OzOne wrote in message ...
On Wed, 16 May 2007 13:51:45 GMT, "Maxprop"
scribbled thusly:



Haven't driven the new MX5, but we've owned a couple of Miatas in the
past.
Great, fun little cars with handling that could stand a few more ponies up
front. I'm thinking the new car might be about right at--what--170bhp?

118kW plenty for a bigger car that actually weighs less than the older
models thanks to ally suspension and careful weight trimming.

Indeed. The car is slightly longer, but lighter. Nice Mazda engineering.

Max

"Scotty" wrote in message
. ..

"Maxprop" wrote in message
link.net..
.
Max
When's your bday? Is it soon? Haggie and I celebrate
ours together since
she's a day older than me...(snicker...old hag...)

September, but I'm not going to relent before then.
Scotty is un-invited.


F U

Well, that does it. You're uninvited next year, too.

Max

"Ringmaster" wrote in message
oups.com...
Gee, I should try to stop by here more often in the summer so I can
keep up with the Boob's purchases. OK another kiddie car rice
rocket. Not impressed.

A colleague in LA tells me periodically about the "Rice Boys." It may be
somewhat racist in nature, but it has become a fairly ubiquitous term out
there. Lots of the Orientals own Japanese and Korean cars with big, ugly
wings, silly-looking ground-effects bodywork, monstrous decals, etc.
Civics, Kia Rios, Nissan Sentras, etc. all with standard horse power and
huge tailpipes/mufflers that emit a raucous, blatty sound. They consider
the streets their private race track, blasting around LA, ignoring stop
signs and red lights, and picking fairly good lines through the curves,
often running other folks onto the sidewalks to avoid them. The premier car
of the Rice Boys is the Subaru WRX Sti, but not many of them have them--too
expensive, apparently. I waiting for the movie.

Max

"Capt. Rob" wrote in message
oups.com...
I think even a BMW M3 (07) or an M5 (06) will dust your Evo or WRX.




None of these cars are so different in speed that they'll dust each
other and I'll always prefer the AWD launch over rear wheel in spite
of the small weight penalty. In fact they are so close in speed that
small mods to any will give a leg up.

Quite different, actually. The WRX Sti has 300+ hp, while the M5 has over
500 bhp and the new, soon-to-be-released M3 has a 440 bhp V-8, and the car
weighs less than the previous M3. Doubtful an Sti would stay with either,
even on a closed course.

Max

Quite different, actually. The WRX Sti has 300+ hp, while the M5 has over
500 bhp and the new, soon-to-be-released M3 has a 440 bhp V-8, and the car
weighs less than the previous M3. Doubtful an Sti would stay with either,
even on a closed course.



0-60 and 1/4 mile specs...


2006 BMW M5 4.1 12.4 (R&T Feb '06)

2006 Subaru WRX STI 4.5 13.0 MT Dec '05)

Not exactly a giant leap for the M5 and the AWD launch of the STI is
awesome.
And just for a comparison to my AWD Speed6 family sedan....which is a
more comfortable car than either the M5 or STI....

2006 Mazda MAZDASPEED 6, 5.4 13.9 (C&D Feb '06)




RB
35s5
NY

I have several mtn. bikes, my favorite is my 400 Husky .



Wow. Scotty doesn't even have a good mountain bike.



RB
35s5
NY

First let me state categorically that I don't like Corvettes. Their
FRP
bodies are a joke, and they rattle miserably after only a few road
miles.
That said, it's obvious you haven't driven one recently. They are
anything
but "straight-line only metal." They handle remarkably well, and it
takes
very little suspension and frame work to prodify one for competitive
SCCA
racing. Once set up properly they are a bitch to beat. Only the
Dodge
Viper can compete in that price range. And of course with over 500
bhp, the
Corvette is anything but slow or sluggish. In a year or two the
Corvette ZO6
will have over 600 bhp.


The last Vette I drove was a 2004 and it still needed very smooth road
to do it's thing. It takes more than speed and handling on a track to
make a real world supercar. That's why most of my friends call an NSX
a supercar, but not a Vette. That's because the NSX does things so
well that it inspires confidence behind the wheel, yet doesn't betray
the driver at critical moments. I hate Vettes. They always rattle up a
storm after 20K.


