Mustang taunts the WRONG Viper

[treynor]

OK, this is just silly. I'm driving back to work after lunch today, and end up stuck at the light behind a late-model 4.6 Mustang GT. Now, a stock 4.6 isn't even a challenge for a normal Viper, and this guy with the crazy hairdo is looking in his rearview mirror and seeing my yellow Viper with a staccato idle like an angry powerboat and the words "SUPERCHARGED BY DOUG LEVIN" emblazoned across its windshield.

So what does he do when the light turns green? He punches it! After a moment's surprise, I roll into the gas... definitely less than half throttle, then have to back out of it because I'm going to rear-end him.

I hear his car shift (sounds like an automatic) and I pick up 2nd and roll into the gas again... and again, right out. We're up to about 50 mph now, so I back off (why risk a ticket for such a silly encounter??) and he goes blasting off down the road.

OK, so admittedly my commuter car's faster than the average bear, but that Mustang seemed so... well, slow, even by normal standards. Are those things just dogs when stock, or what?

 

[genXgts]

Ben,

I think it's safe to say you raised the bar a touch with the 1000 horse to the rear tire thing!

 

[Dunn]

The newer Gt's with the 5spds are known to run high 13's, so i mean not terrible, especially for only 260hp.

 

[cstegall]

Ben,

You realize how hard it is to read "SUPERCHARGED BY DOUG LEVIN" in a rearview mirror?...he probably just didn't recognize the 1000 horsepower beast

No Flame Intended...Just Observation,
CStegall

 

[Ron Hickey]

You wrote:

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>
We're up to about 50 mph now, so I back off (why risk a ticket for such a silly encounter??) and he goes blasting off down the road.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That guy is probably telling all his buddies about how he left a Viper in the dust: "It was close until I hit third gear and then it was all over!"

 

[joe117]

A 260hp Mustang runs high 13s? I hope they don't think that's good.
My 300hp LT1 regular old automatic 1996 C4 did 13.8@102 in grocery getter trim. That was last spring at the Viper Vette drag day at MIR. The only prep I did was to turn off the traction control.

 

[Snakester]

Ben,

Having once owned a Mustang, it's easy to believe that you are near the top of the automotive food chain, especially in a sea of Toyata Echos and minivans.

It takes an occasional butt whupping by a faster car to put their performance back into proper perspective.

Similarly, with your car's upgrades, everything else will appear to have left their parking brakes on.

-Dean.

 

[Tomer]

Ben, I think this point has been made, but compared to your DLM experience, us stock or near stock Vipers even have a little K-9 in us...:-(

Now pick on someone your own size, eh!

Tomer

 

[SUN RA KAT]

I'm even slow compared to you.

 

[treynor]

Yah, I'm taking a lot of flak for picking on these slower cars. Doug Levin has really taken the fun out of the casual street encounter -- instead of wondering "can I take him" it's "do I feel like blowing this guy away?"

I suppose it's time to go trolling for literbikes...

 

[Bill/APEX Motorsports]

Hey, Ben, when are you bringing the Beast by to dyno it?

 

[Tomer]

If we can get a club rate, I would jump on the bandwagon for a dyno pull or two.

Tomer

 

[LQQK_OUT]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by treynor:

I suppose it's time to go trolling for literbikes...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Let's get a little real here. Yes, you car is incredibly fast but I bet your 10.1 at 152 was run when your car was setup for the track (i.e. slicks, etc). If you think you can match wits with a liter bike on the street, you are sadly mistaken. I see many of them rolling up to the track, running low 9's and riding home.

 

[Snakester]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>If we can get a club rate, I would jump on the bandwagon for a dyno pull or two.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'd be up for that too.

-Dean.

 

[treynor]

&gt; If you think you can match wits with a liter bike on the street, you are sadly mistaken.

One of us is certainly "sadly mistaken". However, since I rode and raced a modified YZF-R1 for years, I speak with some confidence when I say that I'd trash such a bike at anything from freeway speeds on up. From a stop, with a skilled rider, the bike would hold the launch advantage unless I was rolling on drag tires. From a roll, once I had traction, there would be no contest between a 13x-mph bike and my 15x-mph car.

That said, most of the sportbikes I meet on the street can't launch their way out of a paper bag. I've beaten many a sportbike from 0-30 in much lesser hardware than my Viper.

 

[LQQK_OUT]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by treynor:
&gt; One of us is certainly "sadly mistaken". However, since I rode and raced a modified YZF-R1 for years, I speak with some confidence when I say that I'd trash such a bike at anything from freeway speeds on up. From a stop, with a skilled rider, the bike would hold the launch advantage unless I was rolling on drag tires. From a roll, once I had traction, there would be no contest between a 13x-mph bike and my 15x-mph car.

