Super Cars Are Overrated

"TheSixSpeed" (the-six-speed) 01/30/2020 at 18:05 • Filed to: Oppositelock, Oppo, Opinion, Hot take, GET YA HOT TAKES HERE

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Let me preface this piece by saying this: Super cars are not bad. A lot of them are very good. But who cares?

As a car enthusiast, it’s cool to see what manufacturers can do with a limited budget to create an awesome car. Whether it’s a cool pickup, a muscle car, or even a small roadster. It allows the working class to have their fun too. You can own a Mustang with dual over head cam V8, or a GT86 with a small but fun little boxer 4. You can take both of these to the drag strip or the track and have fun and be good! But you know what ruins this? That’s right. Super cars.

“Ah yes, it is I! A rich person. I’m here to completely dominate the strip or track with my brand new (insert brand of super car here)”

And it just sucks away the fun. Like most problems, if you throw enough money at it you’ll solve it. But where’s the fun in that? Why do rich people get to have all the good times? It’s a reason why the Dodge Demon, and to a lesser extent, the Hellcat, is so popular. Because even an average blue collar Joe or Jane can take out a loan and smoke a Lambo or an Aston Martin if he or she wanted to.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that Super cars are bad or not enjoyable. They are, very much. It’s interesting to see what a manufacturer can do with a very high budget.

But who cares when you can’t afford it? A very large portion of the population will never be able to afford these cars. So what’s the draw? The attention? The “Look at me I’m driving a very expensive car so that must mean I’m probably very rich” persona that people like to put on when they rent one? If that’s the case, is liking super cars really about the car? Or is it about the perceived benefits that come with being associated with one?

And let’s be honest: At least regular cars are driven. A majority of super cars sit in a garage so depreciation doesn’t hit them. And how is that fun? Drive your car! You want to know which cars do get driven? Regular cars. Cars that have been loved. Not the super car.

The super car deserves more than to just be an untouchable aspirational piece. They deserve to be driven. They deserve more than just 0-60 times and top speeds. They deserve a driver who cares.

WRXforScience > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:23

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A couple of weeks ago when I was at the track I got to chose which car I wanted to instruct: an Audi R8 v10 or a Toyota 86 (I dirve a BRZ). I chose the Audi because it’s been my “if I ever fell into a large pile of money car” (I’d say won the lotto, but I don’t play it since the math says it’s a bad bet and I’m too logical for my own good).

My novice student in the R8 was one of the slowest students ever and he progressed at the slowest rate (obviously he was worried about the car). Contrast that with the week prior when I instructed a kid from the high school I teach at in a BRZ who was one of the fastest novices and picked up more of my instruction than just about anyone. In hindsight I probably would have had a better time in the 86 than the R8.

I’ve crossed the car off my list to drive/instruct in and off my “pile list” as well. It’d still be great as a fancy restaurant car but it was inferior to the Porsches as a driver’s car (the Turbos are better for outright speed, GT3's for on track experience and performance, and Cayman/used 911's are a pretty good price, performance, and brand bargain).

My R8 student was blown away when I gave him a ride in my BRZ (I was going much faster than he was for lap times and I might have even edged him out in outright top speed).

I narrate the first lap or so.

wafflesnfalafel > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:25

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Y ou have a valid point - but I get a bunch of enjoyment simply seeing one fly by every once in a while or sitting at a cars & coffee even knowing I will never sit in one, much less own or drive one. I think there is value in the existence of awesome stuff even if I will never have or drive it.

Spanfeller is a twat > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:27

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Car enthusiasm in general is an elitist thing. To disregard supercars for being elitist is kinda moot.

Owners are dicks? Yes.

Is it mostly for status? Yes.

But that doesn’t mean the machines are overrated...if anything, supercars are misunderstood. There’s so much to take in from a supercar... Just in the capricious design and all the high end technical stuff they do...its marvelous to observe, and to interact with.

I think that a Demon could beat a 458 in a dragstrip; but one is a partsbin special and the other is a handbuilt two seater bundle of beautiful materials and precision craftsmanship. It all adds up to something that literally excites the driver...

Sure, any Vodka can get you drunk just like a single malt whiskey... But the whiskey is so special in so many ways...

