Why are motor vehicles built to go faster than the legal speed limit?

Leo31643353

1. Speed limits vary country by country. You as a manufacturer have to account for all potential markets. There are country where are even no limits after all.
2. Sometimes cars have to be driven faster than the limits allow (e.g. ambulance call)

Leo31643353

1. Speed limits vary country by country. You as a manufacturer have to account for all potential markets. There are country where are even no limits after all.
2. Sometimes cars have to be driven faster than the limits allow (e.g. ambulance call)

Skylark

No & NOOOO. Our open road speed limits are too low. The 100 KMH is a carryover from the old 60MPH days. Days of skinny crossply tyres, drum brakes, no seat belts, no crumple zones, no air bags, no seat belts, no ABS brakes. The list of improvements to car is long and impressive. Why can't our open road speed limits reflect this.
The road toll has been decreasing for decades, despite the increasing numbers of vehicles on the road. Why is that? See above. That and better roads. Our current open road limits are stuck in the 1960s because state governments are addicted the revenue raised by speed SCAMeras. I take my road registered hobby car to track days, where I can exercise it to it's full potential. No way I'm going to let the fun police sabotage that pleasure.

socker

Good question it always amazes me and the advertisements for cars always emphasizes that aspect of their vehicles. You may need power to pull a large caravan or boat but power does not equate to high speed.

Hol94

for building fully sick rally cars? haha i dont know

Anonymous

Ideally, if cars were manufactured in each country, we might not have this problem. I assume cars are manufactured according to the country's speed limits.

jjdrer

I agree ---in the late 1950s you could buy a car that would go well over the speed limit. The speed limit from memory then was 60 mph in country areas. The speedo showed that it would do 100mph. I know somebody who owned a standard V8 about the same model in the early 1960s and tried it out on a long straight country road when there was no traffic around and actually the gauge did work. It felt as though we were "flying". The car was not modified at all. The gauge in it showed up to 120mph. He took it too 100 and suddenly realised how fast he was really going.

jjdrer

I agree ---in the late 1950s you could buy a car that would go well over the speed limit. The speed limit from memory then was 60 mph in country areas. The speedo showed that it would do 100mph. I know somebody who owned a standard V8 about the same model in the early 1960s and tried it out on a long straight country road when there was no traffic around and actually the gauge did work. It felt as though we were "flying". The car was not modified at all. The gauge in it showed up to 120mph. He took it too 100 and suddenly realised how fast he was really going.

PGS

Aust/NZ is only a small part of the global market for cars, so we get what other countries get. In Germany 160km/h is not unheard of...

Anonymous

I agree as lots of people always go over if they have too much speed

Anonymous

Cars a built at a certain power to waight ratio if it goes under that than the vehicle will strugle to pick up speed at a safe rate. And it also goes on the gearing in the gearbox and it is built to handle and use the power at a safe rate

Anonymous

Because the government makes a revenue from speeding fines

will

if car makers wanted to they could put governers on like what is fitted on trucks but that wont happen

godsbaby

To my way of thinking, drive to the state of the road your driving on.. it really annoys me that some of our speed limits are being lowered because some drivers just cann't handle their cars.. I think that P Platers should start on 3 or 4 cyl cars and not be able to get a faster car until they have held their opens for 2 years.. No Points or Fines.. Also anyone who loses licence for speeding or dui should be made to start again, learns test and all.. drunk drivers should have a 3 strikes your out rule.. not slower cars but better driver training..

dave

i agree

acrenn

Having enough speed to get out of a bad situation is an important factor. If you find yourself half way past a large truck, for example, with an unexpected approaching vehicle, the extra speed (beyond the speed limit) may save your life. I know that speed can also kill, but only when it is badly utilised.

maccaa

i agree there alot of people driving powerful cars and they drive like crazy

lpullman

i agree there alot of people driving powerful cars and they drive like crazy

And what about all the people who drive powerful cars and don't drive like whatever your definition of crazy is? And all the people in low powered cars who drive like complete idiots? No let's fixate on the car rather than tackle the cause...

manx

What a crock! Imagine if everyone drove cars with tiny little engines.
Tow a boat? Trailer? Even load it up with passengers. Sorry one size doesn't fit all.

des

I totally agree why do they manufacture them to go so fast ?????? leave it on the race track and make our roads safer .

Skylark

I totally agree why do they manufacture them to go so fast ?????? leave it on the race track and make our roads safer .

And exactly how is a speed limiter going to do any thing about a drunk/driver. Or someone who runs a red light/ stop sign?

