Racing/ speeding with your Blazer

[4x4_76]

Wind resistance,or what ever it's called.Tall 4x4,big tires,body not designed to go fast...Thats why sportscars,aeroplanes etc. are streamlined.To a certain point you can go fast,but then air can't escape in front of the vehicle as fast as it does at lower speeds.Air starts to drag your forward motion,of course not as much like jets that go faster than the speed of sound (mach 1) creating sonic boom.

IMHO 4x4's aren't ment to be driven fast,that's why there are sportscars and lowered trucks.

I'm too lazy to stick shift,that's why I prefer autotranny.

 

[Ancient_4X4]

Bah! I totally disagree! I'm more into all-purpose driving that's why I like my truck so much. I can go from navigating a mudpit, to hauling, to racing down the interstate without even worrying about it. Too bad they don't make vehicles like that anymore! Everythings so specialized nowadays!

 

[muddysub]

yep 65mph is an accomplishment for me. 36"s, and a tired 'ol 350 are to blame for that.

people that get good mileage aren't having any fun!
scott,
1989 GMC suburban 3/4t 4" lift finally rollin on 36" swampers, tbi350, th350, np241

 

[TXsizeK5]

Hehe .. you think youhave trouble at 65... i have 35's and 4.56 i rev like almost 3k going 60! And i have a old 305! 4 spd manual with no overdrive.

6in 87' K5 w/ 35" BFG muds.
305/Sm465/ NP208
Kn, 4.56's.
In desperate need of a rebuild.
Next- Eaton mech locker... Flows.

 

[8_YOUR_H2]

My wife had mine going 75 in 4hi last winter...duhhh, what is the little yellow light that says "4wheel drive".

 

[84_Chevy_K10]

I just wondered where you got the round number of 500 HP. I know that it takes quite a bit of power to push something this big a certain speed. I just wondered how you came up with that figure.

Tim
'84 Chevy K10, lifted, loud, fast, and 3/4 ton axles

 

[coopertwpk]

Ive pulled a 76 3/4 ton sub at 75mph with my blazer and blew the tranny just to prove I could,actually down shifted into 2nd at 45mph and the front seat blew to he!!

88k5 silverado w4"lift <font color=orange>d44 and corp14ff</font color=orange> with 4.11

 

[Ancient_4X4]

Damn I was driving home on the interstate tonight and there's this loooooooooong uphill part and I decided to floor it, but couldn't get my truck over 86mph on this part of the road! On flat stretches it'll do over 100 easily though. My truck used to have more snoose back in the day, but I think it's gettin tired. Perhaps I will be investing in those performance exhaust headers and new spark plug wires after all..... Or maybe some bigger cams or something.

 

[Pure Insanity]

Im back from the mountains and dug this back up. The only reason I responded was I was gone and didnt want to seem like I was avoiding this.

OK I was NOT trusting the Cherokee speedo. I have been in cars as long as I can remember, and have built several big 4X4's. I know the speedo cant be counted on. The only one I seen that WAS accurate was the Vette. That was a long time ago (late 80s) and stumbled across that info somehow.

Anyway, I GUESSED by the fact that my buddy was going 105 ish and I came up behind him like he wasnt moving. I knew how fast 60 MPH (real speed) was on the TACH and I was over double that. I dont remember the details anymore it was close to 10 yrs ago.

Its all in gears, if you have the power to pull tall gears, you can go as fast as you want. Even w/ the aerodynamics of a barn door. Aero just helps.

Im not trying to fire this argument back up, just letting you know I am aware that speedo accuracy is questionable, and that I didnt count on the speedo.


Thuder had a 401 powered Jeep and agreed it was faster than he cared to travel. Mine was a "built" motor and had stock gears and big tires, its all in the gears, see comment 2 paragraphs up.



If ya can't stop.......Smile as you go under!

PIC of mine from flblazers site<a target="_blank" href=http://www.flblazer.alloffroad.com/photo3.html>
GO</a>

 

[84_Chevy_K10]

I 2nd what you're saying. If you had enough gears to keep the engine in its "sweet spot" all the time, you could go an insane speed. I'd bet that 200 HP could push a 5,000 lb. truck in excess of 150 MPH. Problem is, your engine might make 200 HP at 5,000 RPM, and as soon as you shift, you're so far from that 200 HP that you can't go any faster. If you had a tranny with 20 gears or so that were spaced right, you could go really, really fast.

Tim
'84 Chevy K10, lifted, loud, fast, and 3/4 ton axles

 

[Blue85]

Wind drag increases exponentially with speed. So if your car needs 100hp to maintain 70mph, you need about 400hp to maintain 140mph. Going from an aerodynamic car (low drag coefficient) to a truck (high drag coefficient), you have the same effect. A Blazer might need twice the power to go the same speed as a small car. So when you say aerodynamics don't matter, you just need more power, you have to remember that it is much, much more power that you need.

It also takes a very long time to reach your top speed, no matter what the vehicle, unless the top speed is set by a rev limiter or governor. As you go faster it takes more and more power just to overcome wind drag. So the power you have left (engine output - wind drag) continues to decrease. Acceleration = ( Force/Mass), so the acceleration gets slower and slower as the wind drag increases. Acceleration is almost 0 near the top speed.

This doesn't even touch the safety aspects of high speed driving, like reaction time, tire speed rating or lift, to name a few...