jato rocket '67 Chevy urban legend on Discovery channel

[masraum]

Right now a show called "Myth Busters" is creating the '67 Chevy jato rocket urban legend so they can test the legend on the discovery channel.

[masraum]

boring, they set the rockets off and the thing took off (they had it up to 80 already), and probably saw 150mph, but nothing really crazy.

[JmuRiz]

I watched that, fun show. I like it when they kill urban myths, hehe

Nathan

[Tim Walsh]

there's actually about a 5-6 page article on this somewhere off yahoo. It's (supposedly) from a biology teacher who started the myth.. It's interesting reading if you've got some time.

this isn't the same site I found it on back in 98 or so but it looks to be the same story in all it's glory

http://www.bored.com/rocketcar/

[nostatic]

first Santa Claus, then the Easter Bunny...now the jato legend. Doesn't anyone care about the kids? Won't somebody please think about the kids?!?

[emcon5]

Originally posted by l33t9eek
It's (supposedly) from a biology teacher who started the myth..

He says his actions may have caused the myth, big difference.

It is a good read though, and not unbelievable.

Tom

[dean]

I wonder if they will get to the myth that mods on a 930 reduce the value?

I already disproved the myth that a G50 weighs 100 lbs more than a 915.

[RANDY P]

Originally posted by nostatic
first Santa Claus, then the Easter Bunny...now the jato legend. Doesn't anyone care about the kids? Won't somebody please think about the kids?!?

WHAT ABOUT SANTA???! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING TODD?!!


rjp

[echrisconnor]

I saw that last night. What amazed me was that they didn't ever clock it. They just said it outran their helo which had a top speed of 130.

One other thing struck me. They had a remote control running the car. When they showed the build, it looked like they ran two servos; one for steering, one for throttle. They drove it up to 80 and then set off the rockets.

If this car stayed in gear and was run up to 150mph it would totally over-rev that engine. There would be a tremendous amount of resistance from the engine and trans. I wonder if they'd popped it into neutral at 80 and then set off the rockets if they wouldn't have gotten a bunch more speed out of the thing. Maybe even a good wreck.

[atlporsche]

not if it was an automatic...a 2.73 or 3.10 rear end (what might have been in the car) would easily be capable of taking the car to that speed if there were enough power.

I had 2.somethings in my '72 olds, and the 350 would take it to 115 plus with plenty of pull left.

sjd

[echrisconnor]

They referenced an old Indy car having one of those rockets strapped onto it and being run up to 180. Granted, their car is a bunch heavier and less aerodynamic, but with three of those rockets, and less engine/ trans resistance might they have hit 200 + mph? I can see that trans, rear end and engine being able to spin up to maybe 150, but not 200+ without lots of drag.

[boyo]

I spotted a problem - in addition to them not shifting into neutral, only one of their rockets actually fired. Smoke was only ever coming out of the bottom tube...

Also, looking at the sizes of the rockets I have trouble believing the 3 small cardboard tube rockets were equivalent to one JATO rocket. If it can't propel a chevy to 200mph, it can't lift a jet off the ground...

If it were me, I would've wired up explosive charges to disconnect the driveshaft while firing the rockets, to reduce drag.

Hey, but how about that pig's stomach?

-Boyo

[juanbenae]

what about the chick they found on the dead on the shifter knob,,, something about a spanish fly?

[RickM]

It appeared to me that all the rockets went off. I was also amazed that they didn't clock the damned car. The reason for doing it was to see how fast they could go. Couldn't they afford a radar gun?

All in all I was unimpressed with the experiment.