Car and Driver Top Speed Claim
Chala95
09-25-2011, 12:47 AM
I have posted an article from caranddriver.com about the top speed, on the 1999 Chrysler 300M. They (caranddriver) claim the vehicle can hit a top speed 139 mph new, and 136 mph after 40,000 miles only being stopped by wind drag. Even though my 2001 version has 128,000 miles, to learn that I would be shut down by an electronic governor at 114 mph disappointed me quite a bit. Cause I bought the car primarily based on their claim. I have tried vehemently to contact engineers at caranddriver to no avail.
Please don't ask my why I was driving 114 mph, but what I would love to hear is why my car does not hit the speeds they claim, or near to it, or if someone can help me with a contact number for an engineer at caranddriver so I can ask them direct I would be greatly appreciative. Thanks!
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/00q1/1999_chrysler_300m-long-term_road_test
Please don't ask my why I was driving 114 mph, but what I would love to hear is why my car does not hit the speeds they claim, or near to it, or if someone can help me with a contact number for an engineer at caranddriver so I can ask them direct I would be greatly appreciative. Thanks!
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/00q1/1999_chrysler_300m-long-term_road_test
shorod
09-25-2011, 10:13 AM
I doubt you're going to find many engineers at Car and Driver, at least not ones that could answer your question. The numbers they claim could very well be what they were told from Chrysler, and they may have been testing a pre-production version of the car that did not have the electronic limiter programmed in. Or, they may have had a different option package than your car with higher performance tires that allowed a higher speed limiter.
You could likely purchase an aftermarket performance tuner that would allow you to disable the speed limiter, but before doing that you would want to make sure that, first off, your tires are speed rated for whatever speed you expect to achieve. Then you'll want to inspect all suspension, steering, and brake components to make sure everything's safe to run those speeds. I'll assume that you are not hitting such speeds on-road and that you are being responsible and only driving this way on closed tracks.
-Rod
You could likely purchase an aftermarket performance tuner that would allow you to disable the speed limiter, but before doing that you would want to make sure that, first off, your tires are speed rated for whatever speed you expect to achieve. Then you'll want to inspect all suspension, steering, and brake components to make sure everything's safe to run those speeds. I'll assume that you are not hitting such speeds on-road and that you are being responsible and only driving this way on closed tracks.
-Rod
Chala95
09-25-2011, 01:03 PM
I doubt you're going to find many engineers at Car and Driver, at least not ones that could answer your question. The numbers they claim could very well be what they were told from Chrysler, and they may have been testing a pre-production version of the car that did not have the electronic limiter programmed in. Or, they may have had a different option package than your car with higher performance tires that allowed a higher speed limiter.
You could likely purchase an aftermarket performance tuner that would allow you to disable the speed limiter, but before doing that you would want to make sure that, first off, your tires are speed rated for whatever speed you expect to achieve. Then you'll want to inspect all suspension, steering, and brake components to make sure everything's safe to run those speeds. I'll assume that you are not hitting such speeds on-road and that you are being responsible and only driving this way on closed tracks.
-Rod
Rod thanks, so are you saying with the correct tires i could hit the speeds caranddriver claims? The car was tested by the caranddriver engineers Rod, not Chryslers claim. please look over my links below.
If the caranddriver engineers were driving a pre-production version of the car wouldn't they know? The links below detail the car they was driving.
Do you know where i could find this after market performance tuner? Thanks.
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/00q1/1999_chrysler_300m-long-term_road_test
http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/original/application/e31cd8bab01a615c1012598ff7c152f2.pdf
You could likely purchase an aftermarket performance tuner that would allow you to disable the speed limiter, but before doing that you would want to make sure that, first off, your tires are speed rated for whatever speed you expect to achieve. Then you'll want to inspect all suspension, steering, and brake components to make sure everything's safe to run those speeds. I'll assume that you are not hitting such speeds on-road and that you are being responsible and only driving this way on closed tracks.
-Rod
Rod thanks, so are you saying with the correct tires i could hit the speeds caranddriver claims? The car was tested by the caranddriver engineers Rod, not Chryslers claim. please look over my links below.
If the caranddriver engineers were driving a pre-production version of the car wouldn't they know? The links below detail the car they was driving.
Do you know where i could find this after market performance tuner? Thanks.
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/00q1/1999_chrysler_300m-long-term_road_test
http://www.caranddriver.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/original/application/e31cd8bab01a615c1012598ff7c152f2.pdf
shorod
09-25-2011, 07:29 PM
What I'm saying is that the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) may have a speed limiter set in it based on the tires that the car was sold with. It looks like your car could have been sold with either a 16-inch or 17-inch wheel. The 17-inch wheels had lower profile, higher performance tires. If the tires your car was sold with were T-rated, for safety reasons (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=35) the PCM may have a speed limiter set at 114 mph so that the driver will not be able to exceed the safe speed for the tires. The long term test car that Car and Driver was provided by Chrysler may have either been optioned differently from your car (including higher performance tires) or may not have had the speed limiter enabled, hence their "drag limited" comment in the performance data. Your car at 114 mph would be listed as "electronically limited" or similar.
I struggle to consider any of the folks driving the car, logging their experiences, and running the performance tests "engineers" and they may not know, or may not see the value in mentioning, if the test car they had was a pre-production car or "tuned" in any particular way. Plus it's not in their best interest to dig in to archives from 12 years ago to determine what options their test car had or if it was a pre-production model. You'd probably have a better chance of finding out if there are calibration differences between models on the 300M forum here.
