Filed under: Etc., Supercars, First Drive
SSC confident Ultimate Aero TT will be will be world's fastest soon
A few days ago we reported about Shelby Super Car's (SSC) attempt at the worlds fastest car title and now we have an unofficial update. We just got word from a trackside observer that the record was NOT broken. After getting snowed out on day 1, the cast and crew reconvened on Highway 93 in Nevada and had another go at the record books today. Test pilot (and veteran Silver State Challenge 200 mph club member) Rick Doria reported wheelspin at 190 shifting into 6th on one pass that yielded about 221 mph, but felt confident enough to try again. A couple more passes and the 1,183-hp Ultimate Aero TT posted a top speed around 230 mph at 50% throttle in 6th. At that point the car had traveled the 2 miles deemed appropriate for the test runs. The driver reported that he was sure the car could easily break the 253 mph Veyron speed, let alone the "official" 242 of the Koenigsegg CCR. The group will head back to the shop for now and try a second set of runs in a couple of weeks if all goes as planned. We'll post updates as more information becomes available.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
chris 11:19PM (3/22/2007)
While a slightly overweight middle-aged broadcaster from Top Gear can run a Veyron at it's maximum speed on the very first attempt. Plus this seems like it's a one-off car tuned just for top speed, like the McLaren F1 and Koenigsegg CCR were. It doesn't matter if they do go faster anyways, VAG can just take the 407km/h limiter off a Veyron and run it to go faster still, as it's a car that can easily reach it's top speed in the hands of anyone who can buy it. Not a car that gets wheelspin shifting into 6th gear and then can't even go full throttle when it gets there.
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DPC car videos 11:29PM (3/22/2007)
Wow amazing stuff, I wonder at what point this will become too dangerous and rules will step in and stop this. Just like drag racing short gears and Formula 1 tire restrictions. At any rate I am glad Americans are trying to bring the record home.
http://www.dpccars.com
DPCcars
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Russell Berger 11:46PM (3/22/2007)
Yeah, I hate when you shift into 6th gear at about a buck-ninety and the wheels spin. Maybe they need a B&M shiftkit, then they could chirp the tires!
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ruggels 11:59PM (3/22/2007)
"VAG can just take the 407km/h limiter off a Veyron and run it to go faster still"
last i read VAG can't, the limiter is in place due to lack of the existance of tires which can safely take a car of the heft of the veyron past ut's limited speed. this would also be why VAG will fly a new set of tires to any of thier customers who wish to attempt the top speed.
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chris 12:10AM (3/23/2007)
Yeah they'll probably screw up the tires if you did it a bunch of times, but they could probably go faster than 407km/h a few times before the tires got dangerous, which would be enough for the official record.
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james 12:25AM (3/23/2007)
I have to say those are some impressive engine figures, and while the Veyron was initially restricted by the big-mouthed official spewing out facts of a car it had yet to make (causing many engineers' simultaneous heart attacks), the Veyron isn't a car. It holds many records: fastest top speed, acceleration, braking, price (I think?), but the major point is: They Veyron is beyond a car. It is a meld of an F1 car with a car you could theoretically drive down to the corner and fetch some milk (providing it was a very smooth and flat road lol). Part track car, part road car, this conglomeration has never been successfully done to this level. As #1 said, "a slightly overweight middle-aged broadcaster from Top Gear can run a Veyron at it's maximum speed on the very first attempt". If this is a machine that can bring anyone into the 400km/h club (or 251mp/h for you imperial fellows) and all it requires is a straight road, can then brake from that 400-0 in 10 seconds, handles like a Lotus Elise round the track and has one of the most gorgeous interiors of any car EVER made, the Veyron just isn't a car. Its beyond car. And its by far, the fastest what-ever-it-is ever made. The SSC may take the 'fastest car' title, and that will be quite an achievement, but the Ultimate Aero is just a car. Its just not in the same league. Plus it just doesn't look as good lol.
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Matt 12:55AM (3/23/2007)
No, the Veyron is just a car.
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Matt 2:04AM (3/23/2007)
Sounds like lots of power, looks like lots of crap..
I mean, it looks like a re-hashed Diablo, not even a Murc! Its ugly and even if it went 300mph, I wouldn't care....
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Matt W 2:14AM (3/23/2007)
Can be pretty sure Audi isn't going to be too happy about their use of TT. Hell, the TT logo on their homepage is a total rip off of the Audi TT logo.
This company also REALLY needs to hire a car designer, and a good one at that. The Ultimate Aero TT looks like a diablo kit car. You're not getting anywhere with a design that bland. Think BMW, Ferrari, Porsche, Aston Martin...no, THINK ZONDA, LAMBORGHINI. They do not look like kit cars or Grand Am series race cars (though I guess some are turned into these) They have stlyle, the Aero, not so much.
I think I just threw up a little in my mouth comes to mind.
