When does the need for HP end?

The new Nissan Alitma, 265 HP,

The updated Mazda 6, 250 HP

 

The list just goes on, where does the need for HP end? I mean personally i think could have alittle more, especially down low, but anymore would just be overkill. Personally i think if the heavy HP trends keep up, we are going to see alot more accidents on the road esp from people who dont know how to keep 280 hp on the ground, esp in a FWD drivetrain, its dangerous.

 

I have a 250 HP engine. It is Turbocharged, and intercooled, which makes it quite fun to drive. My handling is very good, as good as to be expected from a 28 grand car. My ride is excellent. I actually like having a 5 speed tranny, i can keep it in third around town, i like that. I can take corners in 3rd, if im just driving around. If im driving spiritedly then i will downshift to second.

 

With 250 HP, i could with ease cruise at 120 MPH plus if the roads and our stupid government and insurance companies allowed it. I can, i can get up to speed better than needed.

 

Idk, i just wish people wouldnt be woo'd over by how much power a car has but by how well it drives instead ... this comeing from an 18 year old btw folks.

 

 

( ^^^ my just got up at 3 in the morning intellectual car thoughts ^^^ )

when is a house ever big enough? when is the car fancy enough? it goes on and on

 

we are talking about subarus here so its not a big deal, but people who have the desire or money will always want more because most of us get a thrill out of the acceleration. and the faster the car, more the thrill.

 

thats my quick lazy explanation

With 250 HP, i could with ease cruise at 120 MPH plus if the roads and our stupid government and insurance companies allowed it.

 

If 120MPH were allowed on the highways in this country, I think I'd take the train.

when one is t3h f4st4r then t3h srt-4

Yeah, think of germany man........My dad drove on the Autoban, and said it was a thing of beauty.....he was do'n 110mph and people were fly'n up on him......they RARELY have accidents on it......he always brings up how "respectful" they are on the road, everyone gets outta everyones way and there are never real problem.........Christ 90% of the people in this state don't even know it's illegal to be in the left lane unless you are passing....

 

My buddy and I were talk'n about this on the way home last night.....we said prob 60% of the people in this coutry shouldn't be behind the wheel, it's a sad thing....Every kid should go to a real driving school,....drivers ed is a joke..

 

As for the HP in cars.....Look back in time man, those ride were all about rear wheel rippers With gas prices go'n crazy.....it will slow down for a few years to come when sales drop....

I live in a college town. The students are very uncurtious, dangerous drivers. The feel a 25 feet gap between cars is enough to pull out and get going even when traffic is doing 55. And never start through a red light just because it turns green unless you want to get broadsided by someone running the red light. Think students should all be forced to drive 2 cylinder cars with 60hp only. All that power tends to make them drive silly.

Scans.......Your post was perfect....it says it all;)

 

The only thing I would add to it is, the national age limit for a drivers license should be 17.

Very good point raised by many here in this thread - and elsewhere - about when "enough is enough."

 

I honestly don't know, and am personally quite conflicted about this very issue.

 

One side of my brain argues the point as most here have: we've got a vehicle powerful enough, with minor modifications in both cost and hardware, to easily top 130 MPH at extended cruise, tick off 4.6-4.9 second 0-60 sprints, and 12-second quarters. That may not be "fast" in an absolute sense, but for an everyday-driven, road-going commuter, that's pretty darned quick.

 

Yet, the other side of my brain can't help but recall reading about the early days of the automobile, when many more conservative consumers vehemently maintained that it was suicide to simply top double-digits in terms of road-speed.

 

 

Looking just two decades back, road-legal vehicles that sprinted to 60 in 6 to 7 seconds were considered "fast." Quarter-mile figures in the 14 to even 16 second range were seen as a good benchmark for performance-minded vehicles. Today, most "average family sedans" can easily push such marks, with nicely-shifting automatic transmissions, and carrying a load of amenities that no vehicle of the 1980s would have even imagined possible.

 

I think that continued technological progress will eventually take us to a point where the simple cost of going against both mother nature (dollar amounts spent on fuel resources) as well as physical laws (mass and acceleration) will become less-than-feasible for most consumers of average means. One of these days in the near future, I think that affordable vehicles such as the Honda Accord or Toyota Camry will eventually reach some form of performance plateau, top-out at a 0-60 sprint of 5 seconds, 4-seconds, or even 3-seconds.... Where this benchmark will rest will depend on, in my view, how much the average consumer is willing to spend in terms of energy resources for the vehicle, as well as the vehicle cost itself.