That said, most of the sportbikes I meet on the street can't launch their way out of a paper bag. I've beaten many a sportbike from 0-30 in much lesser hardware than my Viper.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

WoW! This sounds like the same argument you hear when a Vette beats a Viper. The Viper driver couldn't launch or drive the machine. Not an experienced driver, etc. Sadly mistaken??? I've seen many dudes run low 9's and trapping 150mph+ at Engishtown. These guys are awesome riders and it wouldn't even be close drag or no drag radials!

 

[treynor]

I'm simply telling it like it is. Your claim that you've seen "many dudes run low 9's and trapping 150mph+ " doesn't change the FACT that I've beaten many bikes from a launch on the street. I'm also not talking about hunting down the fastest drag bikes in the Bay Area -- typically what I encounter on the roads around here are stockish 750s and 1000s, and those bikes run the 1/4 in the 130s and are thus toast in a freeway race.

Soooo... keyboard racing aside, I will be on the lookout for worthwhile 2-wheeled targets. I'll be sure to post if I find any

 

[King GTS]

About 15 of us Viper guys ganged up on the Mustang guys on their Board last week! SmokinV10 spear headed the whole thing. We set a record of replies for their board. LOL. Take a look.

Oh well the link won't work. Go to the web site below. Click Street Racing. The Title is Kings of San Jose.

www.cafords.com

 

[TZL]

Ben,

the supra guys are doing a dyno day at the end of Dec or early Jan, there is a thread in the CA forums of supraforums, interested?

Ting

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by treynor:
&gt; Hey, Ben, when are you bringing the Beast by to dyno it?

Set up a dyno day one of these coming weekends, and I'll attend.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

[Alternative]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ron Hickey:
You wrote:

That guy is probably telling all his buddies about how he left a Viper in the dust: "It was close until I hit third gear and then it was all over!"

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Have to agree with Ron... We all know you can smoke almost anyone out there, but the fact you backed out, I'm sure the 'stanger thought 'stang-1, viper-0.

Next time, go for a little bit more MPH than 50. Otherwise, don't even bother

 

[Gerald]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by LQQK_OUT:
Let's get a little real here. Yes, you car is incredibly fast but I bet your 10.1 at 152 was run when your car was setup for the track (i.e. slicks, etc). If you think you can match wits with a liter bike on the street, you are sadly mistaken. I see many of them rolling up to the track, running low 9's and riding home.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


hahaha, and you speak from experience from a Stock Viper racing stock bikes. Trust me, Treynor isn't lying as I'm sure GaryA can chime in. On a roll, I'll DESTROY a bike. 1000, busa, etc. I've also owned a busa and now a 750. I'll eat my 750 (2002 GSXR)ALIVE. It's modified and it's not THAT far off a 1000. Not even close. From a stop at a light, He'll take me until 3rd gear and I'll leave him like I'm walking my dog. I think the matter of the fact is , it's much harder and scarier to twist that throttle at 60MPH on a bike then it is on a car...

NOW, modified bikes are a different story... it's MUCH easier to drive a car fast as it is a bike...

Needless to say I think your the one SADLY mistaken..

No hard feelings, just really telling you like it is..


Gerald

 

[treynor]

&gt; Hey, Ben, when are you bringing the Beast by to dyno it?

Set up a dyno day one of these coming weekends, and I'll attend.

 

[ZX12]

Any vehicle that can run 150+ mph in the quarter is awesome. The blown/nitroused Vipers pushing 150 mph in the quarter can theoretically outpull a stock Gixxer1000/Busa/ZX12 in a roll-on race, since the best published quarter mile trap speeds for a stock street bike (Gixx1000) are 148 mph. But, like Gerald said, modded bikes are a different story. The hard-core modded street-legal Busas and ZX12s that race locally are in the low 8s and over 170 mph in the quarter mile. Now granted you probably won't see many of these monsters on the street, but these guys who are running nearly 500 hp bikes will probably know how to run them properly if challenged in a steeet race. The highest hp Busa that I know of has over 600 rwhp! I think traction, just like with these super-Vipers, is their biggest problem. By the way, the fastest Busa so far has run 246.3 mph, confirmed at the Bonneville Salt Flats...

 

[Vic]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ZX12:
By the way, the fastest Busa so far has run 246.3 mph, confirmed at the Bonneville Salt Flats...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Tops McClaren!

