Skinny tyres are the way forward!
Discussion
Does anyone else reckon modern cars are getting a little bit quick to really be fun on UK roads?
I may not have had access to the exotic machinery that a few PHers have, but I've driven a reasonable number of quickish cars of various types and I'm coming to the conclusion that the slow ones are often the most fun.
Now maybe, just maybe, if you live in Snowdonia or the Highlands you can make real use of a 997 turbo, but for most of us the chances of getting a quiet enough road in an interesting area with a bit of run-off is pretty minimal. Instead, with more handling than grip even your drive to work can be fun.
I'm sure an Astra VXR Diesel would murder an original Lotus Elan point-to-point, but which would really be more fun? And you don't have to spend £10,000 on Hethel's finest either... I recently picked up my mum's old saxo; complete with 63bhp and tyres that would look about right on a unicycle. It completely knocks the socks of my previous daily driver that had 3 times the power and twice the contact patch area. In some respects, it's not even that far off my 220hp/ton kit car for sheer driving enjoyment. The diminutive Citroen only weighs about 150kgs more and as a result, it's actually quite frisky despite its power output being more akin to a lawnmower. The secret weapon however is its handling - yes, there is a certain amount of body roll and the steering is a tad vague around the straight ahead position, but it weights up perfectly as you go into a corner and provides the sort of communication you simply don't get with a power assisted rack fighting 300hp in a modern uber-hatch. Then if you reach the limit of adhesion - and on those tyres you will - a quick lift brings the nose gently and predictably into line. Adopt a more aggressive approach and you can even get quite considerable amounts of lift-off oversteer. You may smirk, but as a former 205 GTi owner I can vouch for a strong family resemblance.
I don't think I am the only person who appreciates the value of lightweight, chuckable car at the expense of headline grabbing figures either. Does anyone know how Gordon Murray's budget sportscar project is getting on?
I may not have had access to the exotic machinery that a few PHers have, but I've driven a reasonable number of quickish cars of various types and I'm coming to the conclusion that the slow ones are often the most fun.
Now maybe, just maybe, if you live in Snowdonia or the Highlands you can make real use of a 997 turbo, but for most of us the chances of getting a quiet enough road in an interesting area with a bit of run-off is pretty minimal. Instead, with more handling than grip even your drive to work can be fun.
I'm sure an Astra VXR Diesel would murder an original Lotus Elan point-to-point, but which would really be more fun? And you don't have to spend £10,000 on Hethel's finest either... I recently picked up my mum's old saxo; complete with 63bhp and tyres that would look about right on a unicycle. It completely knocks the socks of my previous daily driver that had 3 times the power and twice the contact patch area. In some respects, it's not even that far off my 220hp/ton kit car for sheer driving enjoyment. The diminutive Citroen only weighs about 150kgs more and as a result, it's actually quite frisky despite its power output being more akin to a lawnmower. The secret weapon however is its handling - yes, there is a certain amount of body roll and the steering is a tad vague around the straight ahead position, but it weights up perfectly as you go into a corner and provides the sort of communication you simply don't get with a power assisted rack fighting 300hp in a modern uber-hatch. Then if you reach the limit of adhesion - and on those tyres you will - a quick lift brings the nose gently and predictably into line. Adopt a more aggressive approach and you can even get quite considerable amounts of lift-off oversteer. You may smirk, but as a former 205 GTi owner I can vouch for a strong family resemblance.
I don't think I am the only person who appreciates the value of lightweight, chuckable car at the expense of headline grabbing figures either. Does anyone know how Gordon Murray's budget sportscar project is getting on?
JakeR said:
Westfield xi. 'Evo' loved it. 65 horsepower and crappy brakes. You dont need a million horsepower for fun...
Gorgeous looking car too.
I think I'm right in saying there is a Diesel version of the Astra VXR. There is certainly a special edition conversion being offered by a dealership (Thirlbey or someone?) in conjunction with triple eight.
The exact car is a bit irrelevant - you can do 70mph round a bend in a modern technological tour de force with huge tyres and performance that isn't accessible on the average road or you can do 50mph round the same bend in a Morris Minor, grinning from ear to ear as it slides round on the 145 section tyres.
LeoSayer said:
Cars too quick? No!
Definetely agree on the tyres though, apart from looking good I can see no point in wide and low profile tyres on family cars.
In my experience they generally give more road noise, less compliance over bumps, higher cost to replace, greater unsprung weight.
I suppose that brings up an interesting point. If we're talking about the real world we have to face the fact that even if your hooning only takes place at 45mph, you will find someone doing a fixed 40mph in front of you beforer too long and at that point you need to get past them Definetely agree on the tyres though, apart from looking good I can see no point in wide and low profile tyres on family cars.
In my experience they generally give more road noise, less compliance over bumps, higher cost to replace, greater unsprung weight.
That's the only reason I would say that cars need to be fast in a straight line though. Any modern car can hold a reasonable cruise up the sort of incline you get on a motorway and with the right gearing and a suitably willing engine these 'slow' cars can even by quite fun in a straight line. I bet an original Fiat 500 Abarth is quite a laugh at the traffic lights...
L100NYY said:
Chris you are absolutely right ol' chum. Classic cars with zero grip and tiddly brakes are what seperates the men from the boys!
With my 2002tii I am intentionally not going to go with huge sticky tyres and big brakes, I want it to be fun at sensible(ish) speeds and test my driving skills rather than set the fastest time from A-B.
The thrill of driving.
Oh I know I'm right, just pleasantly surprised to see most of PH agreeing with me With my 2002tii I am intentionally not going to go with huge sticky tyres and big brakes, I want it to be fun at sensible(ish) speeds and test my driving skills rather than set the fastest time from A-B.
The thrill of driving.
To be fair, I should also point out that given the money I would be the first person to buy a 200mph Aston that barely fits down an English b-road; for it's character, the sense of occasion and the occasional cross-continent blast. I'd enjoy owning them both, but I suspect something like the XI that keeps popping up on here would actually be a lot more fun to drive.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff