It will take at least 3 hours for them to get to Bridgeport
That's true. The give-away is "observation ... in the real world". That's what "field reports" are.
The part I'm not so sure about is those "entific findings".
At 100 km/hr, the car's kinetic energy is
KE = (1/2) (mass) (speed)²
KE = (1/2) (1575 kg) ( [100 km/hr] x [1000 m/km] x [1 hr/3600 sec] )²
KE = (787.5 kg) (27.78 m/s)²
KE = 607,639 Joules
In order to deliver this energy in 2.9 seconds, the engine must supply
(607,639 J / 2.9 sec) = 209,531 watts
<em>Power = 281 HP</em>