Those "I kept up with a xxx in my yyy" type comments

[adycav]

Just stop it.

Seriously.

There are many reasons why you may feel that you could keep up with what we all know to be a genuinely fast car in your puny piece of st. For example, your 'opponent':

May not be in a hurry
May be running their car in
May have their missus/kids in the car
May not want flies and brake dust all over their freshly detailed car
May be playing with you
May simply be enjoying the scenery
May have a tray of fresh free range eggs from the local farm shop in the boot

Not everyone lives their life a quarter mile at a time.


Whenever I read this sort of nonsense I cringe and feel not a little embarrassed for you.

Look at RX8 man on the recent M6 thread.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

A virtual pint may be available for anyone who can come up with the funniest example of this sort of thing.

[Wadeski]

depends what the two cars are, surely? some might be quite unlikely, but some i have no problem believing?

[EDLT]

Where do you think "335d (remapped)" came from?

[slipstream 1985]

comitment and following someone makes a huge difference. on a road myself and my friend both didnt know verywell he was easly keeping up with me in the noble when he was in his 3.2 tt. when following someone it is easy to keep up with a car 1 or 2 "classes" above yours. they have to find the braking points look out for traffic you just have to watch them.

[Papa Hotel]

jt racing said:

Yes and no.
My t5 is great, and with it's absolute remap and other bits it's a beast. Doesn't go wrong once a month like a mates m3 and point to point is just as fast.
Wrong wheel drive though and considering I'm happier in fwd, I do miss the sideways of the lexus and mr2.
But I cannot understand how it's taken me so long to get a t5....
In summery, probably until something better comes along!!

FWD Volvo vs M3. I don't care what sort of remap it has, I'm going to disbelieve this one.

[slipstream 1985]

Papa Hotel said:

jt racing said:

Yes and no.
My t5 is great, and with it's absolute remap and other bits it's a beast. Doesn't go wrong once a month like a mates m3 and point to point is just as fast.
Wrong wheel drive though and considering I'm happier in fwd, I do miss the sideways of the lexus and mr2.
But I cannot understand how it's taken me so long to get a t5....
In summery, probably until something better comes along!!

FWD Volvo vs M3. I don't care what sort of remap it has, I'm going to disbelieve this one.

its not that big a performance gap.

[Jasandjules]

slipstream 1985 said:

when following someone it is easy to keep up with a car 1 or 2 "classes" above yours. they have to find the braking points look out for traffic you just have to watch them.

Agreed.

I have driven down roads a bit faster than I normally would, simply because I was following another TVR, so I knew if he was going to make it at that speed then I would.

But I am sure that in my time I've made people's days, when I've been overtaken in the TVR (and some of them look over and appear to honestly think they have "beaten" me - prime example being an M3 on a straight many moons ago when I was doing a steady 56mph).. Perhaps they were in the pub or on the web later.....

[Papa Hotel]

slipstream 1985 said:

Papa Hotel said:

jt racing said:

Yes and no.
My t5 is great, and with it's absolute remap and other bits it's a beast. Doesn't go wrong once a month like a mates m3 and point to point is just as fast.
Wrong wheel drive though and considering I'm happier in fwd, I do miss the sideways of the lexus and mr2.
But I cannot understand how it's taken me so long to get a t5....
In summery, probably until something better comes along!!

FWD Volvo vs M3. I don't care what sort of remap it has, I'm going to disbelieve this one.

its not that big a performance gap.

A gap nonetheless. A straight line gap, a corner gap. Over a mile you'd be a few seconds behind. Over a decent jaunt you'd be lost.

I know yours isn't the worst example of ego over reality but you can't seriously say your Volvo is as quick as an M3.

Edited for mong quoting.

Edited by Papa Hotel on Sunday 25th July 14:26

[slipstream 1985]

we recently had a track event at a kart track. ariel atom was doin 47s my car was doin 50s thats 3 seconds. my car, a stripped xsara vts. both of us equally capable drivers. 3 seconds on the road is one slow or lift off to see over the crest of a hill or a small hesitation for a corner or two. everyone would agree a massive gulf in car performance.

[Papa Hotel]

slipstream 1985 said:

we recently had a track event at a kart track. ariel atom was doin 47s my car was doin 50s thats 3 seconds. my car, a stripped xsara vts. both of us equally capable drivers. 3 seconds on the road is one slow or lift off to see over the crest of a hill or a small hesitation for a corner or two. everyone would agree a massive gulf in car performance.

Are you trying to win the virtual beer with your own posts??

[Mr Dave]

Realistically if you were "racing" on the raod the car that alloys the driver to see farther and has better brakes will be faster, or whichever driver is more reckless.

And even on track it takes a good amount of power to really pull away from another car.

[turbolucy]

I overtook a TVR and an M3 this morning. They didn't have a chance. My MINI kicked up dust in their face on the A43.

[adycav]

slipstream 1985 said:

we recently had a track event at a kart track. ariel atom was doin 47s my car was doin 50s thats 3 seconds. my car, a stripped xsara vts. both of us equally capable drivers. 3 seconds on the road is one slow or lift off to see over the crest of a hill or a small hesitation for a corner or two. everyone would agree a massive gulf in car performance.

