How much power is enough? Upgrading

Cars will always get faster...buy a car you have a personal connection to /with beyond simple performance stats and you will be happier in the long run....

 

I'm thinking we're getting to the point where Horsepower and speed are becoming a commodity just as quality and reliability are. I can't say I enjoy the sensation of going 0-60 in 3.8 seconds any more than doing so in 4.1 (or whatever). So what's next? Doing it in 2.9? So what.

Seems it's gotta come down to the car's character and beauty more than performance.

IMO

 

“It will never have enough power until I can spin the wheels at the end of the straightaway in high gear.” -Mark Donohue

 

How many of us were racing to post this...

Well done.

 

Possibly the greatest auto racing-related quote of all time.

 

Power is like sex. It's no big deal unless you don't have enough of it.

 

Skill>handling>horsepower


Anyone can write a check and drive off with latest greatest.
I have over 1,000 miles on the Nurburgring in a 2002 Z06, 405HP, and was passed by many lesser cars with drivers with much better skills.

 

If it was all power, we would not be driving 15 + year old ferraris...

 

Power is intoxicating I'll give you that. But car makers will have to draw a line somewhere. Unless/otherwise, in 20 years we'll have a Prius with the same amount of power of a Bugatti Veyron.

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

I have given the OP original question a lot of thought.
Realistically, I don't need a car that is any faster than
........0-60 in 5.0 seconds
........1/4 mile in 14 seconds
........top speed of 150 MPH

My F355 satisfies all of these.

 

I've built/owned some 1000+hp cars and they are fun but in a different way. 60mph rolling burnouts? Yes, very fun. The difference is, the more power there is the more concentration required to drive it.

The acceleration is exhilarating but everything is happening so fast you sometimes can't enjoy it as you are putting so much effort into it.

(the old saying it's more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow).

As you mentioned, there's so much more to a car than just a horsepower figure so what's the right number is going to vary greatly.

If you find something you like, be happy driving it and don't worry about what is faster. Chasing more power doesn't always equal more fun.

 

Personally I am not interested in having more power! I have Maranello's because I absolutely LOVE them. It was a huge goal of mine to own a 550 by my 30th, I loved everything about them since they were released. I'm 30 now & have a 550 & a 575. Couldn't wish for a better car, sure I've also had a Testarossa & I'm sure going to own other Ferrari's but I'll never want to be without a Maranello. Such an elegant & beautiful car, but no means one of the quickest Ferrari's. Quite embarrassing actually whe I go out with friends in their new Aventadors or 458's etc etc


DarkShines
[email protected]

 

Full disclosure, I was about to supercharge my 308 and my TR has a twin-turbo 1,000HP system. LOL I may remove the turbos from the TR.

 

Who in the world in his right mind will drive a 600hp + car at 10/10th especiallly on public roads?
There would never be sufficient available track days of all the race tracks in the world to allowed even 10% of all exotic cars to perform.
The more we gain in age (and wisdom?) the less we are interested in pure performance and start enjoying the finer things in life at a lesser pace.
I believe that it is one of the facts that brought such an interest in the old 250 series and the last of the manual F cars.
Would I love to drive a F12 or a 599GTO to its limit? For sure if I would have the capacity.
Would I do that on a regular basis? Not at all, I would trade such fantastic cars for something like a 250 spider and drive on the back roads with a picnic basket and a nice bottle of wine in the trunk in a hartbeat.

 

For me what makes a REALLY nice car isn't power.. its balance.

The more balanced a car is in putting down the power and staying on the road the more I like it.

You know what its like.. you're on that twisty road, and you give her some gas and feel the power pushing the car forward... just enough to get you where you want to be. Then you enter the corner, and then give some power out of it with the steering wheel giving you just the right amount of resistance and feel as the car effortlessly pivots. Magic being at one with the car...

Versus pushing the throttle and the back kicks out... and you're actively thinking not about the perfection of the ride, but how do I not end up in the ditch. When you're focusing on survival you can't enjoy the moment.

 

This.

I think Lotus did a terrific job with the Elise/Exige.

"Upgrading" to me usually means going lighter. I'm interested in the new Alfa 4C - seems like the right recipe.

 

Well said, both. If it were only about power, we'd be spending our money on 1,500+ hp dragsters. Every Fcar has it's attributes which translates to fun and as a bonus, all have room for that picnic basket and bottle of wine.

 

If I knew the car would be reliable (and if I could fit properly) then to me an F355 would tick all the boxes... Even though I have a faster car currently, and could easily buy something much, much faster for the same price.

And no, I'm not knocking the F355 as unreliable, just agreeing with others stating the obvious that sometimes more power isn't a better experience

 

Horsepower wars are ridiculous, and usable street power was surpassed years ago. Now it's all about bragging rights. Still, there must be something to it when you see advertisements for 4 door Honda's power sliding, and burning the tires off. But with all that, speeding is illegal. I wish someone would challenge the laws. I think there's a huge case to be made that street cars with this kind of power are to be used on the streets. But we're all supposed to use this power responsibly. LOL.

 

The counterargument is "take it to the track".

 

That's no argument at all. The power is there all the time, it's street legal, and encouraged through the media. How many tracks are there?

 

More than 1000.

 

There is probably a track event near where most epople live once a week.

So the real formula is a car useable on the street, viceral to drive at somewhat normal speeds, yet capable of runnign 9/10ths and above on track for more than 10 laps. Bceuae with road conditions today if you want to expolit your street car there are endless De events.

What we get though is overpowered monsters on street, cars with poorly resolved ride so that they can show good paper numbers. Cars with too much weight, and then power to overcome the weight, then brakes etc, cars which if you really use the performance will wilt in a few laps and or melt their tires.
None of which is to insult a hellcat, like a veryron its a glorious irrelevance.

But think of BMW M cars, or AMG mercs, you buy a car that cant really track, has a not so greta ride and more power than can be used on street. However such a formula sells. Look even at a modern ferrari, bland at regular speeds.

My theory is if you sell an r version of whatever, it shouldbe track capable without wilting, very very few are.

When I used to Live in South Africa we could run till we ran out of gas at near top tilt, but even then...The fastest run I ever did between two points was in a volvo 850 turbo, it was 45 mins at 256kmh 1 below the speed limiter, that was 240HP, more woudl have been nice but not necessary, but how many places can you drive like this today, so what are all these overpowered cars for..

My conclusion is where you cant drive fast USA you need excess power to feel fast for a few seconds occasionaly.

Its also a function of merics, 0-60 and 1/4 mile are the most frequently quoted metrics, that favors brute power and paddle/autoboxes, peopel buy based on metrics they will never use.

make a15 lap average the measure and see the design objectives evolve.