Sports & fast cars are stupid.

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Zenmervolt

Elite member
Oct 22, 2000
24,514
44
91
Originally posted by: LAUST
Originally posted by: ZenmervoltOnly if he's chipped the Maxima. The computer limits the Maxima to 118 mph I believe. If your truck can get to 120, you're fine. ;)

ZV
124 :D

<--- can program his own PCM :D
Hmmm, I don't think I have anything that could reel you in either. I know the 914's not getting to 120 (95 hp, even though the thing weighs less than a ton, isn't going to get it done), the 924S seems to have had its transmission futzed with at some point (published top end is around 130, but based on my RPM at 60 and 80 I'd be at redline right around 120 mph), and the Lincoln hits its speed limiter at 124 (something to do with driveshaft RPM). Dang. :p

ZV
 

Zenmervolt

Elite member
Oct 22, 2000
24,514
44
91
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Hee hee, the Maxmia GXE is governed to 118 due to the speed rating of the tires. The SE has no governor and is capable of over 140 :)
I'm sorry, your car is too fast. You'll have to trade it in on a Civic Hybrid. :p :p ;) ;)

ZV
 

CraigRT

Lifer
Jun 16, 2000
31,440
5
0
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Hee hee, the Maxmia GXE is governed to 118 due to the speed rating of the tires. The SE has no governor and is capable of over 140 :)
I'm sorry, your car is too fast. You'll have to trade it in on a Civic Hybrid. :p :p ;) ;)

ZV

I honestly find the Maxima has a hard time getting up to near 118.. i can't believe it can do 140, honestly. my dads is a 2000 same as yours.
 

StageLeft

No Lifer
Sep 29, 2000
70,150
5
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Originally posted by: CraigRT
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Hee hee, the Maxmia GXE is governed to 118 due to the speed rating of the tires. The SE has no governor and is capable of over 140 :)
I'm sorry, your car is too fast. You'll have to trade it in on a Civic Hybrid. :p :p ;) ;)

ZV

I honestly find the Maxima has a hard time getting up to near 118.. i can't believe it can do 140, honestly. my dads is a 2000 same as yours.
Disown your father for driving an automatic :D

They are rated to do 140+ for the manual transmission. I remember my dad's 95 gxe 5 speed hit 118 (field tested :D) in 4th gear. I was down a hill to minimize time spent at car-impound speeds, but it did get there quite quickly. My 2000 will hit 125 in 4th without too much complaint, though any faster than that I can't say how long it would take to get to 140...
 

StageLeft

No Lifer
Sep 29, 2000
70,150
5
0
You know what's a real shame is that as time goes on and the average car is faster we get more restrictive traffic laws, at least insofar as they are enforced. Already the pontiac grand AM (I believe that is one) monitors your car speed, and the last 5 seconds of travel speed can be used in court if you get in an accident. With more and more video cameras and cheaper technology it seems that eventually we'll all have on board computers that, if we choose to run them, will give insurance discounts but allow our driving habits to be checked (this was tested somewhere I believe but was prohibitively expensive to use).
 

Zenmervolt

Elite member
Oct 22, 2000
24,514
44
91
Originally posted by: Skoorb
You know what's a real shame is that as time goes on and the average car is faster we get more restrictive traffic laws, at least insofar as they are enforced. Already the pontiac grand AM (I believe that is one) monitors your car speed, and the last 5 seconds of travel speed can be used in court if you get in an accident. With more and more video cameras and cheaper technology it seems that eventually we'll all have on board computers that, if we choose to run them, will give insurance discounts but allow our driving habits to be checked (this was tested somewhere I believe but was prohibitively expensive to use).
This is part of the reason that I prefer older cars. :D

ZV
 

WinkOsmosis

Banned
Sep 18, 2002
13,990
1
0
Btw, Skoorb you should remember that you drive a FWD car. So of course driving isn't going to be as fun for you.
 

