5 replies to this topic

[POLAR]

What was the fastest race car ever produced ? I'm not talking about maximun speed alone, but overall capabilities.
Was the Can-Am Sunoco Porsche? The 2001 Ferrari? The Suzuki Escudo from Pikes Peak?
Any opinion about it doctors?

Polar

[stevew]

I guess it would have to be a Champ Car.

Mauricio Guglemin clocked a 242+ average speed at Fontana one year. Perhaps even more impressive, Arie Luyendyk set a 239+ average speed at Indy in 1996.

I can't confirm this, but I think Andre Ribiero did a 251 top speed at Michigan one year (Champ Car) and I once read that Mark Donohue clocked a 257 on the long, long straight at Paul Ricard in the Sunoco Porsche.

As far as circuit racing goes, It's probably the Ferrari F2001.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Yeah thats the thing, how do you define it? Old Le Mans cars would do 240mph down Le Mans. Modern aerodynamics (drag) would have kept the Bentley from doing it had they removed the chicanes, but the Bentley would have destroyed a GT40 in the corners, even if the Bentley was in the wet and the 40 was inthe dry.

[stevew]

I agree. How do you define it? There's a difference between "fast" and "quick".

In 1986, F1 was running 1.5 liter turbos putting out tons of horsepower. The formula changed in 1989 when turbos were banned and 3.5 liter normally-aspirated engines brought in. If I recall, the minimum weight was reduced from 580kg to about 500kg.

Here is a quote from the July 1989 issue of Road & Track magazine, from the late Innes Ireland's 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix Report (I have that issue sitting right in front of me).

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"Yet the extent of aerodynamic and chassis improvement is shown by Senna's pole time of 1 minute 25.302 sec. with an estimated 650 bhp. He set the previous record pole time of 1:25.501 in 1986 with a Lotus-Renault producing an estimated 1200 bhp!"
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The circuit hadn't changed at all from 1986 to 1989. I didn't see any mention of top speeds, so perhaps the turbo cars were "faster", but in 1989, Senna was "quicker"...

[byrkus]

Possibly, but you must not forget the development of racing tyres, things changes rather quickly in three years time

[Justin Gurney]

Here is one of them....


http://www.allameric..._mkIII_gtp.html