Power or Handling?

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xXKingJoshXx

xXKingJoshXx

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Which do you prefer in a car? Raw power or agile handling? A 662hp Shelby GT500 or a light and nimble Lotus Exige?

Personally, I prefer raw power. And I'll explain why. Here in rural Indiana, the curviest road you can find is a driveway. It's literally nothing but straight roads here. There are no racetracks either. The closest one is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which is on the other side of town. And there's also a racetrack on the other side of the state (which is evidentially pretty demanding, a local Porsche Carrera GT owner crashed his there. He luckily had his Lamborghini Diablo VT to play with the rest of the day). As much as I like cars like Ferraris, GT-Rs, and Porsches, they are pretty pointless here. And the roads here are pretty rough, so a muscle car's softer (usually) suspension helps a lot, too. Also, I like the sensation of accelerating off the line. I still remember clearly when I floored an E63 AMG on my 16th birthday! I also love the sound of a big V8. Sadly, my Town Car is not powerful, well-handling, or big-and-bad sounding. It does soak up those bumps, though!


So basically, this:

5cb88a6c8ae2ce2669af0fd34f99be27_zps60e08c07.jpg


Or this?

052ceb51aa9dacbfdea2cab93428b793_zpse9695c69.jpg
 
I'm just going to answer based on the situations I encounter the most. In which case, I'd have to go with power if I had to make an absolute decision as I just rarely ever encounter an area in my city where I can make the most of a car's handling. I have to drive at least an hour outside of Dallas to do so.

I can only assume a similar experience for most US members who live in/near a major city.
 
Handling. No matter where I live or drive I prefer nimble cars over powerful ones.
 
In a street car you can't really make use of power, but you can still have fun within the "limits" of the road with good handling. Having a low powered car that's awesome in the bends will be way more fun day-to-day than a car with a ton of power. 150-200hp in a car that doesn't weigh as much as the moon and has a solid chassis is my idea of fun.

Ultimately you'd want both though, but those cars cost an arm and a leg.
 
I'd choose handling. I drive my parents' manual Honda Fit often, and it handles very well. It has little power, but you can have fun in it at legal speeds.
 
Handling all the way. I'd take an Exige over almost any other car.
 
How do you define power? Because an 18-wheeler is powerful, but I wouldn't exactly relish driving that down the racetrack. (Okay, maybe I would, but that's another story).

How do you define handling? Handling is a very nebulous term. Does it mean raw grip? Quick lap times? What?

Personally... neither. I simply want a car to be fun. Last outing on track, I managed to do that in cars with vastly different levels of grip, composure, agility, speed and capability.

The one thing I feel a car should have to be great fun is great brakes. Doesn't matter if you can dance the disco and sprint a good race, if you can't stop on a dime, the fun ends right at the next corner.
 
niky
Personally... neither. I simply want a car to be fun.
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This.

I've driven powerful cars that were fun, and powerful cars that weren't.

I've driven great handling cars that were fun, and I've driven fun cars that didn't have great handling.

To a certain extent, it doesn't even matter how a car drives as to whether I find it fun - I've driven a fair few cars which are fun simply for them being unusual to drive or because I liked the idea of being seen in them.

niky
The one thing I feel a car should have to be great fun is great brakes. Doesn't matter if you can dance the disco and sprint a good race, if you can't stop on a dime, the fun ends right at the next corner.
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I'm 50/50 on this. I sort of prefer cars where you need to do a bit of work to get them to stop. Not necessarily bad brakes (though I like the atrocious brakes on my Beetle - adds excitement to every journey...) but ones you have to work with. On stopping power, my Miata was never that great, but I liked the hard brake pedal you really had to push to make it slow down!

Conversely, I hate cars that stand on their nose at a mere brush of the pedal. There's too little modulation.



Edit: To kill the thread slightly less, I'd just err on the side of handling, since the UK is riddled with speed limits which make power frustrating, but great twisty roads that suit cars that handle.
 
Buy an M car, get both (and comfort)

Honestly, I tend to prefer fun as well. Handling is kind of a relative term. People say the STi handles well because it corners well, but I like fun handling. I just want enough power to pass most cars comfortable (250hp seems enough) and then a rewarding driving experience.
 
As the others have said I'd rather have a car that is fun to drive, or more specifically involving to drive. As long as the steering is nicely weighted and has good feel, the brakes aren't too sensitive and most importantly you feel safe driving it then it doesn't matter.

A car doesn't have to have good handling or power to be exciting. For example my dad owns a Citroen 2CV, which by all stretches of the imagination is a terrible handling car: it has very little grip (125 width tyres) and massive amounts of body roll. It has poor brakes (even though it's got inboard discs) and it also only has a 602cc engine which produces barely 30bhp (when new). But I'd argue that despite all this it's a very fun car. Even sitting in the passenger seat it makes you feel giddy: the sheer noise of the engine/road/wind, the doors flapping at the top when you get above 40, the feeling that you're going to fall out of the car on sharp turns and the looks you get as you whizz past. :D

But in answer to the original question I'd take the GT500. 👍
 
My preferred car is a mixture of power and handling, 380HP low boost to 500+HP, 1250 - 1350 kg, fat rear tires - semi slick all around ( at least 275 ), nice weight balance, and of course turbo engine ( inline 6 2JZ ) I also prefer running low boost for town driving, but when I need that extra muscle, run higher boost - 500+HP on tap just for straight line speed :) Guess what, it's Amuse Mark IV Supra RZ :O

Amuse.jpg


nengun-1407-00-amuse-r1000.jpg
 
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niky
Personally... neither. I simply want a car to be fun.
Click to expand...

homeforsummer
I've driven powerful cars that were fun, and powerful cars that weren't.

