maybe because speed limits are arbitrary, inconsistent, and they change. why not just remove speed limits if your goal is to "solve 99% of speed 'crime'"? that's easier and a more consistent solution.

> I've always wondered why the government sets speed limits but then doesn't enforce them on manufacturers.

They hope you will break the speed limit so they can make money, that's why.

This is a strange thing to believe - fines exist for deterrence, not income - the purpose of a fine has failed if it ends up being paid, since it didn't deter the offender!

In the UK, for example, about GBP 80 million in speeding fines are issued each year. The annual police budget is GBP 12.5 billion though, so fines are a tiny 0.64% of that, hardly significant. Having said that, it looks like the road policing budget for 2018-19 is down by a large amount, from the GBP 200 million in 2016, to about GBP 90 million, so the fines would seem to cover most of that... Not sure what to make of that, now?

the (US) government doesn't actually care about setting reasonable speed limits. they knowingly set the limit lower than most people will drive. this generates a lot of revenue for fines and gives police officers yet another justification to pull people over at any time.

Another way of seeing it is that "most people" intentionally drive at a higher speed than the limit is.

Because it's not their responsibility. Also, they would lose so much money if suddenly no one is getting speeding tickets.

There are also groups of car enthusiasts and people that legally race cars and modify cars to squeeze every ounce of performance.

There's also Germany.

In addition to other arguments the ability to go faster than speed limit is quite useful safety feature (and in many jurisdctions it is perfectly legal to do so, when your intent is to prevent collision)

You've never had a track day...

This whole page is filled with "Doesn't apply to me, so go for it", which seems like a really bad rationale to apply to hundreds of millions of people, potentially.

I seriously doubt "hundreds of millions of people" regularly go for a lap in the Nordschleife.

Especially given the mechanical wear, motor racing (Even karting) is a rich man's game

You don't have to be rich to drive on a track. Champ Car (formerly Chump) is racing with very inexpensive vehicles. I did a track day with a sub US$5000 car that was still faster than many others. People take rental cars to track days for a total weekend cost of under $500. Drag racing costs next to nothing for a normal car.

on the one hand, I agree, and it's always scary to see this rationale.

on the other hand, it looks like they are just limiting the speed based on the rating of the stock tires. as long as there's a straightforward (and legal) way to increase/remove the limit when you upgrade the tires, I'm not sure I have a huge problem with it.

I'm not convinced how many tracks will run into this limit, at least on the "lower end" Volvos. My understanding is that tracking is not about high speed, but instead handling.

I've gone over 112mph on every track I've been to, despite handling being important.

I guess that means I've underestimated straight length on the average track. Fair enough

What percentage of the population speeds vs what percentage has track days?

Surely those who have track days can disable the limit or buy a car without it, while the vast majority of "casual speeders" won't be affected by it.

Even 112 is quite high compared to the speed limit in most of the world. 100 would be right, outside Germany.

Yes, I have not had a track day. Most drivers have not had a track day. It’s incredibly expensive and puts a shit ton of wear on your vehicle. For the common man, go karts and rollercaosters are enough.

FYI, I know plenty of "common men" who race cars and bikes. it's not as cheap as going to the movies, but it's not outside the reach of most middle-class workers if they don't have other expensive hobbies.

Honest question: can you remove speed limiters on "track day"?

Some cars use their GPS to enable that yes. I think the Nissan GT-R does that.

It's from 2007: https://www.autoblog.com/2007/12/22/nissan-gt-r-recognizes-t...

Defeating a speed limiter is extremely easy. It's done all the time on German cars, which are sold with a 250 km/h limiter, usually for racing purposes.

98% of drivers won’t do that. Let the racers do as they please.

If you limit it to highway speeds, definitely more than 2% of people will do that.