Car and Driver LIVE event, drove a Ferrari along with others...

Hey guys,

This last Saturday I was fortunate enough to attend the Car and Driver/Road and Track LIVE event. Its an executive drive where you get to drive a Ferrari F430, Lamborghini Gallardo, Ford GT, Corvette Z06, Porsche 911 Turbo, and Lotus Elise. I was supposed to share each car but since only 6 people showed up I got to drive all of them full time! The weather was great and the route was amazing. It was in upstate NY and it was full of scenery and not traffic to speak of. I wrote up a little thing about each car last night and I will post it just for fun. Comments and questions are welcome. Its a little immature and written hastily but I was exhausted but wanted to write it while each car was fresh in my mind. I wrote about each car in the order I drove it, the order was random. Not sure where to put this but I thought you all might find this interesting and I'd LOVE to hear some feedback. Thanks


Car and Driver LIVE event:

So I started off driving the C6 Corvette Z06. I really like this car and was kinda looking forward to driving it. I wasn’t thrilled about driving it before all the other cars at first, but it turned out for the best. The interior is nice, but the seating position is a bit intimidating. Big long hood and somewhat claustrophobic. The shifter sits pretty high. Clutch is not too heavy though and the engagement is a little quick but still pretty easy to modulate. The heads up display is one of the coolest features. So we start off and first thing I notice is that this thing is really quiet. I’m expecting a real muscly V8 sound but that’s not what I get. It’s a nice sound, just pretty muted, even with the windows open. This is the only car that I didn’t get to stretch its legs. I guess everyone was kind of intimidated at first because we were all going kinda slow. I got to feel the low rpm power and it was obviously very impressive. Another guy in a C6 vette gave me a very enthusiastic wave so I did a casual wave back (kinda felt funny because it wasn’t really my car). Overall great car, but I would rank it toward the bottom of my list in this group.

Next car I got to drive was the Fort GT. I was really looking forward to driving this thing. I knew it was a beast power wise and quite unique. As soon as you get in you know your in something special. Though the seats are quite uncomfortable and stiff, the rest is ergonomically correct. This car is even more claustrophobic than the Z06, the tightest fit of them all in the headroom department. I’m only 5’10 and I have no idea how someone much taller would fit comfortably, but I guess I was the perfect size. The shifter falls right into your hand so that’s real nice. The problem is the shifter is a little clunky and first gear is very difficult to find, every now and then you’ll get third instead. The clutch is the stiffest of the bunch but great to modulate. The dead pedal sits a little close to the clutch pedal so that is a turn off but its still a pretty decent feel down there. All the instructor guys were warning everybody about this car, and in a way, they were right. The group was loosened up by now and as soon as we were ready to go the whole group took off and I got a full second and third gear pull. It has crazy power! I’m talking all over the rpm band, I felt it most between 4k and 5k rpm. The sound was one of my favorites too, a great, loud, deep and bassy rumble mixed with the supercharger wine. Really the best of both worlds. This part of the route also had an extremely twisty section right near a rock wall. The handling was waayyy better than expected. Crisp and sharp turn-in, quick ratio and tons of feel. I felt truly confident in this cars handling. Its just the power is so much that it could step out so easily, so I kept the power for the straights. The looks on peoples faces when you drive by was hilarious. I know that’s how I would look but this car possibly got the most looks except for the Ferrari at full song. Got out of this car thinking that there isn’t much that can beat this.

 

But then it was my turn in the Ferrari F430. As soon as you sit in it you feel how perfectly everything is layed out. The steering wheel feels brilliant. The paddles are in just the right place. The pedals are all perfect weighted. The seats are comfortable. The view out the front is amazing. This model was the “automatic” model, or the Ferrari F1 paddle shift. I was really pleased to see this as I always wanted to try it out, especially on the Ferrari. I put the paddle into first and start out gently following the other cars. As soon as I get the chance, I lay on the throttle. The exhaust note instantly changes into a growl and the tach swings so unbelievably fast. The feeling obviously isn’t the torquey feeling I got from the Ford GT, but the sense of urgency in this car is unmatched. Its so much fun to lay on the throttle. I was lucky enough to be able to get my money’s worth in this car, the group was at its loosest and I was all over the throttle. Full throttle gear changes occur faster than any human can even think about shifting. That’s the beauty of the paddle-shift, its constant power, so clean and perfect. I was playing with the throttle the whole time, there is some kind of valve that opens about 4k rpm that makes the exhaust sound as good as it does, and its so much fun to provoke it. Truly mind blowing. The steering is also just as good as everyone says it is. I feel like I’m part of the car. I hit a few long sweepers at around 80mph and felt there was so much more in it. The tight twisty stuffy had me practically giggling. The brake and throttle pedals were absolutely perfectly weighted. The view out front was perfect, the engine note was perfect, the power was awesome, the steering spectacular. Even though the GT was amazing, this was even better. The only real problem I had with the car is that the gearbox is pretty sloppy at slower speeds. Otherwise, perfect car, I see exactly why a Ferrari is a Ferrari. No joke and no bias getting in beforehand. People looked at this car at lot too. Sometimes I would goose the gas as I passed people and they would just stare in awe as it really was awesome.

