New Stang tops out at 143?

While I have a couple of cars that will top 140 and I have never even approached their limits, my daily driver Ranger FX4 is factory limited to 92 mph. It has 4 wheel drive and all-terrain tires neither of which are designed for speed. It's surprising how many times I have actually bounced off the limiter on the interstate and wished for more, even though I knew it was not a good idea. It's also surprising how many people I see driving at those speeds everytime I am on the interstate.

Did 120 in my 72 SS Nova once a long time ago racing a Buick GN, scariest damn thing I've ever felt, and the car was in excellent condition with great tires. That car had all the aerodynamics of a brick. I've done 130 or a little more in my buddies 97 Supra TT and it felt like I was doing 65, very controlled. Also, I was in the car with another buddy who has a 96 Viper doing a little below 150, smooth as glass to me but he said the steering was getting a little light. All that was done before I had kids, they made me start thinking a little bit, both about them and someone elses. Now, no way, not that fast anywhere but on a track. To many unexpected things can happen, and they happen real fast at those speeds. Have a few children, brings your own mortality into sharp focus and changes your perspective on things quite a bit, at least thats what I found.

Agree that a top speed of 143 is not quite in line with the rest of this cars performance. And the speedo stops at 140?

WTF even my truck/SUV has a topspeed over 150 mph! And it is rock solid at top speed.

i had a 88 gt which had speedo only up to 85 which i converted tothe 140 speedo, 140 was reached on a strech on thruway near my house, Yes its dangerous but you need to try it once if its on a safe spot just to feel the need for speed

Stang2k5
the fastest i have had my car was 151 on the taconic (farther down by yorktown heights)

Now that I put the 03 cobra engine and six speed tranny in the fastest that I have been was 140...but that was at the top of 4th.. i still had fifth and sixth..but thought that was fast enough. I still have the orginal 3.23, but will be puting in 3.90 soon..so maybe I should do one top run before the gear swap


Stang2k5 pm me i like to check your car out. -mike

SVTdriver said:

I don't know about the mother part. But I would think it is bad form to say how fast you go on a site like this. Any cop can read this and then check your location. You've just admitted to speeding.

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I was just kidding officer. I never had my car over 68 MPH.

Yeah, right. Why do you think I spend the money to mod my car? So I can let Granny pass me on the straights?

Here in Europe where certain areas there are no speed limits, people usually fly down the road at 100+ MPH. I was in my '97 GT rolling at 130 MPH and someone went by me so fast I thought he was going in the other direction. I don't drive at this speed all the time because it uses so much fuel to do so, and at about $5.00 per gallon I can't be wasting it. I recently picked up my '05 and took it to 140 MPH and it didn't take all day getting there either.
the new mustang is fast as it is beautiful. It didn't seem light or unstable. It's ok to go fast as long as you don't overdrive the car or your abilities. High speed driving requires a lot of concentration and attention. You can't be changing a CD or talking on the phone while traveling at such speeds. It's things like that usually what causes people to crash. My adverage speed on the road is around 90 MPH therefor I buy new tires every two years regardless of how much tread is remaining. I also keep my vehicles it tip-top condition, and never drive faster than road conditions, my car, and my abilities will allow.

Well i agree, driving fast isn't the best idea but it's not necessarily the people who drive fast who cause accidents. I'm more afraid of those guys who ride your butt then go in and out of traffic. Plus if you get in an accident at 65 your chances of surviving our low. If it's a clear road (or very minimal traffic) driving those speeds shouldn't be that bad. I haven't owned a mustang (yet... 05 soon) but in my gti i got 140 once but i got scared and slowed down. I also once got 140 in my 300zx and that wasn't so bad. Just depends on conditions and your car.

I do my speeding a 1/4 mile at a time; on the track. My top speed there is limited only by my budget.

You're doing 135 and a check engine light comes on. You take the Stang down to the local Ford shop and they hook it up to see what's wrong...

They now know the car has been redlined and know it's gone 135. Do they care? Maybe, depends on what's broke and who's in charge.

RaiderSilverGT said:

You're doing 135 and a check engine light comes on. You take the Stang down to the local Ford shop and they hook it up to see what's wrong...

They now know the car has been redlined and know it's gone 135. Do they care? Maybe, depends on what's broke and who's in charge.

