550km/h on the road

**degrom** · 6th June 2007, 15:52

Crazy Swiss firm Acabion is making huge claims about its wild-looking GTBO - like that it will be limited to 550km/h for road use.

But theoretically, the low-drag, lightweight machine will be capable of much higher speeds than that - but tyres haven't yet been invented that can cope with those unbelievable speeds.

Read more...

**marty** · 6th June 2007, 16:09

bollox. drag cars and salt flat cars regularly exceed 300mph (480km/h) and you don't see their tyres shredding.

550km/h will take a bit more aerodynamic work than they have done atm. it will produce a huge amount of lift at that speed in its current shape. think what a F1/drag car looks like - they look like that for a reason! planes look like they do for a reason too....

**yod** · 6th June 2007, 16:10

have you seen my profile pic?? 1986 vfr400r nc21 and a garmin eterx gps unit and i wasn't even trying....

i can take him....

**onearmedbandit** · 6th June 2007, 16:21

like that it will be limited to 550km/h for road use.

That bit cracks me up the most!! Why the fuck limit it to 550km/h? There is like a handfull of places in the world with open speed limits, and even those are on the decrease. Still, I'd buy one

.

**MisterD** · 6th June 2007, 16:27

Originally Posted by marty

bollox. drag cars and salt flat cars regularly exceed 300mph (480km/h) and you don't see their tyres shredding.

The issue is the length of time the tyres have to sustain that speed, and the heat buildup that goes along with it...drag cars are only at those speeds for a few seconds, not a few kilometers

**marty** · 6th June 2007, 16:30

i think the issue is that at 550km/h, that thing won't even be touching the ground! tyre rotation speed won't be an issue.

who saw the indy car wing break off in the latest indy round? how long did it take that car to lose control?

**Macktheknife** · 6th June 2007, 16:36

Where are the wings?

**imdying** · 6th June 2007, 16:36

Originally Posted by marty

bollox. drag cars and salt flat cars regularly exceed 300mph (480km/h) and you don't see their tyres shredding.

Those are DOT tyres for the road that can handle the associated stresses that come along with the road?

**MisterD** · 6th June 2007, 16:42

Originally Posted by marty

i think the issue is that at 550km/h, that thing won't even be touching the ground! tyre rotation speed won't be an issue.

who saw the indy car wing break off in the latest indy round? how long did it take that car to lose control?

Where does sufficient fuel fit to power the thing at decent speeds for any time? How long does a Veyron's tank last at full chat, it's single figures minutes isn't it?

**degrom** · 6th June 2007, 16:49

more details... LOL

**xwhatsit** · 6th June 2007, 16:51

Originally Posted by MisterD

Where does sufficient fuel fit to power the thing at decent speeds for any time? How long does a Veyron's tank last at full chat, it's single figures minutes isn't it?

Why would it use any more fuel? It's not like the engine's spinning that much faster at 550kph, there's things called gears. It's running a turbocharged Suzuki GSX motor apparently, so it's not like it's some 15 litre truck engine.

**Laava** · 6th June 2007, 17:11

It looks like something out of some dreary 1960's sci-fi show. Facts and figures, big deal. It's totally impractical, but probably fun to drive. So can be a CT90.

**MisterD** · 6th June 2007, 17:27

Originally Posted by xerxesdaphat

Why would it use any more fuel? It's not like the engine's spinning that much faster at 550kph, there's things called gears. It's running a turbocharged Suzuki GSX motor apparently, so it's not like it's some 15 litre truck engine.

Air resistance. As Marty said, to keep the thing on the floor, you're going to need some aerodynamic help which means drag. The amount of power you're going to need to do this will not be fuel efficient.