Anonymous

So what you are saying if we are all trained to the skill of racing drivers there would be fewer accidents??
Do you really think Craig Lownes can speed down city streets with his skill I don't think so. Maybe thats why they race in the 1 direction. Without pedestrians, controlled, uncontrolled intersection with beautiful street scapes to hinder the drivers view.
If you look at statistics of counries that have different road rules to us i.e. speed and seat belts they also have a mortality rate to match.
I agree speed isn't the only factor that kills or injurs, however it is the one thing that we can all control as individuals. DRIVE TO THE CONDITIONS, its not the goverments job to pack your lunch and wipe your b_m, so why should they bare the responsibilty to make sure you don't bump your high powered vehicles on a tree. And who would pay for these roads?? Taxes barely cover the things we take for granted today,
I would hazzard a guess that 95% of the driving public at any one time would not travel any distance to achieve any real time benefits.
And if you can't overtake another car or semi at a max of 130kph then you shouldn't be attempting the manouvre in the first place.
I believe 130kph is ample for everybody and it would reduce some of those rediculous high speed chasers that a few morons do which inevetably causes grief for innocent bystanders one way or another.
And if you are a rev head well you can still see who gets of the line the quickest, so you have nothing to fear there. And if you live in WA and I think the same for other states you lose your license if you go over 30k's over the speed limit, given that most speedos are calibrated approx 2-3k's below real speed you can't lose your license for speeding in 100k zones.
SO other than a couple of bruised ego's whats the problem with governing vehicle speed limits??

lpullman

I totally agree why do they manufacture them to go so fast ?????? leave it on the race track and make our roads safer .

Nice straw man you have there, mate.

The point you've missed being that highly trained and experienced drivers don't speed down city streets. It's the untrained and inexperienced that drive in a manner unsuited to the conditions. If you don't believe me, feel free to consult the statistics that every state government publishes.

Driving to the conditions is precisely about making your own decisions rather than relying on the (governement supplied) speed limit. Try living somewhere where you get ice on the roads overnight and watch the tourists sliding around because they rely on those speed signs rather than their own judgement. The state of the roads here in SA makes it doubly so: near me is a stretch where they lowered the speed limit rather than fixing the surface...

If you think 130km is enough to pass a B-double on a single lane highway then you've never done it.

Don't try traffic light drags in this state: squeal a tyre and you're fair game under our anti-hoon laws. Besides, traffic light drag racing is just as dumb as any other form of racing on the street. Go to a track (and you might just learn something useful as well)

Lastly, we're not talking about enforcement of speed limits, but speed limiting vehicles.

Anonymous

like it has been said already, Australia is not the only country that has cars, and other countries have different speed limits or none on certain highways in Germany.
another point; Austrailia has the lowest average speed limits in the world, and also has one of the highest road tolls.
its about the driver, not the vehicle.
just because you have a fast car, does not mean you have to drive it fast

i enjoy driving fast cars, but the are tracks for that. $150 for a day on the track sounds better to me than a fine, loss of points, or potentialy harming someone

paradox

hi RainbowSpirit, love the name. I have lived in the Northern Territory for 46 years and have travelled on business a lot. just consider the 1500km drive from Darwin to Alice Springs. If you are stupid you could drive that distance in 10 hours and people did that all the time. If you are a reasonable driver you can make it in 15 hours like I did with a few rest stops in between. If you are comfortable with spending the night in Tenant Creek and driving on the next day that's fine too. between towns , in a good and well maintained car, a good stretch of road and being an experienced driver doing 160 km an hour requires concentration but is quite doable. I didn't drive at 160 the first time I had to travel a long distance by road. Speed developed with me gaining confidence in myself, the car and the road. and yes I have assisted at accidents and have seen the carnage that can occur. Accidents happen and kill even at slow speeds. As to why cars are built for higher speeds, I can think of one reason. To overtake requires instant extra power that would not be available if an automatic restriction on performance was incorporated. Also Cars are traded internationally and it would be difficult to develop all those different type of engines.

sophietyphoon

Many cars are produced with 'cruise-control' these days so as your car need not exceed ANY speed limit. I personally have a car with a 'limitor' on it so as it doesn't exceed 250kph. That doesn't mean I exceed the speed limit. It does mean that I enjoy taking my car to track days and race it whenever I can. I can't actually afford two cars, so, when I'm on the road I do the limit, when I'm on track I push it to its limits. Many people, like myself, can't afford to buy cars for racing and for street driving. Don't assume that everyone with a speedy car drives in that fashion. It's not the car, it's the idiots behind the wheel that make ANY car dangerous. Train/teach people about road safety and ethics and let the motor vehicle companies get on with the job of making better cars.

kel

Cars are built to go faster than our speed limits because there are different limits all over the world. think of the autobahns in germany.

kel

Cars are built to go faster than our speed limits because there are different limits all over the world. think of the autobahns in germany.

