Why fast cars suck

[Shadow]

I drove my GTO pretty much like a granny - the way I drive all my cars. What made it more enjoyable than most of my other cars, were the sounds of the power, the potential of the power and finally the feel of the G forces when you use it.

Sure, like you said, I could never use its full power for more than a few second w/o ending up in jail, but that wasn't the point. It was still very enjoyable to drive normally for the vast majority of time. So to me, that didn't suck at all.

That begs the question: If you enjoyed granny driving the GTO so much, why did you get rid of it? And more importantly, why have you chosen much less powerful cars since you dumped the GTO?

Personally, a car with decent acceleration (admittedly by my own standards) is all I want or need to enjoy my vehicle. Having too much power is almost as bad as not having enough power. After driving my friend's M3 Sunday, I can honestly say that I'd rather drive my A5 on the street, but I'd take the M3 every time on a track.

[Shadow]

The fastest car I've owned is a 2006 Mazdaspeed6. I miss that car actually.

The fastest car I've ever owned was my Eagle Talon. During the first year I owned it, I modded it to the point that it ran in the 12s. It wasn't long before I realized that the car would become less and less fun on the street the more I modded it. The same thing happened to a friend of mine who modded his Supra Turbo. He ended up with a 550-RWHP monster that was no fun at all on the street. His turbo was so big that it couldn't boost up until like 4500 RPM. It was fun at the track though!

[potownrob]

I drove my GTO pretty much like a granny - the way I drive all my cars. What made it more enjoyable than most of my other cars, were the sounds of the power, the potential of the power and finally the feel of the G forces when you use it.

Sure, like you said, I could never use its full power for more than a few second w/o ending up in jail, but that wasn't the point. It was still very enjoyable to drive normally for the vast majority of time. So to me, that didn't suck at all.

That begs the question: If you enjoyed granny driving the GTO so much, why did you get rid of it? And more importantly, why have you chosen much less powerful cars since you dumped the GTO?

not sure why his past few cars have been slower (other than the jeeps), but i know he was having trouble getting certain things repaired correctly on the GTO due to the car being australian and the american dealers not having the parts or know-how to fix things right.

[AHTOXA]

I drove my GTO pretty much like a granny - the way I drive all my cars. What made it more enjoyable than most of my other cars, were the sounds of the power, the potential of the power and finally the feel of the G forces when you use it.

Sure, like you said, I could never use its full power for more than a few second w/o ending up in jail, but that wasn't the point. It was still very enjoyable to drive normally for the vast majority of time. So to me, that didn't suck at all.

That begs the question: If you enjoyed granny driving the GTO so much, why did you get rid of it? And more importantly, why have you chosen much less powerful cars since you dumped the GTO?

GTO was my first muscle car and a car I've always liked, which is why I bought it. Unfortunately for me, as months went by I've discovered signs of heavy abuse from previous owner. This was factor one. I've had some problems with it, which I didn't want to deal with: trans issues, clutch issues that dealer couldn't track down. etc. - it was a great dealer, too, and helped me with a bunch of smaller issues.

All of these factors combined made me want to sell it for the Jeep Rubicon, which was and still is my ultimate love. I've owned, modified and wheeled other vehicles but the Jeep took the cake. However, I had to sell it because it was extremely impractical for me once I moved to TX.

So now I drive the Sonic which I very much enjoy, while I have a "Jeep fund" going on to buy an old modified YJ, of which there are plenty around here, and they are rust-free, unlike the jeeps in the snow belt. I'll use that solely as my wheeling rig and it'll rarely see a top on it.

I guess when it comes down to it, given my budget I'd rather go slow in the dirt than fast on pavement. If budget was no issue - I'd have a daily, a wheeler, a muscle, a bike, a dirt bike, a quad and a heavy duty pickup to tow all my tows to and from the trails.


EDIT: I also have car ADD and I've owned many types of vehicles to decide what I like and what suits me best. I've always wanted to experience different extremes and aspects of driving, primarily due to my love of driving and outdoors.

[SonicHKS]

Its all about how hard you can drive it.

You can drive a slow car much harder than a fast car without breaking the speed limit, etc. To me, that kind of makes it more fun. In fact I almost wish I'd bought a N/A Sonic just so I'd have to rev it higher and use the gearing more.

