Why Your Car Isn't as Fast as the Magazines Say
#1
40th anniversary Edition
Thread Starter
Why Your Car Isn't as Fast as the Magazines Say
Why Your Car Isn't as Fast as the Magazines Say ( note: couldn't reduce the copied font size,sorry)
https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-cul...0Non%20Openers
Last edited by gwilliams6; 05-13-2020 at 06:06 PM.
#2
I'm happy they mention cars like the WRX specifically, too many people are seduced by the 0-60 time of that car due to its AWD. Sure, it will hit 60 in 5 seconds if you do a diff shattering clutch dump, but try that 5 times and your cars toast. In my experience the WRX is no faster than a GTI or Civic Si. This is also the reason why high grip, low torque cars like the RX8 can have such varied magazine times.
#3
Smoking turbo yay
0-60 time could definitely be deceiving. The C8 Stingray is a prime example of this. Due to the MR setup it has, it can lay down a 0-60 time of 2.9 seconds, which C8 owners are actually able to replicate. This is better than C7 Z06's 0-60 time, but when traction is not a problem(at high speeds), a C7 Z06 will smoke the C8 Stingray.
When you get into cars with lots of torque(NA V8 or turbo 6-cylinder), getting traction can become a challenge and you have to have dry ground with good temperature, good tires, etc. to have everything work out. Manual trans adds another layer of uncertainty due it being more prone to driver errors than auto trans.
Then there is the S1 vs. S2 RX-8, where the S1 RX-8 actually has a better 0-100 kph time than the S2, but this is due to S2 having a shorter 2nd gear and therefore needs another shift to get to 100 kph, which impacted the time. In real life, however, S2 will be a little bit peppier around town due to the shorter 2nd gear. RX-8s are not designed to be drag strip specials stock anyway.
At least it's not as useless as the "top gear 60 mph to 80 mph" test, where every manual car gets incredibly stupid times because the test involves lugging the engine(flooring it while in top gear) while automatics get to downshift. If you can't be bothered to drop a gear or two when passing on highways, why are you driving a manual? Supposedly the test made sense when automatics had 2 or 3 gears while manuals had maybe 4 gears, but with today's 8+speed automatics, it makes zero sense.
When you get into cars with lots of torque(NA V8 or turbo 6-cylinder), getting traction can become a challenge and you have to have dry ground with good temperature, good tires, etc. to have everything work out. Manual trans adds another layer of uncertainty due it being more prone to driver errors than auto trans.
Then there is the S1 vs. S2 RX-8, where the S1 RX-8 actually has a better 0-100 kph time than the S2, but this is due to S2 having a shorter 2nd gear and therefore needs another shift to get to 100 kph, which impacted the time. In real life, however, S2 will be a little bit peppier around town due to the shorter 2nd gear. RX-8s are not designed to be drag strip specials stock anyway.
At least it's not as useless as the "top gear 60 mph to 80 mph" test, where every manual car gets incredibly stupid times because the test involves lugging the engine(flooring it while in top gear) while automatics get to downshift. If you can't be bothered to drop a gear or two when passing on highways, why are you driving a manual? Supposedly the test made sense when automatics had 2 or 3 gears while manuals had maybe 4 gears, but with today's 8+speed automatics, it makes zero sense.
Last edited by UnknownJinX; 05-14-2020 at 12:14 AM.
#5
Smoking turbo yay
I can't remember if it was 60 MPH or 100 km/h(62.5 MPH). Personally I haven't tested that, not that I bought an RX-8 for drag races.
#7
Smoking turbo yay
Even my current car isn't that great for a drag strip race. If that's my goal, I would have picked the 10-speed auto rather than the 6-speed manual.
#9
Smoking turbo yay
Realistically it's just about not being dumb with the gas pedal on a public street.
I have seen a short clip where a Mustang GT drifts around and leaves the car scene without crashing then a BMW comes along and crashes. Shocking, I know, but it happens.
Last edited by UnknownJinX; 05-14-2020 at 10:39 PM.
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