I think that you've missed my point old chap.

I'm not talking about track days - I'm referring to the Clio 1.2 driver with "induction kit" who claims to "own" a 997 Turbo by "sticking with" him, all while the 997 driver is being noshed off by his mistress and grateful for specifying PDK to help enable this act.

[Somnophore]

My friends dad was saying how he kept right up with a 911 in his 205 gti all the way accross mid Wales for 50 or so miles, this was in the 80s when the 205 gti was new, personally I believe him and this guy had overtaken him and wasn't hanging about.

[Swarley]

I once managed to keep up with an old tdi Discovery in a knackered Punto. (even the radio burst into flames later that day)

The Disco was not even trying, but I was! I was hitting every apex and dragged every last lame horse out of it just to keep up.

It was also one of my most memorable and enjoyable drives, NSL and a think I hit 50mph once. (Hit is such a strong word more like limped come to think of it.)

Edited by Swarley on Sunday 25th July 14:50

Edited by Swarley on Sunday 25th July 14:51

[busta]

I think a lot of people over estimate the difference in performance between fast cars and faster cars. Look at the top gear power lap results for a straight forward comparison: Power Lap board

The difference between a fast car and a really fast car is only about 5 seconds/minute on a racing track with the same driver. Factor in other traffic, typical b-road visibility, road knowledge, varying driver skill and levels of commitment and that gap can soon be closed.

So a lot of these claims of 'keeping up with xxxx' are quite reasonable when kept in context, it's normally the followup that spoils it. E.g.: 'On the road to work I kept up with an M3 CSL that was pushing on fairly hard in my TDI Golf, therefore on a trackday without my sales brochures in the boot and with a bit of cadence clutching I wouldn't have any trouble getting past him.'

[slipstream 1985]

adycav said:

slipstream 1985 said:

we recently had a track event at a kart track. ariel atom was doin 47s my car was doin 50s thats 3 seconds. my car, a stripped xsara vts. both of us equally capable drivers. 3 seconds on the road is one slow or lift off to see over the crest of a hill or a small hesitation for a corner or two. everyone would agree a massive gulf in car performance.

I think that you've missed my point old chap.

I'm not talking about track days - I'm referring to the Clio 1.2 driver with "induction kit" who claims to "own" a 997 Turbo by "sticking with" him, all while the 997 driver is being noshed off by his mistress and grateful for specifying PDK to help enable this act.

no i get the point your making but above someone mentioned how a t5 kept with an m3 and someone else rubbished it. frankly not a big enough performance gap and one that can be overcome with commitment, "risk" or the "tow" effect

[Transam]

i kept up with a ferrari 430 the other day in my truck the other day.......granted there was somebody out for a sunday drive holding us up infront of them lol

[Liquid Knight]

turbolucy said:

I overtook a TVR and an M3 this morning. They didn't have a chance. My MINI kicked up dust in their face on the A43.

Oh the A43 my old hunting ground in the Fiat Cinquecento. All the bigger faster more expencive cars that need to brake for corners. I used to love driving to work on that road. People would accelorate to well above the speed limit to catch up to me and I'd just stay at the speed limit through the bends. Four corners later they'd be a quarter of a mile behind me and floor it to catch up again on the next straight bit. It was like having a bungie chord on my bumper. None of them would have the nads to overtake me though. Maybe it was because they knew they'd hold me up at the next bend.

I had to pick something up I had bought on Ebay in Manchester so I took the Snake Pass. Had a rather playful Porsche 963 behind me and as there was too much traffic to overtake I helped him along by exceeding the limit slightly. Coming up to a bend after a short straight my car was traveling at aproximately 80mph as I turned into the corner and followed a wide line round so I would be pulled in after the bend. Mr Porsche decided to try a "racing line" understeered across the centre line at the apex and nearly hit a van coming the other way. We both backed down to the limit after that. Mr Porsche flashed his lights and waved as he pull into a petrol station.

Now I find it's the other way round. My stripped out BMW 320i is getting a lot of attention from people on the road. Just because I'm in a quick looking car doesn't mean I'm going to drive like a pillock.

On the A47 a couple of weeks ago a 40+ balding chap pulled up along side me at a set of lights and said....
"I'll race you in your race car!" I showed him my badge and said.
"I'll race you to the nearest Police station if you like". His reply was.
"Nah, mate. I was only joking". I responded with.
"In an Escort GTI you're a joke". Just as the lights changed and I drove off normally.

Link added for the sake of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmutdQVbF5c

[Bricol]

I once caught an orange Murcialago in my 1100cc Pug 106. He was going as fast as he possibly could, as was I, and I passed him!

Fantastic!

Bri

(Probably ought to explain - Bradford ring road several years ago. 5pm. He was in the nearside lane doing 1mph in traffic. And I was in Lane 2 in traffic doing 1.00005mph . . . .)

Well - I thought it was funny . .