Here comes the Judge

[wannarun70]

a little article from 1969.

[HPMIKE]

Cool article and thanks for posting...

But I have to raise some question with that claim. The average musclecar with a non overdrive transmssion. terrible aerodynamics and typical gearing(3.55-4.10) will likely float all the valves at 120-130 or so. A Chrysler wingcar with ultra high gearing (2.56) would be a possible exception.

MB

[JJEH]

Thanks for posting this historical article

150 mph = 240 kmh and that´s a lot of speed for 1969!!!!

[firstgenaddict]

The 4.33 Geared 70 Judge conv we drove in high school wouldn't do much over 100 at redline...

[68 Vert]

The '69 RAIII 'vert I owned in high school, 4sp, 3.55 gear was all done around 110ish...

[olredalert]

------Other than "Red Alert" I cant remember taking a car over 100, but most of mine at least get there kind of quick .........Bill S

[flyingn]

yea.. No way.. my old 69 RAIII 4 speed 3.23 (had AC) Judge had a hard time over 110 or so..

[StealthBird]

Some great publicity, but not very realistic. The Judge's standard engine (RAIII) was all done by 5700 rpm, the RAIV engine could maybe hit 6200 rpm, in stock trim, at the shift points, but neither engine would sustain those rpm's making a top end run. The Judge's rear wing also caused the nose to lift severely at speeds over 80 mph. By 110 mph, your Judge sat like it had a straight axle in front. This story was probably just a reponse to the fact that the Dodge Daytona and Charger 500 were built for racing, so Steve Malone was just protecting the image of the Judge, and that radical rear wing.

The 69 Trans Am was actually capable of hitting higher speeds than the GTO. Smaller frontal area than the GTO, and the Trans Am sat 1" lower. The engineers put a front spoiler on the Trans Am to prevent the nose from lifting, and to balance the rear wing downforce. Also, the Trans Am's side air extractors pull trapped air from under the hood to further prevent front end lift. The original RAV (303 cid) powerplant that was scheduled to go into the 1969 Trans Am was capable of more revs, but even then, Pontiac estimated a 135 mph top end with 3.90 gears reving to 6200 rpm. In theory, a 3.23 gear with the RAV engine may have pushed the 69 Trans Am to 140-145 mph. With the 400 cube version of the RAV, and a lazy rear gear, 150 mph MAY have been possible, but only in the 69 Trans Am body.

Like I said, just a publicity move to promote the Judge, but a very interesting article nonetheless. Thanks for posting!

[agtw31]

i had a 70 455 Grand Prix that would bury 120 with plenty of pedal left,but after the first bump i slowed down.

[grantprix]

I had a '69 Grand Prix SJ in the early 80's and remember hitting 125 late one night before I got scared and backed off. That car had an optional 2.93 rear gear ratio which helped.