things you don't generally hear about cars

[twaddler (imported)]

That Nissan GT-R looks wayy flashy for my taste. It does however look like it could transform into a wisecracking robot at will, which is a big plus.

[speedvogel (imported)]

I have actually seen on of these Bugattis. It was being driven by this dead guy (he was at lead 147 years old and did not realize he was dead) in Vero Beach. He was using all five lanes of highway 60 going 203 mph. Only these guys can afford it.

I'll stick with our 1992 Mazda Miata. When the engine dies, I will graft in an RX-8 rotary. That should light the tires.

Speed

[Dave (imported)]

I had a 1973 Mazda RX2 with the rotary engine and once it got rolling, it was a beast. It could hit 135 if I got it aligned special and the wheels balanced. I had it over 90. Remember, that little thing had 13 inch tires. My Chrysler 300 (I need the door size to get in and out) has monstrous tires that do 90 without thought. (btw - much above 135 the transmission fell apart. This wasn't a sports car, more like a small sedan)

BTW - at top speed, the Bugatti Veyron's tires last less than ten miles longer than a full tank of gas. I think that was deliberate. You can't blow the tires at high speed because you run out of gas. Like about a round trip of 40 miles or so...

But most highways today are designed for 65 mph and when you hit 90mph, the turns are tight and if you got too many cars around you, you crash.

Drive a Bugatti Veyron on the highway is suicidal with the junk and idiots currently driving the highways. I once tried to get on route 70 west near Washington PA and counted a line of twenty-five 18-wheelers gone past before I had enough room to hit speed and merge into the traffic. That's a lot of trucks.

[Losethem (imported)]

Why waste hundreds of thousands on those cars? I rode a 2002 Honda CBR 954RR bullet bike. I was driving it on a 1 1/2 mile straight on a 55 MPH 2-lane road and decided to pass the 2 cars in front of me. When I pulled back into the appropriate lane I thought I was doing 75 MPH. I looked down at the speedometer and I was going 130 MPH.

I looked it up later, the top speed on that bike is 186 MPH (or 300 KmH).

Needless to say I took the bike home and parked it. That thing is dangerous.

[butterflyjack (imported)]

Hehe...Those Hondas sure do go...By the way...I really see no advantage, other than size and weight per HP, of rotary engines..They inherently use oil, have very low torque, and don't last as long as conventional piston engines...They also are as smooth as sewing machine motors...but you have to rev the begeezuz out of them to get anywhere...I'd install a modern version of the MX motor in that old 92 when time comes...Bout 160-170 HP...way more than needed to have fun in that little putt putt...dragonfly

[punkypink (imported)]

That Nissan GT-R looks wayy flashy for my taste. It does however look like it could transform into a wisecracking robot at will, which is a big plus.

Too flashy? Hmm.... I'd have thought too flashy was something like a Viper SRT 10 ACR.

The GT-R's main defining area is its technological prowess and insane ability to batter the laws of physics into submission.

If the GT-R is too flash

y then give me a R34 GT-R any day. Or a R33 or

R32. =)

Why waste hundreds of thousands on those cars?

Because... to be fair, most bikes seem to be about the raw thrill of sheer speed that no weight and a modest amount of power is able to generate, the effects of which are then further enhanced by the fact that you're not wrapped up in a cocoon of metal.

However, with cars the focus can often be on the sublime, not to mention there are lots of tricks and stuff you can only pull on 4 wheels rather than 2.

Besides, you've not lived life till you've been in a cathedral going 200mph.

[punkypink (imported)]

Hehe...Those Hondas sure do go...By the way...I really see no advantage, other than size and weight per HP, of rotary engines..They inherently use oil, have very low torque, and don't last as long as conventional piston engines...They also are as smooth as sewing machine motors...but you have to rev the begeezuz out of them to get anywhere...I'd install a modern version of the MX motor in that old 92 when time comes...Bout 160-170 HP...way more than needed to have fun in that little putt putt...dragonfly

They've also been killed off because it's simply impossible to meet the Euro emission regs with them.

So too has honda's high revving VTEC engines, at least the current generation.

Not a big fan of either honda's vtec or mazda's wankel engines to be honest. They're both rather boy-racer-y.

[butterflyjack (imported)]

I agree with your assessment of Honda's Vee Tech engines...Honda came from motorcycle engines...Little motors that revved really high to extract the horsepower to compete...and incidentally get good MPG...But, these engines are inherently lacking in torque...You can't have it both ways...

Seems like we're in the era of the turbo charged four right now...Good power, especially torque, low down in the rev range and very good MPG...

So..maybe you can have it both ways...with a turbo...dragonfly

[speedvogel (imported)]

I have actually seen on of these Bugattis. It was being driven by this dead guy (he was at lead 147 years old and did not realize he was dead) in Vero Beach. He was using all five lanes of highway 60 going 203 mph. Only these guys can afford it.

I'll stick with our 1992 Mazda Miata. When the engine dies, I will graft in an RX-8 rotary. That should light the tires.

Speed

I should not try to type when I have not had sufficient coffee. The guy was doing 20 mph, not 203. He was, however, at least 147 years old and using all five lanes.

[butterflyjack (imported)]

Hehehe speedvogel, I thought there was something fishy there...dragonfly