Who holds the FIA class A-I-12 record?
If your response is “Who cares?” I suggest you stop reading now.
If you are still with me …
The FIA modified the larger engine classes with effect from 1 January 2016. Class 9 became 3-4 litre (previously 3-5 litre), Class 10 became 4-6 litre (previously 5-8 litre), Class 11 became 6-7 litre (previously over 8 litre), Class 12 was introduced at 7-8 litre and finally Class 13 at over 8 litres.
Thus the new Class 13 is the same as the old Class 11 and there are now four classes covering 3-8 litres (previously only two). Although it is now over a year since the new classes came into existence, the FIA has not published updated records.
Which is how I found myself asking “who are the current holders of records in the new classes?” It is by no means easy to work it out from the information freely available on the internet, and A-I-12 turns out to be particularly interesting.
In 2002 Al Teague set FIA records in Class A-I-10 at 406.xxx mph (1 kilometre flying start) and 405.xxx (mile). As far as I can tell the engine size used was either 424 c.i. (6.95 litre) or 470 c.i. (7.7 litre). So these runs might fit into either the new Class A-I-11 or A-I-12.
In 2012 George Poteet/Speed Demon set FIA records at 439.xxx mph for both the mile and kilometre using a 368 c.i. (6.03 litre) motor, so beating Al’s speeds and setting what I believe remains the A-I-11 record (but the engine was only just in that class).
However, if Al was using the 470 c.i. engine then he is a strong candidate to be the current A-I-12 record holder.
There is another reason to be uncertain. In 2010 Amir Rosenbaum/Spectre SpeedLiner ran two way averages of 407.xxx for the mile and kilometre using a 485 c.i. (7.95 litre) engine with the timing under FIA conditions. Whilst faster than Al these were not records because the 1% rule was still in force (meaning the speed required to set an official record was about 410 mph). So Amir’s speeds were probably not submitted to the FIA and could not be official records.
If Al was running in what is now A-I-11 in 2002 then who else is a candidate for the A-I-12 record?
This is the point at which even I think of giving up. The answer depends in part on the size of the Chevy motor in Nolan White’s Autopower streamliner … Driven by Rick White, this vehicle set FIA records of 383.xxx mph (kilometre) and 384.xxx (mile) in 1990. If the Autopower was running in what is now the A-I-12 class then I think they could be the current records. If not, we might be going back to Bob Herda in the 1960s.
So, to summarise:
- The fastest two way speeds that have been recorded under FIA conditions in class A-I-12 are 407.753 mph (kilometre) and 407.516 mph (mile) by Amir Rosenbaum on 24 September 2010, but these will probably not be acknowledged as records by the FIA.
- The official record holder is probably Al Teague with 406.321 mph (kilometre) and 405.862 mph (mile) set on 18 October 2002, but only if he was running the 470 c.i. motor that day.
- Otherwise, the record holder might be Rick White with 383.824 mph (kilometre) and 384.738 mph (mile) set on 1 October 1990, but only if his engine was in the 7-8 litre range.
- Or maybe it was Bob Herda, who set official FIA records in 1964/65/67, at least one of which used engine(s) in the 7-8 litre range.
Phew!
There must be flaws in the above analysis so please tell me (politely
) where I have screwed up. Or am I
?
I am now beginning to understand why it is taking so long for the FIA to publish the list of current record holders for the not-so-new classes.