A new reason (to me) to never own a Porsche

[Jerome Stanek]

I had a z car back in the 70's that was a lot of fun to drive.

[Rick Moyer]

"Better" is generally not linear with cost. For instance, there are many SMC folks who buy Festool tools. They cost a bunch more than DeWalt and the like -- maybe five or ten times, depending on which tool. They're probably better than the DeWalt class, but five or ten times -- not likely. Yet many woodworkers have found the performance benefits worth the cost. Maybe you can think of Porsche owners as the automotive equivalent to Festool owners.

THIS may be the best analogy I've ever seen. Well done!

[Wade Lippman]

"Better" is generally not linear with cost. For instance, there are many SMC folks who buy Festool tools. They cost a bunch more than DeWalt and the like -- maybe five or ten times, depending on which tool. They're probably better than the DeWalt class, but five or ten times -- not likely. Yet many woodworkers have found the performance benefits worth the cost. Maybe you can think of Porsche owners as the automotive equivalent to Festool owners.

Interesting example.
8 years ago I bought a Kapex and sold my Dewalt SCMS. As a woodworking tool the Festool simply performs better than the Dewalt, and I can list the advantages.

I just don't see how a Porsche performs better than a Mazda. Aside from costing more, it uses more gas, costs more to maintain and insure, and carries much less cargo and passengers. (I suspect it also doesn't perform as well in the snow...)

I understand the Porsche does rather better at 140mph on the Autobahn, but on the NYS Thruway I just don't see the point of it.

[Joe Bradshaw]

Just this year, I decided to give up my childish toy and trade in my MB SLK280. I loved that car. Now I have a small suv and it works better for me.
Joe

[Rich Engelhardt]

I got all dressed up one day , went to the Porsche dealer and made up a story about inheriting a bunch of money from a dead aunt.
They had a two year old 911 come in on a trade & we took it for a test drive....

WOW - is all I can say.

[Phillip Mitchell]

I drove a '94 Mazda Miata as my daily driver for about 6 years, which is essentially a poor man's Porsche, in many basic ways. I used to drive it spiritedly on the street (but still within safe limits) and would enter into Autocross races with it as much as I could at the time for the more raw experiences that it begged me for. Life intervened; practicalities took over and I needed a car that could move more than 2 people and 2 small suitcases at a time. I'm glad I don't drive it everyday anymore, but man, do I miss driving that car at times…

The feedback of a perfectly weighted steering wheel, coupled to very sensitive suspension. The control and confidence of a 50:50 weight distribution. The smile you get from running your car to redline and still being under the speed limit (most of the time, anyway.) The fluidity of the transmission shifting. The comfort and support of the molded seat to your body. And when you finally get that chance to let it hang out on the line (at an event or the track), there is no equal feeling to toeing that line of control. Of being on the edge of traction in a corner where you can feel the car.

That's what sports cars are really about. I can't really speak for someone driving a Lambo in LA freeway traffic, but there are certainly sports car owners out there who know what I'm talking about and why it matters.

There's an element of experiencing a sports car that can't be logically justified. It's more of a feeling, and once you get that feeling, then no amount of explanation can really do it justice. I think that's what was mentioned above.

To compare the passenger hauling or snow traction capabilities of a sports car to "Blank practical, cheap car" is certainly a reasonable conversation to have, but that's kinda missing the point.

[Wade Lippman]

I got all dressed up one day , went to the Porsche dealer and made up a story about inheriting a bunch of money from a dead aunt.
They had a two year old 911 come in on a trade & we took it for a test drive....

WOW - is all I can say.

No, you can say more than that. Why WOW? Really, what did it do that your car didn't do?

I said WOW the first time I got my skis to carve because it was a completely different experience than skidding; but I just can't image how a Porsche could feel different than any other decent handling car. (well, I mean when driven under 100mph. I don't doubt it feels different at high speeds.)

[Wade Lippman]

I drove a '94 Mazda Miata as my daily driver for about 6 years, which is essentially a poor man's Porsche, in many basic ways. I used to drive it spiritedly on the street (but still within safe limits) and would enter into Autocross races with it as much as I could at the time for the more raw experiences that it begged me for. Life intervened; practicalities took over and I needed a car that could move more than 2 people and 2 small suitcases at a time. I'm glad I don't drive it everyday anymore, but man, do I miss driving that car at times…

The feedback of a perfectly weighted steering wheel, coupled to very sensitive suspension. The control and confidence of a 50:50 weight distribution. The smile you get from running your car to redline and still being under the speed limit (most of the time, anyway.) The fluidity of the transmission shifting. The comfort and support of the molded seat to your body. And when you finally get that chance to let it hang out on the line (at an event or the track), there is no equal feeling to toeing that line of control. Of being on the edge of traction in a corner where you can feel the car.

That's what sports cars are really about. I can't really speak for someone driving a Lambo in LA freeway traffic, but there are certainly sports car owners out there who know what I'm talking about and why it matters.

There's an element of experiencing a sports car that can't be logically justified. It's more of a feeling, and once you get that feeling, then no amount of explanation can really do it justice. I think that's what was mentioned above.

Thank you. I don't understand it, but I hear you.

[Jason Roehl]

Ok, I've never had a sports car, but I did own a sport bike at one point in time, a '94 Suzuki Katana 750 (GSX750F, with some performance mods). It replaced a much older, clunkier '77 Honda CB750F Super Sport, which was my first bike. That Honda was my first set of wheels, and served me pretty well for a few years, first as my only transportation, and later as entertainment transportation. But when I got the Katana...

