What's the fastest 'feeling' car you've been in?
Discussion
For people into motoring and fast cars, it may take something truly outstanding to give them the fastest car they have ever been in feeling .
Ironically some of the very fastest are so well insulated from engine / road noise etc, they can give the impression that you could get out and walk faster, even at very, very high speeds, or rates of acceleration.
Perhaps a measure of this sort of thing might be how quickly a person in the passenger seat stops talking, and starts screaming!
Ironically some of the very fastest are so well insulated from engine / road noise etc, they can give the impression that you could get out and walk faster, even at very, very high speeds, or rates of acceleration.
Perhaps a measure of this sort of thing might be how quickly a person in the passenger seat stops talking, and starts screaming!
I've been in some fast cars but the ones that "felt" fast were:
My cousins Renault 5 Gordini Turbo with some mods including bigger turbo. I'm not sure of the power but I doubt it have been more than 150bhp but it was tiny and flimsy. Felt like a proper rocket.
My ex gf's Uncle had a standard 996 Carrera 2 911. In truth, it has slightly less power and torque than my old M135i which never felt as rapid as it was but I remember being pinned to the seat on a country lane. I suspect it was more the sheer cornering ability at high speed than a straight line shove as they are not that fast but it felt way faster than the Corvette C5 he had before or the Maserati GT he had after.
My cousins Renault 5 Gordini Turbo with some mods including bigger turbo. I'm not sure of the power but I doubt it have been more than 150bhp but it was tiny and flimsy. Felt like a proper rocket.
My ex gf's Uncle had a standard 996 Carrera 2 911. In truth, it has slightly less power and torque than my old M135i which never felt as rapid as it was but I remember being pinned to the seat on a country lane. I suspect it was more the sheer cornering ability at high speed than a straight line shove as they are not that fast but it felt way faster than the Corvette C5 he had before or the Maserati GT he had after.
Performance for me is how well something goes over a ton. I don't find 0-60 and lower speed acceleration impressive and nor do I drive my cars hard from slower speeds.
My CLK is the only car I've owned that feels genuinely constrained by the 155 limiter, in fact it becomes quite irritating.
My 430 is impressive how it goes from 120 to 180, but to 200 it takes significantly longer.
Neither are fast by modern standards but they are fast enough for me.
My CLK is the only car I've owned that feels genuinely constrained by the 155 limiter, in fact it becomes quite irritating.
My 430 is impressive how it goes from 120 to 180, but to 200 it takes significantly longer.
Neither are fast by modern standards but they are fast enough for me.
Some years back I was sat in a layby on a busy A road, and just watching and feeling the speed that `normal' cars were going by at around 70 mph was quite eye opening.
The 7 has no insulation against the elements and engine / exhaust noise so even normal speeds seem much faster than they really are., Having done some track work in 7`s with instructors who were `real' drivers, going into each and every bend or corner at speeds where I truly believed every one of them would end my life, was err quite entertaining to say the least
The 7 has no insulation against the elements and engine / exhaust noise so even normal speeds seem much faster than they really are., Having done some track work in 7`s with instructors who were `real' drivers, going into each and every bend or corner at speeds where I truly believed every one of them would end my life, was err quite entertaining to say the least
My latest Chimaera, 573bhp and 610 lb/ft of torque by means of turbocharged RV8. It is truly relentless, and by all accounts what gives it its sense of speed is the fact simply, it is far too powerful for a wobbly old spaceframe chassis. It's a great laugh and very addictive, but you're always conscious in the back of your mind that it could all go very wrong in a split second.
I feel safer at 140mph in our Maserati 4200 than I do at 70 in my Chim.
I feel safer at 140mph in our Maserati 4200 than I do at 70 in my Chim.
Caterham 620R. A few of us hired it for the day at Spa. Only 1 of us had the talent to drive it (not me).
Did the ludicrous launch thing in a friends p100D. Totally agree with all the comments about feeling a bit disorientated and sick but the Caterham definitely trumps it. The noise and the way it just felt like it would keep accelerating forever.
Did the ludicrous launch thing in a friends p100D. Totally agree with all the comments about feeling a bit disorientated and sick but the Caterham definitely trumps it. The noise and the way it just felt like it would keep accelerating forever.
I remember by dad's Citroen BX 19GTi feeling really fast as a kid, and I suppose it was for the time, especially after the Toyota Corolla 1.3 that he had before that.
Motorcycles kind of spoiled fast cars for me, until I test-drove a DB9 and got the same sense of being shoved towards the horizon. So I bought one.
The fastest bike I have ridden was a Triumph Sprint 1050ST which was super-quick, but really safe and comfortable with it, whereas my Thruxton 900 was bloody terrifying from the day I bought it to the day I sold it 12 years later.
However, the fastest feeling car I have ever been in has to be this:
Motorcycles kind of spoiled fast cars for me, until I test-drove a DB9 and got the same sense of being shoved towards the horizon. So I bought one.
