Facebook Answer of the Week: The fastest cars you’ve ever driven
It appears you’re all guilty of speeding. Either that or you answered on behalf of a friend when we asked you on Facebook, “What’s the fastest car you’ve ever driven?” For those of you who simply answered with the name of a car but didn’t elaborate, you’re safe. But for the dozens of you who offered details without also including the words “I was on a track,” you might want to consider changing your name…
Hey, we’re just kidding. You can’t be ticketed just for saying you got the company car up to a heart-pounding 115 mph on a business trip, right? If so, I know a guy who did that once.
Your “fast cars” covered practically the entire automotive landscape. European cars, Japanese cars, and American cars. Hot rods, race cars, and drag cars. Old cars, new cars, and everything in between. Here are some of our favorite responses:
Tony Martin: “I drove my 1959 Sedan de Ville 110 mph, but the shaky front end didn’t want any part of that. Once I drove a 1969 El Camino that had an engine two feet above the hood, back when I worked at a service station (when there was full service). I was left in charge to fuel it up, check the oil and water, etc. I hit the gas once as I pulled it around back, and it was a miracle I didn’t destroy that car! It was like the Charger in The Fast and the Furious.”
Randy Reiss: “A 1965 Chevelle Super Sport that I bought when I was 14 years old. It had a 500-horsepower 406 small-block with a 150-horsepower nitrous kit. It ran 11.2 at 122 mph in the quarter mile. I still have the car, and I’m in the process of installing a 650-horsepower big-block in it.”
Randy Goudeseune: “A 1967 Ford Fairlane Custom two-door post with a 427 Ford “side-oiler.” It was wickedly fast and a wicked sleeper in drab green with dog-dish hubcaps. It would lay rubber passing a car at 55 mph.”
Gary Schield: “The fastest street car I’ve ever driven was a 1988 Porsche 930S factory slant nose, brand spanking new. I hit 145 mph in third gear on I-65 south of Nashville, Tennessee.”
Peter Klobucar: “A modified 50th anniversary ’Vette. It had every trick in the book and was deceptively fast. Second fastest was (believe it or not) a BMW 318ti hatchback with a Jackson Racing supercharger, intercooler, etc. It was a little demon.”
Kenton Adler: “My 1966 Corvette Stingray, with a blueprinted and balanced 327, Hooker headers, and lake pipes. Gone but not forgotten. That thing would pin you back in the seat.”
Ross Bickerton: “A ’67 or ’68 Camaro (can’t remember the year) with a stock 327 and four-speed. We were pushing 120 mph on the way to a friend’s cottage in Huntsville, Ontario, when a cop caught us. He wasn’t very happy! I wasn’t driving, but, man, what a rush!
Jim Rice: “Well, it had been a 1970 Plymouth Superbird 440 with a four-speed. Then I bought a 2006 Corvette Z06 with a 7.0-liter LS7 all-aluminum small-block. I hit 158 mph in fourth gear with plenty of pedal left!”
Jeff Caudle: “A first-edition Acura NSX. I was a service manager at a dealership when they first came out. They had ridiculously fast acceleration at the time, were as easy to drive as a Civic (if you had a few skills), and were low maintenance, other than tires.”
Andy Webster: “Actually, my first two cars—a 1989 Mercedes 420SEL and 1997 Mitsubishi Galant. In both, I topped 140 mph. The Mercedes floated, and I didn’t realize I was going that fast. The Galant was just scary as hell.”
Bill Swiss: “Until recently, it was a 1968 427 Corvette with 390 horsepower, in 1971. But in the last six months, it’s my wife’s 2007 BMW M6, a 500-horsepower convertible. Both scary fast.”
Tim Scales: “I owned a ’92 ’Vette that was modified, to an extent. I got it up to 160-plus mph a few times. It still had plenty left, but that was fast enough.”
Tony Bueti: “I was a transporter/shuttle driver for Avis Rent-A-Car in the ’70s. Every car, all day, as fast as it would go.”
Ryan DeClue: “Fastest car I’ve driven is probably a Lamborghini Diablo with a 6.0-liter V-12, an absolute beast. The RT/10 Dodge Viper comes close in feel. That said, the fastest I’ve ever driven was 190 mph in an unrestricted and modified Mazda RX-8 down Highway 370 in Missouri. Gotta love a rotary engine.”
Kent Miller: “A ’65 Pontiac GTO. I loved that car. Had it up to a little over 120 once. Never again.”
Mike Lehman: “A Ford Taurus at the Richard Petty Driving Experience at Chicagoland Speedway—149.7 mph.”
Bob DeKorne: “119 mph at Bonneville in a 1926 Pierce Arrow.”
