RE: Caparo Lays Claim To Top Gear Power Lap
Discussion
SteveRod said:
morebeanz said:
Noone really needs to see the F1 cars, as we all know that they're damn fast round a track! The Ultima on the other hand may be a sort of track car, but there are plenty driven on the roads...
Yes, Plenty of Ultimas with Air-Con and heaters, Hi-Fi, Leather trim, and some useful luggage space,...'focussed, Yes! but hardly just 'Trackday toys'Unlike, Caparo, Atom, Radical, Caterfields Etc, Etc
Edited by SteveRod on Tuesday 20th November 09:01
BigBen said:
I am amazed at the anti Caparo sentiment on PH not just on this thread but on others. One could argue most performance cars, particularly those that are never driven on a track, are pointless.
As a petrolhead I love cars like the Caparo and would love a go of one. We should applaud the fact that someone has made a car like this, in itself no small achievement considering what happens to most new supercar manufacturers.
I hope they can make a speed bump adjustable version (iirc one of the Lambos they tested had a speedbump button to pump up the front ride height) and get the record once and for all.
Honestly think I have stumbled onto a Guardian readers forum when I read some of the criticism directed at the Caparo, of course it is not practical but I bet it is great fun.
Ben
I stated in my last post I would love a T1, but purely for track use only. I'm all in favour of performance cars, as long as they can be driven on the road comfortably and also hit the track with a fair amount of competancy.As a petrolhead I love cars like the Caparo and would love a go of one. We should applaud the fact that someone has made a car like this, in itself no small achievement considering what happens to most new supercar manufacturers.
I hope they can make a speed bump adjustable version (iirc one of the Lambos they tested had a speedbump button to pump up the front ride height) and get the record once and for all.
Honestly think I have stumbled onto a Guardian readers forum when I read some of the criticism directed at the Caparo, of course it is not practical but I bet it is great fun.
Ben
This is a discussion about allowing the T1 on the TG Best Lap board, and it shouldn't be up there. It doesn't take anything away from the T1, but it isn't a performance car, its a racing/track car. It isn't designed for travelling along normal roads, so why try and pass it off as a road car?
Edited by The Hitman on Tuesday 20th November 12:55
Mars said:
I would also say that, away from the track, these cars are more likely to be used for holidays. You only have to visit Le Mans to see the variety of cars brought there by spectators. Haven't yet seen an Enzo, CCX or Veyron there, but I've seen plenty of Caterhams and a reasonable amount of Ultimas too.
ISTR Jay Kay camped at Le Mans with his Enzo.XTR2Turbo said:
Back to the issue of speed bumps. Unfortunately I seem to recall that the recommended design for a speed bump is approx 100mm high and so a Caparo wouldn't make it over this even with adjustable suspension.
David
Was just going to say the same, most speed cushions seem to be 75mm, but ultimately 100mm is what they need to work to. I'd probably got for 110-120 min ride height as from experience the tollerance on bituminous insitu speed bumps isn't too good.David
Having said that, i wonder how many others on the leaderboard would really be able to deal with a 100mm hump??
Maybe they should have something on Topgear one week, i'm sure they'd have fun scraping the splitters of a few supercars.
The Hitman said:
It isn't suitable to go on the board, there is no-way you can convince me that the T1 was designed with normal roads in mind, because it obviously wasn't. All the rest of those cars are designed to be enjoyed at the very least on the roads, and some others on the track aswell (the Atom fits here BTW).
Why let facts get in the way eh? It was very much designed with roadcar compromises in mind. Albeit less than many cars.Frik said:
The Hitman said:
It isn't suitable to go on the board, there is no-way you can convince me that the T1 was designed with normal roads in mind, because it obviously wasn't. All the rest of those cars are designed to be enjoyed at the very least on the roads, and some others on the track aswell (the Atom fits here BTW).
Why let facts get in the way eh? It was very much designed with roadcar compromises in mind. Albeit less than many cars.How many of those road car compromises were made in order to enable the car to be tolerable on the roads, and how many were made in order to get the car SVA'd?
I think there is a difference.
I raise the question having now driven a Rocket enough to know that it is an absolutely fantastic road car. It won't do most of the pratical things that a saloon car will do, but it was genuinely designed for pleasurable road driving, and it succeeds brilliantly. Plenty of space and comfort for the driver, relaxed ride, no clearance or ramp angle problems, good turning circle, no special maintenance required.
In contrast, one has the sense that the Caparo would be somewhat torturous to drive on the public roads for anything beyond a few miles.
flemke said:
Frik said:
The Hitman said:
It isn't suitable to go on the board, there is no-way you can convince me that the T1 was designed with normal roads in mind, because it obviously wasn't. All the rest of those cars are designed to be enjoyed at the very least on the roads, and some others on the track aswell (the Atom fits here BTW).
Why let facts get in the way eh? It was very much designed with roadcar compromises in mind. Albeit less than many cars.How many of those road car compromises were made in order to enable the car to be tolerable on the roads, and how many were made in order to get the car SVA'd?
I think there is a difference.
