What's the best summer car?
Discussion
highway said:
I’m a big Lotus fan. I love the S1 Elise. The V6 Exige looks great and should have been a natural progression for me. Owned my first S1 in 1998 from new.
The origins of the Camry engine don’t concern me. Not does the use of the Avensis gearbox. However, while the gearbox can handle the torque I’ve heard too many tales of concern that it can’t handle the revs. The bearings get too hot. That’s expensive to fix.
I’d not let that worry you too much. Cars have been running 460hp+ 480nm+ no for 10’sk miles with no issues.The origins of the Camry engine don’t concern me. Not does the use of the Avensis gearbox. However, while the gearbox can handle the torque I’ve heard too many tales of concern that it can’t handle the revs. The bearings get too hot. That’s expensive to fix.
The box won’t cope with more than 500hp and the clutch at any more than 430 is the main weak spot. Most of the cars are limited to <7k rpm to protect the engine / box.
The Camry engine sounds bloody good in it (this is mine totally standard on a cold damp day recorded on an iPhone).
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qVH6F6RLSXU
Thing is about soft tops or ccs is that they sit across car classes.
I used to own a Westfield Wide body with a Crossflow, twin dellortos, semi race modified. It was only a 1.6 but the car flew and was very quick, especially if there were no passenger. It had a range of about 90 miles before refuelling. My father and I used it for track days but we also drove it to Prague and back from Edinburgh, taking in all the great Alpine passes by zigzagging. We left the roof at home due to luggage space, took the carpets out and put waterproof seat covers on, we kept the side screens with us. Did it in a week, there and back. Only two issues - the voltage regulator died outside stuttgart, (in the outside lane of the Autobahn - at 80mph, during rush hour, as the car died and lost speed I had to navigate across 5 lanes of traffic to the hard shoulder, losing speed all the time, and these are very light cars with little momentum. - scary stuff. Secondly I would have to re tune the carbs to get over the very high passes efficiently and then retune them coming down again. Then spend a few hours that evening rebalancing them.
A fantastic adventure in 1997 and my late father and I were remorseless in our quest for keeping the weight down and the grins up.
However, these days, i have kids which means any ragtop or cc I have really has to have 4 seats. Why? not because we don't have an alternative vehicle - it's because I want them to enjoy open top motoring as well. So these days with the budget I have I'm far more likely to pick up an old C70 or something like the current Megane CC which I picked up for £600 last year and has been a laugh a minute.
These days open top for me is enjoying the fresh air in the beautiful countryside I live in in Northumberland and that can be done in a comfortable cruiser, which costs minimum to run and which has just enough decent suspension and feedback to enjoy the hill and mountain roads.
A RR Corniche is a very different experience from a Lotus 7 - both are fun in the sun in very different ways.
A better question would be:
best open top roadster/sports car
best open top cruiser
best motorbike with 3/4 wheels! - Morgan 3 wheeler and clones of and Lotus 7 clones!
I used to own a Westfield Wide body with a Crossflow, twin dellortos, semi race modified. It was only a 1.6 but the car flew and was very quick, especially if there were no passenger. It had a range of about 90 miles before refuelling. My father and I used it for track days but we also drove it to Prague and back from Edinburgh, taking in all the great Alpine passes by zigzagging. We left the roof at home due to luggage space, took the carpets out and put waterproof seat covers on, we kept the side screens with us. Did it in a week, there and back. Only two issues - the voltage regulator died outside stuttgart, (in the outside lane of the Autobahn - at 80mph, during rush hour, as the car died and lost speed I had to navigate across 5 lanes of traffic to the hard shoulder, losing speed all the time, and these are very light cars with little momentum. - scary stuff. Secondly I would have to re tune the carbs to get over the very high passes efficiently and then retune them coming down again. Then spend a few hours that evening rebalancing them.
A fantastic adventure in 1997 and my late father and I were remorseless in our quest for keeping the weight down and the grins up.
However, these days, i have kids which means any ragtop or cc I have really has to have 4 seats. Why? not because we don't have an alternative vehicle - it's because I want them to enjoy open top motoring as well. So these days with the budget I have I'm far more likely to pick up an old C70 or something like the current Megane CC which I picked up for £600 last year and has been a laugh a minute.
These days open top for me is enjoying the fresh air in the beautiful countryside I live in in Northumberland and that can be done in a comfortable cruiser, which costs minimum to run and which has just enough decent suspension and feedback to enjoy the hill and mountain roads.
A RR Corniche is a very different experience from a Lotus 7 - both are fun in the sun in very different ways.