So after the Ferrari I knew it wasn’t getting any better. However I still had a few more cars to drive. The Porsche turbo was up next. I thought this would be benign next to the Ferrari, but I was wrong again. The car is extremely comfortable. This one was manual and the shifting was great. It wasn’t perfect like a miata or S2000 but it was damn good. Much better than most people had mentioned. The clutch was fun and easy to operate, not too light but not nearly as heavy as the GT and the shifter was pretty slick. The view was also special, you are really part of the car in this one just like the Ferrari. What blew me away was the combination of power delivery and handling ease. This car was fun to step on. Anywhere on the power band I could step on it and it would lag just for a split second and then take off, had the most entertaining power deliver out of all of them. I had plenty of opportunities in this car to really get on it. As I said earlier, the group was really loose and flying around. With this car though, I felt I could easily keep up with any of them. So easy to drive, but it doesn’t take any enjoyment away from it, it just makes you feel like a superhero. This or the Ferrari would be my choice for daily driver. The steering is perfectly weighted and its extremely agile. This car doesn’t get as many looks but I did have one guy in another 997 stop in the middle of the road on the opposite side and tell me nice car. I just smiled and waved. Sweet, another great car. Next!

 

So the next car I pop into is the Lotus Elise. I honestly thought this would be one of the more fun cars to drive. Unfortunately, this car was kind of a let down after all the others. The power was sorely lacking. The handling was obviously great, the problem was the power could never keep up. I thought the Ferrari, Porsche, and GT all handled as good. This car had a lot of feedback but still not as much as the Ferrari or Porsche. It equaled the handling of those cars but at a hefty price of comfort. It was an extremely harsh ride, like I couldn’t even use the rearview mirror because it was shaking so violently. It also had major problems with third gear, it would grind half the time I tried to put it in. Not my fault I guarantee, it was definitely the car. I tried to tell the lady afterwards and she just said: “oh, YOU had problems with third gear?” I said yeah but its not me, its definitely the car. She said “uh-huh, well we’ll take a poll after and see who else had problems.” So that took a lot away from the enjoyment. Also the brake pedal was very mushy. Again, not sure if it’s the way its supposed to be but it just didn’t feel right. I was just relieved none of the other cars had these problems otherwise it might have ruined the event. Oh well, final car.

So the final car was the Lamborghini Gallardo. This was also a paddleshift car like the Ferrari. This car had some very good, and some not so good traits to it. First of all the car looks amazing inside and out. The details are awesome. The view is interesting, very hard to get used to as the windshield is SO steeply raked. More so than in any other car I could imagine. One of the best parts of this car obviously is the power. This car has immense power after 3k rpm. Its sound is also glorious. The handling seemed good, but this one was kind of intimidating. Very wide feeling and hard to push. Nothing like the Ferrari or Porsche or even the Ford GT. It was fun, just kind of intimidating. Part of the reason is the pedal action. Everything is very very stiff in the Lambo. The brakes are especially stiff and quite grabby at slow speeds. Very hard to easily modulate. The transmission works great at full song, pretty much as fast as the Ferrari. But it is even worse than the Ferraris at slow speeds. Extremely clumsy. I couldn’t even use first gear and second was also tough. Besides that though I felt like I was practically a passenger, just enjoying the ride. A lot of looks in this car too. So to sum up this car it was the power and looks that draw you in, because even though the handling was very good, it was hard to push the limits.

