[phils landy]

Hi all!


The other day I was driving back to college in my Diesel '98 Escort Van when i thought I would just try it top end. Managed 101mph downhill with the wind behind me. Pretty chuffed with that!


Just wondered what you guys have had and what you drive?


Phil!

[Snowball]

Originally Posted by phils landy

Hi all!


The other day I was driving back to college in my Diesel '98 Escort Van when i thought I would just try it top end. Managed 101mph downhill with the wind behind me. Pretty chuffed with that!


Just wondered what you guys have had and what you drive?


Phil!

Well, my car is capable of a bit more than that (specification), but I have no intention of physically finding out. It performs adequately in all respects within the permitted limits, so what have I got to gain by finding out its actual maximum capability?

Except break the law and join the band of foolish drivers who contribute to the accident rate, and bring about all the growth of chicanes, speed humps and speed cameras.

I do my best to drive correctly at all times, and like to think that still being around after 55 years has something to do with that.

If you do wish to kill yourself I would ask, please don't take anyone else with you.

[smudger]

Years ago, when I was a lot younger, I used to own a sporty type car with a 1.6 Twin/cam engine. I took it to Silverstone on an open day, where you could pay a few £s and take your car around the circuit.

I got it up to the 105Mph on the straight, but had to slow down rather quickly for the corner. Must admit it was a good feeling at the time, but like I said earlier, it was a long time ago;)
Cheers, Smudger.

[Loony]

125mph out of the car and 135mph out of the bike.All on a private air field and not on the public roads.

[phils landy]

Originally Posted by Snowball

so what have I got to gain by finding out its actual maximum capability?

well because the feeling you get is awsome like no other except for a series of bends one after another after another which is amazingly awsome! and its just good fun. not only that but it will blow the cobwebs out of your car especialy if its a diesel this will then make the engine run better gaining you more performance and a better MPG!

i belive that there is alot that can be learned by driving fast and hard. and i dont care what you say no matter how many times you tell a young driver that speeding is bad and people die from it they will still do it and if they crash (not injuring anyone but themselves) then there is a lesson learned!:confused: they wont push it quite so hard next time and they will learn to contol a car properly and it will make there reaction times faster too! all in all apart from there car a win win situation!

phil.

[phils landy]

Originally Posted by Loony

125mph out of the car and 135mph out of the bike.All on a private air field and not on the public roads.

what car do you drive?
and what bike do you ride?

my dads had 145 out of his Honda VFR 800 was still pulling with another gear to go.

in my mind there is nothing quite like a bike there awesome fun and mentaly quick :D:D:D:D

phil.

[Tony Aston]

Originally Posted by phils landy

well because the feeling you get is awsome like no other except for a series of bends one after another after another which is amazingly awsome! and its just good fun. not only that but it will blow the cobwebs out of your car especialy if its a diesel this will then make the engine run better gaining you more performance and a better MPG!

i belive that there is alot that can be learned by driving fast and hard. and i dont care what you say no matter how many times you tell a young driver that speeding is bad and people die from it they will still do it and if they crash (not injuring anyone but themselves) then there is a lesson learned!:confused: they wont push it quite so hard next time and they will learn to contol a car properly and it will make there reaction times faster too! all in all apart from there car a win win situation!

phil.

Driving fast as suggested is irresponsible unless you have had instruction in how to do it correctly. There are plenty of opportunities to learn how to drive fast off road and learn the techniques.

Just because you drive fast does not mean that you are learning to drive fast
Tony

[Snowball]

Originally Posted by phils landy

well because the feeling you get is awsome like no other except for a series of bends one after another after another which is amazingly awsome! and its just good fun. not only that but it will blow the cobwebs out of your car especialy if its a diesel this will then make the engine run better gaining you more performance and a better MPG!

i belive that there is alot that can be learned by driving fast and hard. and i dont care what you say no matter how many times you tell a young driver that speeding is bad and people die from it they will still do it and if they crash (not injuring anyone but themselves) then there is a lesson learned!:confused: they wont push it quite so hard next time and they will learn to contol a car properly and it will make there reaction times faster too! all in all apart from there car a win win situation!

phil.

To an experienced driver, this would all be nonsense, of course.