Sure most supercar owners  are asshats, but if you had to chose which one to use for a few hours down a canyon road... I figure you’d be lying if you told me you’d chose the demon.

wkiernan > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:28

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I think t he biggest problem with supercars, from the American driver’s point of view, is that you can never, ever, put the gas pedal to the floor, not even for two seconds, except maybe on the rare occasion you get one on a real race track. If you live in the vicinity of a no-top-speed Autobahn, and you are a good driver, and you’re fearless, then this disadvantage does not apply to you - you lucky bastard!

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:33

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Couldn’t agree more. I’m personally a fan of sleepers, and also of exotic car experiences. Have the fun for a day or three without the worry of image, damage, depreciation, repairs, etc.

Although my 968 wasn’t a supercar, it did change attitudes, and not necessarily for the better. Everyone wanted to race (pass), purists looked down on me for having an entry-level car and a ny woman that was attracted to me because of my car was not someone I was interested in dating. It was fun, but there were times I just wanted to get into a nice sedan (E34 or W210) and be a little more comfortable.

If I were to suddenly become wealthy, a owning a supercar is not on my list of priorities. My plan is to live off of the interest, purchase real estate and have a nondescript vehicle or two. I’d rather have a W126 or W140 that a W222 (or whatever the current model is called). Maybe a Tesla. And I’d keep my trusty Mazda5.

DucST3-Red-1Liter-Standing-By > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:37

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Agreed, I live pretty close the CNC motorsports (the one doug practically lives at) and have become pretty numb to it all.

Then again, I got excited to see a 2-CV last week, so maybe I’m just weird

Jim Spanfeller > WRXforScience 01/30/2020 at 18:45

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Man, that looks like so much fun, though something tells me my ‘66 Thunderbird wouldn’t be particularly good at it...

feather-throttle-not-hair > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 18:45

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Supercars don’t suck, people suck.

Also, come race in C class at lemons.

WRXforScience > Jim Spanfeller 01/30/2020 at 18:48

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As long as it doesn’t leak and you’re good with the point-bys, no one would be upset with you bringing it out. But no, that’s not really the type of car that does well at the track. I’ve got a buddy with a resto mod ‘64 Mustang that comes out to the track regularly. Swapping modern brakes and updating suspension components helps a lot.

feather-throttle-not-hair > WRXforScience 01/30/2020 at 18:58

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Heh, i see a lot of this in the 24 hours of lemons. My car is really really slow, even for a lemons car, but we tend to do okay just because most people out there aren’t coming close to cornering at 10/10ths. Even with my shitty lines and inconsistent braking, I can still go around corners faster than 75 percent of the field. Which admittedly makes me feel like a racing god, which is all i’ve ever wanted in life anyway.

e.g. 9:30 in this video until about 9 :5 0

WRXforScience > feather-throttle-not-hair 01/30/2020 at 19:07

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Miata LeMons cars seem like cheating. I’ve only spectated at a LeMons race and it was about 10 years ago, but it looks like the cars have gotten a bit more serious but the drivers aren’t too much better. I think one of the problems with Lemons is that it isn’t too much more expensive to run a spec Miata or SRF in an actual race series and those cars are much more reliable so there’s way more drive time and much less wrench time.

gettingoldercarguy > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 19:18

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I think they’re impressive in some respects, but I really don’t give a crap about them. The artificial scarcity most are subjected to in order to maintain/increase their value underscores how pathetic the cars and their owners are.

feather-throttle-not-hair > WRXforScience 01/30/2020 at 19:25

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Heh, the Miatas are usually pretty quick, I think bringing one is a little bit of a cop out at a Lemons race, but I can’t really blame people, they are fun to drive after all. That said, I dunno about seat time, Lemons races are LOOONG and there’s two days of driving. I typically get 3+ hours of seat time in racing conditions over the weekend. I actually ran with just three drivers last year (I believe the race is 14 hours over 2 days) and even grabbed a stint in a friends car for a bit as well. I dunno exactly how much time I had this last July, but it was enough that I wouldn’t have wanted to race any more due to fatigue.

Obviously the car could break at any moment, but 100 ish hp from 3.8L and not revving past 4K RPM means the engine is pretty un-stressed. And uh, with those speeds, so are the brakes (wheel bearings take a pounding though .)

