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this is a very good Outlook to have. I have high performance piece of .machinery in my garage that I rarely drive. I feel like a dick driving it. I'll take my civic over my lambo any day.
If your feel like such a dick and are so embarrassed to be seen driving your lambo why do you even have it? Do all your neighbors own a Prius or Leaf?
For me driving a performance car means getting pushed back in my seat when I step on the go pedal and not having to wait until I see no cars before entering a freeway....
I like to know that my car will do what I want, when I want it to.
I never misjudge when I can make it through an intersection or into a gap in freeway traffic. My car is always fast enough.
If I need to pass 5 or 6 cars and it is clear - I can make it.
Your car is almost impossible to stall when your kids are learning to drive manual transmission.
If I feel like playing around a bit I can.
Mountain road or lakeside roads are a blast not a challenge, or a scary thing.
Even if your car is 16 years old and only worth a few thousand dollars, the valets get excited when you hand them the keys.
If there is an opening in the fast lane a few car lengths up, I can get to it before it fills up.
If the freeway is empty, I am feeling frisky and want to drive at an unreasonable speed - I can. (Thanks Valentine)
If I drive a bit fast (which I often do), I know that my car is not going to float or bounce around the lane like a Ranger or a Civic will. In fact, I often cannot tell that i am going fast without looking at the speedometer.
If there is an idiot, threatening person, drunk or other unsafe driver I can leave them behind.
Sometimes the only way to not hit every light red, is to get to the next light at double the speed limit (then you can slow down and you will catch mostly green).
If I need to get someone to the hospital faster than an ambulance - I can.
As others have mentioned, it is a rush to take a curve or corner fast, but safely with no risk of skidding off. It is sometimes fun to blast out of a light just because you can.
There are infrequent emergency situations whether the ability to double your speed in a second or two can make the difference between safety and disaster.
You can tell snobby people "My $20,000 car will whip the socks off that $90,000 waste that you just bought" (or in current values "my $5000 car") Of course you should only do this when you are joking around and know them well. You never know when that $90,000 Mercedes will turn out to be a $200,000 AMG.
You can beat your wife to your parents house.
Your kids say "I want to ride with Dad! (or mom - whomever has the cool car).
Farfugnugan or however that word is spelled - pure driving pleasure.
If you do not know why performance cars are such a pleasure to drive then either you have never driven one, or you will never understand why (so just give up).
Do I need to to be able to sustain speeds of 135 or 155 or whatever it is? Absolutely not. I am not ever going to drive that fast (again). I rarely drive faster than 90. Top speed is not an issue to me. Almost any car will eventually get to the speed that I am comfortable driving. Not too many will do those other things. Almost any car can hit 120 MPH, few can be driven at that speed without insane risk. However those few can as be driven at 90 or 85 with substantially less risk than a car designed for economy, comfort, mileage, or hauling things or people. Performance cars are not low to the ground and wedge shaped just to make them uncomfortable.
Last edited by Coldjensens; 06-22-2011 at 04:04 PM..
Performance (above say a Corolla) as it has been mentioned can be useful.
But as a car enthusiast a "performance car" can put a smile on your face without even taking a drive.
It has nothing to do with impressing anyone or going faster than anyone, but rather just an appreciation for technology, workmanship to squeeze out the most performance for a given car.
And when you do drive the car like this it is just "fun."
In addition, performance in automobiles connotes technological progression, and to some degree a certain spirit.
Yeah you have your "ballers" in Lambos with heavy 22s, your BMW M5 drivers who don't know what a differential is and your soccer moms who bought a Porsche Cayenne because they liked the name, but even they can use the performance.
Whether or not they appreciate it is a different story.
Nailed it!
You've been given some great ans. of the "why"...but honestly, my first thought was : If YOU have to ask, you'll never get it! You've obviously not driven a true, what you call high performance car, or even been a passenger in one for that matter, if you've had to ask this question.
Do I use the power at hand every single day in our cars? No...but I can when the opportunity arises, and you can be dam sure I take advantage of the fact, whenever given the chance!
What really makes me giggle are the mini van drivers...and mostly guys...we call it "frustrated mini van syndrome" in our house. The guys who pull up next to you in their mini vans and take off to try and beat you at the light or cut you off, just to SHOW YOU they can. ( Or think they can) To me...THOSE are the insecure guys.
Of course, then you have the Ryan Dunns of the world...140 mph into a tree...dam good waste of a tree and a perfectly good Porsche.
There is a balance! Drive what makes you happy! My V10 R8 Spyder makes me very happy!
Nailed it!
You've been given some great ans. of the "why"...but honestly, my first thought was : If YOU have to ask, you'll never get it! You've obviously not driven a true, what you call high performance car, or even been a passenger in one for that matter, if you've had to ask this question.
Do I use the power at hand every single day in our cars? No...but I can when the opportunity arises, and you can be dam sure I take advantage of the fact, whenever given the chance!
What really makes me giggle are the mini van drivers...and mostly guys...we call it "frustrated mini van syndrome" in our house. The guys who pull up next to you in their mini vans and take off to try and beat you at the light or cut you off, just to SHOW YOU they can. ( Or think they can) To me...THOSE are the insecure guys.