If you feel the need to "blow out the cobwebs", then this can be achieved with high revs in the lower gears. Not a need for modern lean-burn engines that have been serviced and maintained correctly.

No lessons in car control will be learned from having a crash; the last few seconds will be a frightening scare, and they would have no clear recall of just what they did wrong. Apart from, that is, knowing they were driving too fast at the wrong time.
Improving reaction times does not develop by frightening yourself to death (possibly literally), although it may induce unrational panic the next time a hazardous situation is met.

Win win situations are but a fleeting moment in time; but the attempt to achieve them can open an early door to eternity.

[phils landy]

say its 2 o'clock in the morning your driving down the same national speed limit road that you always do 3 times a week you know it off the back of your hand, you know exactly where every drain, pot hole and man hole cover is, there is not a sole around as usual at this time in the morning, so you give it the gun i fail to see how this is irresponsible? and the end of the day if you crash its only you that is going to get hurt and your gonna end up in a ditch or farmers field not through a bus stop with 30 people waiting for a bus which you wipe out before going sideways into the local hairdressers front window. there for lesson learnt.

i also presume from your name that you drive an Aston Martin?? if so naturaly you would have enough money to pay for a track day or hire of an off road faclity in which to push both yourself and your machine to the limit. however im 19 i have 2 jobs which only just about pays enough money to run my car so i cannot afford track days and such like. also if you were to find a dissused air field or the likes of no doubt about it you might get one or 2 thrashings around before the police were called and all your SAFE FUN stoped!!:mad:

phil

[Hometune]

Originally Posted by Tony Aston

Driving fast as suggested is irresponsible unless you have had instruction in how to do it correctly. There are plenty of opportunities to learn how to drive fast off road and learn the techniques.

Just because you drive fast does not mean that you are learning to drive fast
Tony

Sorry Tony, going to throw a fly in the ointment now. Last week in Newcastle a traffic police officer was sentenced to prison for killing a girl crossing the road. He was a so-called 'expert' driver who had been on all the driving courses. He had been 'taught' how to drive fast and if you saw the in-car footage you would see that he was chasing a supposedly 'suspicious' car. He gets up to 90mph in a 30mph built up area and comes over a small hill on a slight corner. Suddenly in front you can see the girl and her friends starting to cross the road. They had no time to react and the driver certainly did not. Fortunately the film stops a second before impact. He was not using his blue lights or siren so the girl had no warning of his approach.
Its all very well to tell the OP not to drive fast as he isn't 'trained' but even when someone has had all the training available they still kill people.
Also, last week, a police officer was convicted for driving his marked police BMW at well in excess of 100mph when joining the motorway just for the hell of it. He lost control of it and fortunately no one else was hurt. Another so-called 'expert' with loads of high speed training and safety advice yet still drives like a prat.
While the police have the invincible arrogance to do as they like, how do you expect young drivers to learn to drive responsibly? Training it seems, does not make it better.

[MrDanno]

Originally Posted by Hometune

Sorry Tony, going to throw a fly in the ointment now. Last week in Newcastle a traffic police officer was sentenced to prison for killing a girl crossing the road. He was a so-called 'expert' driver who had been on all the driving courses. He had been 'taught' how to drive fast and if you saw the in-car footage you would see that he was chasing a supposedly 'suspicious' car. He gets up to 90mph in a 30mph built up area and comes over a small hill on a slight corner. Suddenly in front you can see the girl and her friends starting to cross the road. They had no time to react and the driver certainly did not. Fortunately the film stops a second before impact. He was not using his blue lights or siren so the girl had no warning of his approach.
Its all very well to tell the OP not to drive fast as he isn't 'trained' but even when someone has had all the training available they still kill people.
Also, last week, a police officer was convicted for driving his marked police BMW at well in excess of 100mph when joining the motorway just for the hell of it. He lost control of it and fortunately no one else was hurt. Another so-called 'expert' with loads of high speed training and safety advice yet still drives like a prat.
While the police have the invincible arrogance to do as they like, how do you expect young drivers to learn to drive responsibly? Training it seems, does not make it better.

And yet another so called "Expert Police Driver" breaks the number one rule of safe driving! Which is of course to drive at a speed that allows you to stop within the distance you can see to be clear.

