What does it take - and feel like -
to do the double-ton in an old Ford? We ask three people who've done it...
There are only a handful of modern hyper
cars that can crack 200 mph, so attempting to do the double ton in an old Ford
seems like a nearly-impossible task. The challenge doesn't get any easier when
you realize that the only places in the UK you can even dream of reaching those
sorts of speeds are disused runways, so you have a limited space in which to
reach your top speed and then bring the car safely to a stop again!
What
does it take and feel like - to do the double-ton in an old Ford? We ask three
people who've done it...
To give a few examples, on Bruntingthorpe's
1.7-mile runway the Lamborghini Murcielago (quoted top speed of 205 mph) can
only reach 184 mph before you need to start braking. Likewise, the Ferrari 599
GTO (which has a quoted top speed of 202 mph) can only manage 191 mph before it
runs out of room. And considering these machines are packing 600bhp, are made
from the latest exotic materials, and can take full advantage of the latest
aerodynamic know-how, you can soon see that doing 200 mph in a classic Ford is
no mean feat. But it can be done... and it has been done.
Perhaps the best known pioneers of
top-speed Fords are Rod Tarry and MA Developments' Mark Shead. Rod's Sapphire
Cosworth holds the top speed record at an incredible 206.1 mph. The story began
when Rod's previous top speed record of183 mph was snatched away from him. Rod
recalls: "I said to Mark we need to beat these guys and get the record
back. He replied: 'If you give me enough money I'll make you go 200 mph.' and
that was that..."
Rod and Mark aren't the only ones to do
these speeds in an old Ford either - Stevie Ross and his supercharged LS2
V8-powered Mk2 Granada have also cracked the illusive 200 mph barrier,
recording a standing mile top-speed of 201.96 mph!
What's needed to do 200 mph
Reaching 200 mph in such a limited space
poses a number of problems to overcome, but as Mark is quick to point out:
"The main thing you need is power. Loads of power!" He claims that
you'll need at least 700bhp to reach 200 mph — 800bhp to do it at Bruntingthorpe.
More aerodynamic cars than a Sierra may do it with less, but many older Fords
will need even more grunt. Top-speedsters are all about horsepower.
Rod
recalls: "I said to Mark we need to beat these guys and get the record
back. He replied: 'If you give me enough money I'll make you go 200 mph.' and
that was that..."
Mark explains: "You need enough torque
to get you off the line quickly enough, but when you're moving it's all about
having the power to keep punching a hole in the air."
Rod ads: "Weight doesn't have any
effect either - yes lighter cars will get off the line quicker, but as soon as
you're past the quarter-mile mark it'll make no difference. In fact, having the
extra weight actually helps the car feel more stable at high speeds, which
inspires driver confidence to keep your foot in, so a heavier car probably
helps not hinders." This is a point reinforced by Stevie Ross, who agrees
that the extra weight helps the car feel more stable and safer at the higher
speeds.
Both Rod's Saph and Stevie's Granada have
masses of power in excess of 800bhp. We know that Rod's Cossie YB is kicking
out 838bhp (plus 100bhp nitrous), but Stevie doesn't know the exact power
output of his supercharged V8. "Who knows," he shrugs when quizzed
for a bhp figure, "I don't believe in dyne figures - one day they're up,
one day they're down." However, educated guesses would hint it's at least
800bhp.
Mark
reminds us: "Don't forget that at 200 mph you're covering 100 meters per
second and it doesn't take long at those speeds to run out of road!"
Another crucial part of the 200 mph recipe
is getting the gearing spot-on. You need to gear it short enough to get the
maximum amount of acceleration (because of the limited space), but it needs to
be long enough to reach the desired top speed. Mark reminds us: "Don't
forget that at 200 mph you're covering 100 meters per second and it doesn't
take long at those speeds to run out of road!" Therefore, he recommends
deciding on a desired top speed and work the gearing backwards, otherwise
you'll run out of road before the car has reached its potential top speed. Rod
explains the final gearing can be tweaked to do this by using different tire
sizes but the problem is not many tires are rated for these sorts of speeds, so
fresh rubber is required for each run.
What's it like to do 200mph?
One of the biggest challenges for the
driver is to actually keep your foot on the accelerator for the entire run. Rod
recalls Mark screaming at him to "keep your foot in" during his first
ever 200 mph attempt. "Every part of your body is telling you to lift off
- it's a natural reaction. But if you do lift, you'll never reach 200
mph."
Stevie suffered the same thing during his
attempt too, only on a previous run he experienced the back end breaking loose
at around 190 mph due to the slippery surface! "That scared me, I can't
lie. And for the next hour or so I sat around sulking, thinking that my chance
was gone. But when it started to dry up a bit I thought to myself, 'just go for
it if it feels planted just keep your foot in and see what it does', and that's
exactly what I did!"
Stevie,
Rod and Mark have reached 200 mph from a standing start in around 25 seconds,
and understandably the car does move around a lot
All three drivers agree the most difficult
part is keeping your foot down as the rate of acceleration slows. For example
100 mph comes and goes within 7 seconds, but it then takes a further 6 seconds
to get to 150 mph. And from there it takes another 12 seconds to reach 200 mph.
Stevie, Rod and Mark have reached 200 mph
from a standing start in around 25 seconds, and understandably the car does
move around a lot.
"You do need to hang on," grins
Mark. "The car moves around all over the place which is why it's so
tempting to lift off. It's never comfortable, but it doesn't feel unsafe."
Stevie agrees: "Apart from that one
run I did in the wet, 99 per cent of the time the car never feels unstable at
those speeds - it actually feels quite planted!"