Since the early 90s, the Vettes have been superb handling vehicles. Are you
referring to the older models?

Nope. I find the newer vette's nervous on less than perfect pavement,
much the way I find a WRX to be at times. By comparison it was always
easy to drive a 300ZX turbo to 130 HP and let it hang there.



The Mazdaspeed 6 is indeed a very competent automobile, both on the
track
and on pavement, but I believe you've greatly overstated its
abilties. It
is nowhere in the handling league with Vipers, Corvettes, and such.

That really depends on the situation. On a track you're right.


forthcoming Exige will outhandle everything we've mentioned so
far. The
demo Elise I drove--not a sport version, incidentally--simply blew me
away.
I had to own one.

Well, I'm jealous! I thought of buying one, but chickened out for now.
Please post a few pics and driving impressions when you get it.



It's governed to do quite a bit less than that. Remove the
governor and you
can kiss your warranty goodbye.


150 MPH is the top speed via the governor. That's probably enough.



The Elise (roadster) and Exige (coupe) are not supercars. Handling
may be
on par with supercars, but they lack the raw horsepower to be
supercars.

This is were we part ways. All reviews and my single test drive of an
Elise point these cars handling BETTER than the Supercars mentioned.
So they deserve the same respect for being top dogs in that arena. For
sheer speed their are other cars of course. A supercar is a class
leading sports car in performance and the Elise and Exige more than
make the mark. On top of that they are PLENTY fast. The 2005 Elise
with comp. package did the 1/4 in 13.2. That's amazing. Then throw in
it's light weight and handling....SUPERCAR.


AWD is nice, especially in crap weather. It even does well on the
track, if
engineered properly. My BMW 330 Ci (coupe, not convertible)
obviously
doesn't have it, but I think it's a fair trade to have RWD in a BMW
as
opposed to AWD. I have an additional set of rims with winter
ultra-performance tires in addition to the M rims with ultra-
performance
tires for summer use. Both get me around just fine, and I prefer the
RWD
for twisty roads.


We have some BMW's in our area, but all are AWD versions. It's the
only type of BMW I'd look at. As I said, AWD is my thing because it
makes the car fun even when the weather turns bad.

Supercars: Porsche GT3 or McLaren, Ferraris, Aston Martin Vantage,
Saleen
S7, Ford GT, Dodge Viper, Corvette ZO6, stuff like that.

I prefer your new car to most of those. I won't even put the Saleen,
Ford or Vette on the same page as the Exige. The Exige is just amazing
and 0-60 in four seconds is certainly supercar territory. The GT3
can't do it any faster and won't handle as well, so all that's left is
the top end.
You made the right choice. You have a supercar! (I won't tell your
wife).

RB
35s5
NY

Wanna race?



"Capt. Rob" wrote in message
oups.com..
..
I have several mtn. bikes, my favorite is my 400 Husky .




Wow. Scotty doesn't even have a good mountain bike.



RB
35s5
NY

"Capt. Rob" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have several mtn. bikes, my favorite is my 400 Husky .



Wow. Scotty doesn't even have a good mountain bike.

I believe he was referring to a 400cc Husquvarna motorcycle.

Max

"Capt. Rob" wrote in message
oups.com...

Quite different, actually. The WRX Sti has 300+ hp, while the M5 has
over
500 bhp and the new, soon-to-be-released M3 has a 440 bhp V-8, and the
car
weighs less than the previous M3. Doubtful an Sti would stay with
either,
even on a closed course.



0-60 and 1/4 mile specs...


2006 BMW M5 4.1 12.4 (R&T Feb '06)


2006 Subaru WRX STI 4.5 13.0 MT Dec '05)

Not exactly a giant leap for the M5 and the AWD launch of the STI is
awesome.

The M5 beats the Sti every time. That would certainly qualify as "dusting."

And just for a comparison to my AWD Speed6 family sedan....which is a
more comfortable car than either the M5 or STI....

2006 Mazda MAZDASPEED 6, 5.4 13.9 (C&D Feb '06)

Rather leisurely. A 400cc motorcycle will better those figures. Sorry,
Bubbles.

Max