In Memorium

Fortunately/unfortunately, performance at the levels that makes headlines today requires some kind of electric propulsion. You can't use an old iron lump, manual clutch/gearbox, etc., and touch any of the latest hardware. The 918/LaFerrari are the state of the automotive art.

It doesn't really bother me. There's the vintage/classic world, which gives you the soundtrack, oil leaks, manual steering/brakes/clutch, etc. Tremendous fun. No performance bragging rights, but for the most part ... who cares.

 

I love that video. Everyone does. And the soundtrack is so lovely.

The electrics are the future though. And I'm embracing it because I know it is best for our society and the future of our society. I drove a Tesla yesterday, and can't wait till I get one.

I love the sound of motors. Don't get me wrong. I drove my 550 SS over to Cavallino and back. Going convertible both ways. With the song from Rush, Red Barchetta in my head all weekend.


I analyzed motorsport for some time. I think it's the sights and importantly, the sounds, that are attractive. In addition to the competition. ... I wonder what the sport would be without the sound.


While you comment on the current cars as being "souless", I'll refrain from comment on that. Preferring instead to say that it's my belief that it is sound for the future of humanity.

We are highly dependent on transportation. We should seek sustainable transportation. Even if we'll miss the sounds. Which we likely will.

 

Wow, it's early in the year but above post has every chance of being the most obnoxious, rude, self centered and outright stupid post of 2015. Sorry to be that blunt but I just can't help it.

 

Buy a vintage/classic car. Problem solved.

I don't understand why people insist that new high-end cars continue to use old, inferior technologies. I would love to have a Porsche 918 in the garage, next to my 356, and a LaFerrari to park next to the 308. Different cars, different eras, different experiences.

Also don't understand your comment about "not cleaner". The 918/La Ferrari are probably the fastest road cars on the planet. I would be bored by a Prius. I would kill for a drive in a 918. If it doesn't dump a bunch of toxic gases into the atmosphere, that's obviously a plus.

 

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Maybe re-read the thread.

 

Honestly, cars today are just too fast to enjoy on city streets. You cannot drive them in anger or you will lose your license in a week. It's like you are constantly trying to figure out how far you can go without being arrested.

I feel today's super cars are like trying to hit a thumbtack with a sledgehammer. Overkill.

And, if you really want a track car... get a real track car, not a GT that sort of goes fast as you pretend to drive the Monaco GP in your Walter Mitty brain.

What engineers need today is to come up with cars that have more spirit and less math.

 

The cars that have been the most fun for me to drive have been the simplest. I have spent time in a few Cobras (real, fake and other) and they provide one of the most pure and brutal driving experiences around. The chassis on these cars is capable but antiquated. The engines generally have more power than needed. The all independent suspensions (in the good cars) provide a level of handling a step above most other cars from the period. For pure driving nirvana they are hard to beat. I imagine that a Lotus 7 or one of its clones or a Morgan three wheeler would provide similar thrills. Modern sports cars are so capable and so refined that it takes some of the fun away. The Nissan GT-R is one of those cars. Amazing performance but once you get past the initial thrill of its mind bending acceleration, it becomes kind of anti climatic. It will do most anything you ask but doesn't require much skill to get there. (Not that a person with skill couldn't take advantage of the available performance but even a knuckle dragging mouth breather can do some pretty cool things in the car) A vintage performance car isn't so easy to drive and get 80% or more of the performance potential out of.

A new Miata (or the FIAT version) may provide more pure driving thrills than some of the newest super cars out there. There is a place for enormous power and ability but that doesn't always equate to the most enjoyment in driving.

 

Great posts everyone! Lots of passion for cars. I too long for something that is less rolling, four-wheeled cyborg and more of a machine. Going to car events, I'm always impressed at the clutter of modern engine bays versus the simplicity of older cars.

So, in this day and age of increased legal and legislative demands, does anyone think a simple analog car as many of you have waxed poetically about, could actually be built (by a major brand)? Especially in a litigious society, I can foresee a person crashing their analog car, lawyering up and blaming the car maker for not having electronic nannies, tire pressure monitors, ABS, traction control, etc.?

 

Can you still get a Trabant?

 

According to Auto Trader Classics: yes, yes, you can!

 

Well, then, problem solved. Leave the Porsche 918s to the poseurs.

 

As the old saying goes...

"It is more fun to drive a slow car fast, than to drive a fast car slow!"