Max Speed Limits In Euro Cars

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<IHateMyMom>

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How come there is a US Federal law about maximum speed limits in European cars? Like, for example, 155 MPH and 130 MPH and stuff like that.
One of my best friends told me that recently but he doesn't know the reason why, and I don't either, so if one of you "experts" can tell me, I'll greatly apperatite it
 
As far as I know, there is no federal law governing that. There was a gentlemen's agreement signed by the top German car manufacturers to limit their top speeds to 155 in the US market. Why, I don't know. Maybe to even the playing field?

That limiter is defeatable. Then you get another at 186. That I believe is tough to beat, but it can be done. 203 or so is the one you cannot get around.
 
I've read that some Mercedes or AMG cars have a second speed limiter at 180-something miles per hour. I've never heard of that on any other car.

Also, any limiter is defeatable. You just have to have the right people do it.
 
philly cheese
As far as I know, there is no federal law governing that. There was a gentlemen's agreement signed by the top German car manufacturers to limit their top speeds to 155 in the US market. Why, I don't know. Maybe to even the playing field?

That limiter is defeatable. Then you get another at 186. That I believe is tough to beat, but it can be done. 203 or so is the one you cannot get around.
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there is a gentlemen's agreement in germany between audi, bmw, mercedes and VW for all the cars sold worldwide, not only those in the US. that kicks in at 155 and most european manufacturers seem to have adopted that.
in bmw m cars and mercedes amg lineup, you can get this limiter removed at the factory already, in these cases there will be a second limiter that kicks in somewhere between 180 and 200. this one can be removed by third parties, although it might void the warranty.
porsche, however, never took part in that agreement.

the reasons for that agreement are manifold. pressure from political parties and TÜV, as well as problems with tires at such high speeds and even reliability problems caused this agreement. ;)
 
Quite right; The Federal Government doesn't have the power to regulate speed limiters in automobiles because of our economic system in the United States. The government's power is pretty much limited to creating speed limits (which were once set at 55 MPH nation-wide), but those were dropped when we all realized how stupid it was.

Nearly every car company places some kind of limiter on their vehicles these days. Well, I guess I should say most vehicles, many more are becoming aerodynamically limited, or in some cases limited by their gear ratios as well. If I recall correctly, Volkswagen has the Rabbit limited to somewhere around 130 MPH, while other companies like Chevrolet limit the Tahoe at 98 MPH. It all depends on safety, mostly, but its all stuff that can be easily defeated with a computer or an OBD-II tuner.
 
Rafa
i Don't now Porsche don't limit the is cars but why Audi limit the TT?:grumpy:
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The answer is quite literally staring you in the face: Try to read the threads you are posting in.

vladimir
there is a gentlemen's agreement in germany between audi, bmw, mercedes and VW for all the cars sold worldwide, not only those in the US. that kicks in at 155 and most european manufacturers seem to have adopted that.
in bmw m cars and mercedes amg lineup, you can get this limiter removed at the factory already, in these cases there will be a second limiter that kicks in somewhere between 180 and 200. this one can be removed by third parties, although it might void the warranty.
porsche, however, never took part in that agreement.

the reasons for that agreement are manifold. pressure from political parties and TÜV, as well as problems with tires at such high speeds and even reliability problems caused this agreement. ;)
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some of the cars are limited by the speed rating of the tires employed on said vehicles.
im pretty sure thats the case on GM trucks and Stupid Useless Vehicles

my 1990 W124 mercedes 300E was originally equipped with V speed rating (149mph max) tires while later models (93 on i think!!!) were equipped with H speed rated (130mph max) tires. my car does not have a limiter and later models do.
 
neanderthal
some of the cars are limited by the speed rating of the tires employed on said vehicles.
im pretty sure thats the case on GM trucks and Stupid Useless Vehicles.
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You know, that's actually a good point. Maybe it's so they can put different tires on the car? What speed ratings do these cars come with? Maybe that has something to do with why the European versions have their first limiter at 186.
 
Only the crappiest tires made have speed ratings below 120 mph, yet many "regular" cars nowadays (who here drives a Porsche or AMG Mercedes?) are limited to 115 or thereabouts.
 
If you keep your AMG or RS audi in the second to highest gear which is usually 5th it will go past the 155 mph limit. Stick it in 6th and it wont. Weird but true.
 
Kylehnat
Only the crappiest tires made have speed ratings below 120 mph, yet many "regular" cars nowadays (who here drives a Porsche or AMG Mercedes?) are limited to 115 or thereabouts.
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also true that most cars come with S or T rated tires' 112 and 118 mph respectively IIRC

and there are plenty of quality tires that have speed ratings less than 120. speed ratings have absolutely nothing to do with quality.
 
My guess was always that GM/Ford/Chrysler limited the speed on their trucks and SUVs because of the level of danger that grows with a vehicle that large at speeds above regular highway limits... Not just the tire ratings, but just the idea of a 4000+ lb vehicle doing 100+ MPH is just a bit scary, particularly when they don't "Do a Porsche" and design it with sporting bits in mind...

I know my Dad's Chevrolet Avalanche and my Grandfather's Tahoe are both rated to 98 MPH as their "limit," but I've had the Tahoe above an indicated 100 MPH on the highway before, and my Dad claims that he has done a bit more than that in his truck. I would in no way condone the usage of a vehicle such as a Tahoe at that speed; The steering gets a bit light, and given the already floaty nature of the vehicle, it isn't comforting.

Interestingly enough, the "sport" models can go quite fast; I believe the Chevrolet Trailblazer SS and Saab 9-7X Aero are both rated to go over 130 MPH, and I'm pretty sure the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 is nearly neck-and-neck with the Porsche Cayanne Turbo, getting ever closer to 150+ MPH.
 
i believe another part of the equation could be liability. or rather, the litigious nature or our society here in the states.

remember how everyone sued ford and firestone when the tires burst and the cars rolled over and killed people. ive said from time immemorial that the fault was mainly a three headed monster of car design, tire design, and lax maintenance while the tipping point was simply people not checking thier air pressure. something borne out by the fact that cars not equipped with firestones didnt have the same problem, other vehicles equipped with the same OEM tire didnt have the same problem, ergo the problem must be the maintenance.

question for all. when was the last time you checked your air pressure. not your mechanic, not your mum, not your brother or sister, YOU? you dont know if someone who says they did something did it.
 
To answer your question; Its been over a month on the Jetta with a gage, but I do the "finger press test" every week or so...

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There was a pretty big hubbub caused here in Michigan about a year or so ago when there was a big SUV rollover accident in the southeast portion of the state. People finally started asking questions about how stable the vehicles are, and the automakers responded by finally deciding to make stability controls standard on the big SUVs.
 

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