whats the fastest you got your saturn up too ?

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by Laz, Apr 7, 2005.

  1. Laz

    Laz Guest

    hey, just wondering what's the fastest you got your Saturn up too ?

    we own an 2002 sl2 4 dr and I think 155 kph was the max (en route to
    Montréal); hot summer day, when the car was still very new ( less than
    4000kms)
     
    Laz, Apr 7, 2005
    #1
  2. Down the front straight at Gateway International Raceway, top of 4th gear,
    right at 110 MPH ( too busy making sure I didn't miss the turn in for turn
    1 to check exactly)
     
    Kevin M. Keller, Apr 7, 2005
    #2
  3. Laz

    marx404 Guest

    110+ in my 94 SL2 on an empty stretch of I95 (dont try this at home kids,
    professional idiot driver). have radar will travel ;-)

    marx404
     
    marx404, Apr 7, 2005
    #3
  4. 85 MPH in my 91 SL2. About 145 in my 95 Mitsu GST. 160 in my 91 3K/VR4. I
    felt safer at 160 in the 3K than at 85 in the Saturn.
     
    Nobody U. Know, Apr 7, 2005
    #4
  5. Laz

    Bob Shuman Guest

    Todd,

    The 3000GT just has a nice feel. My '91 isn't a VR4 (twin turbo) and I've
    never had it up anywhere near that speed, but it is a heavy vehicle for it's
    size, has a wide wheel base, and low aerodynamic drag so just plain feels
    stable .

    Bob
     
    Bob Shuman, Apr 7, 2005
    #5
  6. It is a TT and at speed the turbos are really out of steam. I believe the
    actual speed was more like 155. I did it once and it felt pretty good. The
    first time I like my GF drive it, she had it up to 100 in third before I
    reminded her we were on a public road and she should be in a higher gear.
    The GST felt like it was floating at anything over 130 and I had to remove
    the govenor just to do it.
     
    Nobody U. Know, Apr 7, 2005
    #6
  7. Laz

    just another Guest

    55 mph. Honest, officer!
     
    just another, Apr 7, 2005
    #7
  8. Laz

    Skip Guest

    I believe I've got up to as fast as 80, maybe 85(MPH that is :) in my
    2000 SL2. Of course I do have the factory rear spoiler so it was cool...
     
    Skip, Apr 7, 2005
    #8
  9. I remember being at a race track in TX. This little kid in a Honda had a big
    wing on his car and the guy I was with bet him he could shave a tenth off
    his time. The kid was only too happy to listen. It involved removing the
    giant aluminum wing and saved him 0.2 seconds. Of course he put the thing
    back on, but I did run his buddy in my GSX (2nd Mitsu after GST was hit by
    an old man).

    http://home.woh.rr.com/roberthonea/dsm_vs_rice.avi
     
    Nobody U. Know, Apr 8, 2005
    #9
  10. Well, my '03 Ion has seen 145 kph, but with the bit of a cross wind, I
    wasn't going to push it...the car is too light for stepping it out with
    a side wind.

    However, I had a '99 Saab 9-3 that I greatly enjoyed showing a '03
    Celica GTS how quick a turbo 5 door could be vs a little sporty coupe
    when I handed him his doors from a standing start. We went pretty hard
    until he found where his governor was (180 kph) and that mine was a lot
    higher (at least 215 kph).

    Cheers,

    Michael
     
    Michael Halliwell, Apr 8, 2005
    #10
  11. I love seeing civic hatchbacks with the big wing, 'slammed supension',
    coffe can muffler, etc etc etc. They think they've turned a shitbox
    econocar into a race car. The wing does nothing, the suspesion mods
    tend to make the handling even WORSE, the muffler and 'cold air
    induction' does shit for the motor, etc.

    You know, Honda spent lots of money desiging the suspension on that car.
    Nonethless, some punk kid thinks he can outengineer Honda. hehehe.

    I love the muffler (useless) and the 'cold air induction' these cars
    always get. I've yet to see anyone put up an instrumented test between
    a stock and cold air intake, and I suspect the answer why is most people
    hawking these systems wouldn't know a thermocouple if it bit them on the
    ass, and don't want to face the harsh truth anyway.

    At least saturns suck the air in the fender well where it's pretty much
    outside temp anyway, and measure it right by the airbox, all the way up
    front. I suspect there's litte/no heating of the air, and that the
    transit time between the intake and the throttle body at running speed
    is virtually nil anyway.

    I bet if you dumped a thermocouple outside your window and another right
    at the TB opening, they'd read within a degree or two...
     
    Philip Nasadowski, Apr 10, 2005
    #11
  12. I've never understood the coffee can.They put a stupid fat muffler on a 1.5
    inch pipe and think they can hang with the big boys. I like to use the
    example of taking a skinny straw, blow in it...then flare out the end as
    much as you can and blow again. It doesn't do shit...but it does make
    somebody else some money saying "you can get 4 more HP out of this exhaust".
    4 HP for 100 bucks?. The weather has more of an effect than that. Cut out
    cheese cake for a week and you can make that up in weight for free.

    It's funny...I did find out these guys actually think they are fast. I drive
    the Saturn as a beater and race far more than I ever do in the GT. I think
    it's because I wouldn't even know they were trying. Not that I'm saying
    anything bad about the Saturn, but I know what it is...a simple,
    comfortable, little car with good mileage. A track car, it isn't
     
    Nobody U. Know, Apr 10, 2005
    #12
  13. The wing - correct - doesn't do anything but make you slower.