A better question would be:
best open top roadster/sports car
best open top cruiser
best motorbike with 3/4 wheels! - Morgan 3 wheeler and clones of and Lotus 7 clones!
otolith said:
It’s a convertible family car. A fair alternative to an Audi A4 or BMW 3-series convertible. Nothing to slate it for really, it’s an ordinary and not especially interesting car which happens to be able to do the top down thing. For less money you can get family hatchbacks which do the same thing.
Can you go off roading in any of those though?Uncle Dicky said:
A RR Corniche is a very different experience from a Lotus 7 - both are fun in the sun in very different ways.
A better question would be:
best open top roadster/sports car
best open top cruiser
best motorbike with 3/4 wheels! - Morgan 3 wheeler and clones of and Lotus 7 clones!
I've been wrestling with this. I had a soft top Aston. It was great for posing in with the top down at slow speeds but, at fast A road speeds, was quite draining (noise, buffeting) for longer distances or outrageous mph. I'm back in a hard top (not completely through choice) and I'm rather liking it. A better question would be:
best open top roadster/sports car
best open top cruiser
best motorbike with 3/4 wheels! - Morgan 3 wheeler and clones of and Lotus 7 clones!
I'm thinking that a convertible car that is more relaxed - like a Bentley GTC would be better. Less about fast motoring, more about cruising.
Or a Morgan/Caterham - excitement at slower speeds, all about the experience, in touch with the road.
I think there's a lot to be said for choosing the best for the job. For me there are only really two scenarios that I can see me needing to buy for:
Commuter car, but expecting being on slower roads with limited over-taking options. (Just missed out on the job.) Had a Saab 9-3 diesel convertible lined up, considered MG-TFs as well.
Little two seater to take the wife to the coast for lunch on a Sunday. (Probably wouldn't happen though, as we have kids.) I'd love a Morgan for this though.
In the dream world of GT motoring to the South of France, my first visit would be to Rolls Royce, but I'll never have the cash or need for this.
Commuter car, but expecting being on slower roads with limited over-taking options. (Just missed out on the job.) Had a Saab 9-3 diesel convertible lined up, considered MG-TFs as well.
Little two seater to take the wife to the coast for lunch on a Sunday. (Probably wouldn't happen though, as we have kids.) I'd love a Morgan for this though.
In the dream world of GT motoring to the South of France, my first visit would be to Rolls Royce, but I'll never have the cash or need for this.
patchb said:
Best I’ve owned was my old S2000. Yes the handling could be a bit too sharp with the wrong alignment setup and the steering wasn’t perfect but in reality it handled better than most cars out there, and you had that amazing 9,200rpm F20C and one of the nicest 6 speed manuals ever fitted to a road car and it made a lovely package. This was mine, Berlina black with full red leather and carpet and a fair few engine mods so it sounded the part as well.
I had a MK1 mx5 a couple of years later which just didn’t compare in any way for me. I’d love another S2K more than any car I’ve owned but can’t justify paying double what I sold mine for for a similar car.
Edit: as someone else said, I think the ultimate is a decent spec caterham for me but currently don’t have the funds or space for one
That's a very nice looking machine.I had a MK1 mx5 a couple of years later which just didn’t compare in any way for me. I’d love another S2K more than any car I’ve owned but can’t justify paying double what I sold mine for for a similar car.
Edit: as someone else said, I think the ultimate is a decent spec caterham for me but currently don’t have the funds or space for one
I had the chance to buy an S2000 back in 2009 for just over £4,000. It was stretching my budget just that bit too far and I ended up getting an MR2 instead. Really regret that decision and I can't believe the bargain it would have been.
Last summer I found it too hot with the roof down when stuck in traffic
Baldchap said:
7alike & 3 wheelers: Leather hat and goggles
Normal cabriolet/2 seater: Cap
RR/Bentley: Top hat
Lotus: Helmet
True: a few years back my mate encouraged me to look at the convertibles down at Saab. I reluctantly agreed. But hey, something to do.Normal cabriolet/2 seater: Cap
RR/Bentley: Top hat
Lotus: Helmet
Anyway get there and we get lined up with the sales guy who says he’s happy for us to go for a drive and see what we think. He’ll come with us. I noticed his hair looked a bit...odd.
Anyway jumped in, my mate in the front (6’4), him in the back and I asked to lower the hood. He then directed us to some motorway stretch. And all I remember is constantly glancing in the rear view mirror at him feverishly trying to keep his wig on through the buffeting. I couldn’t help laughing out loud.
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