Sledgehammer question.
04-26-2010, 03:06 PM
#1
Melting Slicks
Thread Starter
Sledgehammer question.
I was looking up info about the Sledgehammer and some of the performance numbers caught my attention. Nearly 900 horsepower and 780 ft/lbs torque, but the 0-60 is only 4 seconds, with a 1/4 time of 10.6? It seems like it should be faster than that running those numbers. Maybe the gearing was more for the top speed?
04-26-2010, 04:35 PM
#5
Safety Car
With the For the most part, when you purpose build a car, you focus on your goal. And for the Sledgehammer it was to be a car that can go 250mph+ and still be a daily driver! Plus, back then the technology was different and Im sure the budget was a significant factor. Today the Bugatti Veyron is a good example of the high tech version of the sledgehammer with a blazing top speed, quarter mile, and 0-60!
04-26-2010, 04:41 PM
#6
Melting Slicks
Thread Starter
Are there any specs on what exactly they did to the sledgehammer to give it those power numbers? Tire width, etc. Curious, for perhaps a later in life goal.
04-26-2010, 05:05 PM
#7
Safety Car
04-26-2010, 05:20 PM
#8
Banned Loser
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St. Jude Donor '14-'15-'16-'17
04-26-2010, 06:13 PM
#9
Drifting
04-26-2010, 06:19 PM
#10
Burning Brakes
It's real easy to over rev a turbo engine in first gear. It's often best to get it rolling and then go for second gear. The turbo takes over in the higher gears.
04-26-2010, 06:40 PM
#13
Melting Slicks
Thread Starter
04-26-2010, 11:22 PM
#14
Race Director
My only question to the whole sledgehammer project was if it was so great of a car why was only '1' made and why did callaway instead mass-produce the much slower aerobody TT car?
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
04-26-2010, 11:26 PM
#15
Drifting
My only question to the whole sledgehammer project was if it was so great of a car why was only '1' made and why did callaway instead mass-produce the much slower aerobody TT car?
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
And it is a tpi vette so its only worth 6k like all the others's lmao
04-26-2010, 11:51 PM
#17
Race Director
04-27-2010, 12:00 AM
#18
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St. Jude Donor '10
My only question to the whole sledgehammer project was if it was so great of a car why was only '1' made and why did callaway instead mass-produce the much slower aerobody TT car?
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
We didnt have the internet to discuss mods so this kind of performance was more 'mysterious' and difficult for us backyard mechanics to figure out and achieve. Especially the computer re-tuning part of it. I wouldnt have known where to start back then.
Callaway claims they offered to build another one, at a cost of 300k or 400k (cant remember). In 1988, people were plucking 400k on slower-performing ferrari f40's that were supposed to retail for 250k. So people had the money and would have paid it for that kind of unbelievable streetable performance (think cats, A/C).
The fact that I, a diehard corvette guy, never heard of this car until 1991 is evidence that it was not marketed properly. Had it been marketed properly, especially in the boom-time economy of the late 80s, seems like they could have sold hundreds. Look at the Bugatti Veyron. Ballers, professional sports figures, entertainers, actors, executives, etc. idolize those and have the means to get one.
Had Callaway mass-produced this vehicle, their sales would have continued strong instead of fizzling out as the c4 zr-1 hit the market.
You must not have been reading magazines back then. That car was EVERYWHERE.
Are we forgetting the stock market crashed in 87...not exactly boom time. Sell hundreds of $400k cars?
Right. Exactly how does a very small company that builds 100 cars a year market against billion dollar GM? Funny to even think about especially considering they were both selling Corvettes. Go surf eBay a little and look at all the magazine ads and dealer brochures that were available around 1988. Considering the size of the company they did very well.
Callaway cars were and are built to order. Yes they will build a car and use it as a marketing tool, but what private business owner in their right mind would build a bunch of unsold $400k cars and hope they sell? Oh I can think of a big name builder that did......they are out of business now.
Last edited by SurfnSun; 04-27-2010 at 07:36 AM.
04-27-2010, 01:01 AM
#19
Melting Slicks
Thread Starter
04-27-2010, 06:40 AM
#20
Drifting