Daily sports car?

[ChrisCBR]

I used to live my life in theoretical events and then i grew up.

If you're going to drive like a tard and go around hitting people then perhaps you should report it to insurance.

As for the rest;

Years ago I had a friend with a supercharged and heavily modded s2k. He wrapped it around a lamp pole railing in 3rd gear in the rain. Towed it home and pulled everything out and put it back to stock, then reported it to insurance. He made a killing.

Do i condone this? No.

Just making a point that mods (even an engine swap) can be done after the fact.

I know someone who did the same but he was hit by a moron.

Mods can be undone but not when you seriously injure someone. Your buddy is lucky no other vehicle or person was involved because his car wouldnt have moved when cops and accident reconstructors showed up.

As far as the theoretical events comment... Things might be different if one has a wife and children that rely on them.
Id hate to have to explain to children that daddy got their house and all their assets taken away

 

[Evoex]

I know someone who did the same but he was hit by a moron.

Mods can be undone but not when you seriously injure someone. Your buddy is lucky no other vehicle or person was involved because his car wouldnt have moved when cops and accident reconstructors showed up.

As far as the theoretical events comment... Things might be different if one has a wife and children that rely on them.
Id hate to have to explain to children that daddy got their house and all their assets taken away

Agreed.

If you`re going to take on the responsibilities like that (i'm a DINK), then pay to play i guess.

 

[nakkers]

For $40K or less, plenty of sport cars out there that don’t require an engine swap etc.


Are they good in the winter? I guess it’s a who care question but, I wouldn’t subject myself to driving a decent $40k car in the winter. I know a few folks that put winters on their S class sedans but, they also have an Escalade if the need to get to the office and the roads are a mess.

You get some warm weather cycles and the pot holes come out and rims get bent.

So no Euro and must be RWD and under $40k.

I think Mustang is the way to go. Should be able to find a used former rental in that ball park. Plenty of factory mods supported by the dealer for warrenty work if it’s still within the age/mileage etc.





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[Relax]

worth every dollar, and likely will be able to sell it in a few years when he tires of it for near sticker. Try that with a 4 year old bmw.

I will grant you that. I bought my 2000 S2000 when it was 2 years old and still paid $34k for it. Was forced to sell it a year later and managed to get $35k.

 

[ChrisCBR]

Agreed.

If you`re going to take on the responsibilities like that (i'm a DINK), then pay to play i guess.

The issue is sometimes things happen that are out of our own control.
Few weeks back that child ran out onto the road and was hit by that Harley rider with no insurance or license.
Rider is screwed now. Not even technically his fault, just wrong place at wrong time.

 

[Clutt-225]

Wow this thread is all over the map.
So I might as well join in. Here’s my opinion after owning many sports cars.
A really good sports car, makes a not so great daily
If you drive it daily it loses something. The fun starts to disappear and the down sides once overlooked become more apparent.
I had a Mustang convertible and the easiest way to get the kids in and out was top down and over the sides. Fun on the weekend but would get old fast as a daily.
Spent a lot of km in a C6 corvette and always thought I could drive this daily. But then you think about dropping down into and climbing back out multiple times a day.
I love lifted trucks but my truck is bone stock because I’m in and out of the back multiple times a day.
Now new Mustang/ Camaro/ subie sti/ 370Z would all make livable options but will have there downsides from day to day.

As for LS Miata and insurance you can do it and it won’t be that bad.
I know this because I have a car that everyone says can’t be insured.
Titled as 1977 home built
450+hp 2100lbs
Looks like a 66 Shelby Cobra and appraised for $69,000 and insured for full replacement agreed value with a very reasonable rate
Not a daily driver more like rare occasion driver.
Because cars like Cobras and vipers and LS Miata s are horrible to daily drive.

 

[Relax]

Doesn't matter what the badge says. It's just flat out ugly.

Yup. It’s up there with the Z3M. If I wanted to drive a clown shoe, I’d play Monopoly.

 

[Evoex]

The issue is sometimes things happen that are out of our own control.
Few weeks back that child ran out onto the road and was hit by that Harley rider with no insurance or license.
Rider is screwed now. Not even technically his fault, just wrong place at wrong time.

Fair.

But let's be honest, he's screwed because of his choices before AND after hitting the child, not because of the accident itself.

 

[ChrisCBR]

As for LS Miata and insurance you can do it and it won’t be that bad.

Which companies in Ontario will insure a daily driven LS swapped Miata?
Its easy to get insurance through Hagerty as a collector/modified vehicle but they wont touch it as a daily driver.

 

[CriticalCore]

Well, OP is asking about DAILY DRIVEN sports cars. To me daily driven means driven daily regardless of weather. And sports car is very subjective. I've had debates with others over what constitutes a sport car, and nobody has been able to clearly define it.

Just because you have a sports car, doesn't mean you have to drive it like you rented it all the time. Presumably you like the interior as much as the exterior and the performance, so throw some snow tires on and enjoy that baby year round! At least that's how I look at it.