Maybe they are not so "Expert" at driving as they think?:D

[RoverV6]

142 on the clock. calibrated to 160.Not on public road!

[Snowball]

Originally Posted by phils landy

say its 2 o'clock in the morning your driving down the same national speed limit road that you always do 3 times a week you know it off the back of your hand, you know exactly where every drain, pot hole and man hole cover is, there is not a sole around as usual at this time in the morning, so you give it the gun i fail to see how this is irresponsible? and the end of the day if you crash its only you that is going to get hurt and your gonna end up in a ditch or farmers field not through a bus stop with 30 people waiting for a bus which you wipe out before going sideways into the local hairdressers front window. there for lesson learnt.

i also presume from your name that you drive an Aston Martin?? if so naturaly you would have enough money to pay for a track day or hire of an off road faclity in which to push both yourself and your machine to the limit. however im 19 i have 2 jobs which only just about pays enough money to run my car so i cannot afford track days and such like. also if you were to find a dissused air field or the likes of no doubt about it you might get one or 2 thrashings around before the police were called and all your SAFE FUN stoped!!:mad:

phil

Firstly, you have absolutely no way of being sure that another vehicle is not going to come onto the scene, even at 2 o'clock in the morning. People driving around the clock, or being driven by taxis, is now a common everyday occurrence, whether in towns or rural areas.

Secondly, your inability to be able to afford the use of special racing tracks is your problem, and in no way gives you any excuse to use the public highway for that purpose, and put other lives at risk to feed an ego.

Thirdly, the police do not stop safe fun; but they do deal harshly, and quite rightly so, with reckless and irresponsible road users.

To put it bluntly, if obtaining a driving licence required that a mental aptitude test be taken, and you entered the opinions that you state in this thread, you would surely fail.
I would even go so far as to say that, until you get to grips with your driving discipline as it applies to driving law, your real driving ability may well stagnate at a stage very little above the standard required to pass the driving test. This is a novice standard, and is way short of that which would deem you to be an experienced driver.
There are experienced drivers, and drivers who have just been "driving" for a long time.

Are you not yet wondering why nobody has supported your views?

[phils landy]

ok snowball so do you class yourself as being an experienced driver or a driver that has been driving for a long time? do you have any extra driving qualifications!?

and i still stand strong by there is alot to be learned by pushing your ablitys and teching yourself car control. and what if you were driving down the motorway at 2 o'colck in the morning in most motorway cases you can see at least half a mile in front of you and often even a mile in front of you there for giving you plenty of time to react to any situation.

phil.

[Rolebama]

I am quite surprised by some of the attitudes I have found on this thread. I think there are too many 'ifs', all of which are used in a negative sense. I do not agree with endangering other road users, but I see and hear more media coverage of the Police doing this, on what appears to be almost a regular basis. (Just watch some of the current TV fly-on-the-wall progs where narrator slags off the chased driver, when we can see for ourselves that the Police involved have just the same disregard for other road users.) The problem I have with those who speed and get caught, (either being pulled over, or photographed), is when they whinge about it. Such a display of lack of observational skills makes me question their overall abilities. On the occasion that a motorist is presented with an empty road with good visibility and plenty of room for manouevre, what is the real problem with a bit of high speed driving? It seems that almost every car in the showrooms is capable of 155mph, and they are sold quite openly here in the UK. What for, if not to be used? If they can be limited to 155, then they could just as easily be limited to 70! As I posted on another thread, I have been escorted at 60mph through a 30mph zone to attend a 'lady alone in dodgy area' breakdown when working with the AA, yet lambasted in the early hours for allowing my car to get up to 35mph in a 30zone due to running down a gradient on an empty road. I don't believe in the slogan 'Speed Kills', but I do believe that lack of driving skills does, and this includes the ability to appreciate an appropriate speed for all conditions.

[MrDanno]

I completely agree Rolebama. It is not speed that kills but, lack of observation,control and forward planning.

One of my pet hates is tail-gaters there is absolutely no need for this and it is the cause of soo many accidents. When will people learn that driving 2 foot from the car in front does not get you to your destination any quicker?