As for where to find a tuner, a Google search for 300M performance tuner would probably yield several results. You're probably looking for something from SCT or SuperChips or the like. Again, the folks on the 300M forum could probably provide useful feedback on options and pros and cons of the choices out there.
-Rod
I struggle to consider any of the folks driving the car, logging their experiences, and running the performance tests "engineers" and they may not know, or may not see the value in mentioning, if the test car they had was a pre-production car or "tuned" in any particular way. Plus it's not in their best interest to dig in to archives from 12 years ago to determine what options their test car had or if it was a pre-production model. You'd probably have a better chance of finding out if there are calibration differences between models on the 300M forum here.
As for where to find a tuner, a Google search for 300M performance tuner would probably yield several results. You're probably looking for something from SCT or SuperChips or the like. Again, the folks on the 300M forum could probably provide useful feedback on options and pros and cons of the choices out there.
-Rod
Chala95
09-25-2011, 08:03 PM
What I'm saying is that the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) may have a speed limiter set in it based on the tires that the car was sold with. It looks like your car could have been sold with either a 16-inch or 17-inch wheel. The 17-inch wheels had lower profile, higher performance tires. If the tires your car was sold with were T-rated, for safety reasons (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=35) the PCM may have a speed limiter set at 114 mph so that the driver will not be able to exceed the safe speed for the tires. The long term test car that Car and Driver was provided by Chrysler may have either been optioned differently from your car (including higher performance tires) or may not have had the speed limiter enabled, hence their "drag limited" comment in the performance data. Your car at 114 mph would be listed as "electronically limited" or similar.
I struggle to consider any of the folks driving the car, logging their experiences, and running the performance tests "engineers" and they may not know, or may not see the value in mentioning, if the test car they had was a pre-production car or "tuned" in any particular way. Plus it's not in their best interest to dig in to archives from 12 years ago to determine what options their test car had or if it was a pre-production model. You'd probably have a better chance of finding out if there are calibration differences between models on the 300M forum here.
As for where to find a tuner, a Google search for 300M performance tuner would probably yield several results. You're probably looking for something from SCT or SuperChips or the like. Again, the folks on the 300M forum could probably provide useful feedback on options and pros and cons of the choices out there.
-Rod
The answer I was looking for was on another 300 forum site in the FAQ's. I am going to re read car and drivers original article to see if the car they drove had the Performance Handling Group/Package i am sure they mentioned it. Thanks for your help!
Q: What about PHG/PHP?
A: The Performance Handling Group/Package (PHG or PHP) includes stiffer suspension, firm feel steering, improved brakes, V-rated Michelins, and no 118 mph top speed limiter. Pros: a good set of handling upgrades for the price, and some owners of non-PHP cars have reported vibration problems from the Goodyear tires ('01 M's without PHP now also come with Michelins). Cons: a more jarring ride over bumps. If a smooth ride is important to you, test drive both before you buy PHP.
Q: How can I tell if a used 300M has PHG/PHP?
A: Here are three possible methods: (1) '99s and early '00s with PHP came with 16" wheels (beginning mid-year '00, all M's came with 17" wheels), and PHP M's should have V-rated tires; (2) The cooling fins on the front brake rotors on PHP M's exit close to the wheel studs, so if you look at the outer side of the rotor and see a circular opening near the wheel studs it's a PHP M (see this photo of a PHP front rotor); (3) see if it will go over 118 mph http://300mclub.org/forums/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif.
I struggle to consider any of the folks driving the car, logging their experiences, and running the performance tests "engineers" and they may not know, or may not see the value in mentioning, if the test car they had was a pre-production car or "tuned" in any particular way. Plus it's not in their best interest to dig in to archives from 12 years ago to determine what options their test car had or if it was a pre-production model. You'd probably have a better chance of finding out if there are calibration differences between models on the 300M forum here.
As for where to find a tuner, a Google search for 300M performance tuner would probably yield several results. You're probably looking for something from SCT or SuperChips or the like. Again, the folks on the 300M forum could probably provide useful feedback on options and pros and cons of the choices out there.
-Rod
The answer I was looking for was on another 300 forum site in the FAQ's. I am going to re read car and drivers original article to see if the car they drove had the Performance Handling Group/Package i am sure they mentioned it. Thanks for your help!
Q: What about PHG/PHP?
A: The Performance Handling Group/Package (PHG or PHP) includes stiffer suspension, firm feel steering, improved brakes, V-rated Michelins, and no 118 mph top speed limiter. Pros: a good set of handling upgrades for the price, and some owners of non-PHP cars have reported vibration problems from the Goodyear tires ('01 M's without PHP now also come with Michelins). Cons: a more jarring ride over bumps. If a smooth ride is important to you, test drive both before you buy PHP.
Q: How can I tell if a used 300M has PHG/PHP?
A: Here are three possible methods: (1) '99s and early '00s with PHP came with 16" wheels (beginning mid-year '00, all M's came with 17" wheels), and PHP M's should have V-rated tires; (2) The cooling fins on the front brake rotors on PHP M's exit close to the wheel studs, so if you look at the outer side of the rotor and see a circular opening near the wheel studs it's a PHP M (see this photo of a PHP front rotor); (3) see if it will go over 118 mph http://300mclub.org/forums/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif.
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