I've driven great handling cars that were fun, and I've driven fun cars that didn't have great handling.

To a certain extent, it doesn't even matter how a car drives as to whether I find it fun - I've driven a fair few cars which are fun simply for them being unusual to drive or because I liked the idea of being seen in them.
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+2

I've driven an X5 M50d (380bhp tri-turbo 3.0 I6 diesel) which, while preposterously rapid in a straight line, wasn't what I would call fun. Yes, it was hilarious when you stepped on the loud pedal, but apart from that it was still just a big German SUV. At the other end of the spectrum, I've given Mazda 2s and Toyota Yarises a decent thrash and they were awesome fun - not much power but they are so nimble and light that they always bring a smile to your face.

The comedy corner: Hiluxes, Hiaces, new 70-series 4.5 1VD TDV8 Land Cruisers and Nissan Urvans (all with their appropriate five-speed manual boxes). None of these vehicles are renowned for either power or handling, but they're all so enjoyable to drive that I would very happily drive around in one 24-7-365 with no complaints - although in the case of the Hiace and Urvan my eardrums would very quickly pack a sad, but that's part of their charm imho...

So, power or handling? I would be inclined to lean towards handling. I do enjoy giving reasonably agile cars a bit of a workout :)



If it helps this discussion at all, my personal vehicle has neither power or handling being a 21-year-old diesel 4WD on 31x10.5 A/Ts :lol:
 
homeforsummer
I'm 50/50 on this. I sort of prefer cars where you need to do a bit of work to get them to stop. Not necessarily bad brakes (though I like the atrocious brakes on my Beetle - adds excitement to every journey...) but ones you have to work with. On stopping power, my Miata was never that great, but I liked the hard brake pedal you really had to push to make it slow down!
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I don't mind relatively weak brakes. As long as they stop consistently or at least fade consistently. I'd rather have a car that takes 50 meters to stop from 100 km/h that does it exactly in that distance every time than one that stops in 35 meters once, 40 meters the second time and then loses all hydraulic assist as the fluid boils over on the third lap.

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Fun is fun. At the racetrack last week, I gave taxi rides in a MINI Roadster, an Evoque, a Mirage and a Hyundai Eon. Two decent cars, one crap one and one great one. Obviously I had massive fun in the MINI, with my passenger yodelling and waving his cowboy hat about in the sweepers, but there's something oddly compelling about driving a Mirage down the racetrack with the suspension bottomed out, two tires in the air, and the other two tires skidding sideways across the tarmac. :dopey:
 
What about both power and handling, something like the upcoming McLaren P1 ;).
 
Both, that is why I drive a Jag with a V12 👍
 
McLaren
I'm just going to answer based on the situations I encounter the most. In which case, I'd have to go with power if I had to make an absolute decision as I just rarely ever encounter an area in my city where I can make the most of a car's handling. I have to drive at least an hour outside of Dallas to do so.

I can only assume a similar experience for most US members who live in/near a major city.
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I think our situation is unique to the central region of the US...aka the great plains. It's hard to appreciate a nimble sports car when typical roads look like this:

boringroads_zps7d3638c5.jpg


Makes it almost excruciating to have a sports car like mine with 50/50 weight distribution and never encounter any corners.

I've spent many hours combing through google maps looking for good roads within two hours of where I live, and it's quite difficult. This is the best I've found in all of north Texas.

okroad_zpsc5321235.jpg


There are at least some corners that aren't simply a 40mph, ninety degree turn, and, as you can see, there is actually quite a bit of elevation change. Too bad it's so short. It's the most fun road I've yet encountered in north Texas, although hill country down south is much better.
 
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Everything considered, a car that has a fair bit of power but provided it can put that power around a corner withour crashing. I'd the mix of both every time!
 
For me, it's a mixture of things. I have mixed feelings, mostly depending on many different types of setups so I couldn't give you a direct, single choice answer.

It also depends where I am, on road, off road, curvy road, straight road, hilly road etc. Offroad I could care less about handling but I want monster power. On the road, handling is an added bonus but for me the thrill comes when you step on it and get tossed in your seat unable to move your head. 350-450hp is plenty enough for me. So I guess I'd say power. Then again low power with low weight and great gearing can also create the same thrill so I'm really not sure....
 
It's all about the balance, in my opinion. You won't get much out of a car's power if it doesn't handle well. On the other hand, you need some power to push a car to its handling limits. So, yeah, balance.
 
I usually go for handling. I can make up for the power disadvantage in the corners but I cannot cope with a car that doesn't want to turn.
 
Well, I was going to say handling but from your perspective it looks like a comparison for every day, regular street driving. I was going to bring up the Gan-San NSX-R videos from Best Motoring!

But for me personally, I'm just not a track car guy. I enjoy a little power slide here and there, but straight is safe. To enjoy power is instant gratification because it yearns for release beneath your right foot. Good effortless power, mmmmm.
 
Out of the OP choices, Handling. In this group, cars that handle this good have more than enough power to suffice.
 
Why pick when you could have both?

Hyundai-Trajet-12640_1086775107670.jpg
 
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