In an ideal world, I'd go for power - lots of it. But, seeing as most of my driving takes place on public roads, I'd opt for something slower and more tossable on the basis that a slower car driven at 85-90% of its limit would be more fun than having a massively powerful car that can only have a 1/5 of its potential unlocked at any given time.
Unless you were to start breaking the rules. Then you'd want enough power to bury the police and anyone else who might attempt to follow you. Like, ram-jet levels of power. 💡
As others already pointed out, that should be FUN handling. I don't give a rat's ass about laptimes if the car isn't fun to drive. I'm sure a Cobalt SS turbo would smoke a BRZ around a track, but the Subaru's the only one I'd want to drive. My Legacy wagon's no sportscar, but its road manners are tidy, predictable, and flexible, and with the Pirelli all-seasons I bought it's got more than enough grip for my needs, year-round. 👍
I'm lucky as hell because my fiancée and I just bought a house in southwestern Wisconsin and this is the kind of thing that surrounds us in all directions. That's my village in red:
).