Apples are fun to compare to oranges, no?

 

[Dr Roof]

I've been known to smoke some Bikes as well. Matter of fact I didn't believe it until it happenned time and time again!

 

[00prowler]

Anyone can go buy a crotch rocket that is fast... big deal.. Lets see them plunk down 50K or more for a real machine, plus insurance, property taxes etc. Thats why they buy bikes... I am sick of them harassing me on the road. I won't race them fearing they will kill themselves trying to keep up.. It's just not worth it to prove whos better.. I just look over and laugh...PROWLER...

 

[Snakester]

With the exception of those rare times when everything is clear on the road for miles, I am really clear to motorcycle riders that I'm not interested in some speed contest.

There are so many bikers who have a BIG chip on their shoulders, and little consideration of road conditions.

I've had enough bikers almost kill themselves trying to "beat" me to not even try.

Admittedly, many of the bigger displacement bikes are decidely faster than my mildly modded Viper, but I'm not willing to be responsible for some stupid teenager's death finding out.

I have seen so many bikes push through traffic to line up with me at a light. I usually just smile and wave them on now.

I don't care one bit if they think that I'm a "wuss".

It's not that I've never mixed it up with bikes (sometimes ahead, sometimes behind) because they are about the only vehicles that can keep up in a sea of econo-cars and SUVs.

It's just that I'm MUCH more selective, and let 19 out of 20 bikes zoom on ahead these days.

-Dean.

 

[ZX12]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 00prowler:
Anyone can go buy a crotch rocket that is fast... big deal.. Lets see them plunk down 50K or more for a real machine, plus insurance, property taxes etc. Thats why they buy bikes... I am sick of them harassing me on the road. I won't race them fearing they will kill themselves trying to keep up.. It's just not worth it to prove whos better.. I just look over and laugh...PROWLER...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


Sure, sportbikes are cheaper, but you would expect them to be, since they have less 'material' than cars do. Being cheaper doesn't necessarily make it less of a machine. And even though they are cheaper, they deliver the performance as advertised, as long as you're capable of pushing the machine to it's physical limits. To me, the marker of a 'real' machine is one that delivers performance first, with cheap price being less of a consideration.

Not to bash Viper guys in general, but a lot of Viper owners pride themselves on the opinion that the Viper is much more unforgiving/difficult/sensitive to drive to it's physical limits than other sports cars, making it more of a 'machine'. Using that logic, sportbikes are (much) more difficult to drive (to their limits) than most all sportscars, making them, more 'machine' than cars. I don't own a Viper, but I used to race a Super Stock Camaro (~400 hp) in oval dirt track racing, and I think sportbikes are much less forgiving, more dangerous and more difficult to drive than that car ever was.

You could build a tube chassis winged Sprint car for less than the cost of a Viper, but in no way would I consider it less of a machine then the Viper by any standards. Nearly 800 hp, 1300 pounds, single speed tranny, four different sized tires, and takes a lotta skill to drive one (I worked part time at an engine shop that builds those motors, so I've seen them kick butt).

Mario Andretti and Jay Leno ride ZX12s (and other bikes). With all the money they've got, I wonder why they buy them? Are they saving up for retirement, and buying cheap vehicles? Well, I'm betting they bought them for their proven performance, and for the fun of riding them.

And even if bikes are cheaper, they provide a raw riding experience that no car can ever replicate. Add awesome performance numbers to that, and they, in my opinion, have the merits of a 'real' machine.

And I'd like to add that the Viper, in my book, is definitely a 'real' machine too...

 

[Sniper]

ZX-12

I totally agree!

I owned a 94 CBR 900 in 94 and they are awesome! You move, the bike moves. One of the baddest things about a sport bike is the turns. Taking a wide left sweeping turn, leaning over on the left side, foot peg dragging, and pushing your front wheel to the right-WHAT A RUSH!!!

Bike and a car are two totally different arenas.

And I can see the car guys side, too. To get a car to outrun a sport bike is a feat in itself. The sport bike can upgrade, too though.

 

[George Murray]

Bikes are cool, but "apples & oranges" applies.

Yes, bikes are unforgiving. In my active duty Navy days, one of my sailors (a parachute rigger...worked on aviation life support systems for F-14s, and was an avid skydiver as well) fell off of his Harley in a parking lot and broke both wrists and his jaw. His speed was maybe 2 MPH. It's hard to imagine that level of injury resulting from a 2 MPH Viper mishap.

True story...in the Navy, that's known as a "no-$hitter."

OK, so it's a stupid incident and the guy was a dumb *** , but whatever ;-)