bone-stock blown Saturn Ion = deceptively fast
11-22-2009, 12:37 AM
#1
bone-stock blown Saturn Ion = deceptively fast So a blue Saturn pulls up next to me in my bone stock 6spd manual 1997 Corvette, and he taps the gas a couple of times. I'm thinking that he's either pretty modded or insane..... most likely the 2nd.
Now, he didn't win, but the fact that he stayed next to me for so long surprised the hell out of me. We started at 65mph, which is a pretty bad spot since I shift out of 2nd at 75mph, and which gear I should be in is a grey area. I selected 3rd. That aside, this thing looks like Saturn's equivalent of a Cobalt or a neon. I didn't know that they came supercharged, though. Anyway, I didn't pull more than a car-length in 3rd. When I power-shifted into 4th gear I finally started pulling nicely.
We pulled over and he told me that his best pass at the dragstrip was a 13.1@103. My best so far in the 'vette has been a 13.2@108. It didn't feel like this car would've bested me from a dig, but apparently the fact that it's FWD doesn't have a negative impact on its traction.
Just thought I'd share,
Chris
Now, he didn't win, but the fact that he stayed next to me for so long surprised the hell out of me. We started at 65mph, which is a pretty bad spot since I shift out of 2nd at 75mph, and which gear I should be in is a grey area. I selected 3rd. That aside, this thing looks like Saturn's equivalent of a Cobalt or a neon. I didn't know that they came supercharged, though. Anyway, I didn't pull more than a car-length in 3rd. When I power-shifted into 4th gear I finally started pulling nicely.
We pulled over and he told me that his best pass at the dragstrip was a 13.1@103. My best so far in the 'vette has been a 13.2@108. It didn't feel like this car would've bested me from a dig, but apparently the fact that it's FWD doesn't have a negative impact on its traction.
Just thought I'd share,
Chris
but i'm having issues with my car and one things is the horribly crappy tires
11-22-2009, 05:04 AM
#6
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Do you know what kind of Saturn it was? The new Sky Redlines are turbo powered with direct injection. With a few bolt on mods and tires I think the times he said are definitly believable.
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11-22-2009, 11:55 AM
#8
'97 camaro and trans-am = LT1, but not '97 vette...
I don't know what a sky redline is, but this was an ion and definitely had a blower with a water-air heat exchanger. I looked under the hood. The blower looked like a miniture twin-screw. It looked just like the KBs and whipples that go on Cobras, except it was mounted sideways, and was about 1/3 the size of the Cobra blowers.
I'm not saying that his claim was BS, but it definitely seems unlikely that he would be able to run a 13.1 with a FWD car that couldn't beat me on the highway. Still, it hung in there with me for much longer than I expected so I could see some higher 13s. I would think that a race from a dig would be to my benefit, not his.
I don't know what a sky redline is, but this was an ion and definitely had a blower with a water-air heat exchanger. I looked under the hood. The blower looked like a miniture twin-screw. It looked just like the KBs and whipples that go on Cobras, except it was mounted sideways, and was about 1/3 the size of the Cobra blowers.
I'm not saying that his claim was BS, but it definitely seems unlikely that he would be able to run a 13.1 with a FWD car that couldn't beat me on the highway. Still, it hung in there with me for much longer than I expected so I could see some higher 13s. I would think that a race from a dig would be to my benefit, not his.
11-22-2009, 04:33 PM
#11
Good kill! Definitely sounds like the Ion Redline was modded as a bone stock one won't come close to a 13.1 (about 1 second slower is considered decent). The 103 looks a bit high also as I think they usually trap like 97-98 I believe. Sounds like he figured out the traction though to run a 13.1 with a 103 mph trap!
11-22-2009, 04:51 PM
#12
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that is a fairly low trap running that time they can run 14.6 to 14.2 around 98mph stock thats around average give or take some... it would be nice to know some of his mods
11-23-2009, 08:25 PM
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11-30-2009, 11:05 PM
#19
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Wow, I raced one of these in some chicks '06 BMW 325i (M6) and almost beat him on the street. He pulled me by about a fender or maybe a half a car length. I was surprised when he started pulling but then i heard the SC whine and was like damn... I should have drove the TA! Funny little cars.