PukPuk

It is a simple matter to put speed limiters on vehicles although the extra cost is hard to pass onto the consumer so it not done under community pressure - the same community that wants to reduce the road toll. The by product of producing engines that can propel a vehicle in the shortest possible time and distance (eg - overtaking within the law) also enables a higher gearing ratio at the top end that offers a higher top speed. The question is, do we build engines that can only power up to certain level but take a lot longer to overtake on the wrong side of the road or have that power in reserve and accept the cost of installing limiters. It has to be aknowled though that limiters on their own will not stop speeding such as in the lower speed zone areas and also there are always people who will interfere with them like the early models installed on trucks.

jjdrer

Trucks are governed, why aren't cars. People should take into consideration the road conditions too. Some seem to go quicker when it is raining heavily that when it is fine or light drizzle. It is scary when you slow down because visibility is really bad and you have another vehicle go past you as though you are stationary, when there is NO way they could see that far ahead of them, and didn't even have their lights on. We need to remember if you hit another vehicle you hit at the combined speed. It shocks me also how many people don't have their children either not restrained at all, or their baby or booster seats are not properly installed. My brother worked for a Crash Repair business and was called to a few accidents. The only vehicles in which there were children hurt where those who didn't have their children restrained correctly -- if at all.

bear

If cars only go the speed limit they seem to have a shorter life span and dont run as well as those that have additional speed limit.
Also I have driven very long distances (Hedland to Perth and return several times) and was thankful that I could go a little faster than the speed limit especially on the straighter parts of the road. I have also driven overseas on the autobahn and felt quite safe driving in excess of the Australian maximum possible speed limit.
If all drivers were a harsh driving test involving difficult skills such as steep hill starts, 3 lane roundabouts, parking in tricky spots and emergency stops as I had to, then I think that drivers should be able to drive a little faster at times.

Aussiebear

Because just in Australia is speed limit 100 km-110km/h,and and car manufacturers sell cars all over the world,not just in Australia! The problem is not the speed,it is the quality of the roads! I came from Europe,I drive more then 1 million km in my life,never have an accident,my biggest speed I drive a car it was 240km/h in Germany. And believe me,was not even a small danger,so perfect have the Germans the Autobahns! It is shame,but the number of driving fatalities in Australia it is from different causes,like alcohol, drugs,stupidity,(driving your car to 90 years old,when you cannot walk properly,I saw with my own eyes!),and the most important,again,quality of the roads. And I forget,quality of the cars too! I was driving on the highway,and a piece of junk,40 years old,fly overtaking me,a few km later was in the bush,upside down,with a tyre explosion! How is possible to let someone drive bombs on wheels like we saw many times on our roads?

chicoco

if they increase the speed limit, the state governments would loose out on millions in revenue. it is all about ripping people off.take tyres for example, my car by law has to use a certain size tyre, the speed rating is V (225km safe speed),in most of the areas i drive in the highest speed is 60,100 on m5 m4 etc.Why is my car supposed to use tyres that are more than capable of traveling at twice the legal limit on free ways. Yes its money, sales tax on a $270 tyre x 4 is more than the tax for a nice cheap pair say at $90 ea.

jjdrer

if they increase the speed limit, the state governments would loose out on millions in revenue. it is all about ripping people off.take tyres for example, my car by law has to use a certain size...

With Tyres in most cases "you get what you pay for". Cheapies do not last as long as some of the slightly more expensive ones fo. It also what air pressure you keep them at and how conservative driver you are. The more you have to apply your brakes the quicker your tyres wear. When we sold our last car it had only done just under 50,000km. It was only on its second set of tyres. The frist ones weren't that worn but had started to go sticky with age. I might add it wasn't driven a lot - mainly for the shopping and an outing about every 3 weeks. The furtherest it ever went was from Adelaide to Mornington Pens. in Vict. twice, to the Flinders Ranges 3 times and Mallala about 2 hours several times over a period of 20 years. Due to somebody rear-ending us at traffic lights one day (they were red) the Insurance Co queried the Mileage. Fortunately we had always recorded our mileage, amount of fuel we used and the cost in a log book., also service records., dockets etc. We used to average the fuel usage per km. It was a good way of determining if it was using more fuel than it should be.

ted

Because Car manufacturers need to sell a vehicle, it is alright to say cars are too fast! but I believe that Australian drivers do not have the training or experience to handle speed, in most countries it takes a lot more training and experience before you can get a licence. Out here you can go and get your licence after only a few months of experience. Cars may be safer but it still boils down to as the old adage goes most accidents are not caused by the car but by radial Thrombosis " a clot behind the wheel"

Colliedog

As a parent who lost a son because of speed i agree that these cars should not go in excess of the legal speed limit.Car manufacturers should also not advertise speed in their commercials,it is not cool it is dumb.

