anyone knows just how long is Mulsanne straight? and what car holds the highest speed reached there? what was Ferrari's last victory @ Le Mans? is a LM car faster than a F1? or it was in the 70's only? any additional info and pics will be appreciated.
I believe the Mulsanne straight is 4 miles long. Though now it has a chicane halfway through in order to keep the speeds down to a more sane (if north of 200 qualifies) level.
The Porsche 917s were hitting 230 MPH, but were actually expected to go faster down the Mulsanne straight. Porsche discovered that the Dunlop tires they were using were growing in diameter due to the high speeds, causing the entire car to run higher with a greater frontal area, thereby slowing them down. I don't think an F1 car could run a full 4 miles at peak revs, at least not for more than a couple laps at best.
They worked out that at 8100 (iirc) rpm's, Derek Bell got to 248 in the 917. Its in the latest octane, i'll check the exact speed tomorrow, but it was around there.
Yes, latest Autocar has an interview with the WR team who hold the record at 405 kph/251 mph in a home-built french thing....