Of course, then you have the Ryan Dunns of the world...140 mph into a tree...dam good waste of a tree and a perfectly good Porsche.
There is a balance! Drive what makes you happy! My V10 R8 Spyder makes me very happy!
Good answer.
One of the best reasons I ever heard for "why do people buy exotic sports cars".
If I drive a bit fast (which I often do), I know that my car is not going to float or bounce around the lane like a Ranger or a Civic will.
Well, my lowered 07 "civic" Si Coupe with HFP suspension, widetrack wheels and grippy 235/40-18s is pretty planted.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coldjensens
In fact, I often cannot tell that i am going fast without looking at the speedometer.
See I like to feel like I'm going fast, that's why I like something that handles and brakes really well but can be safely driven with full throttle and/or high revs from time to time and still feels fast at those levels. The effect is more pronounced when discussing sportbikes -- a Hayabusa feels like it's barely moving at 90 mph whereas my Ninja 250 feels racy and exciting accelerating from 60 to 80...
Driving (or riding) something that's slower (but planted and sure-footed) in a quick manner is more fun than driving something that's faster in a slow manner (relatively-speaking).
Driving (or riding) something that's slower (but planted and sure-footed) in a quick manner is more fun than driving something that's faster in a slow manner (relatively-speaking).
This is usually said by peopel that have never lived with a seriously quick/fast car.
What they mean is they want the feeling of speed without actually having to go fast. Which is understandable, and why cars like the Lotus 7 are so much fun vs a Ferrari F430. But the F430 can still be fun even at lower speeds (as in not having to slow down for corners, revving up through the gears up to th espeed limit, etc).
Both my Mustang and my BMW are faster than any speed limit in the country and argualbly faster than your well suspended Civic. But they are also fun on teh same roads at the same speeds as your Civic. I'd rather than teh OPTION of also going faster, rather then limit myself to slow, but cornering good (because the fun in slow but cornering good is in the G forces, not the acceleration. I can get the G forces in the faster cars, too)
This is usually said by peopel that have never lived with a seriously quick/fast car.
What they mean is they want the feeling of speed without actually having to go fast. Which is understandable, and why cars like the Lotus 7 are so much fun vs a Ferrari F430. But the F430 can still be fun even at lower speeds (as in not having to slow down for corners, revving up through the gears up to th espeed limit, etc).
Both my Mustang and my BMW are faster than any speed limit in the country and argualbly faster than your well suspended Civic. But they are also fun on teh same roads at the same speeds as your Civic. I'd rather than teh OPTION of also going faster, rather then limit myself to slow, but cornering good (because the fun in slow but cornering good is in the G forces, not the acceleration. I can get the G forces in the faster cars, too)
Besides it is a Civic for crying out loud. How can someone drive around in a sooped up Civic and not crunch low in the seat, pull your hat down and wear dark sunglasses. Does it have a nice fart bubbler muffler and spinner rims?
This is usually said by peopel that have never lived with a seriously quick/fast car.
What they mean is they want the feeling of speed without actually having to go fast. Which is understandable, and why cars like the Lotus 7 are so much fun vs a Ferrari F430. But the F430 can still be fun even at lower speeds (as in not having to slow down for corners, revving up through the gears up to th espeed limit, etc).
Both my Mustang and my BMW are faster than any speed limit in the country and argualbly faster than your well suspended Civic. But they are also fun on teh same roads at the same speeds as your Civic. I'd rather than teh OPTION of also going faster, rather then limit myself to slow, but cornering good (because the fun in slow but cornering good is in the G forces, not the acceleration. I can get the G forces in the faster cars, too)
Well, I used to own a Stealth R/T Turbo and I've put a couple thousand on my father's C5 hardtop, but no Ferraris. My slower Si and previous RX-7 were a lot more fun because it's actually possible to redline them often and go WOT often. A 1000cc sportbike is kind of a bore on the street because there's not a lot you can do to safely / legally use lots of throttle or lots of revs very often. Snore.... A Ninja 250 or my 64 HP FZ6R is more fun IMO because you can dip into everything they have to offer without restraint more often. And I know I'd be faster on a twisty public road on a bike I can use all of than one I have to constantly restrain myself on. Likely true for cars if talking about "seriously fast" ones too.
I guess you could say I want the feeling of speed without the insane legal / safety issues of going way too fast.
Besides it is a Civic for crying out loud. How can someone drive around in a sooped up Civic and not crunch low in the seat, pull your hat down and wear dark sunglasses. Does it have a nice fart bubbler muffler and spinner rims?
No, it has amazing looking lightweight widetrack wheels and stock exhaust (but aftermarket intake). It's a nice looking car in black with understated features, totally stock appearance other than the wheels, factory foglights and factory front airdam. The bodywork resembles a Civic but it doesn't have Civic badging -- but the look has been quite helpful for flying under the law enforcement radar. It's a great combination of practical, classy, playful, and huge fun. I wear dark sunglasses when it's sunny out. Once in a while I might wear a ballcap.
Thanks for the stereotype, have a great day!
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) To me...THOSE are the insecure guys. 
.
