It seems like half-mile and mile racing is all the rage these days, and we can completely understand why. There are few things in this world that compare to hitting your car’s top speed while watching stationary objects fly by at seemingly unearthly speeds. But it’s hard for us to imagine going nearly 260 mph, but that’s exactly what RecMech Motorsports just did, cementing their C6 Corvette as the fastest of all time.
While speeds in excess of 200 mph seem like the norm these days, there is a lot to breaking the 200 mph-barrier, especially when it is in a limited amount of space such as half-mile and 1.5-mile races. Shootouts like these typically offer far less traction at their outset and typically require 1,500+ horsepower behemoths to apply their power judiciously, resulting in an delicate dance of power application.
Luckily, RecMech is no stranger to top-speed racing and set out with the goal of making their C6 the fastest of all time. They kicked things off with a fully forged, 427 cubic inch LSX. All those cubes are fed by a ProCharger F1X which was specifically designed by East Coast Supercharging stuffing 30 pounds of boost down the mill’s throat. Naturally, the whole system is run by a ProEFI system which uses its advanced traction control systems to make sure the Corvette is hitting max steam as fast as possible.
Even with the system fully engaged, you can hear the Corvette hunting for traction at the top of second gear. The momentary lapse in traction actually requires hot foot Jason White to have to pedal the car to get the Hoosier slicks back into traction. The car is making so much power that White is also short shifting the car in order to maintain the car’s tenuous grip on the tarmac. Toward the end of the video you’ll notice that the engine is easily capable of turning 7,000+ rpm which puts the boost past the 30 psi range.
While autos may rule the roost in drag racing, longer distances typically favor manual transmissions due to the weight saving and since it’s hard to plant all of that power right away. The RecMech C6’s mill is backed by a TR6060 six-speed transmission built by RPM Transmissions.
RPM also built the beefed up rear end that the ‘Vette uses to split its considerable grunt out back. For the cage and chassis work, the RecMech team turned to Delaware Chassis to get the car dialed in while a set of RideTech coilovers keeps the car on terra firma.
And though it might seem like a straightforward setup, a lot goes into making sure a car is predictable at speed in excess of 250 mph. However, the crew from RecMech appears to have everything perfectly dialed in as the C6 goes straighter than an arrow on its way to trapping 232.5 mph in the mile and 258.63 mph in a mile and a half.
If you’ve ever tested the limits of your cars speed, you’ll know that going more than 200 mph is insanity in and of itself, but being closer to 300 mph than 200 mph has got to been an experience all its own. Congrats to the team over at RecMech, we can’t wait to see what they’ll do next.