My buddy (An A4 Driver) wants me to go wih him to to the Bonnieville Salt Flats this summer and run our cars. They have a number of events throughout the summer where you can run your own car. Hence my question......

How fast do these cars go? I have an 97 850 R Wagon, 75k miles. I understand from some people that the speed is limited to about 130 while some other sources say the limit is 155 mph. All good in theory sitting on a Dyno, but what about the real world? In the real world there are aerodynamics and stability issues that can limit actual top speed. The car is stock and i'm not planning and perf mods in the near future. The PO claims he has been up to 120 for about 30 seconds and it felt solid.

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Nathan Valles, Black 855R, Tint

For max top end assuming engine, tires, etc are ready, some little mods can add 1 or 2 or more MPH: remove wipers (including headlight)and side mirrors. Get the car on a lift and CAREFULLY flatten with a hammer any non-critical edges, etc sticking down into the airstream. Run a wide strip of duct tape - for B-ville, OK, you can call it racer's tape - across the top of the windshield where it joins the roof. Smooth that juncture out. Pretend you're the wind and look at the front of your car, and anyplace you can enter, tape, without reducing cooling, etc. Take everything possible out of the car. Run with only enough gas for the job. Empty the washer bottle. Someone did post tire advice and to that I'll add run as much pressure as safe to use. Reducing rolling resistence is the key. The stock wheels are great for getting air on the discs, but there is a reason lots of B-villers run full covers (no openings). Go for it. Remember "Volvo" is Latin for "I roll" so do it!

Oh, should have said if you can, add a belly pan. All those crevices and openings underneath are Death to Top End. Don S.

Greetings,

I've had my '95 T5 wagon showing 152.5mph on the German autobahns several times while fully laden with suitcases, crates of beer and ither shopping. Felt solid as a rock which surprised but pleased me. BTW This was with stock 16" wheels and Bridgestone Pole Position S-02 tyres.

I don't know if the 850R is any quicker flat out, but it should get you to flat out a little quicker :-)

Regards.

Nick Pitfield.

our models are "aerodynamically" challenged...=)

Nathan, FWIW, I've had my base N/A S70 up to 115-120 MPH almost every day in the past 3 years (no more of that as I take public transportation to new work) and that's uphill, so PO's statement about your R should not surprise you. My car feels very solid at these speeds and I have no sport suspension and no mods whatsoever and regular old 195/60/15 Michelins MXV4 (not too fond of them, will get something else this summer, now using Michelin Alpin Pilots, which I LOVE for winter driving. They are H-rated and I've had them up to 110 MPH with no problems at all). Do let us know what you get for a top speed and do be careful out there.

Cheers
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Vladimir. 1998 S70. Base, 5-speed manual.

ipd ecu and exhaust....3 people plust luggage...going down to vegas....father was able to peg past 150....on way back up....i couldn't get past 130...wind was blowing against me...even though it was downhill.

If you do go to the salt flats, try to get some advice beforehand.
Find out what tires are reccomended, and find out if tires with half of their original tread depth are a better bet.
I think that you can improve your car's aerodynamics by fitting stock diameter tires in the rear and smaller diameter tires in the front. I suspect that 1" smaller diameter tires would also create a little more downforce.
You should also consider narrower tires in the front as you will not be going around curves.
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2 8s & 2 7s 700,000 miles total

or u could get a big ricey tear drop spoiler like rice boy's honda civic.....

ive got a 98 s70 t-5 w/ SS exhaust, drove from tampa to gainesville, 90 miles or so of 4 lane interstate. got the needle past 140. the 155 top speed is probably true. i was 140 at 5100 rpm. it was very late at night so the risk was minimal. make sure your tires are properly inflated and be sure to have everything fastened and buckled down ok in the engine bay and etc - it is something tha takes alot of concentration if u want to live.

Just a quick question.... I have a '94 Turbo w/ brand new pirellis. No other mods. The car has 125k on it. It still seems very quiet and stable at the 75-90mph range on the highway. What do you think I could max out at in this car? Would an ECU upgrade make a big difference? Thanks ~Cody

what kind of pirelli's? dont u dare think about pulling super high speed antics with tires that cant take the heat - you'll end up in a tree or even worse, my back yard.

Yeah its much safer to try highspeeds at night when you cant see the road. ;). Anyone who has done any endurance racing will back me up on this. Very few people I know who do not see routine track time should be doing 130+ at night.

far less people on road and fully lit bright orange florida interstate seemed bright enough for me.....

A 97 should do 143mph before the limiter kicks in. If you
have an after-market ecu then they turn off the limiter.
143 for U.S. market.

One of the guys here, Dave, has posted a picture of his speedo
pegged at 140 and RPM about 5200. The fuel consumption shows
7.5 mpg at 140 mph (that cracks me up, a bit).

I think in 99 they limited turbos to 130 mph.

You should be able to peg the speedo.