Thoreau

Golden Member
Jan 11, 2003
1,441
0
76
Originally posted by: NeuroSynapsis
power = torque

and torque = fun

and i probably won't get to work any faster than somebody in the backseat of a taxi, but i'll have alot more fun doing it =D

What he said! And legal or not, I intend to hop off the red lights faster than the other cars around me, enjoy the thrill of (limited) traffic weaving to see how well my suspension can handle, and take corners without touching the brake once. =)

PS: Skoorb... how DARE you call a Nissan an econobox! Traitor!
 

Thoreau

Golden Member
Jan 11, 2003
1,441
0
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Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: DougK62
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: DougK62
This is the dumbest thread ever.

For me, I buy fun cars and mess with them because it's a hobby.
Thanks, but consider you're one of ATOT's big pricks I'm not really interested in much of what you have to say. At least the others here have a clue.

Oh no - the almightly Skoorb thinks I'm a prick
rolleye.gif
It's not me that started a ridiculous thread like this. And I guess because I twisted your panties in a bunch somewhere I now don't have a "clue". Boo hoo.

The point is that this is a dumb thread. People buy stuff that they don't necessarily need because they simply WANT it for whatever reason. DUH.
Oh it's not just me, Dougy-doo.
See, you just will never understand if it's not your thing. If you can appreciate the difference between driving a HP V8 vehicle and a Sentra, you never will. The whole thing will just seem alien to you, so why bother trying to convince everyone else?
Oh I do appreciate the difference. A fast car is more fun, and I do enjoy driving the maxima more than the sentra, but certainly if the maxima was a 4 0-60 second car I'd never be able to appreciate it because the faster you get the more dangerous you become to those around you. I remember reading a review of an echo and it said something fun about the echo is that you can drive it at its limits on the way to work, which is something you can't do in a corvette. And that's really my point - you can never drive a corvette at its limits. I can't even drive the maxima at its limits without getting in trouble for it. So definitely there becomes a point where your return on investment for the performance of your vehicle is seriously diminished. Imagine the frustration driving a porsche 911 turbo in regular traffic. It's like a caged beast you can never unleash.

It's not that you *can* drive an Echo at its limits on the way to work, it's that you *have to* in order to avoid being run over by people who have real cars. Take an Echo onto Loop 101 southbound out of Scottsdale and tell me otherwise =)
 

Thoreau

Golden Member
Jan 11, 2003
1,441
0
76
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Linky
It is actually much more complicated than 2-door or 4-door. Insurance company
compile actuarial tables based on the make/model of car, driver sex, age,
ticket frequency, etc. They use those to rate vehicles and drivers. If there
is a surcharge for a particular car, it is based on the claim history of all
insured vehicles of that type. Now, it turns out that certain cars are
primarily driven more "safely" than others according to the statistics, and get
the most preferred rates: things like Ford Crown Victorias and Buick
Roadmasters. Other things are driven by testosterone overloaded people more
often and get higher rates, like Camaro Z28's. There are some intersting
anomolies which I noticed while looking over a general listing of the rating
catagories published by Consumer Reports a few years ago: Porsche 911/928 are
in the "average" rating class, while 924/944 are in the very risky class.
Ferrari's are average, Pontiac Fiero's are even more risky than 924/944.
Mustang V8 GT was riskier than Mustang V8 LX. Wheeeee! The tables don't
explain why a particular car might be more risky to insure than another, the
tables simply reflect experience.

So you're showing us that a COMBINATION of factors contribute to the liklyhood of a car being in an accident.
 

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
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Everything is stupid. We're here anyway... may as well make the best of it... if you got the money, buy WHATEVER the hell you want.
 

Thoreau

Golden Member
Jan 11, 2003
1,441
0
76
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
Originally posted by: LAUST
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Originally posted by: thomsbrain
don't you all realize you're being skoorbed? where do you think that word came from? this is a guy with a kick-ass maxima! you're being duped!

