2005 Toyota Celica or 2006 Acura RSX?

[LeonOfTheDead]

There are some that can get sideways far easier than some rear wheel drive cars.

ask first gen Focus

[Ferrer]

ask first gen Focus

Or the Mini. Which is far twitchier than the 1er.

[LeonOfTheDead]

Or the Mini. Which is far twitchier than the 1er.

I think the main issue, from this point of view, for the 1er is to be designed to be sedate or at least drivable with almost 300 bhp (the hatch), that obviously kills the behavior with half or less the power.

[Ferrer]

I think the main issue, from this point of view, for the 1er is to be designed to be sedate or at least drivable with almost 300 bhp (the hatch), that obviously kills the behavior with half or less the power.

True. But even so, sometimes the Mini is just too easy to oversteer.

[LeonOfTheDead]

True. But even so, sometimes the Mini is just too easy to oversteer.

well, say thanks to that complicated and expensive rear suspension.
and consider there are people paying to do this :

[Ferrer]

well, say thanks to that complicated and expensive rear suspension.
and consider there are people paying to do this :

I'm happy it can do it.

But on the motorway I'd prefer more relaxed behaviour.

[cmcpokey]

True. But even so, sometimes the Mini is just too easy to oversteer.

how many times did you almost lose it into a ditch? about 3 for me, until i learned how to control it.

[Ferrer]

how many times did you almost lose it into a ditch? about 3 for me, until i learned how to control it.

Only once fortunately.

Far more scary is when the back tries overtaking you at 180km/h in the motorway, but by then I knew what to do. The Mini isn't exactly suited to high speed motorway driving.

[cmcpokey]

Only once fortunately.

Far more scary is when the back tries overtaking you at 180km/h in the motorway, but by then I knew what to do. The Mini isn't exactly suited to high speed motorway driving.

not in the least... on my way home from work when i lived in Virginia, there was a ramp connecting 2 highways that i used to take. and if you hit the expansion joint above about 65 the back end would skip over about 6 inches. if you hit it at 90 the whole car would move over a foot or two.

the G is everything that the mini wasnt. it is neither maneuverable, or agile, and has horrible visability. it is not suited to anything other than motorway driving, but at that it excells. it makes so much sense when cruising through traffic at triple digit speeds.

[NSXType-R]

not in the least... on my way home from work when i lived in Virginia, there was a ramp connecting 2 highways that i used to take. and if you hit the expansion joint above about 65 the back end would skip over about 6 inches. if you hit it at 90 the whole car would move over a foot or two.

the G is everything that the mini wasnt. it is neither maneuverable, or agile, and has horrible visability. it is not suited to anything other than motorway driving, but at that it excells. it makes so much sense when cruising through traffic at triple digit speeds.

That's some scary stuff.

[cmcpokey]

That's some scary stuff.

nah... well, the first time maybe.

[NSXType-R]

nah... well, the first time maybe.

I remember stopping the Accord from about 50 to 0 at a stoplight (long stretch of local road where everyone hits that speed- I was not speeding). The pavement was all wavy and all and since there was no electronic nannies, the rear got a little wiggly, and kinda scared me a little there. I stayed calm, and steadied the car, but it did startle me for a second. Steered in the direction I wanted to go and all. I can only imagine that happening to me on the highway with traffic and all.

[f6fhellcat13]

I remember stopping the Accord from about 50 to 0 at a stoplight (long stretch of local road where everyone hits that speed- I was not speeding). The pavement was all wavy and all and since there was no electronic nannies, the rear got a little wiggly, and kinda scared me a little there. I stayed calm, and steadied the car, but it did startle me for a second. Steered in the direction I wanted to go and all. I can only imagine that happening to me on the highway with traffic and all.

Good man. ABS is for the weak and infirm.
My car's brakes are heavily front-biased (let's hear it for rear drums!) so when the brakes are locked up the car just continues on forwards. The only time I've ever (unintentionally) locked up was right after I had started driving. I was under the impression that the car had ABS and my dad didn't see the need to tell me otherwise. So I was going along tuning the radio and when I look up the car in front of me has slowed down to a crawl. So, I, confident that the computers will save me, slam on the anchors and feel and hear the tires locking up. The freeway was I gently turning at that point so I also started drifting into the lane next to me. Fortunately I didn't try to over correct and released enough brake to get traction, steer back into the center of my lane, and pump.
Anyway, my car is the most understeery thing ever. No grip at all (very worn fronts) and a handbrake too weak to lock the wheels up in a 1/2 inch of standing water. It also has pretty soft suspension so I don't get many "wtf ____steer" moments.

[cmcpokey]

I remember stopping the Accord from about 50 to 0 at a stoplight (long stretch of local road where everyone hits that speed- I was not speeding). The pavement was all wavy and all and since there was no electronic nannies, the rear got a little wiggly, and kinda scared me a little there. I stayed calm, and steadied the car, but it did startle me for a second. Steered in the direction I wanted to go and all. I can only imagine that happening to me on the highway with traffic and all.

the most nervous i have been recently was in the G heading on Hwy 17 from Santa Cruz to San Jose, a lovely little stretch through the mountains, but still 4-6 lanes. I was going at an extra-legal speed around a relatively sharp bend and hit a bump mid corner. I was in the right lane and there wasn't really a shoulder, just straight to wall. The whole car jumped sideways and came within 6 inches or so of said wall, with me going between 75 and 85.

got my heart racing a bit, but kept on hauling ass on a fantastic road.

[Ferrer]

the G is everything that the mini wasnt. it is neither maneuverable, or agile, and has horrible visability. it is not suited to anything other than motorway driving, but at that it excells. it makes so much sense when cruising through traffic at triple digit speeds.

Indeed. I find myself going much faster on the motorway with the BMW, which is not only much more stable, but quieter, more comfortable and much, much more frugal.In the BMW I can easily go 170-180km/h (105-112mph) with no fuss at all, while in the Mini I settle for 140-150km/h usually (87-93mph).

However on the twisties the situation is easily reversed, the Mini being much more agile and nimble. It's a bit of a riot in the right roads and with lift-off oversteer readily available alot of fun, if you know what you're doing.