Car and Driver editors have a special relationship with 200 mph. Thanks to our jobs’ proximity to racing, land-speed record attempts, and insanely powerful production and tuner cars, several current and former editors have had the opportunity to blast through the 200-mph barrier.
Patrick Bedard did it when he raced in the Indy 500. Don Sherman exceeded the double-hundred on the Bonneville Salt Flats and two times as part of our Gathering of Eagles Ultimate Top Speed Shootout back in 1987. I hit 231 mph at that same event. Csaba Csere went airborne at 200-plus mph at Bonneville and notched 253 mph in a Bugatti Veyron.
More recently, editor-in-chief Tony Quiroga, testing director Dave VanderWerp, and senior editor Ezra Dyer earned their 200-mph merit badges. Still, cars that can go this fast and the places to do it safely rarely come together, so traveling to the far side of 200 mph is a special lifetime event.
Each foray to 200 mph—where you’re covering nearly the length of a football field each second—is a unique sensory experience that varies greatly from car to car; it’s a story you want to share. Thanks to some free time with a 2023 Porsche 911 Turbo S during our recent 0-150-0-mph test, we can now welcome two other editors to the C/D 200-mph club. Not surprisingly, they too have something to say about it.—Rich Ceppos
David Beard’s First 200-MPH Trip
As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to go 200 mph. I recall my younger years when I’d peer through the windows of sports cars to get a glimpse of the highest number on the speedometer. My first exposure to 200 mph came at Michigan International Speedway with 40 of the premier class NASCAR machines racing through Turn 1 as I stood on the fence, just feet away from the pack. Talk about a rush. I needed 200 mph in my life.
I’ve performance tested over 800 cars since 2016. Some really, really fast and some painfully slow. By now, I figured I would’ve earned my 200-mph patch. But arriving at two-hundo requires adequate space. Quiroga and VanderWerp took the cheater routes, as a Bugatti with 1000-plus horsepower will do the deed in no time.
Going into the the 0-150-0 event, I knew the 911 Turbo S had a chance. “As long as there’s room.” I told myself. During my last 150-mph pull, I made the decision to stay in the throttle as I blew past our timing tent. Around 170 mph, the Turbo S sways a bit in the breeze. I remember thinking, “What the heck am I doing? Why am I the guinea pig? I’ve got a 2-month-old at home.” But the fear is part of the thrill. It’s why we do what we do. I think I touched 197 mph on the sighting run. With the tire pressure adjusted for maximum velocity, 200 mph is easily achieved on Oscoda’s taxiway.
What’s 200 mph feel like in a wide-open space? To me, not much. I’ve gone nearly 120 mph down a retired railroad bed on a snowmobile. Traveling 180 mph on the tree-lined, two-lane road at the proving grounds, knowing there’s big and heavy wildlife lurking in the woods, gets the adrenaline pumping. Without many reference points in the airfield, there’s not much sense of speed.
This was more about a milestone for me. I’ve tested two 911 Turbo S models, and it briefly tied the record as the quickest to 60 mph. I drove it at Lighting Lap. I’ve been up and down Angeles Crest Highway in it. I’ve gone north of Ojai on State Route 33—arguably one of the best roads in the world—when we compared the Turbo S to the Maserati MC20. For me, this was full circle with one of the most epic sports cars Porsche will ever make. 200 mph? Check. 250 mph? Here we come. —David Beard
Mike Sutton Joins the 200-MPH Club
The 200-mph barrier has always had a special aura about it for me, a lofty threshold demanding determination and some serious machinery to breach, not to mention a lot of road.
I’ve gotten close several times over the years, both on the test track and the German autobahn. But when the time finally came, the quickness with which the 640-hp 911 Turbo S made it happen left me with little time to process it—an almost anticlimactic passing of a momentous occasion.
The g-forces from the Turbo S’s launch-control start are brutal, and the car feels rock solid as it races to 150 mph in just 13.5 seconds. Beyond that mark, my focus narrowed around the GPS speed readout and the rapidly approaching shutdown area. Beard’s exploratory efforts had shown that our testing venue—a smooth, wide airport taxiway with few reference points—offered ample space to hit 200. I trusted the car and felt comfortable with the conditions. But I wanted to reach at least 201 mph, which meant pushing the 911 to the last possible moment.
With the scenery a blur and a torrent of air rushing around the car, I instinctively held my breath as the last few mph slowly clicked over. 199. . .200. . .201. Savor this for one more tenth of a second, I thought; I need to set my personal bar as high as possible.
That the Porsche’s carbon-ceramic brakes are about as good as they come brought welcome confidence. The grass at the end of the taxiway loomed near as I laid on the left pedal, but slowing the car to a walking pace ultimately proved uneventful. Frozen on the GPS display was my result: 201.38 mph. I had done it, and a weight had seemingly been lifted off my shoulders.
Though the whole run had only taken about a minute, it’d be hours before the gravity of the achievement hit me, my personal satisfaction tempered only by how easily the Turbo S made it all seem. Time to reevaluate my bucket list.—Mike Sutton
Rich Ceppos has evaluated automobiles and automotive technology during a career that has encompassed 10 years at General Motors, two stints at Car and Driver totaling 20 years, and thousands of miles logged in racing cars. He was in music school when he realized what he really wanted to do in life and, somehow, it’s worked out. In between his two C/D postings he served as executive editor of Automobile Magazine; was an executive vice president at Campbell Marketing & Communications; worked in GM’s product-development area; and became publisher of Autoweek. He has raced continuously since college, held SCCA and IMSA pro racing licenses, and has competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona. He currently ministers to a 1999 Miata, and he appreciates that none of his younger colleagues have yet uttered “Okay, Boomer” when he tells one of his stories about the crazy old days at C/D.
David Beard studies and reviews automotive related things and pushes fossil-fuel and electric-powered stuff to their limits. His passion for the Ford Pinto began at his conception, which took place in a Pinto.
Mike Sutton is an editor, writer, test driver, and general car nerd who has contributed to Car and Driver‘s reverent and irreverent passion for the automobile since 2008. A native Michigander from suburban Detroit, he enjoys the outdoors and complaining about the weather, has an affection for off-road vehicles, and believes in federal protection for naturally aspirated engines.