There is nothing wrong with speed as long as it is used sensibly in the appropriate conditions.

[Lew1275]

As my uncle once wisely put..."Speed doesn't kill ya...but the crash does! :D"

In regard to the original topic, 130mph out of a Golf GT 1.9 FSI, 105mph out a Mini (not on public roads!!!!!!!)

Fastest vehicle i've been in control of....160mph, Grob Tutor Airplane :D:D

[Watcher]

Speeding

It is entirely thanks to immature, irresponsible, unskilled psychopaths like this idiot that the authorities are now so obsessed with "speeding", that there will shortly be a speed camera every few hundred metres and there are now MORE RTCs because too many drivers are concentrating on the speedometer instead of the road ahead!

High speeds belong on the track when you have been trained properly, and thrashing along public roads is NOT proper training - you have NO IDEA what's round the next bend. The remarks I've read on this thread serve only to confirm my theory that some people should never be allowed anywhere near a road.

No-one could ever have accused Juan Fangio of being a "slow driver", but on public roads he drove completely differently to how he did on the track, and he didn't speed - when asked for his advice on how to drive safely he said "Think what could happen if you met yourself coming the other way". :mad:

[Watcher]

Pardon?

And another thing - "How fast have you had out of your car?" isn't even English!:rolleyes:

[tommytwotanks]

i think im right in saying that anything over 96mph you will be going to court, and anything over 100mph its an instant ban, i heard this on one of those motorway cops/traffic cops/police,camera,action type shows :D

[98selitb]

I completely agree with Watcher and Snowball on this one.

The attitude displayed by the OP is quite scary and I just hope I don't have the misfortune to be on the same piece of road when you eventually make the mistake (or have the very near miss) which will finally, and belatedly, make you drive responsibly and sensibly.

As for saying you need to drive your car to the limit to learn how to be a better driver, or words to that effect, I disagree. You can drive responsibly in the first place, then there is no need to drive stupidly to achieve that.

Just because you might know the road well, it doesn't mean the driver in front or the driver coming the other way does. And as already mentioned, there could always be someone else on the road, even in the middle of the night, and driving at that speed, you will not see them until it is too late and you can't take evasive action in time. I do perhaps 70% of my driving on rural A- and B-roads with high hedges and lots of bends. Even at night, you can't see if anyone else is coming until the last minute because the hedges block the headlights.

For those who say speed doesn't kill: perhaps not, but with higher speed comes much less car control, so it is more likely to kill than going at a low speed.

So you're 19 and have 2 jobs and are struggling to pay to run the car? I have one suggestion: drive within the speed limits, you will save hundreds if not thousands of pounds per year on fuel. Even driving at 70mph uses 25% more fuel than driving at 50, so you can imagine how much fuel you're wasting when you go at 100.

[Loony]

Originally Posted by Watcher

It is entirely thanks to immature, irresponsible, unskilled psychopaths like this idiot that the authorities are now so obsessed with "speeding",

Watcher thats a bit strong is it not.
Here is a thought for you.When i travel across Germany i can legally reach very high speeds and have never had any incidents.So if i did this here why would i be a immature,unskilled psychopath?
I have left out irresponsible as i feel it would be and your quiet right to say this,purely because our laws say we should not exceed 70mph

[Lew1275]

Interesting Thread :p

On the occasion that a motorist is presented with an empty road with good visibility and plenty of room for manouevre, what is the real problem with a bit of high speed driving? It seems that almost every car in the showrooms is capable of 155mph, and they are sold quite openly here in the UK. What for, if not to be used? If they can be limited to 155, then they could just as easily be limited to 70!

I agree with Rolebama and Phil on this one, and as Loony mentioned above with German Autobahns. There are Certain stretches of the M20 here in Kent with a certain sections dead straight for half a mile and one area, for a whole mile (Peaked at both ends so you can see down).

Driving back from University at 10pm there is almost no traffic with the exception of a few HGV's and late night runners, there are constantly people coming past easily doing 80, 90+. You'd have to be a bit of a numpty to be able to plow your car into something else on a 4 lane (incl. hard shoulder) m-way with nothing else around!