After all that if I had to pick a winner it would far and away be the Ferrari F430. It had everything a supercar should and more. Power, handling, feel, confidence, looks, fun factor, exhaust note, and I could go on and on. Next is nearly a split decision, but I think I’ll pick the Porsche 911 Turbo. I was so impressed with this car. The power delivery was amazing, the handling was the easiest to exploit just like the Ferrari. The interior was awesome and I love the exterior as well. It was very very balanced and very very fun to drive. I love it. Third, right behind the Porsche is the Ford GT. I love this car. Its so unique. It has insane power, the most in this group, and it has awesome handling to match. It’s a bit hard to drive, but not quite intimidating like the Lambo. It looks amazing, maybe the best, and the interior is just plain cool. This would keep me entertained just as long as the Ferrari or Porsche. Next would be the Lambo. I love the power of this car, and the sound of the power. It’s a bit intimidating as said earlier, but it can definitely be eventually learned. The interior is really comfortable and exotic, as well as the exterior. Definitely a cool car. Fifth is the Z06. I didn’t really get to explore too much of this car but it is obvious that the power is not lacking. Even at 4k, where I felt it, it had immense power, not quite the Ford GT, but definitely a lot. The handling was surprisingly neutral and all the controls were easy to get to. I guess it scores low on this list simply because of company. Any other day I would have had my mind blown by driving this car. It was pretty comfortable and was fun to push. The controls were great. All in all a little subdued compared to all the others but that might not be a bad thing. Last is the little Lotus. It didn’t have a chance with all the problems I encountered. I never thought the ride in a car could bother me but this lotus was far and away the stiffest car imaginable. The power was pretty lacking even up in the rpm band. The gearbox was not that great either, especially with a grinding third gear. The brake pedal was incredibly mushy. The handling was the only thing it had going for it and it was matched by some of the other cars here. I still enjoyed driving it but I could never imagine it as a daily driver.

This was a wonderful event full of great people. All the instructors were friendly and pretty much let you do what you want. The other people participating were also great. I got particularly lucky as there were supposed to be twelve people in the event, but there were only 6 people for this time slot. I was supposed to have 20 minutes driving and 20 minutes riding in each vehicles, but instead got the whole 40 minutes to drive so I was especially pleased. One of the other participants is named Tom and he is the older gentleman in the background on the Orange County Chopper shows. He was real cool and fun to talk to. Another added bonus was Orange County Choppers was right next store to the hotel we were at in Newburgh NY. So I peeked in and saw some cool bikes as well. Neither Paulie was there though. Overall I couldn’t have asked for a better time. Thanks Car and Driver!

 

I guess since I'm not a member I can't post the actual images, Here are the links.

These are some of the pictures:

Corvette


Ford GT


Ferrari F430


Porsche 911 Turbo


Lotus Elise


Lamborghini Gallardo


Whole Group Front


Whole Group Back


Videos of me in some of the cars. I'm a goofball. Sorry for the HORRIBLE quality, they are camera phone vids:

**Just noticed the vid's weren't working, here's another try**

First vid of me in Ferrari F430
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k153/Granite543/?action=view&current=MeinaFerrariVideo.flv

Second vid of me in the Ferrari F430(look at my face, I think its hilarious)
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k153/Granite543/?action=view&current=MeinaFerrariVideo2.flv

Me in the Lamborghini Gallardo
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k153/Granite543/?action=view&current=MeinaLamboGallardoVideo.flv

Me in the Porsche 911 Turbo
http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k153/Granite543/?action=view&current=MeinaPorsche911TurboVideo.flv

 

What is the cost and would you do it if you knew ahead of time that you would have only gotten 20 min per car as originally planned?

 

i did a similar one but we had a bentley and an aston instead of the porsche and lotus. i pretty much came to the exact same conclusions as you. it's interesting to me because everyone says how great the vette is, but like you, i was unimpressed in the other company. What was your top speed? the one i did we got them all up to about 140.

 

The cost to me was $1200 (actually is was a gift from parents and wife). Definitely a little pricey but for a car guy it was well worth it. I think I still would have enjoyed it with just 20min as long as my "partner" was as aggressive as I. I really hustled these cars, accelerating nearly all the time, taking curves pretty darn fast, etc.. Kinda dangerous really but I wanted my money's worth and everyone was doing it. I just wanted to take every car to the fullest. But yeah, still would have been worth it.

 

Very cool, which one did you do? Gotham dream cruise? Maybe next year I will be able to do a different tour so I'm very interested.

