For all PH'ERS. Whats your age & daily driver?
Discussion
BritishRacinGrin said:
MagneticMeerkat said:
I've had live axle cars and they don't handle as well as IRS stuff. Not one bit.
A live axle car was the best handling car I've owned. None of the other cars have come close 
In fact by far the worst handling car I have ever driven was a Ferrari, with a quite exotic independent rear end, with inboard discs & all the impressive stuff. Looked great, just didn't go round corners.
MagneticMeerkat said:
TWPC said:
K50 DEL said:
indi pearl said:
62, retired.
Isuzu Piazza Turbo manual, handling by Lotus.
I'll pick up on this then.... a cool left-field choice of vehicle Sir.Isuzu Piazza Turbo manual, handling by Lotus.
Never actually "met" an owner before... any chance of a bit more info?
In the 1980s my teenage self held the usual militant & car mag-informed (i.e. no actual experience) views that live axled cars couldn't handle properly (the Sierra had replaced the stone age horrors of the Cortina's rear end with wonderfully sophisticated semi-trailing arms...). The Piazza, and of course the Caterham 7, showed how wrong it is to generalise. The Piazza also had wonderfully clean styling...
You do know the Piazza turbo was a General Motors tie-up/raided parts bin horror show don't you? Isuzu didn't have a sports car chassis available at the time so they borrowed one from, wait for it, the Vauxhall Chevette! Which is why it had a live axle. Anyway, they took the Chevette floor and popped a body based around Guigiaro's Ace Of Clubs concept on top. Then bolted in a turbo engine and wondered why the handling was appalling. The Lotus tuned versions were loads better, but the early cars weren't exactly refined. In fact nor were the later ones, which is one reason they never sold many.
I quite like the Piazza, in fact I'd happily own one, but they were right to generalise in that case. I've had live axle cars and they don't handle as well as IRS stuff. Not one bit.
Used to be a PIAZZA local to my cousins house for years with the plate PIA224, didn't realise they had such a following
28
1998 Volvo V40. 2 L, non-variable valve timing model, 4 speed auto (with overdrive!). Its a complete bag, but I doubt it will ever actually die. Its great though, I have just been charging around (as much as you can charge in a car that feels like it takes a good 20 seconds to hit 60) the countryside smashing all the puddles that have formed with the wet afternoon.
Its a nice feeling in someways, having a car that cost you peanuts and that you haven't really got much of a care about (other than it doesn't get pinched, wrecked or stops working). I miss-judged a drive through the other day, big white marks off a bollard across the front bumper. No worries. Beaters for the win.
1998 Volvo V40. 2 L, non-variable valve timing model, 4 speed auto (with overdrive!). Its a complete bag, but I doubt it will ever actually die. Its great though, I have just been charging around (as much as you can charge in a car that feels like it takes a good 20 seconds to hit 60) the countryside smashing all the puddles that have formed with the wet afternoon.
Its a nice feeling in someways, having a car that cost you peanuts and that you haven't really got much of a care about (other than it doesn't get pinched, wrecked or stops working). I miss-judged a drive through the other day, big white marks off a bollard across the front bumper. No worries. Beaters for the win.
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