digg

Join DiggAbout

Donkeys and Elephants and Delegates,oh my!
Check out the most popular Elections 2008 content on Digg.

How to Drive the World's Fastest Roads [using Google Maps]

wired.com — Modern sports cars can hit 200 miles per hour right off the assembly line, but you're lucky to crawl more than 60 mph on your commute. Take heart: If you're willing to travel, you can find a playground for the lead-footed on almost any continent....

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • surferbill, on 06/27/2008, -1/+14The A81:
    "Due to its proximity to Stuttgart, it's reputedly one of Porsche's favored testing routes."

    The A81 also goes right past the Mercedes Benz factory in Sindelfingen, and I've seen them testing out new cars on the run from Sindelfingen to Singen.

    My personal favorite though is the A7 from Ulm to Kempten; I've done 220km/h down there in a Volvo V40 with 4 adults and luggage (and been overtaken doing so), and that road is just so smooth.
    • Iam8up, on 06/28/2008, -1/+1What stretch? Could you please add it =)
  • benburned, on 06/28/2008, -2/+4I was hoping this would be a racing game easter egg like the google earth flight simulator. :(
  • RMSzero, on 06/28/2008, -0/+16I had a boss take me to 140MPH in his M5 once. It was ***** incredible, but I'd never personally drive that fast in the US unless I wanted to be pwned by the police.
    • Stroggoth, on 06/28/2008, -3/+0Two things:
      1) Most sports cars end around 150-180 mph. 200 is very rare, only in the "Hypercars" as they are called would you find such speeds.

      2) I drive a car that easily will effortlessly reach 120 mph, and has a governer at 160 mph. Over 130, you run out of road VERY fast, and you had better make sure your tires are in top condition. I don't make a habit of hitting those speeds, but there is just no need for them.
      • hakkola, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0LOL at bragging about 140 in an M5, my car is only an E320 and I've hit just over 150mph on the Transcanada highway. These speeds aren't THAT fast, sure, it is well above the speed limit, but it isn't that crazy.
      • Stroggoth, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0Ha, 150 is the top end of that car (the E320). It won't go any faster.

        Don't confuse top speed with reaching a high speed. Anything who says 150 mph isn't that fast hasn't been there. When you have actually been at 150 mph, you will have a proper respect and fear of that speed.

