I think the speed of a car is irrelevant, it's all down to how it's driven. I own a Supercharged Vauxhall VXR8 which is pushing 575bhp but for me it drives equally as well on our roads as my Wife's 1.2 litre Clio, when driven in the same context.
Part of the issue is that some people push there car too hard on our poor quality roads and that can result in big problems! Hoofing along on our badly pot holed roads can cause big issues with stability of fast modern cars.
For me though having all that power isn't just about getting from A to B as quickly as you can, for me it's also about the noise, the knowing what it can do and also having the power to use when the opportunity arises, on the track, drag strip etc.
Buy a car from your heart, every time!
Stef
Originally Posted by Omegamanic
I'm lucky enough to have a GT86 company car and it's not quick, but has very progressive handling and grip.
Audi tt leaves me cold and distant regardless of how fast it is. It's interior and packaging is light years ahead of the Toyota, but they're in no way rivals in the real world!
The only place to have fast "fun" in a vehicle is on the track. The days have gone where you have roads to yourself. You may think that you are alone in your "shell" but you are not. IMHO fast road cars are now a total waste. I've had to clear wrecks and disperse DNA from scenes of "accidents". Not a pleasant task! Nor is going to the home of a deceased to inform those left behind (both the funseekers and those wiped out by them). Sorry to be a "kill"joy but "fast" road cars are only fast because of the drivers. Programmes like Top Gear (and many films) only fuel this lust for speed and thrills. If you've got to do it, do it on a track.
But they are most definitely rivals in the showroom, and the TT is kicking the GT86's arse in the UK I believe - my Toyota dealer has sold 4 or 5 since launch!
What do you call progressive? A car that losses grip too quickly, but let's you know it is doing it?
I like the 86, I like the 5 year warranty. But I didn't notice the sublime handling etc. and I used in anger and gently over two extended periods now. The car is built to a very cheap price, and it shows. The UK list price was a joke compared to other world markets - where it could be bought in a decent ish trim for under £19k. I may have one yet - but it would require a little fettling.
It's just a matter of time...
I am very much looking forward to the new TT...
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/audi/tt...te-price-specs
Virtual cockpit? Oh yes.
TTS even quicker at 4.7 to sixty from an economical two litre engine.
And the Quattro sport concept does it in 3.7
The new TTRS will be very interesting to see.
I'm sorry, and maybe I am some kind of heathen on this thread, but I like powerful cars. I'm not interested in a GT86 that looks great and is slower than a warm Ford Focus. I want a car that grips and sticks to the road like superglue, not something that starts to go sideways at forty.
In the twenty five years I have been driving I have never caused an accident, or been at fault (despite once driving into a flood... that's another story). I am a responsible man with a responsible job, and I like a surge of acceleration on a clear straight road. I also like to be able to throw a car down a chicane when I can see the road is clear, and I won't enjoy myself in a 1.6 MX5. I've tried, and it was a no no.
All the best to those who like otherwise.
So clever my foot fell off.
Gt is a halo car, it's there for image, not to be a big seller and appeals to different people. TT has been a big player since it was introduced in 1999 so it's not comparable, and I've not had any customers say to me that they were looking at a TT as well......
Sublime? Probably not lol! Progressive? Definitely!
I have the advantage of use whenever/wherever I want plus 2x pro-tutored track days at oulton and without having to clutch-kick (which I do have to do in my Mazda) I can slide the car quite well, with great satisfaction, and then straighten up which is the "progression" I mention.
I think the tt just drives like a golf, which isn't surprising (or a bad thing) as they share the majority of mechanicals
I think it's great that we don't all agree! Cos I don't wanna be an identikit person wearing the same clothes, shoes and watch as everyone else, listening to the same music and driving the same cars........
Its easy peasy to make pretty much any car slide on track. Just turn of ESP (if it can really go off), turn into the corners very late but throw the car in hard when you do it and I really mean turn that wheel pretty much as fast as you can. Assuming your not driving way below the grip limit things will get pretty sideways.
...or just watch pretty much any Chris Harris video on youtube.
Wow. Sounds bitter. Could it be that a) "idiots" actually have fun in their cars, and b) can afford it?
Realistic.
Although no trees were harmed during the creation of this post, a large number of electrons were greatly inconvenienced.
Who says you can't use a fast car on UK roads...
http://news.sky.com/story/1270405/sp...-149mph-on-m25
Seriously though - who does 96mph in a 30mph zone?? Would take you 10 times longer to stop ffs.
Clearly you are not familiar with the Isle or Man TT racesWho says you can't use a fast car on UK roads...
http://news.sky.com/story/1270405/sp...-149mph-on-m25
Seriously though - who does 96mph in a 30mph zone?? Would take you 10 times longer to stop ffs.
Whoever does not know how to hit the nail on the head should be asked not to hit it at all.
Friedrich Nietzsche
I've no knowledge of the particular circumstances of that one, but not all 30mph zones are equal, and not all have been implemented for road safety reasons.
It may have changed by now, but when I lived in Ipswich there was a long, open road which had fields on either side but was classed as 30mph, but as soon as you reached a built-up area, the limit went up to 40mph! The reason was everything to do with politics and nothing to do with road safety (or common sense!) - the 30mph area was under the control of Suffolk County Council, and the 40mph area belonged to Ipswich Town Council!
I've had a few quick cars and bikes over the years..... But I've had nothing car wise that compares to the TVR Griffith that I'm currently running around in....
450 BHP LS3 engine and almost 500 ft/lbs of torque, in something that weighs under 1100kg...... No TC, no ABS...
I can honestly say I've never used max rpm or max throttle opening... Most of the time it's on little more than tickover, but by eck, when you do floor it, it certainly gets your attention.....
