People have stopped using their brains ..or have have been completely brainwashed by marketing guys from car companies and ad makers.
Or just the "true car guys" have been outnumbered by the "non car idiots" ?
Am I the only one of the last few crazy petrol heads left who have not been affected by the marketing gimmicks ..
Why does it even matter how much HP does a car have ?
Why does it even matter how fast the car accelerates from 0 to 60 ?
Why do we need power steering in sports cars ?
Why do idiots ask for traction control , ABS , limited slip differentials in a car ..?
WHY THE HELL do we need DSG, flappy paddle gearbox ? why are the manual gearboxes dying out ?
All the hi horsepower supposedly "sports cars" are losing it ..
I'm going to set my scope over here /..just to make it clear what I'm talking about:
There are only 2 reasons to drive .. either for work or for fun.
If its for work like a ambulance, cab, pizza delivery , police car, fire truck, I'm not supposed to have fun doing it because the sole purpose is to travel from point A to Point B in most efficient way. basically I need an "appliance" which helps me in transportation of people or stuff in a very efficient manner. I do understand that here the driver will be able to perform more efficiently if he does not have to worry about locking up, skidding, cornering , tight turns etc. Vehicle needs a lot of power to move heavy stuff around, electronics, power assist etc etc to help him achieve his duties. Auto gearbox, soft ride,power windows, AC, electrical power steering etc definitely make sense.
Another sub category are those people who need it for personal use but still don't care and consider cars as just a means of transportation because they too need it for going from point A to point B , these people are the majority.. I understand. Everyone does not share the same enthusiasm, people have different interests,,
I don't care about the above categories ..
Now coming to the hardcore "petrol head" with serious addiction to grease/petrol/exhaust/torque/handling etc etc. This species of humans have unlimited time patience , effort and equal amounts of money to burn on cars.. The word "vehicle" is almost derogatory and insulting way to describe their "creations/machines".
This category has been around for a long time and only this category is what my scope is.
What do the car manufacturers offer these people ?
Nothing - absolutely crap is being being offered + the standards are going down faster every year.
Keeping this 3 factors in mind - [Cheap ], [Reliable] and [Fast/Interesting] .. I even understand all 3 cannot exist together.
Good examples:
Cheap+Reliable : Nissan versa, Toyota yaris
Cheap + Fast/Interesting : nothing right now (maybe used Mini cooper non turbo,used golf, used civic si, used neon srt4)
Reliable + Fast/Interesting : BMW 135 twin turbo, Sti , Golf GTI ..
See there is nothing off the shelf which will be reasonably priced to have fun and allow room for tweaks and modifications .
Coming back to the topic ..have people forgotten what fun means in cars ?
E.g going at 150 km/h is fun depending on the type of car ..
In a mercedes its hardly even felt - the outside noise is damped out, the suspension + heavy bulk absorbs the small vibrations, the engine doesn't even feel strained.. the steering wheel is electrically operated via motors so the direct feel between road and steering wheel is again damped out.
It's just to efficient and powerful and fast to feel anything @120 KMH..
Now If I really wanted to have fun and test the limits of this machine I would need to try and hit 250 Kmh plus to start getting the machine right on the ragged edge..to actually start hearing the engine note, exhaust note, feel the road etc..
Whats the point ? how many times will I get an opportunity to do this ? how many times will I be able to able to use that power band .. ?
How much fun is it overtaking slower cars in traffic without a manual box? simply find a gap and blip the throttle , no noise, no planning, no need of dropping a gear, no need of watching the rev limiter..
Freeways also become stupidly boring in these "new age cars" .. even the cheaper models are becoming very efficient(read boring) ..
Imagine doing the above things "old school" traditional way :-) in a slightly older vehicle with "correct amount of power" .. and just the right amount of technology .. means disc brakes, fuel injection, radial tyres at least :-)
Lets say :
- manual rack and pinion steering(disconnected hydraulic assist or hydraulic assist in worst case)
- double wishbone/struts - with firm lowered springs, sitting on 15 inch wheels, regular
- 0 or minimal sound deadening
- single cam, 2 valve engine
- exhaust with only a cat con and a muffler , should be able to hear the pop and crackle of the unburnt fuel
- 100 to 120 HP and about 1200 kgs (maybe lighter if possible) and no turbo
- 5 speed manual gearbox
- all round disc brakes, with or without servo assistance
With this setup - each and every thing will be come an absolute adventure right on the edge.
Hearing the engine rev up and the exhaust tone change with the rev counter is the main entertainment, Keeping the engine in its power band.
Feeling the road unevenness, bumps , water puddles through the steering, feeling the tyres pull left or right with ur own hands is a totally differnet experience.
Overtaking slower cars involves a quick glance at tacho , followed by a quick down shift , rev matching the gearbox (blipping the throttle while clutch is pressed to bring the engine speed closer to the flywheel speed before engaging clutch again).. hammering the throttle in and waiting for the engine to reach power band before overtaking is now becoming a "lost art ". When in the peak torque range darting out of lane and back just in time is something to be experienced 1st hand.
The fun is in hearing the exhaust gurgle or pop like a machine gun on the overrun during deceleration and winding down the gears or just letting it back fire away happily on downhills while in gear..
The advantage of the 0 assist via electric motor or hydraulic pump is more direct and tactile feel of the front wheels.
You don't need 300 BHP to do a torque steer .. u just need less traction , like in the rains or smaller 14-15 inch wheels with regular rubber. You just need to break traction and overcome the grips ..choose 1 option more power or less grip :-)
How many can claim they can feel the front tyres losing grip or sliding through the steering wheel ?
17 inch wheels with ABS, ESP, 1.5 tonnes of kerb weight and electrical power steering .. ?
Coming to the more interesting aspects of braking and weight transfer...
With these newer cars .. can u take a downhill slope with a very hard braking and describe the feeling ?
Nothing ..
Can someone driving the modern cars tell me how much braking effort before u can feel the weight transfer shifting forward and the front brakes locking up ?
With the fun cars I know exactly whats going on through my steering wheel and the un assisted brakes ..
(un assisted means ABS/EBD/ESP etc not the hydraulic assist, 0.1% people will have driven a car without a hydraulic assist so no use comparing servo/vs non servo)
No one advertises these things , because it means selling cars with lesser items and cheaper prices and 99% people don't even care..
But those few in the petrol head category should wake up and get their lazy asses out of these new boring supposedly sports cars and step into the real world of hardcore analog tactile feel of old school simple cars..
Consider this as an ultimate test to check if u are a true car freak or a pseudo car freak or in better words .."poser" with shiny rims and 300 HP 3000 pound hippo driving losers
Ask yourself this - Its more fun driving a slower car fast or a fast car fast ? how many times have u taken the car the ragged edge of the cars limits ? really pushed a car to its limits ..?
If u drive automatics/DSG/flappy paddles ..please don't waste your time here ..just FO.
Some more people who get it
http://www.thesmokingtire.com/2012/whats-more-fun-slow-cars-fast-or-fast-cars-slow/
http://www.contracthireandleasing.com/car-leasing-news/driving-slow-cars-fast-why-powers-not-important/
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/05/the-unimportance-of-speed/
http://www.automobilemag.com/features/great_drives/0903_slow_cars_the_joy_of_slow/viewall.html
