Is 85MPH The Safest Speed Limit?

[Avatard]

That, exactly.

[Trip]

Originally Posted by Avatard

That, exactly.

you know that could be their new revenue generator and I wouldn't have an issue with that at all.

[Avatard]

Me either. I've always said that if I were a cop, that's the ticket I'd write all fucking day long.

[EpyonXero]

Sounds like BS to me. What makes driving 85 "safer" than 55?

Also, the 55 mph speed limit was created to reduce fuel consumption. You car is more efficient at 55 then at 85.

[Particle Man]

Originally Posted by EpyonXero

Sounds like BS to me. What makes driving 85 "safer" than 55?

Also, the 55 mph speed limit was created to reduce fuel consumption. You car is more efficient at 55 then at 85.

I would argue that last part is all about gearing rather than anything else.

[EpyonXero]

Originally Posted by Particle Man

I would argue that last part is all about gearing rather than anything else.

Wind resistance is a bigger factor.

[Particle Man]

Originally Posted by EpyonXero

Wind resistance is a bigger factor.

And I would say a lot of that ha to do with styling more than anything. I know road friction played a big part in the past but new materials and technologies have improved that as well.

[EpyonXero]

Originally Posted by Particle Man

And I would say a lot of that ha to do with styling more than anything. I know road friction played a big part in the past but new materials and technologies have improved that as well.

Aerodynamics make a big difference which is why most hybrids and electric cars look so much different than conventional cars. But the average car still creates a lot of drag and no mater how streamlined the vehicle is, power required increases drastically with speed.

From Wikipedia:

The power required to overcome the aerodynamic drag is given by:

Note that the power needed to push an object through a fluid increases as the cube of the velocity. A car cruising on a highway at 50 mph (80 km/h) may require only 10 horsepower (7.5 kW) to overcome air drag, but that same car at 100 mph (160 km/h) requires 80 hp (60 kW). With a doubling of speed the drag (force) quadruples per the formula. Exerting four times the force over a fixed distance produces four times as much work. At twice the speed the work (resulting in displacement over a fixed distance) is done twice as fast. Since power is the rate of doing work, four times the work done in half the time requires eight times the power.

[Avatard]

Originally Posted by EpyonXero

Sounds like BS to me. What makes driving 85 "safer" than 55?

Also, the 55 mph speed limit was created to reduce fuel consumption. You car is more efficient at 55 then at 85.

Why not 35 then?

[Homeslice]

The title is bs...... he's not claiming 85 is the "safest" speed limit.........He's simply saying it's a lot safer than people would think.