MPH in your Thing?

[chefopie]

What's the mph rating for a tuned Thing?

[Ian Epperson]

[bmwloco]

My Thing flies. I may have a Freeway Flyer in it...dunno.

85 mph is not unusual. It cruises nicely at 70 mph.

Dean

[racer_dude]

umm.. have you tested this with a gps, or another car pacing you? how accurate are vw speedos at high speeds?

[klokard]

bmwloco....please tell me you have disc brakes!?! If not, I hope you have a loud horn!!!

[Rev. Scott]

my "stock" thing will hum happily at around 65 all day long...dont mind doing 70 for those short jaunts into town, but the rpms are a bit high at that point for any sustained driving. honestly, my stocker is a bit of a handfull over 65 so i'm happier under that. im passing suv's on the dirt roads though!!!

[Towel Rail]

For a while, mine was limited to about 55 MPH (except on downhills) because my timing was way off. Now that it's tuned up a little better, I can generally "expect" 60-65 from it, and I can get up to 75 if the wind isn't against me.

The official max speed rating from VW was 68 MPH.
_________________
1974 Thing -- under the knife
1967 Beetle -- spring/summer/fall driver
1996 Subaru OBW (EJ22, 5-speed, AWD) -- winter car, 3-seasons "don't feel like biking today" car

049 > 070 > 053 > 009

[LUNATIK]

Mine with the old engine and oversize tires it will go 70 pushing, but it felt that the engine was going to blow up.

[GSD_Master]

Here is the data for different top speeds at different gears taken from http://www.geocities.com/vwtyp181/181_1-5.htm

SPEEDS IN GEARS
4th gear (3850) ...............73
3rd (4700) ....................67
2nd (4700) ....................40
1st (4700) ....................22

Here is the natural speedometer error for a stock thing taken from the same website:

30 mph indicated is actually 28.0
50 mph ......................46.0
60 mph ......................56.0
70 mph ......................65.0
75 mph ......................69.0
_________________
Is that the new Hummer!

[lowsquare]

I drive the freeway daily and slip into the fast lane at about 70 MPH (on my speed-o). I can get up to 75+ but it's really screaming... Seems to really like anywhere between 60 to 70, just purrs right along...I'm going to throw the GPS into the ride this weekend and check it against the speed-o. I have an 1835 w/ a stock trans. I'm interested in checking how fast I'm really going with the modern technology.
_________________
PRAISE THE LOWERED.
1973 THING

[bmwloco]

I pass most people driving my Thing on I-26, I-40 and I-240.

In fact, today, I nudged 80 mph going around a corner and taking the wicked right hander going over the bridge and merging into I-26 today.

As for disc brakes, no. I do, however, have over 300,000 miles on two wheels (BMW motorcycles) and 7 years with a Porsche 912 Targa. Prior to that, a Fiat and even a Triumph. Learning to drive in the mountains, you learn a few tricks like:

1) use your gears to brake
2) with a rear engined car, accelerate through corners, DON'T BRAKE
3) anticipate hills and accelerate appropriately
4) keep your distance between vehicles.
5) don't get blocked in by semis, SUVs, or any idiot with a cell phone

[Captain Spalding]

[lee73]

[Towel Rail]

In theory, accelerating through corners keeps the weight on the rear wheels, lessening the chance that they'll break traction.

I think people make too much of the rear engine thing -- with a driver and a tankful of gas, a Thing/Bug has a pretty neutral weight balance front-to-rear, so it's more up the driver not to be an idiot.
_________________
1974 Thing -- under the knife
1967 Beetle -- spring/summer/fall driver
1996 Subaru OBW (EJ22, 5-speed, AWD) -- winter car, 3-seasons "don't feel like biking today" car

049 > 070 > 053 > 009

[TimGud]

Mines likes 60 mph. I can push it to 65-70 but dont like the sound of the engine at that speed.

[halfgut]

Mine goes less than 1 mph as I push it out of the garage and into the driveway. I can go faster than 1mph if my kids help push!

[iltis74]

Mine has a stock engine and tranny with kadrons. I have no problem maintaining 70 on the freeway, with a few ponies, though not many, left for a slow pass.

[lowsquare]

Put the GPS in mine over the weekend...
Speedo ... GPS
35 ... 34
40 ... 39.4
45 ... 44.8
50 ... 50
55 ... 55
60 ... 60.2
65 ... 65.8
70 ... 71.5
75 ... 77

I'm running P195 65 R 15's
_________________
PRAISE THE LOWERED.
1973 THING