    Proprer suspension mods can improve handling, but your typical cut
    springs on stock dampers that "ricers" often do does make a car handle
    worse. Putting a big muffler on a stock exhaust does nothing, but a
    proper cat-back system does add HP, as does an intake. The SPC has dyno
    tested several intakes, and found a 4-8 HP gain on a Saturn motor.

    The manufacturer designed the suspension for one set of parameters. On
    economy cars, that is usually comfort when getting groceries. Aftermarket
    companies design suspensions for a very different set of parameters. I
    have chosen to sacrifice some comfort to make the car corner better.


    Several SPC members have indeed done this. the gains are not as much
    from the air being cooler, but from the opening up of the intake and
    allowing more air into the engine. Again, 4-8 HP gain on a Saturn.


    While I don't think I've turned my econobox into a race car (the guys in
    the Thunderbird yesterday seemed to think they had done that when they
    tried to get me to race them...), I know that I've turned it into a well
    mannered track car.
     
    Kevin M. Keller, Apr 10, 2005
    #13
  14. Proper mods might. But, let's face it, it's beyond the ability of the
    average Joe to outengineer Honda, etc on it. Sure a stock suspension is
    a compromise, but IIRC, those little Civics already outhandle most
    drivers anyway. Most cars today pretty much do.
    Not that much though.
    4 - 8 HP at the wheels on a Saturn motor is just barely enough to make
    it out of the uncertainty of the average dyno. Chassis dynos aren't
    spectacularly accurate, assuming they're even calibrated right. Now, a
    calibrated engine dyno - that's different. But 4 - 8 HP at the flywheel
    is barely worth the effort - it hardly is at the wheels either.

    I wouldn't be surprised if normal variation from temperature, air
    pressure, etc is that much...
    But, the fact remains, on a skidpad, even a cheap economy car like a Kia
    pulls quite well. IIRC, they can outhandle some sports cars of 20-30
    years ago...

    In any case, the chances of the average ricer boy being able to make a
    car handle better than a group of engineers at Detroit/Tokyo/Stugartt,
    is pretty slim. At least on a newer car.
    4-8 hp is barely worth the hassle at the smogger station or even the
    money on such a system. In any case, if a system's being advertised as
    'cold air' induction, is it REALLY bringing in cooler air than a stock
    system? That's my big question, and I'm guessing the answer is 'no'.
    So, what you're seeing is airflow improvements...

    This reminds me of a test in some mag of headers for some Honda
    (toyota?) motor. The best aftermarket one was 2HP better than the
    stock. I'm guessing that those little buzzbomb motors are so optimized
    from the factory that there's really not much room for improvement
    without making MAJOR changes...
     
    Philip Nasadowski, Apr 10, 2005
    #14
  15. That's why I let the very smart people at Eibach and KYB do it for me.
    We have used TMW Chassis Dyno in Joliet, IL for over 5 years. Their dyno
    is properly calibrated, and we have done back to back tests - stock
    intake, then aftermarket. The results have been repeatable across cars.

    I have an intake, factory header, and a Thermal R&D cat-back. Stock,
    DOHC Saturns tend to dyno around 104-108. Mine has dynoed at 119.
    Beleive me, that's a noticable difference.
     
    Kevin M. Keller, Apr 10, 2005
    #15
  16. Laz

    Napalm Heart Guest

    As fast as the speed limiter in a '96 SL2 would allow.
     
    Napalm Heart, Apr 11, 2005
    #16
  17. Lead foot! (grin)
     
    Jonnie Santos, Apr 11, 2005
    #17
  18. Those mods are significant, especially when combined with other
    modifications. Port work, new cams, valve work, increased compression,
    forced induction, etc. just don't work out as well without opening of both
    ends of what is really just a combustion driven air pump. It equates to
    trying to drink a milkshake through a cocktail straw if you leave things as
    is. Even if it's only minor gains in the beginning; it leads to bigger and
    better results. You need a starting point, and opening up the constricted
    intake and output just makes common sense.
     
    hoosier_drifter, Apr 12, 2005
    #18
  19. I've taken both of my Saturns to their governed limits (anyone know how to
    get past that without setting off check engine lights, etc.)

    Oh, fastest top end in any other cars...
    Somewhere between 170-175 in parents Thunderbird SC(some modifications,
    computer, intake, eshaust, intercooler.)

    Somewhere over 175 in my General Managers new Vette (not the brightest thing
    to do when your boss asks you if you want take for a spin.)

    160 in a previous employers 300Z Turbo (again, not a smart thing to do.)

    Little under 160 in managers new Mustang Cobra at a different previous
    employer (starting to see a pattern here?)

    In a car that actually belonged to me....fastest would have been 141 in a 65
    on what used to be known as the Green River Parkway in Kentucky on the way
    back from Bowling Green in my built up 84 Monte SS. I'm quite sure about
    the speed, because Kentucky State Troopers are a very truthful and
    forthright group of gentlemen. My dad, having been bailed out of jail a few
    times in the past himself, was quite understanding.
     
    hoosier_drifter, Apr 12, 2005
    #19
  20. Laz

    Oppie Guest

    100mph in a 2001 LW300. Car was very willing to run faster but I have a
    clean license and lost my nerve. Not having any moving violations in over 10
    years and getting a low insurance rate is a big anchor.
     
    Oppie, Apr 14, 2005
    #20
Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments (here). After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.