2008 Mitsubishi Lancer: Feels Good at 121 mph

"Pro" and "closed course". Right. Whatever you say.

Are you kidding? Just because a car can REACH 120+ mph doesn't mean it's stable at that speed. I'd be terrified to drive my Camry Solara at 120, it feels like it's ready to float off the road at 100.

i agree that 120 is not a big deal, a 2000 honda civic DX with 106hp and an automatic will hit 130MPH and feels stable, and a 1988 toyota mr2 with 112hp will hit 130mph also. so this lancer tops out at 10MPH slower then a late 80's 4cyl and a late 90's 4cyl.

LOL! Is this the beginning of a trend? Perhaps "The Stig" has come Stateside!

I think that Scott tries to prove the stability of the car at that speed from the clearness/clarity of the picture. Even though there is a lot of light and the shutter speed of the camera was relatively fast enough to take a good picture anyways, I would take his word if he was doing 120mph with one hand on the wheel and the other holding the camera trying to focus on the speedometer.

Hey, Scott, where can I get my car to go 140 MPH in a close course and with a professional driver? I would love to find out how stable my car is at that speed.

Almost all cars today, in North America at least, have speed limiters. Most of them could do 120 mph, but the question is how do they feel at that speed. I bet some could be frightening.
The statement here is that the Lancer feels "dead stable" at that speed, which tells something about how the car is built.
If a comparison is to be made, it would be interesting to hear what the same "professional driver" has to say about other cars when pushed to the same speed, on the same "closed course".

All cars are limited by redline, drag, or electronic means - or often a combination of the three. It all depends on the combination of gearing, power and tires. My BMW is capable of exceeding 150 mph since the power and gearing is there but the tires are not, so the electronic limiter is a must.
 
Stability is definitely separate from capability.

My old '97 Escort (may it RIP) was scary at its governed 104 mph top speed. Heck anything above 80 was relatively unstable. So if an econo-box (in high trim) can feel stable at 121 mph, then great.
 
Looks like this car has a trip computer. Does it give you instantaneous fuel economy? If so, what was it at 121 mph?

To the dood who posted that a 106hp Civic DX with auto trans can go 130mph, can I have some of that rope that yer smokin?
;)

@bimmerjay
 
BMW's are limited to about 155 just like the other 3 german luxury car manufacturers becasue of some goofy law

"To the dood who posted that a 106hp Civic DX with auto trans can go 130mph, can I have some of that rope that yer smokin? "
 
I'm betting he doesn't realize his speedometer is reading km/hr, not mph.

bemanix88, check your alignment and make sure you have non-Goodyears, and your cold tire pressure should be +3 psi of recommended on door jam.
You are probably "floating" from poor alignment, or riding on cheap Goodyears, or have underinflated tires.
 
Those are problems with any car, nothing to do with the specific chassis of your family coupe.
Especially a Toyota. Toyotas are blobulous, but that's due to Toyotas having the industry's lowest drag coefficients, thanks to their blobulous, fuel efficient, ultra aerodynamic shapes.

I have a 2000 Honda Civic LX. I've never gone faster than 100. My car has way too much NVH when going faster than 80 mph. The car is unstable when there are lots of winds too. Feels like the car is about to take off. 121 mph? No thanks, maybe in my Acura TL.

umm isn't most float feeling around because of under damped shocks?

No, its due to Toyotas being POS softly tuned boats to appeal to the appliance loving crowd such as Consumer Reports.

What's wrong with the appliance loving crowd? Don't they deserve to have cars for their liking as well? Just becaue they are not as vocal as the "enthusiasts" doesn't mean that they should be overlooked. Last I checked, their Benjamins are just as good as yours and mine.
 
Just because the product is not yours liking you call it a POS, what a joke...

cah11705:
The electronically-limited 155 mph top speed of certain German makes is due to a gentlemen's agreement they made (back in the late '80s, I think) so they wouldn't get caught up in a top-speed pissing contest.

Don't know if kgrgunman's 106hp Civic DX auto will get past 120, but my wife's 127hp '99 Civic EX five-speed will. The aerodynamics make it a bit fussy though--too much front-end lift. I prefer to keep it to double digits.

"cah11705:
The electronically-limited 155 mph top speed of certain German makes is due to a gentlemen's agreement they made (back in the late '80s, I think) so they wouldn't get caught up in a top-speed pissing contest."
 
Dammit you beat me to it! ;-)
 
Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW are in on that agreement, although MB broke it with the SLR and the AMG Sport packages on the '63 models. Also, the 3-Series is limited to either 130 or 150 mph, depending on equipment. The higher-end BMWs have the 155 mph restriction.

"What's wrong with the appliance loving crowd? Don't they deserve to have cars for their liking as well? Just becaue they are not as vocal as the "enthusiasts" doesn't mean that they should be overlooked. Last I checked, their Benjamins are just as good as yours and mine.
  
Just because the product is not yours liking you call it a POS, what a joke..."
 
Good call.

Really is this becoming a trend, of posting pictures at high speed? Reminds me of the guys who hit 219mph in a Murcielago LP640 on the Arizona highway.

desmo: "To the dood who posted that a 106hp Civic DX with auto trans can go 130mph, can I have some of that rope that yer smokin?"
  
106 hp could maybe hit 120 if you reduce your drag, have a tailwind, and are travelling downhill. Agreed that 130 is overly optimistic. Maybe the speedo is calibrated wrong.
  
Allegedly my dad's old '89 Prelude could top 130, but I know that speedo was about 5-10% high. Math nerd that I am, I set cruise and take the time it takes to go between several mile markers to verify my speed...