hit at the 1.5 mile event coming up in October.

[GrySql]

The FFH does pretty good for a 3600 pound car with 188hp, amazing really.

Did you happen to look at your 'instant' mpg's while bouncing off the limiter?

 

When is that Mojave event? I'd like to see that.

[corncobs]

I just happened to search for 120 MPH after reading the post above and the following video came up.

 

 

I'm not saying I wouldn't go this fast I have actually gone faster myself and I don't wanna demonize the fun driving fast but the result was for sure eye opening at least for me it was.

[GrySql]

fun driving fast

Next time I am in San Francisco this is what I'm doin' with my Ford Fiesta rental......

Especially that corner at 5:41. :)

 

 

[corncobs]

That was cool thanks for sharing.

 

I wonder how many times he actually drove this course and if the car actually survived those jumps especially the one @ 5:41.

 

That link will go into a bookmark for sure just like the original "people are awesome" compilation.

[Boat Racer]

The FFH does pretty good for a 3600 pound car with 188hp, amazing really.

Did you happen to look at your 'instant' mpg's while bouncing off the limiter?

 

When is that Mojave event? I'd like to see that.

LOL, it was all that I could do to see the speedo at that speed. The Mojave event is October 12th and 13th. Let me know if you end up going so we can hook up there.

[lolder]

The FFH seems to have very good top end acceleration for it's power to weight ratio. I attribute this to it's not lowering the rpm during shifts. The full brake horsepower is available continuously as the system keeps it right at redline after 30-40 mph. Power required is going up as more than the square of the speed and the loss of even a few horsepower during a shift counts.

[GrySql]

At high speed the new FFH's design may help too, I think I read somewhere that it has a 0.27 coefficient of drag.

[acdii]

WHOA! 120? Thats higher than the Police Interceptor Crown Vic I had! Tops was 118.

[Boat Racer]

WHOA! 120? Thats higher than the Police Interceptor Crown Vic I had! Tops was 118.

That's interesting. I would have thought the Crown Vic would have been able to go faster than 120..............with enough of a straight away to get it to that speed. It's amazing to me how much power it takes to overcome the drag at higher speeds. My Corvette will do 130 mph in the 1/4 mile (~640 bhp) but it takes another 3/4 mile to accelerate from 130 to 180. And that is for a 3200 lb. car with pretty good coefficient of drag.

[acdii]

That's interesting. I would have thought the Crown Vic would have been able to go faster than 120..............with enough of a straight away to get it to that speed. It's amazing to me how much power it takes to overcome the drag at higher speeds. My Corvette will do 130 mph in the 1/4 mile (~640 bhp) but it takes another 3/4 mile to accelerate from 130 to 180. And that is for a 3200 lb. car with pretty good coefficient of drag.

It got to 118 and the rev limiter kicked in, so wouldnt go faster than that unless I geared it some more. That one car was a 1992, the first year of the new body style and motor, and the 4.6 in that car would rev to redline in a heartbeat. I dont know what was done to it, but it was not stock, and I was not about to have it checked out and have them break it. It would also rev up with just a touch of throttle, 1/4 throttle in park and it was bouncing off the limiter.

[expresspotato]

What scares me most is there are a lot of roads, single lane in each direction where the speed limit is above 60 KM/h (37.5 Mph) and at those speeds the combined force of both cars crashing together is a scary thought.

[Waldo]

What scares me most is there are a lot of roads, single lane in each direction where the speed limit is above 60 KM/h (37.5 Mph) and at those speeds the combined force of both cars crashing together is a scary thought.

 

Crashing head on at 60kph is not like crashing into a wall at 120kph. When cars crash head on, they both absorb energy. Sure you have double the energy, but you also have double the crush zone. So crashing head on at 60 is exactly the same as crashing into a wall at 60. Totally survivable.

[acdii]

 

Crashing head on at 60kph is not like crashing into a wall at 120kph. When cars crash head on, they both absorb energy. Sure you have double the energy, but you also have double the crush zone. So crashing head on at 60 is exactly the same as crashing into a wall at 60. Totally survivable.

Mythbusters pretty much proved this out. They made a comment that two cars hitting each other at 50 MPH was like hitting a wall at 100 MPH. Boy were they wrong, hitting a wall at 100 MPH destroyed the car, while the two hitting at 50 MPH did survivable damage. I think this is the link.

[Spartamare]

I can honestly say I have gotten my FFH to 115 mph and have driven that for a minute or two. I didn't want to bury the needle though since my car was still new (between 3000-4000 miles).

[kuzzi]

I can honestly say I have gotten my FFH to 115 mph and have driven that for a minute or two. I didn't want to bury the needle though since my car was still new (between 3000-4000 miles).

How is product support where you are? Some of us are having minor quality issues and getting the PCM recalibration. How's yours holding up?

[Spartamare]

How is product support where you are? Some of us are having minor quality issues and getting the PCM recalibration. How's yours holding up?

Honestly, I haven't gotten anything done to the car since I picked it up from the port. I am not sure if I really want the update since I haven't heard anything positive. I have read that nothing has changed or it is worse. I will give it some time. I have yet to need support but there is one thing i notice...not a big issue, but MyFord Touch/Sync likes to reset my 911 Assist reminder every couple of weeks. I will select for it not to remind me but then a few weeks later it reminds me.

[junior.29.dh]

113mph

[Cobra348]

Interesting ... one of the Fiesta guys races and has figured out the Fiesta top end is 115-119 area. I know I had my '12 to 105 on PA 220 once and the current '14 (Judy) up to 95 on I-77. Those little buggers get a mite light feeling in the front end >100. How does the Fusion handle?

 

BTW ... got my window sticker outta one of the Ford sites today. Soon ... real soon.

Edited March 18, 2015 by Cobra348

[acdii]

Im too old and wise these days to push my car to its limits. I have a wife and kids to consider. 85 is the limit I went to. I pushed my Flex to 110 once, once, when I went to stop I almost didn't. Found out the brakes are way undersized for all that power.

[junior.29.dh]

Handles great, even on a back road.