Thanks (sincerely) for the offer, but I'm waiting for the C8, or possibly whichever version they offer in wide body. Too bad you didn't retire form GM! I heard they might be discontinuing the GS - that would be enough for me, don't need the extra power of the Z06. But who knows, that could change after I get it!

This is correct, I’d be replacin ye old faithful Corolla and driving year round, Rwd stick shift with no turbo is what I’m lookin for, almost as fun/quick as the bike fz7.

 

[Clutt-225]

Probably true as a daily. But it wouldn’t take many days and most people would be looking for any other vehicle to daily.
Everything that makes sports cars great make them downright unbearable as a daily.
I mean high hp rough angry sports cars not sporty cars.
Sporty cars can be an ok daily, true sports cars are crap daily cars.

Like a blue plate dirt bike is not a touring bike. Ya a few guys will but most won’t

 

[Relax]

So I’m curious how do you define a sports car vs sporty car? Seriously, I can’t put my finger on it, I just know when I see it but can’t explain it.

 

[Gary]

Sport car....2 seats, high hp, good to excellent handling.
With paint and graphics, a corrola can "look" sporty.
jmho.

Where do you draw the line between sport & exotic?

 

[nakkers]

And two doors.......sure there are high HP 4 doors but that is a sedan. Lol. Don’t care if they want to call it a sports coupe.


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[GreenPlane]

This is correct, I’d be replacin ye old faithful Corolla and driving year round, Rwd stick shift with no turbo is what I’m lookin for, almost as fun/quick as the bike fz7.

So, do you have kids? Do you need to use back seats? I'm happy with my mustang because I also have a "family" car which I'm using when I need to drive somewhere with wife and baby.. Mustangs do have anchors and everything needed to install a child seat but it is more like "no other choice" case. I would assume that it is the same case with camaros and 370z don't have back seats at all..

 

[Brian P]

Mustang, Camaro, Challenger are not sports cars. They're sporty / muscle cars.

The question of "actually fast" versus "not necessarily that fast, but with good driver engagement" versus "just has to look sporty" hasn't been addressed.

Miata, S2000, 86/BRZ are modern day equivalents of the old British sports cars - which, generally, were not even remotely "fast" but they were meant to be entertaining backroads cars. Their limits could be explored at reasonable speeds. You had to work the gearbox.

The Corvette (and the hotter versions of Camaro and Mustang, even though they are "sporty/muscle" not "sport") are actually fast - but good luck with making use of that on today's roads with today's traffic and today's traffic enforcement.

I have a Fiat 500 cabrio, manual, non-turbo (non-Abarth), with stickier tires than stock. It is absolutely NOT a fast car, nor is it refined to the Nth degree to the point that there's no character left. But ... Motorway on-ramp approaches ... Pick the turn-in point ... Heel/toe downshift to 3rd at 70 or 80 km/h and flick it in ... leave the SUV in the rear view mirror behind around the bend! ... Pick the corner exit point and mat the pedal as it passes because you're going to need all the acceleration you can get ... snick it into 4th ... merge into traffic and flick it into 5th without ever going faster than the flow of traffic. It's invisible to cops. It rides a little choppy, and the back seats are useless, but ... the steering is decent by modern standards, the gearchange is nice, the pedals are in the right places, the seats are well bolstered, and it's short and narrow and relatively light.

And on a similar note ... some time ago, I was riding back from Burrito Boyz when I came up on a Toyota Yaris from behind, approaching the couple of curves on Mississauga Road. Hmmm, those tires look rather wide. The car looks lower than they usually sit, too. The driver railed it around the corners quite nicely.

 

[Relax]

Sport car....2 seats, high hp, good to excellent handling.
With paint and graphics, a corrola can "look" sporty.
jmho.

Where do you draw the line between sport & exotic?

You lost me on the 2 seats limitation. What if a 4 seater with excellent handling and high horsepower can lap faster than a 2 seater? And is the McLaren F1 not a sports car because it has 3 seats? For me a sports car must have excellent handling. Good just isn’t good enough.

 

[crankcall]

I'd say sport is two seat, Fiat 124, Miata et all , and exotic is limited production, TVR , Lotus , the cars you dont see every day. Mustang is a sports car, and you can order one any day. McLaren would be exotic. Thats my line

 

[blackcamaro]

Sport car....2 seats, high hp, good to excellent handling.
With paint and graphics, a corrola can "look" sporty.
jmho.

Where do you draw the line between sport & exotic?

Agree with this for the most part. A few cars with a backseat get a pass though and to me are considered sports cars. Porsche 911’s, BMW M2/M4, Shelby GT350 etc.

Exotic? Well over $200,000, styling that’s kind of out there, some kind of new tech you don’t see in “normal” sports cars.

 

[FullMotoJacket]

And with wind blockers and new cabin designs, it can even be freezing outside and you can still cruise comfortably with the top down and heater on.

My old man dailied a Sunbeam Alpine in the 60s. Ran a tonneau from early April to late November. Put the roof on in the winter. Heat? Kinda sorta. He was a hard man.