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It won't matter if they care or not, since they built it and set it's limits themselves. If you somehow go 155mph and the thing shatters the block, it's their concern so long as mods didn't cause the problem. Sure they'll know how fast it's been. So what.

stangscuba98a said:

why so you can have a blowout or hit a animal and roll?? Not worth dying to go that fast!

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Yea, I could get up to 140 so fast in my TT RX7... Once I went past 140 I realized "Hey, I have kids now, what the ***** am I doing..." Never been up there since... Don't plan on going up there anymore... The acceleration up to 70 or 80mph is fun enough for me...
Plus if you have an accident going that fast and somebody else gets hurt, Kiss the kids goodbye for a few years...

talk about bringing back the dead.....

I for one wish we had the equivalant of an autobaun in the USA. I would make the trip just to be able to see what this car can do. I love speed, its my drug of choice and as I get older I feel the need to mix in safety. I am sure many of you feel the same. My 01 GT was velvet smooth at high speed, this car does not feel that way but I bet she could do 150+

I am also stationed in Germany and love getting out on the Autobahn and opening up my new 05 GT. I have had it to its limit which I estimate to be 145. The car felt solid yet a tad light in the curves. I also own a euro spec 1989 Porsche 944 Turbo, the thing has 260 HP and rides like a little go-cart. I have had it up to 290kph or 179mph wow! That was intense if not a bit crazy even if in a non speed limited zone. I would have to bet more than most of the people who frequent this site have a jones for speed and adrenaline, of course we should all be as careful as possible to not endanger any one else in our pursuit of happiness (speed) which is our right as red blooded AMERICANS! As for the last post about have an Autobahn equivalent in the states... it will never happen. Nor should it in my opinion. Reason being is this. We are Americans and have the right to do just about anything we please including obtain our drivers licenses at the age of 16 with little or no training. We also have WAY too many vehicles that are are mechanically unsafe its ridiculous. Add to that the amount of uninsured motorists in the road and we are dealing with a ticking time bomb. Germans can have an autobahn for a couple different reasons:
1. They educate their drivers, it takes about a year of training to obtain a drivers license here. That training includes hours and hours of practical training in all conditions. It also runs about 2000 bones, quite a bit more than I had at 16! **** my first car was a 76 Chevelle cost me 300!
2. They have EXTREMELY rigid vehicle inpsection criteria! They must have a vehicle inspection every year, a good majority of vehicles in the US wouldnt be allowed on the roads here. In fact US military people have a seperate inspection so as not to create hardship in some cases.

Having said all that I remember blasting down the road in my newly re-built 63 Chevy II Nova with a 327, 12 bolt rear end and 4.11's doing WELL over the speed limit everywhere I went at the ignorant age of 17. If someone had come off to me like some of the motherly nay sayers of this forum I would have had to give them my favorite finger and tell them to Fu@! off. If you want to speed my friend, DO IT! Just always realize that you and no one else is responsible for your actions and always take care that your actions dont end up endangering someone elses pursuit of happiness. Whew, thats the longest post I have ever written, OK off my soap box now!! Peace!

mwirth48 said:

I think it depends on how you drive your car. I have a 95 3.8 mustang. (Waiting until Feb to get convertible 05 My car drives just fine at 112. That's when the governer kicks in. I have no problem at that speed. The car still feels solid. By the way does anyone have any news about how the top comes down on the 05? I hope you don't have to unlatch it manually. Thanks

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Tops need to be unlatched and there is a manual cover that you attach. It is the most disappointing feature of the 05 Vert. Also, read my thread under S197 GT Tech about the 05 Vert with bad motor. I'm not having any fun with the convertible!!

Yeah, but who tells the truth on this site? Or, at least, who is to say it isn't fiction

I have been to 180 in a viper at a performance driving school and it was some scary ****!

I have only had my 05 to 143 about 4 or 5 times since novemember and they were all on deserted roads where i wasnt going to hurt anyone but myself and I am ok with that. I actually did have a deer run into the side of my car at 110 and it tore it all up. Messed up my front fender my door the little flare behind the door and tore off the back bumber and also ruined my under wear.

I spoke to a 05 Vette owneer just yesterday who has said he's gotten his car to about 140 but it was very unsettling for him as the car wouldnt remain straight.

When I did 135 in my 05 GT I didnt have any issues besides that the freeway traffic on 101 north in Southern California was coming up very fast and I had to back her down. It felt like doing 80 though, I loved it but I wont be able to find time and space to do that again.

question:

For those of you who have taken the 05 gt to ~143, anyone know how many seconds it took to achieve that speed?