::hi-five to skoorb::

if skoorb isn't skoorbing, i hang my head in shame.
Skoorb was not skoorbing! I Actually do like sports and fast cars. I was playing devil's advocate, but that is not trolling in the true sense of the word. That is a deliberate attempt to piss people off, which I didn't do (in fact some agree with me!). I was merely trying to look at this from the other side of things.
Maxima??.. oh yah I remember those from my rearview mirror
I still think my maxima has a better top speed than your pickup :)
Yah you might reel me in at the 2 mile marker ;)
Only if he's chipped the Maxima. The computer limits the Maxima to 118 mph I believe. If your truck can get to 120, you're fine. ;)

ZV

Dear lord, my old 01 Civic DX could do that (and did so by driving back from Vegas to Phoenix at a solid 120mph.) Haven't yet fully opened up the Sentra SE-R, but I have already taken it to a hair over 130. Have a feeling that it wont go beyond that any day soon either from the governer or rev limiter, or something. Not to mention it's not exactly a 300hp sports car.
 

ajpa123

Platinum Member
Apr 19, 2003
2,401
1
0
Originally posted by: Black88GTA
Originally posted by: ajpa123
Originally posted by: Skoorb
Look how much money people spend on cars that go fast. 1/4 in 13.5 0-60 in 5.5. Rips up country roads. Who cares? .

Hey Skoorb,

What percentage of sports and fast car owners do you think 'Rip up country roads' with their cars. I just want to get that straight. Cuz i do care, i just wanna know how much i should be caring about it.

AJ

On the Geico blacklist

Black88GTA,

Gosh darn, so that's what that meant. General Lee is to blame

Thanks for clearing that up.

That was funny

YEEEE HAWWWWW

AJ.

My 100th Post !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

brigden

Diamond Member
Dec 22, 2002
8,702
2
81
Skoorb, when asked to choose between a Honda Accord or a Nissan Maxima, you chose the Maxima because it was "faster."
 

przero

Platinum Member
Dec 30, 2000
2,060
0
0
"Most people really only need a Civic or a Corolla, if not a smaller car. "

I prefer to use tuna fish cans for tuna, not for transportation.
 

RagingBITCH

Lifer
Sep 27, 2003
17,618
2
76
If fast cars are stupid you wouldn't be driving a Maxima. In RossMAN's thread about Accord vs Maxima you were even talking about the Accord eating the Maxima's fumes. You'd just be driving a boring old car that isn't fast. :p
 

Calin

Diamond Member
Apr 9, 2001
3,112
0
0
Some people buy a SUV because they intend to use it (even if extremely rarely) for towing. I'm sure you'll envy the one driving a SUV and pulling a 5000 pounds trailer, when you'll drive your econobox pulling the same 5000 pounds trailer.
And by the way, I had a car that weight about 2300 pounds. I was very happy to have 90 CP when I pulled my way from a small secondary road on a heavy trafic street. If I would have some more 90 CP and the confidence to use them, I would have reduced the time spent waiting for a traffic pause from 3 minutes to less than half a minute.
Powerful cars allow you to merge much easier in the traffic.

Calin
 

Mattnum25

Junior Member
Sep 7, 2002
13
0
0
several random points...

1988 Porsche 944 Turbo was the first car with standard passenger airbags. Also, the Mercedes S class is a luxury sedan.

Cars that you don't NEED to push to their limits for everyday driving are both safer and more fun to drive if you do so responsibly. If you feel otherwise, you don't get it and never will.

You can definitely avoid an accident in a Porsche with much greater ease than in a Ford SUV, honda econobox, or volvo (on dry roads at least, heh). If you are driving within reason, you are much LESS likely to kill someone if you're in a sports car, as a simple matter of physics.

Just because you don't need a capability 99% of the time, does not mean that you won't REALLY wish you had it the 1% of the time that is the exception (think smoke detectors, snow blowers - depending on your area, 1GB of RAM, etc...it holds for these just as well as massive acceleration, awesome handling, or towing/offroad capability).