I've been down the M1 a few times and if caught with the rest of the traffic in the fast lane, EVERYONE seems to be cruising quite merrily at 80 or 85+:confused::confused::confused:

[smudger]

Yea! you are spot on there, 80-85 seems to the norm on a lot of our M/Ways these days. Yet, if a safe distance is kept from the car in front, and you have a safe place to go into in an emergency, it can appear quite normal.

Lets face it, most modern cars are capable of cruising at that speed, and its only too easy to find yourself "going with the flow" as it were, and before you know it, there you are. Its then when you have to make the choice, do I or don't I;)
Cheers, Smudger.

[tommytwotanks]

yep, i traveled on the m5 today, only for 30 miles or so, and i decided to play a little game of "whose over taking who" in which i do a rough guesstimate of am i over taking more, than are over taking me, and i reckon driving at 70-75mph 90% of vehicles are over taking me are doing at-least 85-90mph, i didn't see one police car lol, i don't mind people driving above the speed limit, it's just the one's who try to climb into your boot that i don't like lol, :D

[phils landy]

[QUOTE=Watcher;38557] immature, irresponsible, unskilled psychopaths like this idiot QUOTE]

who are you refering to here!?

and lew_1275 that is completely untrue as in another thread on a diffrent forum you were saying that both of thoes actions were performed down bluebell hill at around midnight!

phil.

[phils landy]

Originally Posted by Lew1275

Interesting Thread :p



I agree with Rolebama and Phil on this one, and as Loony mentioned above with German Autobahns. There are Certain stretches of the M20 here in Kent with a certain sections dead straight for half a mile and one area, for a whole mile (Peaked at both ends so you can see down).

Driving back from University at 10pm there is almost no traffic with the exception of a few HGV's and late night runners, there are constantly people coming past easily doing 80, 90+. You'd have to be a bit of a numpty to be able to plow your car into something else on a 4 lane (incl. hard shoulder) m-way with nothing else around!


I've been down the M1 a few times and if caught with the rest of the traffic in the fast lane, EVERYONE seems to be cruising quite merrily at 80 or 85+:confused::confused::confused:

yea how can the police pull you up if your traveling with the flow of traffic and your all cruising at 90+ mph?

phil.

[Hometune]

Early hours of Saturday morning a Jaguar car with 2 couples is returning to London travelling south on the M1.
Travelling north on the M1 was a Polish driver ON THE SAME CARRIAGEWAY.
Result?
All 5 dead.
The point I'm trying to make is that even if the Jaguar driver was an advanced class 1 (or whatever they call them), it would not prevent this sort of accident.
It is not speed that kills, its the driver's attitude. While you are hurtling along at 100mph, getting a 'buzz', you are no longer in control of the car. And before anyone calls me a killjoy, I've been there and done all that like most, if not all, of you who advocate sensible driving NOW. Its all part of growing up.
The fastest I have been on the public road was in an E type Jaguar driven by a family friend at 120mph on the approach road to the (then) new Forth Road bridge. This was in 1966 BEFORE the national speed limit was introduced. I could not stop myself grinning all the way with the 'buzz'.

[98selitb]

I have driven at 80mph on French motorways and once got up to 100mph on an empty German motorway, both of which are legal to do. I think 80 is fine (where it is allowed, i.e. not in the UK), but I won't be doing 100 again in a hurry (no pun intended:o) as although there is a buzz, there is also a big loss of control. As Hometune said, if you are going that fast, you don't really have control of your vehicle, and even if there is no other vehicle or hazard in your immediate vicinity, you would be going so fast that your judgement of distances would be out the window: you wouldn't notice how close something 1/2 mile or a mile up the road is until it is too late.

[Loony]

I am going to disagree.At 100mph of course you are still in control,as long as you are driving to the conditions,your abilities and the vehicles limits.
How can you say once you reach 100mph you are no longer in control?
Do you suddenly end up in a tree?
What speed are you in control at 50mph,60mph,80mph but anything over 90mph and your not?
The police drive at high speed and they do not all crash.Even the public drive at these speeds.
It can be far more dangerous to drive at 70mph in the heavy rain on a motorway than 100mph in the dry.

With regard to speed and speed limits

Driving can be safe and legal,dangerous and legal,speeding but safe and speeding and dangerous.