Top Speed

[James77]

Originally Posted by Kevin in NJ

See the link to my page on general comments.

Link to General Comments on the A

Keep in mind a car rebuilt to factory specs has no problem running over 60 MPH. They are a dream to drive at 45.

Some that have a top speed of 45 are a nightmare to drive that fast.

That's some good info!! Thanks!

[crminal]

Stock motor with 750x16 rear rubber on '40 steelies runs 56 mph on dead flat measured by GPS.

[pick]

agree with what has been said as far as car being "comfortable" to cruise all day long at 54 mph. have had @ 70 mph but with short wheelbase and still suspension it's not really "fun to drive" at 70 (at least not on Indiana roads).

[roccaas]

Ask your wife when she's in the passenger seat. She'll know the top speed.

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by James77

What's the top speed on a Model A?

When people ask me I tell them, "65-70 but it's not happy. Just like your modern car it might go up to 100mph but is happy doing that?"

[jr-41ford]

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I've had mine up to 55 mph and never tried going any faster. I normally drive it 35 to 45 mph, occasionally up to 50 mph on a country road.

I drive it to enjoy it, not out to break any land speed records and not interested in seeing how fast it goes. It goes plenty fast enough for me.

[steve s]

When I first got my stock 29 town sedan, I had it up to 55 on a long level stretch of 8 Mile Road once. With a full quarter-turn of free play in the steering wheel and no shocks, it was a real white-knuckle experience.

After rebuilding with 5.9 head and OD, it gets up to 65 easily, but it's still rather stressful. OD doesn't buy you as much top end as you might think. 52 is sort of a sweet spot with my car, with or without the OD. Of course, it's lot quieter with the OD, and I would never go back.

Steve

[bobpo]

I went to coffee shop in a nearby little town the other day, and the country road on the way is curvy and hilly. (no mountains tho) A fella came into the coffee house later and told me that he had been following my Model A and that I must have been doing a good 55 mph. I "feel" it when it is cruisin' good and that's around 45 mph. So I doubt that I was doing 55 mph. I have checked it with a GPS and it will do 55 mph, and that's about it.

[James77]

Lord willin...I got an "A", I'd probably use it for sunday drives with the family. You should'nt need to do 100mph to do that....LOL!

[bobpo]

Good Luck, drive Safe and there's No Reason to be in such a rush anyway....................

[James77]

Originally Posted by Peter J

I have been told that their were a number of axle ratios supplied for different parts of the country (stamped on the housing?) which would play a huge part in the top speed. By the way, where is this stamp?

That's interesting! Wonder what ratio they had for Kentucky?

[buyitsmart]

A few weeks ago I had my stock 31 Deluxe Coupe up to 52 mph according to the GPS. I didn't feel safe because the front end was shaking pretty bad. It likes 40-43 mph as a cruising speed. I have a 3.78 axle ratio. I have a Mitchell OD on order and need to get the front end adjusted so I can safely drive 55 mph. I am building a touring car so I can drive it all the time...my Snyder 6.1 HC Head is scheduled for delivery tomorrow. Yay!

[Huckster Dave]

31 slant fordor checked with a GPS unit did 68 mph. Has a stock B diamond engine.

[jojofilo88]

i typically get mine up to 35 when i drive..ive done about 43 and she sounds pretty stressed. i guess i have the lower gears but have never checked. i have heard of everyone going 6 and been jealous...going to have to swap gears...

[68HILLBILLY]

DON'T know how fast mine will go , but I like driving it at 35-45 mph. It doesn't sound like it is straining and it is a pleasure just to take your time and look around. For me its more about the experience and the enjoyment of not rushing around. Find yourself an old winding back road with no traffic and just drive around, if your looking more for speed, go for a newer classic car. seems to me every decade gained around 10 mph or so. my 40 sedan is very comfortable at 45-55, my 55 chevy and 55 fords were both comfortable at 55-65, by the late fiftys into the sixties you could drive about as fast as you wanted. just my personal experiences.

[dan]

My 31 coupe, which is my daily driver/commuter car, will do 55 without a sweat--but it's got a Weber carb, a HC head, and headers.

If you're thinking about the top speed of the car in a flat-out-at-Bonneville kind of way, then even a mildly tweaked car will do 60-65 with no problem. But if you're asking about driving the car on actual streets, the problem isn't how fast it will go, the problem is making sure you don't overdrive your brakes. I have correctly adjusted mechanical brakes and I'm not comfortable going more than ~50 mph and even then I leave a respectable interval between me and the car ahead. But with today's drivers being what they are, you have to be very careful and attentive.

Just my $0.02

[Louis]

38-43 Is best for my stock 31 coupe.

As far as top speed for an "A" model, I think the "A" model driver with the least amount of common sense will always have the fastest "A".

[Jerry Parr WI]

My stock 30's top out just over 65. I normally run laid back about 52-55 depending on the car and only speed up when traffic demands. Years ago I had a stock 29 coupe that was clocked at 72 on the interstate by a member of the blue squad. Drove it flat out all the time. That was when I was a teenager and still invincible.

[buyitsmart]

Originally Posted by dan

My 31 coupe, which is my daily driver/commuter car, will do 55 without a sweat--but it's got a Weber carb, a HC head, and headers.

If you're thinking about the top speed of the car in a flat-out-at-Bonneville kind of way, then even a mildly tweaked car will do 60-65 with no problem. But if you're asking about driving the car on actual streets, the problem isn't how fast it will go, the problem is making sure you don't overdrive your brakes.

I agree with Dan. It seems that my car and I enjoy 38-42 the most. I just wish I could find roads without other drivers on them. In 1931 that may not have been a problem, but today in central Florida those roads don't exist!

Ken in Orlando.

[marc hildebrant]

One day in 1970, I was crusing along route 128 in Massachusetts in my 1933 Chev. Coupe. My driving speed was 45 MPH. I'm in the right lane.

I noticed a Ford Model A that came up beside me, on the left, that was going my speed. After waving, I pushed up the speed to 50 MPH. After all, I wasn't going to let a Ford pass me !

The Ford matched my speed to 50, so, I pushed it faster...Ford Matched me. This continued up to 65 MPH, when the Ford slowly faded back...driver gave me a thumbs up and I went home.

Later, I found out that I had a crack in a valve seat that occured. When I told my father about the "mini race", he just signed and helped me fix the crack at a machine shop.

Marc