[Porsche]

Originally Posted by tailspin

I don't have a lot of RWD experience, but this thread makes me worried about purchasing a twin. It seems like if it's slightly wet outside this car might lose control on curvy roads?

LOL! That's the way the news media always seem to report one-car accidents: "The vehicle failed to negotiate the curve."

Nonsense.

The DRIVER failed to negotiate the curve. Cars do not drive themselves. Regardless of whether a car is FWD, AWD, or RWD, cars are about as safe as the person driving them. It is the driver that matters here, not the car.


If you're a poor driver and drive foolishly, you will eventually pay a price ranging from a fright to a fatality. Your choice.

These cars were MADE for curvy roads.

The "problem," if there is one, might be that this car is so well balanced, so well-behaved, and inspires such confidence, that some drivers, especially youngsters (you under 35?) may be tempted to push the limits beyond what is wise, given their experience and skills.

Learn to drive well, learn your car's handling traits and limits, and learn your OWN limits. Avoid exceeding those limits and do not get into a scrap with the laws of physics … and you'll be fine.

Apart from that is the ever-present problem of the OTHER guy; don't get involved in the other guy's mistake. It's a game of tag out there; don't "tag" anyone or anything, and don't get "tagged," yourself. That, by the way, has nothing to do with the law, but with survival!


The BRZ/FR-S are perfectly safe cars. The only question is: Are YOU a perfectly safe driver?

Is the stock tires the problem?

Not really, no. You can always mount higher performance tires that increase the grip. On the other hand, that may only mean that you hit the light pole that much harder because you were going that much faster, thanks to that increased grip. And when you're going faster, you run out of limited pavement faster when the car starts to slide, thus leaving you less time to react and correct the slide before you're off onto the grass … at which point you're largely just a passenger since you have little to no grip at all. You'll be unhappy if that happens. You might even be dead.

I

I've been looking at this car for awhile and been planning on purchasing it because I love the design and looks like fun to drive;

It's great fun to drive, provided you don't mind the comparatively slow acceleration. Despite what everyone says, the car is actually fast, it's just not as fast as some others that one might buy for similar money. You need to drive it and think about these things, or you may end up being a disappointed owner as happens to some. My wife returned from her first test drive and declared, "This is the most FUN car I've ever driven. And it's SLOW!"

but if it has poor traction on the roads, it does worry me.

It has excellent traction on the roads. It's just so much fun that it encourages drivers to push the limits more than they might in other cars. Your choice. Don't be stupid, right?

And doesn't the highly rated handling mean the car won't slide out of control?

Hahaha! That's funny, the more so because you're probably serious. You youngsters can be delightfully funny at times! (I'm older than your dad. ) Screw up behind the wheel, do something stupid, and get into a scrap with the laws of physics … and you'll be in trouble. ANY car will slide out of control under such circumstances. Even the best, most advanced racing cars on the planet will slide out of control when the driver exceeds the car's limits.

sorry for the newbish questions!

Not at all. Smart newbies ASK questions. Learning everything firsthand, the HARD WAY, is a poor life strategy, don't you think? Only fools never ask questions.