For years I thought hp/tq and speed were whats important. There aren't that many people to show off to though, and you get speeding tickets and stuff that make it so its not worth it. Its better to just have a car that makes YOU happy, even if its slow and doesn't really stack up that well against everyone else's.

[fr4n]

a lot of the enjoyment of a high powered car is the whiplash from the g's, even if your only accelerating to the speed limit. for everything else, theres track days, hill climbs and skid pans

[Boston Fit]

This thread reminds me of a quote by Japanese F1 driver Takuma Sato, whose daily driver is a Mini Cooper:

"Flat out in a Mini doing 70mph in third gear gives me the same level of fun as driving an F1 car. It is precise. It handles well. It drives well. It provides real driving pleasure ..."


The Sunday Times (of London), July 11, 2004
Me and My Motors: Takuma Sato - Forget Formula One, give me a Mini
Interview by Jeremy Hart

[Shadow]

This thread reminds me of a quote by Japanese F1 driver Takuma Sato, whose daily driver is a Mini Cooper:

"Flat out in a Mini doing 70mph in third gear gives me the same level of fun as driving an F1 car. It is precise. It handles well. It drives well. It provides real driving pleasure ..."


The Sunday Times (of London), July 11, 2004
Me and My Motors: Takuma Sato - Forget Formula One, give me a Mini
Interview by Jeremy Hart

I do think there is some truth in his statement. I used to think that I needed BIG power in a car to have fun driving it. Now I realize that I can have just as much fun (or even more fun) in a moderately powered car. Still though, to compare a Mini to an F1 car seems like a bit of a stretch, simply because an F1 car is a race car and race cars are driven on a track. I can't think of many street cars that would be more fun to drive on a track than an F1 car, but then again I don't think an F1 car would be much fun to drive on the street.

[Squint]

This thread reminds me of a quote by Japanese F1 driver Takuma Sato, whose daily driver is a Mini Cooper:

"Flat out in a Mini doing 70mph in third gear gives me the same level of fun as driving an F1 car. It is precise. It handles well. It drives well. It provides real driving pleasure ..."


The Sunday Times (of London), July 11, 2004
Me and My Motors: Takuma Sato - Forget Formula One, give me a Mini
Interview by Jeremy Hart

I do think there is some truth in his statement. I used to think that I needed BIG power in a car to have fun driving it. Now I realize that I can have just as much fun (or even more fun) in a moderately powered car. Still though, to compare a Mini to an F1 car seems like a bit of a stretch, simply because an F1 car is a race car and race cars are driven on a track. I can't think of many street cars that would be more fun to drive on a track than an F1 car, but then again I don't think an F1 car would be much fun to drive on the street.

From his shoes, F1 is more work, and requires more concentration. You can drive the Mini easier without having to "work" as hard, and get the same comparative level or pleasure out of the drive. The sliding scale of work-pleasure is far easier to balance.

At least, that's what I thought of with that quote.

[Rope-Pusher]

Fiat X1/9
You can drive one of these past the donut shop at 9/10ths all day long and nobody would come out to give you a ticket.

[Squint]

Fiat X1/9
You can drive one of these past the donut shop at 9/10ths all day long and nobody would come out to give you a ticket.

It's an old Fiat, good luck getting it to turn on

[Rope-Pusher]

Fiat X1/9
You can drive one of these past the donut shop at 9/10ths all day long and nobody would come out to give you a ticket.

It's an old Fiat, good luck getting it to turn on

So you find a rolled or rear-ended Abarth and repurpose it's 1.4 Turbo,.......WIN!

[Shadow]

Fiat X1/9
You can drive one of these past the donut shop at 9/10ths all day long and nobody would come out to give you a ticket.

It's an old Fiat, good luck getting it to turn on

So you find a rolled or rear-ended Abarth and repurpose it's 1.4 Turbo,.......WIN!

Actually, that would probably be a very cool engine swap project.

[Rope-Pusher]

^ It's like Nephew gets brain-dead in some car accident and rather than keeping him a vegetarian the folks pull the plug and donate his heart to keep his Uncle alive.

[SonicHKS]

It's an old Fiat, good luck getting it to turn on

So you find a rolled or rear-ended Abarth and repurpose it's 1.4 Turbo,.......WIN!

Actually, that would probably be a very cool engine swap project.

Even better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9yKsWwyvUo