200mph barrier in a super-charged Octavia vRS

Here are the latest updates on our attempt to break the 200mph barrier in a super-charged Octavia vRS.

This year the legendary Bonneville Speed Week event has attracted 700 participants: the highest ever. People have travelled from all parts of the world to put their engineering know-how and machinery to the test.

Day one: Saturday 13 August

· In blistering 36F temperatures the team spent the day checking over every little detail while the driver and crew set-up for the week ahead.

· As this is the first time the team and Richard have competed at Bonneville they were required to attend 'Rookie Orientation' at 11am, directly followed by the drivers' meeting, which was held at the start line inbetween the long and short courses.

· At an altitude of over 1000 metres, Salt Lake City and Bonneville can drain almost 50/60bhp from a car before racing even begins. Despite this, results from the dyno showed that the Octavia was pushing almost 550bhp at the wheels.

· Following many long hours on a dyno and test facility in Salt Lake City in the days leading up to Speed Week, the team focused their attention on ensuring that the Octavia vRS was in perfect running condition. All

· vehicles must make it through the vigorous tech inspections which are carried out by experienced volunteers who use a checklist to ensure the car conforms to all race regulations.

Day two: Sunday 14 August

· The Octavia vRS competed in four runs today, qualifying in all four categories.

· The vehicle reached 120 mph in the <125 mph category, 140 mph in the 125-149 mph category, 160 mph in the 150-174 mph category and 191mph in the 175-199 category.

· The top speed of the day was 198.3 mph, which is an incredible achievement for the first day of driving.

Richard’s latest blog

http://community.evo.co.uk/users/Dickie-Meaden/blogs/index.cfm/2011/8/15/DICKIE-MEADEN-Live-from-Bonneville

EVO Videos

On Day Three (15.08.11) Richard will be qualified to race in the 200 mph+ category and have the opportunity to break the 200mph barrier. We’ll keep you up to date with the progress.

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