McLaren 720S vs Mazda MX-5: Which is the most fun?

[new2subaru]

Originally Posted by DarkPira7e

I'll take a Miata any day.

I'll take a McLaren and sell it!

Then I'd buy a BRZ an Elsie a 4C and a Miata for the wife!

[86MLR]

If I had the stupid money it would be the McLaren, why, because it is 100 x better than a MX5, BUT, as I don't have a stupid money I got a 86 because it was cheap.

Would I also have a MX5, maybe, probably not though, more likely a Caterham, or a AC Cobra.

Yeap, an Mk6 Cobra would be sweet

[dhuang]

I pulled up next to a '91 NA Miata in my 4C the other day and we get chatting at the light...

"What year is it?"
"1991"

"My roommate has a NA too and it's a blast. Does it have the 1.6?"
"Yep!"

"I love those cars because you can explore the limits all the time."
"Yeah and nobody hates you for it unlike that thing."

He's right

Disclaimer:
I consider the 4C to be a baby McLaren 570S but nowhere near the sophistication of a 720S.
My Roommate owns a '97 NA 1.8 and had a '93 NA 1.6 before.

[Sapphireho]

I think I'm going to buy my wife a Miata this spring.

[EAGLE5]

Cars I would really like to own:
Fiat 500e, in light blue
Bollinger B1, in gunmetal gray
Model 3 Performance, in white
Ferrari 512 BB, preferably in black

The Miata and McLaren are not on that list.

I'll probably just get the Fiat! X)

[Sapphireho]

I love Jizzman's comments.

[Will BRZ]

Never driven either so I cant say which would be more fun. But I can say that I'd be more comfortable driving the Miata (or any other cheap car) than anything more expensive. I wouldn't have the stress of fucking it up and if I do, it'll be super cheap to fix. I'd buy both if I had the money. Would love to drive McLaren one day

[rennlistuser3]

I honestly feel like the message of that article is being lost. Or maybe I myself misunderstood it.

For me, the question is: are modern high end sports cars becoming way too fast to enjoy on public roads?


Forget about the price and all the insecure people who need to buy a Mclaren to feel better about themselves and desperately hope others will take them more seriously. I'm asking with speed limits often at 55 MPH and on boring straight highways it'll be up to 70 MPH and all these very fast Dual Clutch Turbo charged modern fast vehicles, is the concept of "fun car to drive" being lost?

I honestly never owned a vehicle with over say 500 HP the more experienced members here who owned such cars could shine some light and educate me on what I might be missing.

[reni]

I remember a long time ago on another car forum, there was a guy upgraded from a miata to an Exige. He had done autox and track days before, but readily admitted that the lotus far exceeded his abilities.

I think that in order to enjoy any car, you need both the skill to push it to the limits, and a road or track where you can do so.

Perhaps some people can enjoy driving super/hyper cars at legal speeds, but it's not my cup of tea.

[86MLR]

Originally Posted by rennlistuser3

I honestly feel like the message of that article is being lost. Or maybe I myself misunderstood it.

For me, the question is: are modern high end sports cars becoming way too fast to enjoy on public roads?


Forget about the price and all the insecure people who need to buy a Mclaren to feel better about themselves and desperately hope others will take them more seriously. I'm asking with speed limits often at 55 MPH and on boring straight highways it'll be up to 70 MPH and all these very fast Dual Clutch Turbo charged modern fast vehicles, is the concept of "fun car to drive" being lost?

I honestly never owned a vehicle with over say 500 HP the more experienced members here who owned such cars could shine some light and educate me on what I might be missing.

I don't believe so, other wise why upgrade ftom a NA to a ND, or AE86 to FT86.

Why did I build a RB25/30, why did I turbo my 86, why did I buy ZX6R, because fun, because skids, because turbo whoosshhy noises.

If I had a ton of cash to waste on a car, would you call me insecure if I got a McLaren, or Ferrari, or Lamborghini? Would the McLaren make me feel better about myself?, well, it would mean that I'm more successful than I currently am, so yes, yes it would.

I would drive down the street grinning from ear to ear, just like when I'm boosting along in my 86, because fun, just more expensive fun.

Like lobsters, delicious lobsters, I could get by eating other cheaper seafood, but lobsters are delicious, am I insecure because I can afford to eat lobsters whenever I want, when others cannot?

My perception of these type of questions is it typically is the jaded people without money saying that the cheap cars are all you need, and if you want more than a cheap car you are insecure and buy stuff to feel better.

But then I'm old and jadded myself and think some people, from all classes, both rich and poor, are self righteous idiots who thrive on complaining about other peoples choices and levels of financial success.

Kill the poor, eat the rich.

TL;DR my 50cc Yamaha jog scooter is just as much fun as my Kawasaki ZX6R, am I more righteous on the Yamaha? Am I insecure on the Kwaka? Do people who worry about what I do need medication?

Are these some of the great unanswered questions facing humanity, If so, I pity humanity

[troyguitar]

Originally Posted by rennlistuser3

I honestly feel like the message of that article is being lost. Or maybe I myself misunderstood it.

For me, the question is: are modern high end sports cars becoming way too fast to enjoy on public roads?


Forget about the price and all the insecure people who need to buy a Mclaren to feel better about themselves and desperately hope others will take them more seriously. I'm asking with speed limits often at 55 MPH and on boring straight highways it'll be up to 70 MPH and all these very fast Dual Clutch Turbo charged modern fast vehicles, is the concept of "fun car to drive" being lost?

I honestly never owned a vehicle with over say 500 HP the more experienced members here who owned such cars could shine some light and educate me on what I might be missing.

They've been too fast for a long time. At least up here in NY state there are cops everywhere and their sole purpose in life is to hand out speeding tickets to fund NYC. Forget about the $300k price of the car, you'd have to spend 7+ figures annually on a legal team to even keep your license to drive a McLaren here... What's the point?

My 86 is significantly more fun to drive on public roads than my Z06 ever was.

[Lantanafrs2]

What happens when theres nothing to write about

[TommyW]

I went from a 911 Turbo to a Miata to an FRS.
The 911 was only good on the street once in a great while and too heavy to be a good track car. The Miata had way too much body roll but my wife looked cute driving it The 86 is by far my favorite overall.

[DarkSunrise]

It really depends what your definition of fun on the street is.

If you just want 2-3 seconds of insane acceleration (or don't mind destroying speed limits), you will absolutely have fun with 500+ hp. I've got a friend with a stage 2 RS3 (high 10's at the drag strip) that he loves driving on the street. But he street races and is mostly a straight line guy and obviously doesn't mind the risk.

I've got another friend with a 500+ hp E46 M3 track car. He could drive it on the street (it's a pretty mild build other than the supercharger), but doesn't really enjoy it out there. There's nowhere to really open it up without significant risk and he's a track guy at heart anyway.

I've been lucky enough to track and street-drive both their cars, and for me, I tend to agree with my second friend. For street driving (e.g., daily commuting and even canyon runs), I have more fun with a slow-car fast approach. I want to be able to redline a few gears whenever I want without risking losing my license. On the track, more power is always better but even a Miata or FR-S is still a good time (and way less consumables).