        If you want to talk to speed, without the limiter I can probably hit 175 mph plus, but I wouldn't even bother to try to find out. Any car with 400+ horsepower and a decent aero profile can probably do that.
    • FTWmovin2canada, on 06/29/2008, -0/+1I've been about 155 in the Evo IX and 165 on the GSXR750. With fast cars you will be the one doing the pwning. Most cops won't even try when they see me on the GSXR.
  • MARCUSMARC, on 06/28/2008, -0/+12Ok, so how do I get my car to India?
  • GuitarHeroDenn, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6I-95: The American Autobahn
    • Iam8up, on 06/28/2008, -2/+2What stretch? Could you please add it =)
    • blup3ace, on 06/28/2008, -1/+4my mom got stopped for doing 96 there...apparently in maine you go to jail for going 35 over the speed limit (limit is 65mph there). luckily the officer was nice and recorded her speed as 94.
      • exabytes16, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6Going 96 is only 31mph over the limit. 31 is less than 35 so I see no reason why the officer marked down 94 instead of 96 unless...
    • mcberg182, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2oh you mean that spot where theres all the traffic because I-95 never has enough lanes for the amount of cars that are on it?
    • itsme92, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2280 in the Bay Area: The American Autobahn
      8 lanes of goodness, little traffic, and almost no cops. And it has enough curves and up and downhills to keep things interesting, it's not just a flat straight stretch. And nice scenery to boot.
  • dcstriker, on 06/28/2008, -2/+3Nice! one in Florida for me!! Oh wait i have a Geo metro!
  • braeden0613, on 06/28/2008, -0/+14 "Modern sports cars can hit 200 miles per hour right off the assembly line"
    there are only a few modern sports cars that can actually get to 200MPH...we are not talking mustang gt's here
    • MARCUSMARC, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4And none under $100k, the only one I can think of, if it is going to be under $100k is the ZR1 when it comes out.
    • megamod, on 06/28/2008, -1/+9Car manuals will tell you not to go over 3K RPM or drive at high speeds for an extended period of time in your first 3000 miles though, so technically you can't do that right "off the assembly line"
      • MARCUSMARC, on 06/28/2008, -3/+0:doesn't trust car manuals:
      • Stroggoth, on 06/28/2008, -1/+2Varying the RPM from 2k - 6k is actually good for seating the rings on a new sports car engine. If you run it at low RPM all the time, you will develop leaks earlier because higher RPM will stress the engine more.
    • BlueCadenza, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1The new Nissan Skyline GT-R FTW. 0-60 in 3.3 seconds, top speed 193 7:38 at the FREAKIN nuremburg (even with modern cars anything over 200 is pushing the car at its limits and acceleration rate makes it impractical on an actual track), pricing is around the 70,000 - 85,000 mark. Kills the Veyron on the track. If I had the money at this point to buy a super car that would be the one.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDoJdQXmwu8
      • BlueCadenza, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1sorry I meant nurburgring
      • Stroggoth, on 06/28/2008, -1/+0New Corvette Z06 just smashed the GTR lap time this week. The Corvette really is the best bang for the money out there.
  • maddendude, on 06/28/2008, -2/+3Yea, not alot of cars can hit 200 off the assembly line, and everyone goes 75 on the freeway anyways, you should be lucky to pass 80.
    • jaalin, on 06/28/2008, -1/+0highly doubt the people who drive 200-mph capable cars use them as their daily commute. there's plenty of racetracks / airstrips for them to test their fuel economy with
  • transform100, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3off the assembly line my ass!
  • LysolSCG, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3Hah, Aligator Alley. It has that name for a reason, and trust me- they arn't fun to hit at 80 mph let alone 100+. I can't even imagine what it'd be like hitting one in a sports car either.
  • jaalin, on 06/28/2008, -1/+7the drive to vegas is nice and straight, there's plenty of cars on the road to weave in and out of, and millions of police to make sure you stay above 160 mph. just get some run-flat tires in case they throw out the spikes, and you're good to go
  • FuckXboxx, on 06/28/2008, -1/+10Considering the price of gas....your best bet to find that kind of rush is buying a pound of meth.
  • Nateon, on 06/28/2008, -1/+5I-5 has some stretches that you can get some serious speed in. I got to school in L.A but have family in the Bay Area so I've made the trip quite a few times. The L.A to the 152 stretch is pretty much straight and barren. I usually put cruise control at 95mph, but if you're less of a pussy than I am about getting pulled over, you can probably get away with 100+ mph.
  • sjmueller, on 06/28/2008, -0/+6I live 15 minutes from alligator ally, and i don't know of anyone that looks at that road as a great place to go 160+mph. You would think that the number one place on the list would be free of law enforcement, but that isn't the case on alligator ally. Buried for being disappointingly inaccurate
    • RainForRent, on 06/28/2008, -0/+0I'm in North Miami, I've done faster speeds on 95 than I would ever consider on Gator Alley. In Florida, buy a good radar (read: Passport radar) and you'll be fine.
  • Ksurfiws, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4Alligator Alley is not the Miami to Naples drag strip it used to be. Watch out for the FHP Trooper in the Z06 Vette. You might outrun him for a while. But you won't outrun his Radio.
  • ramenite, on 06/28/2008, -3/+18For less than a cost of a speeding ticket, you could get track time at your local racetrack.

    You would also not have to worry about speed limits, or losing control of the car and killing someone in the other lane.
    • gwinerreniwg, on 06/28/2008, -11/+4thanks, mom
    • bmarks, on 06/28/2008, -9/+2no fun
      • Entroper, on 06/28/2008, -0/+5^^ Obviously never done a track day. :)
    • mrzeero, on 06/28/2008, -0/+7I have yet to see a track the Joe public can get on that has a long enough straight away to actually hit top speed.
    • Victorface, on 07/24/2008, -0/+1Racetracks would be more fun anyways, especially ones with left AND right turns.
  • mcnab32, on 06/28/2008, -1/+10Going fast in a straight line isn't all that exciting. Cornering is where it's at. There are so many great driving roads over here on the West Coast, I spend a ton of my summer hitting the twisties on the bike or car.

    In all honestly, pushing it on the streets is retarded. Take it to the track where it belongs. Look up your local AutoX clubs and head out there, it may be intimidating to a newbie, but trust me, everyone out at AutoX are a friendly bunch. You will have far more fun in a car out at a track than you EVER will on the street. I know once I've done my track sessions, the need for speed is next to none on the streets!

    Take it to the track!
  • mcquitty, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1US-129. It's a nice road, but what the map doesn't show is all the great roads around the Dragon. Cherohala Skyway. Great roads.
  • Mudger, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2Buried for putting Harbor Blvd., Orange County.
    • mokaone, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2agree. i have no idea why that's even on the map.
  • ramenite, on 06/28/2008, -1/+11Things like this just encourage every jackass who thinks he has some horsepower under the bonnet, to think they are the reincarnation of Aryton Senna. There are places you can take your car--cheaply I may add--that you can open it up both safely and legally. Any driver who actually knows how to drive a car, also knows there is no way to safely drop 100mph+ on a US highway. Uneven pavements, different surfaces, etc. make it impossible.

