The perfect sportscar formula
Remember back not too long ago, when 200hp was A
LOT of horsepower? Dave Matthias, of The Truth About Cars,
does, and he has written a great editorial comparing the modern sportscar template with those of years past. In the
process he questions why the modern sportscar has gone 'horsepower mad' and why many now tip the scales in excess of
2-tons. Matthias' article will no doubt spark some great, if not heated, debate, as he basically makes the case that
the Ferrari Dino 246GT is a 'proper' sportscar, and that the auto industry should create small, lightweight, moderatly
powerful sportscars if they want to create more successful sportscars. If anything, at least he has good taste in his
ideal sportscar…
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
rob rudorf 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
that guy is right on the money! i love it when i read something written that i could have never put into words.
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Olav 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
I haven't read his article but...
There are quite a few sports cars on the market right now that are light weight like the Lotus, Miata, Boxster, etc. 3000 lbs approx and under.
The weight changes are mostly due to saftey equipment and luxury stuff like air con.
The Dino has no safty equipment, air con or crash saftey reinforemnet members like side crash beams in the doors.
I have a 1970 914-6 and it's really light and fast with no saftey itmes to speak of. I have even stuck in a 3.2 motor to make it to 260 hp.
Most cars now are very comfortable do drive and have a radio, not the six.
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Meek 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
This guy at "The Truth about Cars" has it down. He should have a talk with Bob Elton, also at TTAC, about the manual vs auto debate.
http://autoblog.com/entry/1234000427023644/ I think Dave would be for the manual side.
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Ian 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Someone should point out to TAC man that the 246GT can't be a proper sportscar...the Ferrari didn't come with an automatic transmission, and we all know how superior those are.
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Dave Matthias 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Thanks for the link, and the kind words.
I've tried to change Bob's mind about manual transmissions with a couple of different arguments, without luck. I don't know why he has that particular bug up his rear.
And yes, I'm firmly in the manual transmission camp.
Dave Matthias
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Steven Diver 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Dave...
Great article! And I couldn't agree with you more. Something just innately wonderful and satisfying about driving a small, well handling, lightweight sportscar down a twisty stretch of road. Something that a large, heavy, muscle car just doesn't give the driver. Maybe I'm biased with my MINI, but I've been on both sides of this fence, and there is no question what is better.
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yokimbo 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
I'm surprised there's no mention of the S2000. The Miata is a wonderful sports car, but the S2000 is even more so. And, its specs are close to that of the Dino, 2835lbs, 240hp, 161ft/lbs. My 2 cents.
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roy 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
"...auto industry should create small, lightweight, moderatly powerful sportscars if they want to create more successful sportscars"
Agreed. But automakers will only build cars that the public will buy. Americans don't want small cars, and who can blame them with manufacturers failure to self-regulate bumper height...and then there are the semis. This is why the mazda miata, one of the few true sports cars in production is not in demand...aside from mazda marketing failure to give it something other than 'girly car' image :(
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Steven Diver 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
Americans don't want small cars? Personally, I think this is a common misconception, similar to the SUV's are safer than small cars argument (which, don't even get me started on that topic). If there is a well designed and appropriately priced small car on the market, Americans WILL buy it. Case in point, the MINI Cooper...it is the smallest car on the road, yet there is a three month waiting list (more in some areas) to get one. Mazda Miatas don't have the popularity they did a few years back, but there are still lots of them out on the roads. And just look at the predominance of cars like the MINI Cooper, Porsche Boxster, BMW Z3/Z4 (okay, not so much the Z4), Mercedes SLK, Audi TT, VW Beetle, etc. All these cars are popular, yet American manufacturers don't have an answer to them. The closest thing an American manufacturer has had in the last 25 years is the Fiero, and part of the reason GM killed it was because it started to infringe on Corvetter performance at a fraction of the price. Americans will buy small cars, and they do.
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Meek 11:02PM (12/18/2005)
yokimbo, I agree about the S2000. I was going to post that, but didn't find the weight. my 2 cents makes it 0.04 now.
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