Having had a rear tire blowout in my BJ8 at about 65 mph, on a flat straight
4-lane there ain't no way I want to get close to 100 mph in that car.
I did do an indicated 95 mph in my '73 Midget, going downhill in
Pennsylvania once. Actually, I believe I had it out of gear.
Steve Byers
HBJ8L/36666
BJ8 Registry
Havelock, NC USA
-----Original Message-----
From: healeys-bounces at autox.team.net [mailto:healeys-bounces at
autox.team.net]
On Behalf Of Gary R. Brierton
Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2012 8:00 AM
To: healeys at autox.team.net
Subject: Re: [Healeys] 100 MPH Club
1968, on my honeymoon in my BJ8, one year out of the showroom. My wife and
I witnessed a rollover accident on a deserted stretch of two lane in Nevada.
Using the excuse that we needed to get to the next town to notify the
police, I put my foot down and held it down. Just over 100 mph, there was a
loud bang! Threw out the clutch and coasted to a vibrating stop. Looking
under the hood, I initially saw no damage; no oil (well, no more than
usual), no holes in the engine, no parts scattered about. Then I saw that
one fan blade had come off and was halfway buried in the cross-member just
below the radiator. If it had let go at any other point in it's rotation,
the damage would probably been catastrophic, possibly including tire
shredding. Unbolted the remaining half-blade and continued back to
Illinois. Haven't topped 100 since.
Gary Brierton
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