# Fastest car EVER **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Tags:** tesla\ **Created:** [February 6, 2018, 9:04pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039 "2018-02-06T21:04:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 6:28pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/21 "2018-02-07T18:28:57Z")
> [@texases](#): > > the Roadster fit the bill. No major science payload would have been risked on a first-time test flight. And “the bill” apparently included providing publicity – just like mom’s (All American) apple pie that went up as weight for testing other US rockets. (Yes, my sarcasm runneth over.) And no major science payload would mean that MikeinNH is incorrect about “full of scientific equipment gathering giga-quads of data.” I’ll leave you two to sort that out. ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 6:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/22 "2018-02-07T18:31:55Z")
That doesn’t seem to have been the case for the first Saturn V test (Apollo 4 mission) > **[NASA's Gutsy First Launch of the Saturn V Moon Rocket](https://www.space.com/18505-nasa-moon-rocket-saturn-v-history.html)** > > The first Saturn V launch, designated Apollo 4, was a success. ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 6:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/23 "2018-02-07T18:40:46Z")
NASA is much more risk averse than they were back then. The SLS will almost certainly not carry expensive science instruments that cost a lot more to build now that during Saturn V times. The instruments Mike mentioned evaluated the launch and ascent of the Falcon Heavy. Any future use is of secondary importance. ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 6:52pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/24 "2018-02-07T18:52:17Z")
> [@jtsanders](#): > > NASA is much more risk averse than they were back then. Yes, and apparently to the point of letting private entities do the heavy lifting (pardon the pun). > [@jtsanders](#): > > The instruments Mike mentioned evaluated the launch and ascent of the Falcon Heavy. Any future use is of secondary importance. Then the instruments sound scientifically irrelevant to being sent to Mars (like the Roadster). ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 7:06pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/25 "2018-02-07T19:06:14Z")
> [@Waterbuff](#): > > Then the instruments sound scientifically irrelevant to being sent to Mars (like the Roadster). It’s not being sent ‘to Mars’. It’s going into a solar orbit that reaches out to the orbit of Mars. No Mars rendezvous planned. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 7:08pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/26 "2018-02-07T19:08:00Z")
And the Roadster isn’t the fastest car yet. Remember the moon rovers? ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 7:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/27 "2018-02-07T19:11:07Z")
> [@texases](#): > > It’s not being sent ‘to Mars’. It’s going into a solar orbit that reaches out to the orbit of Mars. No Mars rendezvous planned. Ok, my imprecise wording is admitted. Yet it doesn’t change my point if I was more precise with “Then the instruments sound scientifically irrelevant to being sent to Mars [orbit] (like the Roadster).” (And it is likely recognized by some people that Mars or Mars orbit can be spun as a step toward asteroid belt mining.) ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 8:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/28 "2018-02-07T20:41:26Z")
> [@Waterbuff](#): > > Then the instruments sound scientifically irrelevant to being sent to Mars (like the Roadster). Roadster isn’t going to mars. > [@Waterbuff](#): > > And at over $10K per pound to leave earth orbit, how much more COOL science could have been done in place of the weight of that (cool) stunt? And it’s SpaceX’s money. I assume they can spend it how they want. $10k per pound is one tenth of what the space shuttle program cost per launch. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 8:55pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/29 "2018-02-07T20:55:33Z")
Based on the link below…It’s either something like the Roadster (which is cool), or concrete blocks (boring). [http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/science/space-sports-car-now-flying-toward-asteroid-belt-beyond-mars/ar-BBIOB9A?li=BBnb7Kz](http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/science/space-sports-car-now-flying-toward-asteroid-belt-beyond-mars/ar-BBIOB9A?li=BBnb7Kz) ---
**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 9:58pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/30 "2018-02-07T21:58:36Z")
I was thinking about amending it to fastest production car… After it swings around the sun it may surpass the lunar buggies speeds. ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2018, 10:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/31 "2018-02-07T22:09:05Z")
> [@MikeInNH](#): > > Roadster isn’t going to mars. Correct, and I’ve already admitted my imprecise wording. Yet my point doesn’t change if I was more precise with “Then the instruments sound scientifically irrelevant to being sent to Mars [orbit or beyond] (like the Roadster).” > [@MikeInNH](#): > > And it’s SpaceX’s money. I assume they can spend it how they want. $10k per pound is one tenth of what the space shuttle program cost per launch. Correct, they can spend it how they want, and if they want to spend it on a publicity stunt rather than something aspirational/inspirational connected to science, that’s their choice. (Like it is my choice to NOT see the stunt as ‘cool’.) And bashing the Space Shuttle cost doesn’t change the nature of the stunt. It does seem irrelevant to my point in bringing up cost, which was that the money could have been spent on COOL science. ---
**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 2:37am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/32 "2018-02-08T02:37:31Z")
From SpaceX: ![TeslaOrbit1](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/2X/c/cc5df5932459f89fda7a5c23284b2b28d33e5273.png) ![TeslaOrbit2](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/original/2X/4/443a30cbacb640078c900ebc5c4296a0b995572b.png) From Wiki: > According to the 2002 Guinness World Records, Apollo 10 set the record for the highest speed attained by a manned vehicle: 39,897 km/h (11.08 km/s or 24,791 mph) on May 26, 1969, during the return from the Moon. Note that Apollo didn’t have to reach escape velocity (25,020 mph) to get to the Moon. ---
**Author:** ![ArlHtsMelissa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/arlhtsmelissa/32/22867_2.png) [@ArlHtsMelissa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ArlHtsMelissa)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/33 "2018-02-08T16:11:17Z")
I was listening to a radio station the other day and a caller mentioned, they just want to drive the liberals crazy using all that fuel. He was referring to something else but that statement could apply to this launch. Since the electric car saved so much fuel, it was spent in a different way. ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 4:56pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/34 "2018-02-08T16:56:55Z")
cant recall why musk wants to be in rocket business. does he think his company can do it cheaper than nasa? what is his business model? launch satellites? mars mission? moon base? ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 5:02pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/35 "2018-02-08T17:02:54Z")
> [@ArlHtsMelissa](#): > > they just want to drive the liberals crazy using all that fuel. He was referring to something else but that statement could apply to this launch. Since the electric car saved so much fuel, it was spent in a different way. So spite might be part of the motivation? Being spiteful doesn’t seem like a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![ArlHtsMelissa](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/arlhtsmelissa/32/22867_2.png) [@ArlHtsMelissa](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ArlHtsMelissa)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 5:17pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/36 "2018-02-08T17:17:47Z")
I do not think it was spite. I think it was a way to get people to think…Was it IBM’s slogan? “Think Different” ---
**Author:** ![Waterbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f07891/32.png) [@Waterbuff](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Waterbuff)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 5:30pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/37 "2018-02-08T17:30:23Z")
Wanting “to drive the liberals crazy” doesn’t seem like aspiration or inspiration to encourage people to think. ---
**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/38 "2018-02-08T18:18:36Z")
Did they mention Elon is an immigrant ! ---
**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:20pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/39 "2018-02-08T18:20:01Z")
Two reasons: He likes science. Profit ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2018, 6:35pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039/40 "2018-02-08T18:35:30Z")
> [@Waterbuff](#): > > Wanting “to drive the liberals crazy” doesn’t seem like aspiration or inspiration to encourage people to think. Nothing Elon said relates to that. Made up by some radio caller, the least-reliable source of information on the planet. [Previous page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039.md?page=1) [Next page](https://community.cartalk.com/t/fastest-car-ever/112039.md?page=3)