I'm a little older now, so I tend to pretty much drive the speed limit and don't have a desire to go fast like I used to. Yes, I broke traffic laws regularly on both bikes (I was young), but it's fun. It's an adrenaline rush--pretty much a drug. The first time I went over 100 MPH on a bike I almost puked when I was done from the adrenaline. Later on, on the Katana, I would do 120 MPH--just to cruise; it was like driving 60 MPH in a car because the handling and braking is so good. Didn't think twice about it. And that bike saw the high side of 160 MPH on a couple occasions.

I remember about 15 years ago, there was some hubbub up in Chicago because a couple guys got busted doing 140 MPH up Lakeshore Drive on their crotch rockets. So much hand wringing on talk radio about it I wanted to puke. Most people couldn't conceive of going THAT fast, especially on DONORCYCLE! Clearly, those people had never ridden a sport bike. Pretty much everyone I know who has ever owned a sport bike has not only exceeded triple digits, but gone 140, 150, 160 MPH. Mostly males 18-34, of course...

Now I have an old street bike sitting in the garage awaiting its turn on the project list. I would cruise on it, and probably ride it to/from work, but no desire to get it out and really open it up.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

I miss my 911.

[James Baker SD]

What can a sports do that a normal car can't do? Legally, you still still accelerate on a freeway on-ramp with a few G's throwing you into your seat. You can have a ball driving up to Lick Observatory east of San Jose, not slowing on the curves knowing your car won't flip or side off the road. A nice winding mountain road can be great fun. In fact, my first ride in an RX-7 was as a passenger going up the road to Mt. Wilson observatory near Pasadena. Driver was observatory staff who drove the road every day and felt very comfortable on it. I have camcorder footage of our speedometer at 120 MPH on the winding road. Maybe stupid, but I survived it, better than any roller coaster, and I fell in love with the RX-7 that day.

[Rich Engelhardt]

No, you can say more than that. Why WOW? Really, what did it do that your car didn't do?

As the old adage goes, "If you have to ask the price, you can't afford it"....

If you have to ask "What's different", there's really no way to convey to you what the big deal is about getting into a sports car and driving some twists and turns.

About as close as I came was owning a 1969 MGB.
While the MGB and the 911 are worlds apart in the performance category, when it comes to driving, they are both from the same side of the tracks.

I took my two kids from Cleveland Ohio to Florida once in the MGB for a vacation. We put on 500/600 miles a day driving. Not once during the whole week we were gone and driving those long days did I ever feel tired. The MGB had miles of legroom and the close to the ground ride just added to the experience.
I made a repeat of that trip couple years prior in my 1972 Pontiac LeMans. At the end of every day, I felt like I'd been beaten up.

I just can't image how a Porsche could feel different than any other decent handling car.

The reason why is - - you never drove one.
Until you drive one and have some sense of reference, then trying to explain it is like trying to describe the color red to a blind person....

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I have to park my Jeep Liberty with the driver's door butted up to a wall and climb out the passenger side. The Liberty only has a manual key lock on the driver's side. The passenger side and tailgate don't have keyholes. If my battery dies, I will have to tow it away from the wall to get in! (One way street, so parking the other way is not an option.)

[John K Jordan]

I drove a buddy's Boxter "S" model on winding roads across the mountain this afternoon - oh my, how that thing handles. The steering was perfect and the thing felt like it was gripping the pavement. I think he said it's 300 hp.

JKJ

[Kev Williams]

I've always had FAST cars, but they weren't "SPORTS" cars.. '67 Dodge Coronet R/T 440 Magnum Auto trans; '70 Coronet R/T, 440 sixpac, slapstick 4-speed, 4:10 gears- so much torque for the day that only racing slicks would stick to the road, the old L-60/15's would just spin like they were greased... Had a '56 F-100 with a 390 cop car engine fitted with home-made headers and a bunch of 428 Cobra Jet parts- if only I could've steered the thing... .. Had a '76 Firebird Formula (eh), an '84 Corvette (more eh, worst one ever built), an '84 Buick T-Type turbo V6 (that would beat the Corvette in a drag race), and the wife has two Mustang GT Convertibles, an '89 with the 5.0/automatic for her 40th birthday, and the 2013 I got her last year for her 60th.

THAT all said-- If you're not into performance cars, then you will never understand them, simply because you don't care to. Totally understood. Kinda like the tools analogy, which I do in reverse: I could buy Dewalt stuff, but I can buy 4 of the same thing at Harbor Freight for less money, and I actually get pretty good service from HF stuff-- which is EXACTLY WHY folks not into performance cars see no particular use for them!

BUT- The Corvette being the closest thing to a sports car I ever owned, and the 2013 Mustang isn't far behind---I just gotta say, there's something about making a right turn at 45 mph that's just plain exhilarating! But, like I said, I'm not all that into twisty driving, fast right turns does it for me!

But for sheer Let's Go, this new Mustang... Wow! sometimes I find it hard to believe that any teenager with ok parents can just buy one of these things... 420 hp on tap, the Coyote 5.0 redlines at 7000 rpm, and that happens at 38 mph...Think about that for a moment-- granny gear in a 420hp Mustang with tires that will actually stick to the road, factory 'everyman' car. It is SO hard not to stomp on the pedal whenever possible. Actually, half throttle is tough to do in regular driving

I have the average MPG on the meter down to 13.8- and the smile on my face whenever I drive this car is worth every cent I pay for gas...

It's a shame that those who have no use for high performance will never know what that smile feels like !