Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Originally Posted by d00df00d
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
you can buy a Hemi Challenge with bright orange paint... Called Go Mango. What's boring about that?
Basically everything else about it.
Really.
So a 485 HP muscle car with a manual transmission, SHAKER HOOD, fat tires, and big Brembos is "boring?" It's available in colors like Lime Crime, Plum Crazy, and Go Mango...
What excites you?
My guess is something that's about 1,500 lbs lighter.
Pretty much.
I want handling. Not just grip.
Handling. Feel, feedback, response, agility, balance, accessible and transparent limits.
I want the sensation of speed. I'm honest enough with myself to admit that the only reason I'd want to go fast is to
feel like I'm going fast. If the car does the opposite, no thanks.
I want razor-sharp throttle response. I want an interior that doesn't feel like it's part of a rental fleet, like it's trying to wow me with gadgets, or like it's trying to shout at me about how much money I've spent. I want at least some semblance of authentic steering feel and feedback. I don't see driving as something to be withstood, distracted from, or insulated from; I see it as something to be actively involved in and enjoyed, and I want my car to elicit and reward that involvement.
The Challenger is almost the exact polar opposite of all of that -- except with a bunch of horsepower and "performance" bits tacked onto it, as though that changes what it is underneath. Lipstick on a pig. Again, no thanks.
Chasing speed is futile anyway. No matter what you buy today, it'll be slow in 2-3 years. But a fun car is always fun.
As for aesthetics... Is it nice to have a good looking car? Absolutely. Is it disheartening to have an ugly one? Sure. But the idea that a neat-looking exterior makes a car "nice" or "fun" is almost unintelligible to me. I basically have no intuitive understanding of cars as status symbols or fashion items. On some level I actually find the idea kind of offensive. Not saying that's right or wrong; it's just me. So no, things like SHAKER HOODs and crazy colors don't mean jack to me. The best-looking boring car on the road is still boring.
A manual transmission is a game changer. But that's not all that relevant here; one of the premises of this thread is automatics replacing manuals, and almost nobody buys a Challenger with a manual anyway.
What's an exciting car? An MX-5. A BRZ. A Cayman or Boxster. A 911. A Civic Si or Type-R. An F430. An RSX Type-S. An E28 5-Series. Even a barebones 128i is better than most cars on the road.
What's not? Most family sedans, most luxury vehicles, all crossovers, and almost all rocket sleds.