Overhyped Cars

"Matthew Keyser" (teisco15) 03/03/2014 at 23:06 • Filed to: None

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Some cars come along and create a huge buzz. From 2012 through last year, all of the internet car sites were raving about the Scion FRS and Toyota GT86 for making rear wheel drive hooliganism more achievable to more people and put Toyota back in peoples minds as something other than a boring company that makes brown rental cars for old people. This year, the focus seems to be turning more towards the new generation of hyper-cars. I'm of course talking about the Porsche 918, the Ferrari LaFerrari, and the McLaren P1. These cars are important not just because of the insane speeds they can reach and the alarming rate at which they can reach them. These cars mark a turning point in the development of the car. Normal people can now buy hybrids. The 918 and P1 (and maybe the LaFerrari, we'll find out soon enough) can be driven as all electrics around town and a combination in normal driving conditions and then, when you are really going for it, you can get the electric motors and the rather sizable generators at the same time to put out some amazing torque and horsepower figures with 0-60 times lower than I though numbers ever went.

What I'm getting at here is, these cars deserve the hype they got. While it may have gotten a bit monotonous reading what seemed like the same FRS review on every website in every magazine for 18 months, the car stands for something. There are however, some cars not as deserving of their hype. Some cars that have been talked about and talked about for years and it doesn't seem like it will ever end.

I am now talking about the Nissan GTR. And bear with me here, I do have an explanation. The GTR is a technological masterpiece, it's like the latest smartphones. It is technology at its peak getting you the best performance that it can. I have been lucky enough to have a ride in a GTR and I have to say, even in the short time I was riding I can honestly say it's the fastest thing I have ever been in. My main gripe about the modern GTRs is the price. Basically to get a GTR now, you're going to have to set aside $100,000. That is quite a bit of money. Back in 2008 when the GTR was launched in America, you could pick a base one for just under $70K. That is still a large sum of money, but it was remarkably cheap for the amount of performance you got. Most people will never be able to spend $100K on a single car for any reason, and while the $70K that it used to be may not sound a whole lot cheaper, think of how much car you could get for $30,000 in the used market. When the GTR first launched, it was a glimmer of hope for hard working individuals that one day, after the initial depreciation had done it's damage that they could work to buy a slightly used GTR to destroy nearly ever other car in the road. That hope is now mostly gone. Hearing anything into 6 figures for a car is unimaginable for pretty much all of us.

With the old GTR you were getting an expensive car that performed like a really expensive car. Now you are getting a really expensive car that performs like a really really expensive car, and the only place for the prices to go from here is up.

I realize that my opinion may not be that popular among the group that hold the GTR on some God-like pedestal that spend all day at their computer looking for people like me who dare to say anything against it. But that is exactly what it is, my opinion, we all have one. I want to hear yours. What cars do you feel get more praise than they deserve no matter how controversial? Let me know in the comments below.

All Motor Is Best Motor > Matthew Keyser 03/03/2014 at 23:10

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Victorious Secret > Matthew Keyser 03/03/2014 at 23:10

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People who say that the GT-R is just a 'smartphone' have never driven one and just really don't know what its about and how it really drives.

Its is more disconnected than a Ferrari? Absolutely. GT-Rs always have been. But its not some dull robot.

70k was a bargain and everyone knew it. Everyone. Even Nissan. 100k is still a bargain. You do realize you're getting a car, that for those who care for track use, is BESTED BY A 918 ON THE RING! A 1 million dollar hypercar! Thats a deal.

The GT-R is not a really expensive car. A GT-R undercuts even a Vantage V8 while simultaneously delivering pain to cars 10 times its MSRP.

100k is honestly not expensive. For someone already spending 70k, 100k isn't a stretch. 30k more on payments or lease or outright cash is nothing. For people who actually spend that money, they aren't crying over 30k.

signintokinjalol > Matthew Keyser 03/03/2014 at 23:11

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I own one and i love it to death, but it's extremely simple. It's light, handles good, it's oversteer biased, it's only 200 HP. That's it. There's nothing more to it, once you go past that...you have to be an owner or potential buyer.

Matthew Keyser > Victorious Secret 03/03/2014 at 23:20

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I wasn't saying the smartphone thing as a way to say it is a disconnected driving experience because I can't say anything about the driving experience of the car. I was just saying that to point out the amount of technology in the car. And I personally could think of several other worth while ways to spend 100k. It is quite a bit of money. Starting at 70, a person could hope to someday pick up a used GTR for around 50ish. That is a much more manageable number for most people, but it is still quite a lot for some. Starting at 100K, the only way to hope to get to 50 is to get a car that has a lot of hard miles that was thrashed and trashed. The GTR is a fantastic car with insane performance and is much more affordable than other cars with comparable performance, however it does not, in my eyes, still deserve the god like status placed upon it by many in the internet.

beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard > Matthew Keyser 03/03/2014 at 23:26

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GT-R's have always been moderately expensive.

The R32 GTR was $110kAUD in 1992, that's 180K in $2013 money. Which is more than what the going rate is for a Black Edition down here.

Storz > Matthew Keyser 03/04/2014 at 07:30

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I really thought a 426hp, rwd manual trans car would be more fun to drive. Completely underwhelmed by the Camaro SS

Meatcoma > Storz 03/04/2014 at 10:22

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You're not doing it right. I have the 312hp rwd manual trans Camaro RS and love driving it every day.

Storz > Meatcoma 03/04/2014 at 10:29

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That probably weighs half as much as the new one....

Hanzr > Matthew Keyser 03/05/2014 at 22:54

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Well if I got it right, your point for the prompt "GT-R is overhyped" is that it costs from 70k to 100k, which is unbearably high, concerning its past MY's availability. Am I correct in comprehending your gist? If not please correct me.

But if I'm correct, I suppose it's not a logical way to interpret your prompt. If I were you, I'd cut in from the point "internet lionization of GT-R". I indeed hate those blithering guys hyping about GT-R (any generation), who don't actually own one, even though my dream car is BNR34.... I'm a confused being....

mynameischurch > beardsbynelly - Rikerbeard 06/29/2015 at 13:57

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But australia has wierd pricing. My car i own going for 3-4 times its price after currency exchange over there.