There are times when it is legal to use this power to its fullest if that's your desire...think open highway in Montana or Italy or Germany, or a closed track. If you are not in one of these situations, the aforementioned arguments still hold.

Frankly, sports cars are asthetically pleasing both to look at, and to drive (road sense, feeling of taut control, effortless acceleration, engine note)

I don't see the point of the insurance argument, so I'm not touching it.

And lastly, can't accelerate fast cuz it's a "display of speed"? That's a new one on me, I don't think I've ever heard of something like that unless you don't have control of the vehicle when you do it...
 

jpeyton

Moderator in SFF, Notebooks, Pre-Built/Barebones
Moderator
Aug 23, 2003
25,375
142
116
Originally posted by: Vortex22
I always see fools that are in a hurry speeding and swerving in and out of traffic, then I laugh when I leisurely pull up to them sitting at a red light. They got no further being wreckless than I did being safe.

There is no point speeding on city roads, or any road with traffic signals. Speeding and swerving are best left for the freeways. Trust me, I'm a pro at wreckless driving.
 

lowfatbaconboy

Golden Member
Oct 21, 2000
1,796
0
0
i was gona say a couple things but i think most of them were covered like:
-men drive more and thus have higher insurance rates
-sports cars (or most of them) tend to be safer than econoboxes....
(ive seen bimmers and porsches wreck and the people are fine....then ive seen other wrecks with econoboxes where they are crushed like little bugs)
-I autoX and i know alot of other people with RSes/WRXes/STIs that autoX or rallyX
 

StageLeft

No Lifer
Sep 29, 2000
70,150
5
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So you're showing us that a COMBINATION of factors contribute to the liklyhood of a car being in an accident.
Of course!
If fast cars are stupid you wouldn't be driving a Maxima. In RossMAN's thread about Accord vs Maxima you were even talking about the Accord eating the Maxima's fumes. You'd just be driving a boring old car that isn't fast.
I know, but it was a devil's advocate thread. One could make a similar argument that 3 ghz cpus are stupid for somebody that only plays starcraft & IE.
You can definitely avoid an accident in a Porsche with much greater ease than in a Ford SUV, honda econobox, or volvo (on dry roads at least, heh). If you are driving within reason, you are much LESS likely to kill someone if you're in a sports car, as a simple matter of physics.
True.

Driven responsibly a sports car is less likely to get into an accident than any other vehicle. Unfortunately sports cars are driven less responsibly than any other vehicle to such a degree that they make up the most risky vehicle class. Businessmen aren't buying STIs - it's younger people who like to go fast. Most people will tend towards more aggresive driving when behind the wheel of a sporty car. I know I drive faster in the maxima than in the sentra. Give me a porsche and I'll drive faster yet. So you've got that, then also the fact that people buy what attracts them. Somebody with a need for speed sees little attraction in a minivan, so they don't buy one. This adds up to a great many accidents in sports cars, greater claims to insurance companies, and in turn higher premiums.
 

BatmanNate

Lifer
Jul 12, 2000
12,444
2
81
The country generaly affords us the freedom of choice, and although you may not see the merit of it, some people enjoy the feel of driving a car that puts you back in your seat under acceleration, steers precisely, drives with the proper wheels, and can handle curvy roads with ease and precision. How you choose to use this instrument is at your discretion obviously. I see rempaging idiots on crowded roads and highways driving with a complete disregard for the law, their safety, and the safety of everyone else and doing it in Hondas or pickups or other non-sports cars, and to be honest I've never seen a Corvette do anything irresponsible on the same crowded roads. I guess my point is that you can drive equally irresponsibly with any vehicle, so it bothers me less when someone in a sports car is driving fast on a desolate highway that when someone in any vehicle is hauling balls in and out of traffic down the crowded insterstate. Besides, some performance cars sell because of their looks, their rarity, their image, their technological superiority, or other factors besides just the raw speed.