    If I'm some sort of "mother" for saying the best place to drive a car at speed is on a course specially designed for it, than so be it. This article isn't imply roads you can set your cruise control for 80 and not get a ticket. It's encouraging people to go 120-150+ on public roads without getting "caught". Getting caught is the least of their worries. Not knowing that their passenger car has a lot of built-in understeer for safer road driving and hitting someone in the oncoming lane is a concern. Hitting some loose gravel and spinning out and taking another car with them is another.
  • krnldmp, on 06/28/2008, -1/+6You'll think you're real cool until a deer comes through your windshield and takes your head off at the neck. Don't be stupid. Its nowhere Near safe driving that fast on the open road. Not even the highway.
  • FBDYLVR, on 06/28/2008, -0/+3Alright, who's the jerk who mapped the 405 through South Bay???
  • BicBall, on 06/28/2008, -0/+4Screw straight roads, the windy ones are best.
  • STPZ, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1I'd like to see someone try going 200mph around that nipple shaped turn in Ger. at the intersection of E52 and 14. Thanks for the maps tho
  • Axeman2063, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1200mph for most modern sports cars? kph maybe...mph is reserved for your Z06 Corvette and up...thats certainly not "most" modern sports cars/.//
  • DJCraig1, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1Just a warning - this isn't very reliable. I was seriously ARRESTED by the Alpharetta Police for doing 105 in the 65 on Highway 400 going north out of Atlanta. This road is on the database! The cops were SERIOUS assholes. They also arrested my friend, who was just riding in the car with me. I got out on a $2800 bond after spending the night in jail. They impounded my car. With the help of a really good lawyer, I got a $450 fine, 30 hours community service, 8 hours driving school and a 500 word essay on irresponsible driving. So yea, DON'T SPEED ON HIGHWAY 400!
  • ElGanyan, on 06/28/2008, -2/+1I took a 99 Honda Civic Si up to 140 (or actually I think the top speed according to the speedometer was 143 or something retarded like that) on the I10 in the stretch of Desert near the Coachella Valley in California. It's actually a fairly straight and smooth ride once you get down through the pass in Banning. I only ever did that once though, very late at night, and it was ***** terrifying.
    • Stroggoth, on 06/28/2008, -3/+0"I took a 99 Honda Civic Si up to 140"

      That is because a Honda Civic isn't meant to go over 90 mph. It is a small family/starter car. Get a sports car if you want to go 140.
      • ElGanyan, on 06/30/2008, -0/+1What part of "Si" didn't you get? I wasn't talking about a 4 door LX or something. The Si is no sports car, but it was definitely built for better speed and handling than the average civic.
  • ninefournine949, on 06/28/2008, -2/+0I hit 165mph on my r6 going down 880...
  • Ev0lv5, on 06/28/2008, -2/+2God bless my BMW M5
  • evernew, on 06/28/2008, -0/+2And who is the jackass that pointed the Nürburgring next to Nürnberg?
    Word to your foreign geography, buddy ...

    (Funnily enough, there is a rock festival in Germany at those exact two very separate locations. And two English guys who camped next to us honest-to-God booked a train from the other one ... 500 km away. Come on, people.)
  • ArtificialAnus, on 06/28/2008, -0/+1The NT in Australia used to have literally thousands of kilometers of unlimited-speed road, arrow-straight and absolutely deserted right through the middle of the outback.

    It was great, so of course they put a speed limit on it (130KM/h) about two years ago in what is suspected to be the biggest revenue-generating ***** play ever to hit motoring.
  • NachoBusiness, on 06/29/2008, -0/+1A good stretch of interstate to speed on is ones in cities without a shoulder/break-down lane. They do exist here and there. Cops utterly hate making stops on them since they have to direct people off an off-ramp and it's very convoluted, plus they can't catch you by radar-gun unless they find a spot off-road somehow, which might not exist in some stretches... any kind of quota-filling highway cop is just going to hover on a stretch of interstate with good shoulders. So find one without a shoulder and you're golden so long as you don't just go ludicrously fast past a cop car that happens to be on the road. Only time I've ever heard of cops actively making speeding stops on such a stretch is when they're under construction, but if you speed in a construction zone you deserve the double fine anyway.
  • Shuelin, on 06/29/2008, -1/+0Google Maps is amazing.
    http://thegooglehouse.blogspot.com
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.