 

We all know that to go fast isn't a cheap proposition - fuel (and even batteries, if they're to be made light enough and store enough charge to repeatedly offer the performance figures above) costs money, and so does development and manufacturing of exceedingly higher-technology drivetrains that produce more power, as well as lighter yet stronger materials for fashioning a crashworthy structure.

 

I think that the upper echelons of the automotive world will always continue to seek higher performance - even at the cost of unreasonable amounts of both natural resources and money. There's just got to be the Veyrons and Zondas of the world - it's what we as enthusiasts dream about from the moment that petrol-driven automotive "gene" kicks in in our childhood or adolescence. Meanwhile, I believe that eventually, we'll top ourselves out in terms of a cost-to-"fast-ness" ratio, and bow, at least until the next big and great technology comes around, to the whims of mother nature, as well as to the laws of Sir Issac.

 

That's my two cents.

 

Oh, and as for driver education and why we as a nation isn't ready for higher speed limits? That's a whole other rant!

That's my two cents.

 

You never just throw in your two cents you usually throw in a buck fitty...

 

<-- couldn't resist

I agree that "when is enough enough" is a personal view. But humans in general are never satisfied. Bigger, better, faster, etc.

 

As for the IL coment. Here in the great state of IL in an effort to save money we are doing away with many driver's ed classes. The kids get a form and their parents sign it saying that the parents have spent month driving with them and covering all the bases on how to drive.

 

Thank God we are saving money.........

 

Peace,

 

Greg

When insurance surpasses your car payment!!!!!!!!!!!

And to think I am saving almost 600 a year over the S4 in Ins.

 

I'll just have to put that saving back into the car for mods;)

 

As soon as my new setup is complete 350-360whp on 93oct.

I will be done, after that point the car will not have the reliability that is needed for a daily driver.

When does the need for HP end?

 

When gas exceeds $3 a gallon....

 

 

Opie who is considering a Kia Rio to replace his LGT....

Riiiiiiiiight;)

you say that now....next weekend I'm sure you'll be telling us about you getting the first 07 spec B from the dealer.

 

Let the wifey have your car..**She needs the extra power**..you get the new one;)

when one is t3h f4st4r then t3h srt-4

 

What he said! I don't know but I know I am not going Stage II yet because I have yet to learn how to really handle this car on Stage I. I think DMVs should cap limits on how much HP you can have relative to your driving ability. I'm sick of all these people with 800HP at the wheels driving around, barely in control of their cars.

 

/rant

Wow 265 for the new altima??? That thing is going to be quick!

Germany's driving school entails MUCH MORE than 8 hours of behind the wheel training and cost a lot more money.

 

The need for speed will never end as long as we are men.

8===D 's

FTW

 

I was on the Autobahn last month...and it's not the same autobahn that your father drove on. People don't necessarily get right out of your way anymore, and there are very few places on today's autobahn where one can really open it up. There were several instances where I came up on someone who just wouldn't move....very frustrating to say the least, and I kept wondering what all the New Yorkers were doing in Deutchland while i'm on vacation??- DAMMIT!

Riiiiiiiiight;)

you say that now....next weekend I'm sure you'll be telling us about you getting the first 07 spec B from the dealer.

 

Let the wifey have your car..**She needs the extra power**..you get the new one;)

 

I'm actually driving the wife's car to work because the 2.5i gets way better mileage (26-28) on my 60 mile daily commute! Since she works from home the LGT now sits in the garage.

 

Wow 265 for the new altima??? That thing is going to be quick!

 

The new Camry is also 265HP and it looks sweet....Subaru needs to take a lesson in advertising from Toyota...I've seen about 10 of the new Camry commercials every night this week....and they push the cars styling, performance and safety...

 

a very slick ad campaign

When the phuckin thing blows up!

At endocrine function failure!!!!

that camry may have 265 hp but is at least 2 sec slower to 60 than a LGT.

-unacceptable

well ... i wasnt expecting 20 post in response when i got back to the computer this morning lol

Deal with it hahaha you asked we replied