There’s a common saying in automotive enthusiast circles that it’s more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow, but there seems to be more widespread interest in huge horsepower, 0-60 times, and top speeds.
In my years of driving experience, which have included V12 supercars and 3-cylinder econoboxes, I have found that there’s profound wisdom in this statement that extends beyond mere consolation for car owners who can’t afford high-horsepower machines.
Hennessey
The truth is that squeezing out every bit of power from a modestly-powered vehicle often delivers a more rewarding experience than driving a pricey, high-performance car at a fraction of its capability. Here are four reasons why.
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1. Lower-powered cars are more accessible
Contrary to social media videos of drag racing supercars and insane electric vehicles, you don’t have to have gobs of horsepower to enjoy the driving experience. It’s a truism that the fundamental joy of driving comes from engagement—the connection between driver, machine, and road.
Mazda
When a car has over, say 250 horsepower, that connection becomes limited because of speed limits and traffic. You feel that your car is being held back, and you can never really enjoy yourself until you come to a stretch of highway that you know isn’t patrolled by law enforcement. Shy of a track, there probably isn’t even a roadway where you can exploit the handling capabilities.
Consider the driver of a modern 600-horsepower performance car. On public roads, they might use perhaps 20-30 percent of their vehicle’s capability during a spirited drive. Meanwhile, the driver of a 181-horsepower Mazda MX-5 Miata or a 221-horsepower Toyota GR86 can safely explore 80-90 percent of their car’s performance envelope on those same roads. They can wind out gears, brake later, and carry more speed through corners—all while staying within reasonable safety margins and legal limits.
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This accessibility of these lower-powered cars provides a thrilling driving experience in ordinary conditions. It alters your perception of fun, and that’s a good thing. In the slower car, every on-ramp becomes an occasion to wring out second and third gear.
If you have a manual transmission, that engagement quotient ramps up significantly, giving you more of a connection to the road and the car. The driving experience becomes active rather than passive, requiring skill and involvement rather than restraint and a dependence on power to equal fun.
2. Learning to drive a slow car fast develops skills
Just because you drive a slower car doesn’t mean you’re going to be good at driving it at the limits. That’s something that requires skill. Maybe not Ayrton Senna-like skill, but way more than high school driver’s ed skill levels.
Volkswagen
Most high-powered vehicles these days rely on layers of electronic intervention rather than mechanical processes that contribute to driver engagement. Features like stability control, traction control, and torque vectoring help keep drivers out of the weeds. Cheaper, older cars have fewer driving nannies, and this opens up an opportunity for drivers to be more connected to the driving experience.
Driving a slower car at 80 percent of its capability requires greater skill than driving a high-powered car at 20 percent of its performance potential, providing the opportunity for you to become a better driver.
Subaru
In a less powerful, more basic car, the direct connection between input and output creates a more transparent learning environment. Carrying speed in a lower-powered vehicle requires maintaining momentum through corners, precisely timing gear changes with a manual transmission, and developing a deeper understanding of how the car transfers its weight.
These skills become immediately apparent during driving, when the driver who brakes too late or downshifts roughly in a lightweight, lower-powered car will feel the consequences immediately.
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This skill development creates a virtuous cycle of improvement and satisfaction. As drivers perfect their technique, they extract incrementally more performance from their vehicles, creating tangible rewards for their efforts. It’s a progression towards mastery, something that’s nearly impossible to create on legal roads with a 600-horsepower beast.
3. The economics of driving fun
High-powered cars are not cheap. The 617-horsepower BMW X6 M Competition, for example, has a starting price of almost $119,000. Even a Toyota GR Supra will set you back over $56,000. You pay the price for power. A $250k Porsche 911 GT3 RS might cost nearly ten times more than a Mazda Miata, but it won’t deliver ten times the fun on legal roads.
Porsche
High-performance vehicles often come with high levels of worry: concerns about rock chips, door dings, and the significant financial consequences of even minor mishaps. These worries create a psychological barrier to full enjoyment. Meanwhile, the owner of a modest performance car can drive without the same levels of anxiety, knowing that replacement parts are affordable and scrapes won’t require remortgaging their home.
Don’t forget that you’ll also probably save money by not getting as many speeding tickets. Not only is it harder to get into trouble, you’re also less noticeable by law enforcement. Just maybe don’t upgrade to a giant wing on your Subaru BRZ.
4. The rewarding challenge of limitations
When the sky is the limit, there is no challenge. A land-based rocketship, like a 621-horsepower Audi RS6 Avant driven by a septuagenarian with a heavy foot, can outgun almost anything on the road.
But if you’re driving a 10-year old sub-200-horsepower, manual transmission car, you’re faced with pushing it to the edge. Tantamount to cooking a delicious three-ingredient meal or sculpting a block of wood into art with just a hammer and chisel, driving a low-powered car hard is a challenge in and of itself. When achieved and repeated, there’s deep satisfaction.
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Volkswagen
I have enjoyed driving my 184-hp 2016 Mazda6 on suburban roads at 9/10ths more than I ever did helming a Mustang GT500 at 3/10ths. It forces you to plan how you’re going to hit an apex on an off-ramp, thread a needle in traffic, or downshift at just the right time to merge seamlessly at 60 mph. These limitations of power and performance create a more mentally engaging driving experience.
The driver of a modest-powered car also experiences the satisfaction of “giant-killing,” otherwise known as keeping pace with or outperforming more powerful vehicles through superior driving technique. Few automotive pleasures are greater than maintaining contact with a much more powerful car on a winding road through better corner entry, exit, and overall momentum conservation. Just the other day, I managed to outpace a BMW M3 through highway traffic through careful planning, well-timed lane changes, and solid downshifts. It was incredibly satisfying.
MINI
Final thoughts
Don’t get me wrong. If someone handed me the keys to a Ferrari 812 Superfast, I would take them in a heartbeat. Nevertheless, the legal and safety constraints of driving high-powered cars often feel like a wet blanket in everyday circumstances. You just can’t wring out the car or even drive it at 50 percent of its potential.
A less-expensive, lower-powered car with excellent steering, chassis, and mechanicals delivers far more driving satisfaction because you can push the envelope in everyday driving. It’s an experience every driver should have at least once in his or her life, and then you’ll understand how truly gratifying it is.
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