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iibbmm 2:34AM (3/23/2007)
Who says James ran the Veyron to its top speed the first attempt? Also, who knows how good it is around a track. VAG won't let it run the TG track for a reason.
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nagmashot 2:45AM (3/23/2007)
#10 The Veyron laped the Ring in 7:40min... this is as fast as all other Supercars like Murcielago, Mercedes SLR, Koinigsegg CCR, Pagani Zonda, faster as a McLaren F1, Jaguar XJ220, Z06 etc... not the fastest overall but pretty good for a 2.0to 1000hp car...
to the SSC Aero TT...they have failed...end of message... like Konigsegg failed till today to reach their own factory claim. They claim 395km/h plus (247mph +) and the best a Konigsegg reached so far was 388km/h (243mph) at Nardo...a speed that higly tuned Porsche 911 are able to run at Nardo.. topspeed is so much more as big hp... wheelspinn at 190mph means wrong aerodynamic..
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Keija 3:09AM (3/23/2007)
The Masterpiece of the Veyron is not reaching the 400 Km/h mark. . but getting the car out the door, in the hands of the customer was the true brilliance.
stupid.
Keija
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AlmightyPants 3:22AM (3/23/2007)
I'm willing to bet that the Veyron is considerably faster from 0-250+ mph than the SSC. It accelerates like nothing I've ever seen and with absolutely no drama. Oddly enough, that makes it considerably more pratctical for those who actually want to spend their time going that fast, as you get there much faster. It might even be able to go at top speed longer as well. The advantages of having a multi-billion dollar corporation backing the development compared to a couple of guys in a shed.
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Bob-o 4:37AM (3/23/2007)
I can't fathom how you think a 4100+ lb, 1001 hp object will accelerate faster than a 2750 lb, 1143 hp one. Are you a troll? Or are you just ignorant?
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Proud Japanese 5:46AM (3/23/2007)
@chris: Gordon Murray has repeatedly said that McLaren wasn't designed just for top speed. Its top speed is just a by-product of its overall design.
Anyway, I agree with most of the comments here. The SSC might beat the Veyron in top speed, but it won't beat it as an overall package. TG showed how easy it was to drive it at Vmax, the SSC meanwhile is probably really wobbly and noisy to boot.
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ca6 5:47AM (3/23/2007)
Wheelspin in sixth gear should slow down the acceleration, right? :-P
Also, as other has mentioned, it looks like a crap kitcar.
And the McLaren F1 was not designed for beating Vmax records, it was just the result of an extremely well engineered car, something this is not.
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moltenblogger 7:47AM (3/23/2007)
Bobo; At these power levels traction is critically important. It doesn't matter how much power you make; if it just goes up in tire smoke it's hurting you, not helping. That's why they went with AWD for the Veyron, it's the best way to get this much power to the ground. While the SSC is spinning it back tires all four of the Veyron's are clawing it ahead. That is what could allow it to out-accellerate the SSC and overcome its weight penalty.
Normally this only matters at lower speeds until downforce kicks in and helps with the rear wheel traction issue, but SSC apparently is generating rear lift at speed and taking away traction. I bet the next time we see it, it'll be wearing a wing...
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chris 8:28AM (3/23/2007)
I know that the McLaren F1 wasn't designed purely for top speed. I said that the car that set the record for fastest production car top speed wasn't a normal McLaren F1, everyone knows they made a couple little changes to that specific car to boost the top speed even further. While every single Veyron can hit its top speed no problem, most if not all F1s will be a few km/h down on the record setting machine.
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Shawn 8:58AM (3/23/2007)
You guys are so messed up.
Comparing a Veyron to Aero TT is like comparing the Space Shuttle to SpaceShipOne. VW spent billions developing the Veyron, and it is a very impressive vehicle.
All you guys can b*tch and complain about is the looks of the Aero TT. It is like complaining that SpaceShipOne is ugly and completely overlooking the achievement of getting into space without the massive cost and thousands of engineers.
Of course the Veyron will probably out run an Aero TT in any clocked performance, but that's not the point. The point is being able to take the top speed without a billion dollar engineering project, massive engine that burns all fuel in 12 minutes, and the tires are gone in 15.
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idpimp 9:07AM (3/23/2007)
You can tune the engine to 1100+ HP, but you can't fix a hick's poor taste in design....once again...more money than brains category. In this case, you can't fix this problem with "no replacement for displacement" nonsense (said with the most hickest of all hick accents).
Who the F*ck are they to challenge the tremendous engineering resources of VAG? They built more than a few in their garage drinking coors lights.....and they actually have interiors, not some plywood bucked fiberglass wrapped with carpet.
Once again, this kind of shit gives Americans a bad rep on the Automotive scene. Can't we go back to the quality days of Shelby? Thats when American cars truly challenged the Europeans.
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