mosesbotbol

It's much easier to stroke ones ego by talking HP than it is discussing handling and braking. I'll take big brakes over an extra 50 hp.

MarcusDubya77

I concur 1,000,000%. Half of the reason that I got rid of my RS4 was because it had become too much of a hassle to even enjoy on the road. I could never open it up on city streets, and it took the pleasure out of driving it. Even trying to go from a dig would be abruptly stopped because of traffic or another light. It was neat to own an 11.5 1/4 car for a while, but lost its luster in real driving. 550 HP is cool, but not daily drivable in a city. So, I sold it and now own 2 lower HP, but more fun cars in the S2000 and 500 Abarth.

mosesbotbol

How many of these 500+ HP cars can you really drive with full throttle for 4+ seconds without driving to endanger?

white98ls

That's what I liked about the S2k. In the AP1, you could blaze to 9k rpm in 1st, 2nd, 3rd and still "only" be doing 88mph at redline in 3rd, which isn't outrageous for an empty onramp (easy to brake down to the 70-75 that traffic is going). And it FEELS like 88mph. In my M3, 3rd is good for 105, and it feels like 80.

Gearing makes such a big difference in how a car feels, I can't believe certain faster cars are geared the way they are (Cayman GT4 as a great example).

vader1

Ditto. My "fun" car tops out at 82 mph in second gear. It sounds tremendous at redline but you can't do it that often without risking a ticket. I don't care if the 0-60 time got slower, but it would be nice to have at least a decent range of third gear to play around with around town.

I am seriously thinking about adding a Miata down the road as a third car but I would love it if it were geared lower so you could wring the snot out of it a little more around town. The other car I am thinking about is a 235i/240i. Not huge power but has some torque so zipping around is fun. I think 350hp is pretty much the top level for having fun safely on the street. Sure you can go higher, but go much higher than that and you are leaving most of it on the table most of the time anyway.

white98ls

As much as I hate to admit it, I'm realizing the high-revving N/A screamers I love are a little more frustrating and less fun on the street. You really have to wring them out to get to the best part, and by then you're reaching unsafe speeds, while low-midrange revs aren't that exciting. They're great for long blasts but those are pretty rare and often unsafe on the street - even most twisty roads don't allow you to really rev out.

I liked my E39 M5 for street driving a lot. Great torque (369lb/ft at 3,900), didn't fall on its face at high revs, but you don't need to rev it out to have fun. About 10lbs/hp. Can kick the tail loose casually. Maybe the trick is to find something similar (big N/A or responsive FI) in a lighter and more compact package, without being too fast (something like a Vette maybe, but not quite as powerful). Wonder what cars fit that description well. 235/240i could be a good bet.

Chris Stack

My S2000 is just a little on the slow side for ideal on the street, IMO. Maybe ~300hp would be perfect. A Miata or BRZ or something I find TOO slow, especially around here in the open flatlands of Chicagoland, but I don't need 500hp, either. I've driven a Panamera Turbo (the new model) and it is literally "hold the gas down for 5 seconds from 30mph and you are in go to jail territory". Exhilarating, but unusable. I think if I ever get around to supercharging the S it would be pretty perfect.

vader1

My ideal is a light car, does not have to have too much power, really short gearing in 1st-3rd and some down low torque for ripping around town, then a really tall 6th for highway. That would probably be horrible on the track though.

s2000Junky

As an owner of the same s2k for 14 years, being NA and supercharged with 450whp, along with other improved handling and braking mods, street and track duty, Id say the car would really be on point with either another 100hp to the wheels or about 500-600lb less weight. This would put it in a more balanced arena for me. The handling and ability is all there, it just lags in forward propulsion to get the most out of the experience and what the chassis can handle. I have no plans to sell the car, its a keeper, its still that much fun for me with 200whp, but I still fantasize from time to time about being boosted again or a more powerful NA engine swap.

If I could live with it (which I couldn't) A Lotus 260S Exige would be a good example of balance and power that the S2000 should/could have. Standard 190hp Lotus Elise still isn't quick enough for its weight for me. With a f22 swap it could be I suppose.

DL771

I sold my GTR for the same reasons mentioned here. After I got over the speed thrills, it got boring fast.