Yeah, the Vette was just a little mundane in this company. Very quiet and easy to drive, no real "nuances" (sp?). Still fun, but of course this was the only car I didn't get to push. For some reason we started out slow (intimidation possibly?). But by the time I got to the second car (The Ford GT) we were all ripping it. Top speed was only about 100. But there was plenty of room for accelerating and taking turns. We were in upstate NY and the roads were gorgeous, mostly twisty but there were several straights were I got to open them up. Where did you take your cruise?

 

http://worldclassdriving.com/

nothing like didier theys sitting next to you in a 430 telling you to go faster when you are already in triple digits! we toured around the front royal VA area.

 

Nice write up. It looks like the Gallardo is needing some new front tires!

 

Sounds amazing. You said you got to drive the same cars only slightly different? Which ones?

Yeah, I still can't get over the F430. Simply amazing. Same with the Porsche 911 turbo and Ford GT. Just an amazing experience.

 

Yeah, the Porsche had some used up tires too, but the rest were great! I was too uncomfortable to use up all the grip in the Gallardo...the Porsche and Ferrari on the other hand ::devil::

Edit: Thanks, I actually really loved writing about it. I did that when I was exhausted, I just wanted to keep all the details fresh. I might go over it soon and make it professional. Might be fun.

 

I want to do this event so badly! Even had made enough money to cover it and my appartment for school next year but alas, you need to be 21

 

Damn good write up. Sounds like such a good time.

You can post images, just go to Attachments a little under the post, I think there is a limit of 5 images per post or something.

 

Nice write up! Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

$1200 to you? What does that mean?

After your parents chipped in X amount you had $1200 remainding or what?

Dan

 

Yup, 21 is the min. age. But think of it as something to look forward too. I had to wait about 8 months and the anticipation was a big part of the fun!

Thanks for the comments! They are much appreciated!

No, sorry to confuse you Dan. What I meant was the total price was $1200, my parents and my wife split it. Very generous of them .

 

The anticipation could be fun if it wasn't going to b for three years! haha

 

Understandable, but still worth the wait!

Anyone else have any comments?

 

Bump!

Thinking about doing the Gotham Dream Cruise this year instead as its considerably cheaper....anyone has any experience with that company? Thanks in advance!

 

What a great thread!!! Usually i skim thru long threads like these, But I read everything. You kept my interest. It's great to hear comparisions of these vehicles. It's also nice to hear that the Ferrari really is all around a better, more enjoyable car than the rest in your opinion. I feel the same way. But I have to say, that Ford GT is right behind in my comparisions. I really never liked the feel of a Porsche. Kinda like the vanilla chocolate thing. The Z06 is too american for me. Opps, I just realized this was done 2 years ago. Either way, Great job, and thank you

 

Thank you so much for the kind words! I love receiving feedback! The event was last year around this time, I loved it so much that I really want to do it again, only I'm trying to do it cheaper.

Thanks again and all feedback is welcome. Also if you know about Gotham Dream Cruise and their reputation please post it!

 

I've done World Class Driving twice. Once is Cape May, NJ, their 2nd event ever and then in Westchester. This was back in 2006, the Cape May event was only $600 and the Westchest $800, now they raised price to about $1,450.

Last year I did Gotham, which was also great, that was only $895.

I drove basically the same cars at all three events except the 997 Turbo & Elise. I did get to drive a Murcielago and Gallardo coupe and Spyder.

My favorite was the F430 followed closely by the Porsche 997 GT3. The Ford Gt a close third. The best sounding was the Gallardo Spyder. You could really hear the engine/exhaust with the top down.

 

I saw the World Class Driving, it looked great! Its just a little expensive. I wanted to keep it a bit cheaper this time, so Gotham kind of fits the bill. You basically came to the same conclusions that I did then. The F430, then Porsche, then Ford GT, etc...

With Gotham I'd get to drive an F430 again, which I crave madly, as well as a Murcielago. I'd love to try out the Murci to compare it with the Gallardo.

 

Did a very similar event yesterday (Vulcan Motor Club, in NJ). Drove:

Ford GT
Lamborghini Gallardo
Ferrari F430
Aston Martin DB9
Audi R8

Like you said - F430 was perfect. Everything laid out as it should be and a blast to drive. My final ranking was:

Ferrari F430
Ford GT
Aston Martin
Lambo Gallardo
Audi R8

The Lambo was a convertible, but the cowl shake was deplorable. I had no confidence driving the car, and the front windshield was huge - like off of a minivan. Lame. At least it sounded cool and was a convertible, or it would have been last. The Audi was a fine driver, but nothing special.