Depending on tire size, etc., @ 65 mph, the torque-monster will be turning ~1575 RPMs... Hmmm? 5000 RPMs [?] = >200 theoretical mph!

 

That would be SCARY! I have no doubt the engine would take it there, but I'm doubting the traction and handling.

 

In a fluid dynamics class in college we were looking at the coefficient of drag of various cars. It turned out that an Indy race car had something like 3 times the drag of a Ford Taurus, which made no sense to us intuitively. But then the prof started talking about coefficient of lift. A Taurus would literally fly if pushed fast enough. In order to get a car to go well over 200 mph like an Indy car the concern is adding downforce. That results in not having as low drag as you might prefer, but that's the lesser of the evils. I don't think that downforce was a big concern for the designers of early '80s Ford trucks. So yeah, I think that would be scary.

And related (only in big engines pushing stock vehicles 200 mph), I remember an article in a magazine back in the '80s (Car and Driver, I think) where they took a new Corvette that Chevy loaned them, and had a shop build them an engine with the goal of breaking 200 mph. They were unsuccessful (I think they were somewhere around 195). What they found was that it's REALLY HARD to push a Corvette through the air at 200 mph. In hindsight they thought they were geared too tall and couldn't get at all of the power the engine had.

 

2019 GTG at the Bonneville salt flats? Justin tells me my engine should make ~900 ft lbs of torque at the rear wheels and my final gearing will be 2.52. The DB4 has no rev limiter and will spin to 4K+ Gary and I can earn matching tickets!

 

Bob - That was my thinking - the truck would probably want to lift at something just over the century mark given how high it sits and the lack of a spoiler. I don't want to find that out the hard way, and will content myself with brief acceleration trials rather than top-end runs. (Let's see, stop lights are about 1/12 of a mile. Is that brief enough? )

Jonathan - Bonneville sounds like fun! But, maybe we can get David to do some of his aero tricks and run his truck? The Caddy hubcaps, masked off grille, and maybe even a sloping tonneau should make a huge difference.

 

If that was meant as a compliment, then I thank you!

 

You know it was.