Chicken

I like the comments so far haha. Speed doesn't kill, lack of training or bad diving does. Just because they have the technology to make cars go faster doesnt mean to say they have to use it. Australaian and New Zealand roads are not designed to take cars traveling at the sort of speed you are getting at.Driver training teaches you to 'drive to the conditions' That is why we have speed limits! And speed does kill, the harder something hits, the more damage it does, not to mention less reaction time..
Yes I believe cars should be able to go faster than the speed limit, there are times when you have to get out of trouble for example, but 140kph max is my idea.

jjdrer

I like the comments so far haha. Speed doesn't kill, lack of training or bad diving does. Just because they have the technology to make cars go faster doesnt mean to say they have to use it....

If you are unfortunate to collide with another vehicle, the speed your and the other vehicle are travelling at is the speed calculated as impact speed.---especially in a head-on or side-swipe situation.
That is why there is so many injuries, tragic deaths and also written off cars.
I personally know Police Officers (one has retired from Chief of Accident Investigation-now known as Major Crash) and Crash Repair Companies that have had some very badly smashed cars in storage waiting for insurance co, decisions.

Jeay4nz

Hah, You Guys should come over here to NZ and try speeding at 110 Kph, it is guarenteed that You will get a speeding ticket for $250 plus 20 Demerit Points,

Our Speed limit is just 100 K's on the Open Roads with Restrictions in Built up Ereas and God Help you if you Exceed it and get caught. :-)

As for Building Cars that far exceed these Speeding limits,

Yes, I am at a loss as to why there is any need to Build fast cars for the average family man that just wants to get to work and do the Shopping and probably take a trip somehere to Relax for a weekend.

Clint Marchant

Hah, You Guys should come over here to NZ and try speeding at 110 Kph, it is guarenteed that You will get a speeding ticket for $250 plus 20 Demerit Points,

Our Speed limit is just 100...

what you are forgetting is people like to load their cars up and also tow things so you need the power for that also we don't have flat roads everywhere so you are going to need power to get up a mountain/hill what would you expect people to to do own a dozen cars for each occasion?

sophietyphoon

Hah, You Guys should come over here to NZ and try speeding at 110 Kph, it is guarenteed that You will get a speeding ticket for $250 plus 20 Demerit Points,

Our Speed limit is just 100...

There are cars produced for the "average family man" and then there are cars for the others. No-one puts a gun to anyone's head and says, "buy the fast car".

Anonymous

Hah, You Guys should come over here to NZ and try speeding at 110 Kph, it is guarenteed that You will get a speeding ticket for $250 plus 20 Demerit Points,

Our Speed limit is just 100...

Ummm NOT...Everyone knows that 110km is the new 100km, 100km is the new 90km, 90km is the new 80km...etc Everyone but yourself that is...

The only time that changes is public holidays when they tell you that if you exceed over 4km of the speed limit you will be fined and demerit points will be given...

webbyhrt

Speed doesn't kill people, bad(or lack of) driver training does.

Manufacturers make their cars go faster because technology is advancing at such a rate that it is safe to do so. Australia is stuck in the dark ages with its 110Kph speed limits, while the rest of the world(and NT) safely does 130Kph.

Anonymous

Speed doesn't kill people, bad(or lack of) driver training does.

Manufacturers make their cars go faster because technology is advancing at such a rate that it is safe to do so. Australia...

Speed does kill you right now I am doing an assignment on every K over is a killer. speed kills you because you can lose control of the car even an experienced driving can.

jjdrer

Is the N.T. limited now? when I lived there you drove as fast as you felt safe (outside the city limits) and they had the lowest road deaths per head of capita than anywhere else in Australia

When we went to NT on a Coach Tour if a road was a bit narrow Road Trains and other large vehicles had right of way and other vehicles had to move over. If a long vehicle have to move off the edge of the road onto the soil up there it is more likely to roll over.

Anonymous

Speed doesn't kill people, bad(or lack of) driver training does.

Manufacturers make their cars go faster because technology is advancing at such a rate that it is safe to do so. Australia...

yes

Clint Marchant

Speed doesn't kill people, bad(or lack of) driver training does.

Manufacturers make their cars go faster because technology is advancing at such a rate that it is safe to do so. Australia...

Is the N.T. limited now? when I lived there you drove as fast as you felt safe (outside the city limits) and they had the lowest road deaths per head of capita than anywhere else in Australia

peterv

Speed doesn't kill people, bad(or lack of) driver training does.

Manufacturers make their cars go faster because technology is advancing at such a rate that it is safe to do so. Australia...

At last someone with commonsense.You are spot on with your comments.