RallyWrench > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 19:28

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The greatest joy in supercars comes from harassing them on track in your $6,000 shitbox because you’re actually willing to put in the work and pedal it hard, unlike the folks who simply stroke a check for flash and speed. Supercars on the street are pointless, and they can’t be properly appreciated there. I tend to walk right past modern supercars at shows, or in places like Monterey where everyone has one, but I’ll stop and look at some random 80's Toyota every time.

But... when somebody combines that check-stroking ability with the desire to use it well, it’s a joy to behold. Ever have something special, expensive, and fast gain on you in the rearview , eventually catching and passing you at full chat? It’s great to watch coming and going, $200,000+ wagging its tail, spitting rocks from gumball tires and screaming to the horizon ahead of you. You’re both stoked and smiling. But those owners are few and far between, and for most they’re just jewelry. Also, the meaning of “supercar” has changed somewhat , but that’s a whole different thing. Anyway, I largely agree, but would say that it’s more supercar owners who are overrated, not the machines themselves. 

gin-san - shitpost specialist > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 19:29

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Supercars are neat, but as I get older my interest in them seems to be fading as well. I remember when I was young I had posters of all sorts of fancy cars (from M3s to F40s) and they’re what got me into cars in the first place.

Also, we can’t forget Need for Speed; the first one I played was Hot Pursuit and then High Stakes. I still remember you had to choose between an SLK or Z3 to start, and ending with F1s and CLK-GTRs. It was easy to mod and download additional cars, like the Viper GTS-R.

I didn’t get into cars because of my family’s Toyota Previa, I got into cars because of fast, exotic cars.

But now, I’m much more likely to be excited about a Previa than a 911 or even “common” exotics like 430s and Huracans.

The “slow car driven fast” mentality is much more what I like, and now I’m much more interested in hot hatches since they’re perfect for my driving habits and needs. Being even more realistic, I’d rather have a softer, “premium” car like a Lexus given that no one drives fast here and road quality isn’t great. I don’t think a young me could’ve understood what current me is thinking.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/30/2020 at 19:49

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I’ve starred this hoping for the day you share pics and more details about that 968.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 19:50

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I respect the cars for their engineering prowess and attention to detail. The owners, your results and mileage may vary.

gettingoldercarguy > wkiernan 01/30/2020 at 20:35

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There are plenty of opportunities to open up a car.  While there isn't an Autobahn, it isn't Switzerland.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 01/30/2020 at 20:35

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For some reason I don’t have a lot of pictures of it. It was a generic black with grey interior, but the previous owner specced it out as more of a performance car than a luxury car - Sport suspension with 17" wheels, LSD, sport seats. No tiptronic, no stereo upgrades. I wish it had the sunroof delete; I think I only pulled the roof off once. Except for the color (I had a black GTI in high school and hated how dirty it got) it was exactly as I would have specced it if I bought it new. You know what a 968 looks like, but here’s a nice picture of one found online:

It was the first car I had driven with a 6-speed manual, and I can’t count how many times I forgot that there was a 6th gear. But when I would drive the 525i I would frequently try to shift to 6th, but I never did find it. I don’t have that problem with the Mazda5 these days, usually upshifting from 3rd to 6th when merging on the freeway, but occasionally leaving it in 5th when I’m slicing through traffic.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 21:40

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Ooo, this hits close to my heart.

I love supercars in all their insane ridiculous glory...fast, crazy handling, insane styling.

BUT, I agree with you. I respect them immensely, but they don’t really do anything for me. Part of the reason I love and desperately want to import some objectively terrible cars (according to most people) like the FIAT 126p especially , but also the classic FIAT 500, the Trabant, classic Skodas, the Citroen 2CV, etc is because they are still an antithesis to what we drive everyday...but in the opposite direction to supercars.

Sure, like supercars, they are rare, quirky, have ridiculous styling (in some cases). No, they DEFINITELY don’t have the performance in ANY way, but...who cares? They are all affordable. They are attainable - things I can actively KNOW that one day I COULD afford (could even afford more than one!) Parts are actually available for them and the cost of replacement components isn’t your firstborn child and a million dollars just for one specialist carbotanium screw. Maintenance is simple enough to do yourself, which (to me) is a huge part of the ‘fun car’ experience - I want to be able to bond with it, have it become its own character; a member of the family. If you can’t do the maintenance, they are uncomplex enough that any normal mom and pop garage could likely do it. They also have some impressively clever engineering...but rather than complicated engineering, simple engineering that is genuinely amazing. Take the Trabant....yes, it was crap, but they achieved a surprisingly durable (average life span of 30 years???), effective-for-its-purpose, mass-produced car within an incredibly small design budget/ rigid constraints and created their own fabrication material out of nothing.