The fastest bike I have ridden was a Triumph Sprint 1050ST which was super-quick, but really safe and comfortable with it, whereas my Thruxton 900 was bloody terrifying from the day I bought it to the day I sold it 12 years later.
However, the fastest feeling car I have ever been in has to be this:
Formula Ford on track - I was 18. Previous experience was of driving my Dad's 1.6 Cavalier.... It felt epic.
Classic Impreza Prodrive edition. Punchy acceleration off the mark.
Fireblade. A few weeks after passing my test, swapped BIKES (I had a mighty ER5) for about 10 miles. Gave it a little in first, then wound open the throttle in second - Sweet Jesus!
E-Golf. No sound, no drama, but low speed acceleration disorientatingly brisk, albeit not brutal. Motion sickness inducing.
Leftfield:
Bae 146 with only a handful of passengers (and a pilot was presumably having fun, as the runway was plenty long enough). It shot along the runway like a dragster and was airborne very quickly.
Classic Impreza Prodrive edition. Punchy acceleration off the mark.
Fireblade. A few weeks after passing my test, swapped BIKES (I had a mighty ER5) for about 10 miles. Gave it a little in first, then wound open the throttle in second - Sweet Jesus!
E-Golf. No sound, no drama, but low speed acceleration disorientatingly brisk, albeit not brutal. Motion sickness inducing.
Leftfield:
Bae 146 with only a handful of passengers (and a pilot was presumably having fun, as the runway was plenty long enough). It shot along the runway like a dragster and was airborne very quickly.
MC Bodge said:
Formula Ford on track - I was 18. Previous experience was of driving my Dad's 1.6 Cavalier.... It felt epic.
In terms of lap times (which is how I define 'fast'), a Formula Ford is still quicker than pretty much any road car around a UK circuit. Sure, somewhere like the ring with enormous straights they lose out, but at any normal circuit they're quicker. I used to race modified Formula Fords (F3 slicks, mild downforce and a bit more power), and the cars were transported by a team, so I turned up in my road car for each race and test. Without fail, getting in my road car to drive home was such a the weird experience. I remember on one occasion being confused why I was on the limit in my Elise on a roundabout, because it genuinely felt like I was driving at walking speed (and, so I don't seem like an idiot, I was actually intending to drive home really slowly and safely). I went on to race faster single seaters and to be honest, no road car I've ever driven has felt fast since.Baldchap said:
Our old Tesla P100D. Astonishingly fast from stationary. Felt faster than any bike does because the launch is just so instant - the only car I've ever felt that way about.
For me the Tesla 110D in Ludicrous mode was the point where you realised the direction performance cars were going...Now if only they were cheaper
As a passenger for me, pretty much anything - I'm a s
te passenger.
That's said, anything small, tinny and open - so a Morgan 3 wheeler, Caterham etc all felt incredibly quick but real world aren't. I've driven a 991 turbo and that is blindingly quick but very removed form the feeling.
Of my own cars, I had a 4.3l (approx. 420bhp) TVR T350 - that felt quick but you soon get used to it. The noise, shakes, rattles and general feeling of impending death helped with that sensation.
I now own a C7 RS6 performance. That puts the TVR into the weeds in terms of speed. On a straight dual carriageway it's quick but a little secluded so you don't feel it. Plant it on a narrow road though and the sensation goes up a LOT of notches.
- I'm a ste passenger.That's said, anything small, tinny and open - so a Morgan 3 wheeler, Caterham etc all felt incredibly quick but real world aren't. I've driven a 991 turbo and that is blindingly quick but very removed form the feeling.
Of my own cars, I had a 4.3l (approx. 420bhp) TVR T350 - that felt quick but you soon get used to it. The noise, shakes, rattles and general feeling of impending death helped with that sensation.
I now own a C7 RS6 performance. That puts the TVR into the weeds in terms of speed. On a straight dual carriageway it's quick but a little secluded so you don't feel it. Plant it on a narrow road though and the sensation goes up a LOT of notches.
In 2005 I had a flat out passenger ride around Castle Combe race track in Richard Burns Subaru Impreza WRC driven by Colin McRae. The sensation from a standing start made me feel faint,I thought I was going to throw up in my helmet. Luckily I came back to life under braking for the first corner. That was an experience I will never forget.
Edited by Old Merc on Thursday 7th November 16:14
hammo19 said:
Good question this one....of all the cars I have driven I would say the Saab 9-3 Aero estate was the one that made me feel like it was controlling me when accelerating. Fighting with the power oversteer was frightening but fun
Sorry to be ‘that’ guy... but power oversteer in a FWD car??Plate spinner said:
hammo19 said:
Good question this one....of all the cars I have driven I would say the Saab 9-3 Aero estate was the one that made me feel like it was controlling me when accelerating. Fighting with the power oversteer was frightening but fun
Sorry to be ‘that’ guy... but power oversteer in a FWD car??My 205 4x4 with lightweight panels and 469 bhp Cossie felt 1000cc bike quick, it is just getting a stroker engine and 630 bhp.
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