I have drove semi for 30+ years,and built a,few for tractor pulling and truck rodeos. In Canada is a popular pastime to hook onto a 100,000 pound load on trailer, total weight 150, 000 and drag race other semi for 1/8 mile. I am driving Peterbilt579 now with Cat 3408, twin 110 mmAFR,and injection system for NOS if need more boost. Mild tune at 20 psi boost 1700 hp 3500p torque roughly. 18 speed transmission with Georgia overdrive on top. 17 and 18 gear split again so actually 20 spd.According to rear end gears,transmission ratio,tire size, rpm ,etc , I should run 146 before hit yellow on rpm. Have hit 130 but stopped there . At 130 drove like my c6 does at same speed. Problem - bus tires can be used at $1000 a pop but no speed rated semi tires. If empty weighing approx 32,000 they last for about 25 min before heated to point are dangerous. Loaded ’ - you would be good to last 20 miles on normal day at 120 before started shredding. You can do some awesome numbers,on power and torque but without tires? ?? The myth of convoy doing 120 ? Myth . At most maybe 500 trucks,in US are capable of running thar speed on road now. Easily 75,000 in motor alone. Record now is over 300 but watch video and can see chunks,of tires flying as they heat up and disentagrate. Go on you tube and search Coga. Has video of racing and smoking corvette,Mopar ,etc while Bob tailing , no trailer and watch a couple pulling. Give you an idea of what power is when you lift front tire 2 foot in air from torque taking off and power twisting frame. They are fun though as,no one suspects,. I raced a kid, mis,20’s , in new 600 hp Camara Friday night. I felt bad and gave him back half of $500 he lost . Lol
Welcome to the Dope, Peterbuilt579.
The thread you replied to was last active in 2001. They are called zombies when someone resurrects an old thread. We all get caught doing it, even those of us who have been here 10 years or more.
Great information, thanks and stick around. You’ll be a great source on truck and diesel questions that pop up on occasion.
nm- zombie
It’d actually a pretty awesome thread. 
With more GPS out there now, I wonder what updated truck driver stories might be out there.
Old truckers never die.
They just get a new…
The transgender gets a new Volvo.
Is this a “Peterbilt” pun? I can’t tell for sure.
Yes, it was supposed to start with a quote from Peterbilt579.
Well, it took 14 years, but it seems we’ve got our answer. It’s a myth because the tires spinning that fast will soon fail from the stress and the heat. This is the same problem high end sports cars have above the 200 mph mark - the car can do more, but the tires can’t, at least not for long. Truck tires are enormously larger and subject to more stress.
Drafting wouldn’t help because even though it reduces the power needed, since the trucks behind the lead truck have their aerodynamic dragcut to less than half half (depends on the exact following distance), their tires have to spin just as fast.
I linked to Mythbusters results in 2007 : they found a 39% decrease in fuel consumed at a 10 foot following distance. At high speeds, air resistance becomes a larger and larger factor on any car, so if the fuel consumed is reduced by 40%, the drafting probably cut air resistance in half. At 120 the effect should be even more pronounced. But none of this saves your tires from exploding - to safely travel at 120 mph, you would need steel wheels on a steel track.