I would have just as much fun tooling around flat out in a 126 with my foot welded to the floor and barely breaking the speed limit. Any trip out would be an adventure...I guarantee you park any of the cars I listed above next to any modern supercar and I bet you more people would flock to them rather than a Lambo or Ferrari. They are also RELATABLE - people KNOW them because they may have owned one at one point, or known somebody who owned one (depending where you live). I also like the fact they have important roles in history. Look at the 2CV and it’s development as a car of the commoner...it’s story of hidden prototypes being stashed away from Nazi invasions. The 126p - the people’s car of Poland. The Trabant - the car that helped bring down the Berlin Wall and carried thousands of people to freedom from East Germany. Thing like THAT matter to me far more than ‘fastest production car’....an amazing title and engineering feat that is, certainly, but where does that matter? You’ll never get supercars anywhere near your limits outside of a track day...and if you have to take them to the track to achieve their intended prowess...what’s the point?

You may keep your supercars. I’ll be smiling ear to ear putt-putting the backroads flat out in an imported 126p...

notsomethingstructural > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 21:45

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I can relate to this but you’re trying to paint broad strokes with a narrow brush. If you actually stop and try to talk and connect with a large portion of these people you might be surprised at how many are just living out the dreams that every motorsports fan has, and feel incredibly lucky that they were able to achieve (they’ll talk about how hard they worked to get there like no one else has ever worked hard, but I’ll let that slide.)

To wit, a family friend buys enough Porsche’s that he deals directly with Porsche NA and not a dealer. Races GT3 or SCCA cars in a lower class. Figured he was one of “those guys” because he’s a cardiac oncologist who could afford what goes into that . I mean he came to a cabin in the woods on a gravel road in a Cayenne Turbo S. Well it turns out his grandfather was a mechanic and he started building 383 strokers when he was 15.

Point is most of us car guys are the same, the guys who can afford really really nice cars mainly have one thing at their disposal that separates them from oppo guys.

Having said that, yes,  supercars are overrated because civic type R’s transported back to 2003 would be a super car. If everything is a super car, nothing is a supercar.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > DucST3-Red-1Liter-Standing-By 01/30/2020 at 22:48

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Wierd? Nope. One of us? Yep. :P

CRider > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 23:44

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What a hot take. Supercars are about what a car can be, nothing else. If you want t o go fast, get one of these.  

A Boy and His Longtail > TheSixSpeed 01/30/2020 at 23:50

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No car that gets driven is a bad car. I don’t get those people that put their cars (especially super cars) in climate controlled garages and never drive them. At the end of the day, it’s a car, it’s supposed to be driven.

On a semi related note, what’s your opinion on old super cars? 

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > WRXforScience 01/31/2020 at 09:45

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Respect to that guy for taking it to the track.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > WRXforScience 01/31/2020 at 09:46

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I had a helluvalotta fun in my ‘05 Mazda 3s hatch at the track (my first time out - at Hallett) . Might have been the slowest one out there, but I may have been having the most fun!

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > RallyWrench 01/31/2020 at 09:49

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YES

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > notsomethingstructural 01/31/2020 at 09:51

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Passion is the difference.

WRXforScience > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 01/31/2020 at 09:51

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For sure! I have much more respect for the supercar owners who show up to the track and are ridiculously slow than those who only show up to cars and coffee.

AntiSpeed > TheSixSpeed 01/31/2020 at 12:10

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Race car > Super Car

I’ve driven several different exotic cars on the street and while it’s kind of fun, it’s also totally pointless, unless you’re willing to risk the safety of everyone around you.

If you have + $200k to spend on an exotic track toy, then it makes much more sense to me to get a real race car that, if you get bored of track days, you can actually enter in real competition. You also won’t be as anxious to hurt it, since it’s a race car! It’s supposed to get scratched up! It will also be safer.

You can even get a remarkable race car for well under $200k, and you can get a decently fun race car for less than the price of a Corvette. Running costs might be higher, you’ll need to go to racing school for a competition license, and unless you hire a prep shop, you’ll need support equipment. But you were going to spend $200k, remember? You’ve got money.