Road Test: 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, 2005 MTI Pontiac GTO, 2005 Livernois Ford Mustang GT, 2005 Lingenfelter Chevrolet Corvette, 2006 Hennessey Dodge Viper Coupe and 2005 Accufab Ford GT
Test Six: Quarter Mile cont...
How would the standing-mile king fare in a quarter-mile showdown? The Hennessey Viper did a better than expected job of clawing for traction with PS2 radials as it hustled to an 11.7-second e.t. However, full throttle can't be used until mid-third gear or the PS2 rear treads turn to molten goo. (Check the graphic below right to see how hard we worked just to keep it straight.) Wearing BFG Drag Radials, things get better for the twin-turbo coupe as times improve to 10.5 seconds at 152.6 mph. About a year back, we tested a similarly prepped Hennessey Viper convertible that ran a 9.5-second e.t. on slicks.
For comparison, we pointed our test equipment toward a Navy F/A-18 Hornet to see what it would do. As expected, it didn't disappoint as it cranked out a stout 10.5-second, 158.1-mph quarter-mile pass before flying off for a routine Mach 1.25 run.
Born For Speed
Michelin Pilot Sport 2
• When the Hennessey Viper ran 217.9 mph, the 335/30ZR20 PS2 tire was rotating about 3000 revolutions per minute--or about 50 revolutions per second.
&bull At 200 mph, the centrifugal load at the tire sidewall would be about 350 pounds. At 60 mph, the load would be just 30 pounds.
&bull At 200 mph, the diameter of a PS2 tire grows only 2 to 3 millimeters.
quarter-Mile Kings
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