WCD Exoctics Driving Event - NY
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My personal favorite is once again the Ferrari F430 (base $185,000). When I first sat in it this time I thought the seat seemed too hard and once I started driving I thought the ride was too hard but after 2 minutes on the road everything felt perfect and I was as one with the car and the road. This car is absolutely brilliant. It is even great fun at 40 miles an hour when other cars had to be driven much fast to give a thrill. No car I've ever driven is in the same league. Everything feels and works perfectly; V8 engine (479 hp), transmission, brakes, interior, and engine / exhaust / sound quality. This car always wants to play. Dislikes: Too rare and expensive.The NY Times has this to say about the F430: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/01/automobiles/autoreviews/01AUTO.html |
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Second goes to the Lamborghini Gallardo (pronounce guy-yardo)Spyder (Italians call convertibles Spyders) (base $190,000). There is nothing like driving a convertible on a nice day. V10 engine (512 hp) and transmission now seem much improved and excellent. Brakes and interior not up to the Ferrari standard. Engine / exhaust sound quality is excellent and intoxicating. Dislikes: complicated computer screen on dash doesn't belong in a sports car and traction control makes annoying beeping noises every time it engages (which happened at least once per minute). |
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The Corvette Z06 (base $80,000) placed third despite the fact that it cost tens of thousands less than the other cars below. This 2008 model is a nice improvement over last year's. The car seems much more refined and buttery smooth - almost too smooth compared to the edgy Ferrari and Lamborghini. V8 engine (505 hp), transmission (6speed manual) and brakes all performed perfectly. Acceleration is faster than the 2 cars above. Interior is simple but comfortable and practical. This year Chevrolet added carbon fiber to the center console which is sophisticated and sporty. Dislikes: The car seemed quieter and tamer this year. It was harder to get the engine to roar than the 2 cars above which, in my opinion, diminishes the experience. If I owned this car I'd have to add an aftermarket exhaust. |
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All the way down at fourth is the (base: $313,600) Lamborghini Murcielago. This car is more a showpiece than something you'd actually want to drive however it does have a totally spectacular 633 horsepower 12 cylinder engine which makes the car feel like it's blasting off for the moon when you step on the gas. Really the best place to be is not in this car but following behind it in the Gallardo Spyder or another convertible where you can best hear the sounds emanating from this awesome engine. Note: I drove 3 convertibles at this event and each time I made sure I was right behind the Murcielago. It sounded like I was following a prototype race car at LeMans. This car looks very cool especially with the trademark scissor doors open. Dislikes: Too big and bulky feeling to inspire confidence in corners. Hard to gauge where perimeter of car is. |
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The Mercedes SL65 AMG (base $180,000) has basically the same (604 horsepower 700 ft. lbs. of torque) 12 cylinder engine as the Mercedes-McLaren SLR but in a more user friendly package (the engine difference is that the SLR is supercharged and has 617 hp while the SL65 is a "Biturbo" or twin turbo setup). This car is a modified luxury car that could easily be used as a daily driver. The interior is very comfortable and well laid out. Unless the accelerator is pressed hard the car feels quite docile. The brakes are perfect as they need to be on such a powerful car. As one might expect the sound (roar) from an engine with this much power is mighty impressive especially with the turbos at full spin above 4000 rpm. Dislikes: Like all AMG cars this has an automatic transmission with slow reacting shift buttons on the steering wheel. The painfully long shift delays caused me to repeatedly hit the 6000 rpm rev limiter which resulted in the the car flashing wa rning lights and playing a 30 second long warning song that sounded like R2D2 was about to explode. More "sporty car" than "sports car". |
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The Bentley Continental GTC (base $189,000) is a beautiful convertible and was picked by several non-drivers as their favorite. One of the MPs at West Point offer to change clothes with me so he could test drive it and I could guard the base. The obvious choice for a brisk but dignified jaunt to the golf course. I'm not exactly sure why this car is included with this group other than it is expensive and goes really, really fast when the gas pedal is depressed (thanks to a 552 hp twin turbo W12 made from 2 VW 6 cylinder engines welded together). Ultra luxurious interior, strong engine and brakes. Excellent potential as parade car. Dislikes: Even in manual mode the transmission upshifts well before redline. Bulky and heavy (5,500 lbs), not a sports car. |
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In the pictures you will see a black Chrysler 300C SRT8 which is the chase car. This car follows the pack to help anyone who gets lost or gets pulled over by the Police. This is the personal car of Mr. Jean Paul Libert who runs the program and he loves it. He says everyone is always surprised when they are driving these supercars hard and they look in their rear view mirror and see this big black sedan (all stock with only 425 hp) keeping up with them. Jean Paul is a former endurance racer having driven several time in the 24 Hours of LeMans and other endurance races so he knows how to drive. His advice when driving is "preserve the car", that's the key to wining endurance races. Apparently he follows his own advice as he has 40,000 miles on the rear tires of the SRT8 |
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Going to this event I drove the Mini (4 cylinder) and the cars above here 8 and 10 and 12 cylinder and when I got home I drove the 300M which is a 6 cylinder so I got to drive almost all even numbered cylinder configurations in one day (4-6-8-10-12). |
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