Is it to fast for British roads?? Almost certainly... But at the end of the day the accelerator works both ways, and there's nothing wrong with driving around slowly in an extremely fast car....
I'm currently in France, but next week I'm off to Germany for the weekend....hopefully I'll get to try it out properly, without making the 10 o clock news...
Yes, but would you have bought one, with your own cash - if it wasn't a company car?
If you want a coupe - there are lots of options - the GT86 interior is not great, and it's not quick - it's not so much a halo car though - maybe the LFA is a halo car - but not a £15k coupe being sold for £25k ;)
It's just a matter of time...
Absolutely - 190mph in a 30 zone last night ;)Clearly you are not familiar with the Isle or Man TT races
& Bruce Anstey hitting 130.86mph lap in practice! Sensational.
It's just a matter of time...
I don't really know...
LFA is a half a million pound car...😞 not really relevant.
Might sound like a technicality but its a Lexus and here they are sold out of completely different garages.
I think the idea with the GT86 was more a statement that we are not a boring company making boring cars rather than a halo as such. Is the GT86 better or worse than the MX5?
It’s easy peasy to make any TVR slide anywhere - even when you didn’t intend it to do so. ;-)
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
That's the "halo" in a nutshell.... GT-86 isnt even the best car toyota make, the Rav4 is by far.....
Re-mx5 its Better cos its quicker, worse cos it ain't a cabriolet!!
It's kinda like the Impreza, where you have to be a certain type to buy one.....
Lol, my old mate took his TVR to a club event at Brands years ago and ended up being driven round the track by none other than the legendary Jerry Marshall in my mates own car. He said the same thing about his Griff but that Jerry just made it look easy like the car was supposed go sideways all the time (I don't think Jerry Marshall was one for driving in straight lines anyway).
Sometimes, lifting off once you've turned in can bring the tail around in RWD or FWD cars.
You can then balance the car on the throttle and generate power oversteer (if your car is RWD) as you exit.
Good lord man, he was called Gerry Marshall!
"A man of little significance"
It is not about better.
Horses for courses.
The GT86 is the fun horse
You have to be a fun type with driving skills
That is exactly it!
Befits this thread to perfection too.
Not at all that quick AND one of the best balanced cars (it not THE) on the market.
You can have all the fun of total control without the need to go silly fast.
It is not meant to be fast on a track. It is not meant to compete with 'sports' cars. The whole drift thing is not about fast, obviously.
Indeed not an image/halo car when parked in front of a terrace; it is only a Toyota. Again the horses for courses thing.
I was at the coast again tuesday; a concert in Marbella. That makes two trips to the affluent bit of the coast in one week. Lost of Porsches et al but these have the same speed restrictions, more size restrictions and even more grip constraints than a GT86 (or MX5).
I would buy the Honda S2000 though if I was to (could) replace my current wheels. I so much love, NEED, the ragtop down. Had rain coming back yesterday morning but left it down anyway. It is literally no sweat so will stainless dry soon enough here.
Yes, you can have too much power. I had a Camaro in my 20's. 5.7 V8. Not much fun as you just lit the back end up whenever you wanted some acceleration. I could spin the wheels at 70mph on a damp motorway! I sold it and bought an Mr2. Much less power, much more fun.
Sounds a blast, I can only imagine the concentration you need for that one. Mine needs all my attention and that's with all the modern aids switched on!
Stef
Phew yes. Whe going to the coast the drop is 860 meters over 26 kilometers and there are some ascending bits in between so you can figure out the descend %.
The speed limit is 80 km/h save for 3 km where it is 100. The two stretches on either side have traject control with véry little leniance so you have to respect 80.
Over about half the distance you would speed just coasting in neutral. Now imagine leisure cruising down with a powerfull car.
The alternative is taking the toll road; 100-120 no speed traps, ´just´check-it-all-traps at the boot which is FÁR worse.
My gf is looking to trade in her not at all tepid hatch for something even more fun but I am strongly advising her a 7-year warranted 1,2 engined KIA Rio 3-d. and spend the rest of the budget on other, less stressfull fun.
Cheers ......yes it is a blast..... But as I said, throttle works both ways, and in mellow mode, its a pussy cat....
Here's a little video of it being driven in the Jura region of France..... Excuse the quality.. Done in low def, on an ipod..
http://youtu.be/sQFeLosAGiU
Last edited by Enoch; 29th May 2014 at 17:10.
Cool.
Yes, totally agree, a car is only as fast as your ability to engage right foot and brain.
I've been gently bitten twice and very quickly learned from that. Booked my self on a performance car road handling course with a company called RideDrive. Best couple of hundred pounds I've ever spent!
Stef
I think that should be considered a ‘must’ with higher-performance cars and certainly so with the older marques: there’s quite a difference between modern and older in knowing what to do when the edge of the envelope is reached and there’s no gadgetry to rely on...
R
Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.
Agreed although I think from my experience older marques have more benign handling at the limit and you are probably going slower when you get there...
(Which I think is the point of the GT86...)
Followed my pal who has an amg e63 the other night , it was an aural delight, no turbo lag, no fuss , just unaldulterated big ones !
Lovely
Ps i drive a nissan micra NOT
The 207GT we have has mental grip levels like many other modern hatches but you can still get it onto its limits easy enough on roundabouts etc. Its much more benign on the limit than I remember 205 GTIs being back in the day, admittedly part of that is due to the ESP all modern cars come with but even with it off (assuming it really is fully off I can't really tell) its OK if not thrown around. I think the issue is more straightforward than comparing chassis from different eras. The modern cars have so much grip that their performance envelope is just beyond many people so they just don't react quickly enough when the tyres start to let go.
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