Porsche Wins The Mini Challenge? (vehicles, versus, AWD, best)

[Mr.Cat]

Amazingly Porsche managed to beat that powerful beast known as the Mini Cooper S. Watch the video and you will be awed.


YouTube - Mini vs. Porsche Challenge

[KoobleKar]

One second isn't by much at all!

[Drover]

Actually it was almost two seconds -- on an autocross track. And as noted in the other thread, two seconds is a lifetime in autocross.

[415_s2k]

Definitely respectable.

In defense of the Mini, it costs a fraction of the Porsche and, well... it's a Mini! It's a FWD compact.

In defense of the Porsche, if this was on the Nurburgring or Road Atlanta, it would have beaten the mini by considerably more time.

[Drover]

It's an FWD compact that tried to stack the deck in its favor and still got its ass handed to it.

I guess the lesson is, if you want a car that's one of the best-handling FWD cars around but still can't touch a 911 even when playing to its own strengths, get a MINI. If you want a car that's expert in all aspects of spirited driving without requiring a suspension tune that rattles your fillings out, get a 911.

[415_s2k]

Sort of reminds me of this:
http://www.snotr.com/embed/1959

There are certainly situations in which a FWD compact has advantages over a RWD sports car with a long wheelbase and wide stance. Compacts like the Mini or the Fiesta in that video are set up to drive in tightly-packed cities, where making short, sharp turns are just part of the territory. If they're sporty models, they need to have high gearing that will help their smaller engines get the car up to speed ASAP, and consequently, they tend to top out much sooner. This makes them ideally suited for, well, urban block-by-block or streetlight racing, or a racetrack set up to mimic these, versus a car like a 911 or a Z06, which are designed for an out-and-out race track.

If hot-hatches like these were as potentially-perfect as some of their fans make them out to be, the GT series would be dominated by Civics, Focuses, Minis, and GTI's with engines handmade by Cosworth and McLaren, fielded by huge teams. The top numbers for race tracks all over the world would be a line of Integras and Neon SRT's. I'm not discounting these cars by any stretch: they're all cool vehicles with their strong points. I used to street/canyon race a built, naturally-aspirated Jetta VR6 with a bunch of carbon fiber and suspension mods against "purebred" sports cars and won on skill, and had an unforgettable time doing it. But when I went up against someone with equal or better skill in a purpose-built sports car, it was no contest: I was done. The Jetta was just plain not set up to take undulating turns like a good RWD or AWD sports car: you just plain can't beat physics.

[topenddave]

but, but, rebut. In your spare time you might visit youtube and look up the all time giant killer. It prunes porsches, leaves lambroghinis, fends off ferarris, mashes maseratis, and yes victimizes veyrons. It lists for less than $40k in the us and only recently lost its title as the fastest car on top gears track to the konnigseg and then the glumpert. CATERHAM my friend.