2,000hp Ford GT sets acceleration record

[GTENVY]

http://motoring.ninemsn.com.au/cars/...eration-record

American racing driver Sean Kennedy has broken the world acceleration record for the standing mile, reaching 414.7km/h (257.7mph) over the distance in a highly modified Ford GT supercar.

A 12.2km/h increase over the previous 402.5km/h record doesn’t sound like much — but at these speeds it takes a massive amount of extra power to make any gains at all. The new record was achieved during the bi-annual Texas Mile Event last month.

American tuning outfit Hennessey built the record-breaking Ford GT for team owner Mark Heidaker. By replacing the standard supercharger with a pair of massive turbos, the tuner has enhanced the GT’s 5.4-litre V8 from a mere 405kW as standard to a “conservatively estimated” 1,471kW (2,000hp).

To achieve this requires 34psi of boost and 117 octane racing fuel — not to mention some exceptionally strong engine and transmission components to withstand the resulting forces.

Kennedy broke the 200mph (320km/h) barrier from stationary by the half-mile mark — meaning it took the remaining half-mile to add that further 97.7km/h — giving you some idea how challenging additional performance becomes at these velocities.

That said, the team will be looking to go faster at the next Texas Mile in October, and Kennedy is confident the Ford offers even more:

“I was impressed with how hard it pulled in fourth and fifth gears on that run. I think I can do better in the lower gears next time and we can run an even better speed.

“We’re coming back in October for sure. We want to go 260!”

Despite being twice as powerful as a 736kW (1,001hp) Bugatti Veyron, the fettled Ford cost just over a quarter of the Veyron’s $2.7 million price tag.

Rich

[MITCHAY]

Curious to see how big these turbos are lol

[Mechan1k]

There's another thread with pics of it in the Pits/Racing section.
I think Prasac opened the thread .... pics and video listed there.

[prasac]

Originally Posted by MITCHAY

Curious to see how big these turbos are lol

they are actually reasonably sized they were Precision PT7675's as the model states 76mm comp wheel and 75mm exhaust. the turbo's are rated at 1200hp each.

in-car video of the record pass http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DcO8jg9qUE





Until March 25, 2012, the record speed achieved at the Texas Mile was 250.1 miles per hour. Hitting a number like that takes more than a fast car and steady nerves; environmental conditions have to be right, too.

If there’s a head wind or a cross wind, chances are it will slow the car or make it less stable at speed. If the day is warm, the air is less dense and even forced-induction engines will make less horsepower.

When going for a record high speed run, the best time to attempt it is early morning; generally speaking, the air is still and the temperature is as cool as it’s going to get all day. That was the strategy behind Sean Kennedy’s record-setting run at Sunday’s Texas Mile event, and it paid off with a new Texas Mile record speed.

Kennedy piloted a twin-turbo Ford GT, owned by Mark Heidaker, to a top speed of 257.7 miles per hour. Not only did that shatter the existing record, but it beat the team’s closest competition by 4.6 miles per hour.

The record-setting car is purpose-built for high-speed runs. The stock 5.4-liter modular V-8 has been replaced by an Accufab Racing built 5.4-liter modular engine, force-fed by a pair of Precision PT7675 Turbochargers. Tuning was handled by Shane Tecklenburg of Tuned By Shane T, and Hennessey Performance Engineering (HPE) made the whole package work in harmony.

Kevin Kesterson of HPE said, “I knew when I saw 204 mph come up on the scoreboard at the half mile, that it was on.” Added Tecklenberg, “We knew the car had it in it. Our task was simply to... figure out a way to apply the power in the right places.”

Unlike the old days of tuning, modern fuel mapping strategies can rely on GPS data to create a power management strategy that takes advantage of traction available at a specific point on the track. In other words, 257.7 is the record speed - for now.

Conditions permitting, the team hopes to break the 260 mph barrier during the next Texas Mile event in late October