I raise the question having now driven a Rocket enough to know that it is an absolutely fantastic road car. It won't do most of the pratical things that a saloon car will do, but it was genuinely designed for pleasurable road driving, and it succeeds brilliantly. Plenty of space and comfort for the driver, relaxed ride, no clearance or ramp angle problems, good turning circle, no special maintenance required.
In contrast, one has the sense that the Caparo would be somewhat torturous to drive on the public roads for anything beyond a few miles.
CommanderJameson said:
flemke said:
Frik said:
The Hitman said:
It isn't suitable to go on the board, there is no-way you can convince me that the T1 was designed with normal roads in mind, because it obviously wasn't. All the rest of those cars are designed to be enjoyed at the very least on the roads, and some others on the track aswell (the Atom fits here BTW).
Why let facts get in the way eh? It was very much designed with roadcar compromises in mind. Albeit less than many cars.How many of those road car compromises were made in order to enable the car to be tolerable on the roads, and how many were made in order to get the car SVA'd?
I think there is a difference.
I raise the question having now driven a Rocket enough to know that it is an absolutely fantastic road car. It won't do most of the pratical things that a saloon car will do, but it was genuinely designed for pleasurable road driving, and it succeeds brilliantly. Plenty of space and comfort for the driver, relaxed ride, no clearance or ramp angle problems, good turning circle, no special maintenance required.
In contrast, one has the sense that the Caparo would be somewhat torturous to drive on the public roads for anything beyond a few miles.
The Caparo was not intended specifically to be a road car, it was intended specifically to be a track car which it was possible to drive on the road.
angus54 said:
What next an F1 car jacked up?
That Caparo is damn fire hazard and should be avoided at all costs.
Now, now, no need to damn it to hell. This is a discussion about whether the T1 is a good road car, of which it is VERY and obviously questionable. I think it would be an amazing track weapon, but only as used as such. That is where I suspect its usefulness ends.That Caparo is damn fire hazard and should be avoided at all costs.
As far as the fire goes, accidents happen, I'm not convinced it will be a regular occurance.
my god.
look back at this thread and read how nerdy you all look. Its top gear, they do what they want when they want, and Clarkson etc do not care.
This thread is beginning to look like some pirate download speed nerd thread that goes on in the dark corners of the internet, debating the smallest of facts over pron downloads.
Just ask youself what would Clarkson etc think if he read this thread. I know its piston heads, but this is Topgear you are talking about, they are a law until themselves.
/rant off.
//please.. carry on.
look back at this thread and read how nerdy you all look. Its top gear, they do what they want when they want, and Clarkson etc do not care.
This thread is beginning to look like some pirate download speed nerd thread that goes on in the dark corners of the internet, debating the smallest of facts over pron downloads.
Just ask youself what would Clarkson etc think if he read this thread. I know its piston heads, but this is Topgear you are talking about, they are a law until themselves.
/rant off.
//please.. carry on.
Forget the Caparo/Ultima issue here. As a dyed in the wool Kitcar man I don't think, I know that TG have a problem with Kit Cars. You could say that both of these are kit cars but one is so outrageously overpriced that it has attracted their attention.
I have built and owned Tigers since 1997. None have cost me over £11K to build and none of them have given me anything but pure driving pleasure. SVA now ensures that they are built safer than ever. They are the man in the streets way of getting performance that they otherwise could not afford. So come on TG whats wrong with them?
Packman
I have built and owned Tigers since 1997. None have cost me over £11K to build and none of them have given me anything but pure driving pleasure. SVA now ensures that they are built safer than ever. They are the man in the streets way of getting performance that they otherwise could not afford. So come on TG whats wrong with them?
Packman
joe_90 said:
look back at this thread and read how nerdy you all look.
You do realise that PHers out-nerded a nerd test, right?http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Wadeski said:
You can find Chris Goffey clips on youtube old boy.
Bloody hell! Now there's a blast from the past. I'm not old, i'm 28. At least Goffey was a proper car journo, and not an ex-commercial radio DJ.Wadeski said:
As JC said, its arguably the most watched program on BBC2.
He's also said that both he and the producers are not sure in which direction to take the program and that they're out of ideas, hence all the recent trips to the arctic/africa/etc, which are obv completely rigged for TV. All three presenters have admitted that it's just three blokes cocking about!Top Gear only gets the ratings it does because a) it's funny, b) it's only 50% about cars, so their potential audience is wider, and c) there's NOTHING ELSE ON and people (well certianly me) watch it in the hope that there'll be something on it worth watching.
Don't get me wrong, i'm a fan (i've been to the filming and met the presenters, etc, etc), but it doesn't feature enough stuff about CARS!
p.s. Reviewing the 159 two years after it was launched was laughable.
flemke said:
CommanderJameson said:
flemke said:
In contrast, one has the sense that the Caparo would be somewhat torturous to drive on the public roads for anything beyond a few miles.
Bolded part is also true of the Peugeot 207 1.4 Diesel or the Citroen Xsara Picasso, but they somehow qualify as "road cars" without having any redeeming features at all...The Caparo was not intended specifically to be a road car, it was intended specifically to be a track car which it was possible to drive on the road.
Think sitting on a barstool in the middle of a paddling pool, floating in the channel...
Edited by Fatboy on Tuesday 20th November 14:32
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