I'm paying $4.99 a gallon for premium. I'm not looking for sympathy (though feel free). After all, we're living in a new golden age of the automobile. Chatting with an autojourno friend I found myself saying, "435 horsepower? That's it?" Which is ridiculous. But now that gas is now horridly expensive, things are apt to slow down. And by apt I mean they will. Lots. We're already starting to see the cracks. Audi's next S4 will have six cylinders instead of eight. Which means that the RS4 might (gulp) only have a V6. Some of you no doubt remember how much I enjoyed the RS4. Which got me thinking: is Audi's four-door supercar the best vehicle I've ever driven? I get to drive an awful lot of fancy metal. The RS4 is better (if not much better) than most. But the best? No. You're going to have to wait a couple of days for my actual answer (review pending). Until then, how about you?
91 Comments on “Question of the Day: What’s the Best Car You’ve Ever Driven?...”
Back to TopLeave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
You can also login using Facebook Connect.
In a lot of ways, my friends M roadster. I hated the way it looked but it was such a blast to drive. Like a modern, German, 289 Cobra. I’ve driven cooler cars but I can’t think of one as fun. I still think it looks like Ace and Gary’s car though.
handling with day-to-day livability: RX-8
cheap thrills go-kart: MR2
testosterone: GTO
i have to actually make the payments and haul stuff but still want to have fun: GTI
chick magnet: pontiac grand am
snow donuts: legacy GT
rental car autocross: neon
NICKNICK: chick magnet: pontiac grand am
Seriously? I don’t know any ‘chicks’ that would give the owner of that car the time of day.
I really like my Camry Hybrid, but for the overall driving experience I would have to say it was being behind the wheel of a mid 80s Rolls Royce sedan when I was 16.
A Dodge Viper (1994 edition) was the most fun (and dangerously fast) car that I’ve ever driven.
A Mazda Miata is the most fun car in the summer to flog hard and grin the entire time (while actually touching it’s limits.)
Any snow day, my 2007 Subaru Legacy 2.5i is a blast to run around everything else on the road!
Gotta go with a 1995 Audi S6 with an MTM Stage 2 chip. Amazingly tossable for a gigantic car, and it’s easily the most comfortable long distance vehicle I’ve ever driven.
Best, as experience and sheer joy, my silver, hardtop XKE. Some good years and memories.
198-something Porsche 944 Turbo. This puppy was chipped and running a claimed 300+ HP with the most dramatic Turbo lag I’ve ever experienced. It was like a Hyundai accent below 3000rpm, then an explosion of thrust up to redline. It went scary fast before you even knew what hit you.
Second to that, a 2001 Audi S4, also chipped (I really like turbo’s!), but delivered a smoother punch in the face as it clawed a the ground and pressed you into the seat.
I really like the e39 m5, although the early 80s 911s are some of my favorites.
It must be the old family car, a Mercedes 240D, W123 model, that I inherited as a teenager. Built like a tank, went like clockwork. It was not fast, but it was built to last. I have never ever since felt that omni-prescent mechanical tour de force that a german built and over-engineered car can give. It was the best car I have ever had, and the best car I have ever driven. They don’t make them like that anymore, not anywhere.
My WRX STi is the best I’ve driven, but I haven’t driven much. The problem is I haven’t driven much….my crotch rocket 600cc is so much faster it’s not even funny. I’ve had it a couple years and I can’t see myself needing anything faster, even when I see zx-14’s marked down from $12-$13k to $8300….it’s simply too much for me.
The subaru is REALLY fun in the snow. I have dedicated winter tires & it’s a blast.
@lth:
Yep, that E39 M5 is unbelievable. One of the best cars ever made.
NSX is still my favorite though.
Chick magnet: my Geo Prism, it repels.
Fun drive now: MR2 Spyder.
Most fun to drive: ’76 VW Rabbit when it was still young. It was my first car that handled well, in comparison to the GM pigs I used to drive. It was a combination of youth, a high revving engine and testosterone that I still remember fondly. Once it started using more oil than gas it lost its appeal.
Citroen DS
Best in terms of what?….
All around practical daily use with high fun factor: 2005 WRX Sti. From blowing away Porsches and Vettes, to shuttling kids to school, to getting to deer hunting camp over shitty back roads, nothing comes close (especially for the price).
Ultimate gear-head hard-on factor: 2006 Ford GT. Only got to drive it about 10 miles, but it was the most “orgasmiic” 10 miles I’ve ever driven.
Track car/daily driver: 1987 Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe. Track ready outta the box. Also commute ready outta the box. Built like a proverbial Panzer and does every well with poise, except reward stupidity.
Most Darwinian: See previous entry.
2002 Corvette Z06
1971 AMC Javelin SST…..
Just kidding.
BMW 5 series
Driven a number of vehicles, but my grandparent’s
2002 540i 6-speed Sport is probably the most enjoyable all-around vehicle.
Otherwise I really enjoy driving my new 1984 760 Turbo. And the Mazda 3 wagon is an excellent daily driver and all-around compact vehicle.
i can’t say…
haven’t driven a car worthy to be titled ‘best’
though – i did get to take a 335x out for a spin… – that was kinda fun – but so is riding my steel bianchi…
Two bests.
Best fun: 1993 Mazda RX-7 five-speed (belonged to me)
Best everything else: 1989 Rolls-Royce Corniche convertible (did not belong to me)
That award goes to my ‘91 Galant VR-4. In a word: sleeper. Or at least it was until people started making the connection with it and the Lancer Evolution. It surprised a lot of people, domestic and import, at the track, and the best part is that I never had idiots try to race me on the street. I couldn’t say that about my Eclipse, where I had every Tom, Dick, and Harry in a Civic, Mustang, and GTI tempt me into a suspended license.
1987 Dodge Conquest TSI. 2.6L turbo charged and intercooled. It was a blast to drive. Insurance companies hated them. Unfortunately, the cast iron block with aluminum head and turbo charger was not a good combination. They suffered from cracked heads. I do miss the turbo whine.
Even though I’m working on middle-age, I like to believe that my best car is yet to come…
I’ll check back in about 20-30 years, ask me then.
The best car I’ve driven is……..
The Jaguar X-Type.
The ride quality was sublime, the fit and finish was brilliant and the AWD made the handling exceptional.
I really don’t know what everyone’s problem is with the X-Type. When you take everything into account, not just performance and reliability, but I mean everything, the X-Type is a sensational car.
A tough call but it would have to come down to these five: Porsche Boxter S, Mazda Miata, E36 328is, E46 330ci and Audi S8.
Best drive: My old 1992 BMW 325i convertible.
Most fun: A beat up 1963 beetle with so-so brakes in Rome.
Best rental autocross: A double-cab Mitsubishi pickup in Bonaire’s Washington Slagbaai National Park.
Back in the day I had two friends who owned Jaguar E-Types, one was a well-to-do young woman whose Dad was a producer of the Sid Caesar show and left her a ‘63 3.8 Roadster when he died.
The other was an airline mechanic whose second Jag was a ‘67 E-Type 4.2 coupe. I had occasion to drive both cars briefly. Wanna guess which was more enjoyable to drive?
That ‘67 E-Type with the all-synchro gearbox and the triple carb (265HP) motor had everything: power, handling, ride, fabulous looks and racing heritage.
I doubt I’ll ever drive anything nicer with four wheels.
javascript:document.getElementById(’commentform’).submit();
submit comment
1981 Mazda Rx-7 – really. It was light, reasonably powerful (100hp) and bullet proof reliable. Plus a heck of a lot of fun. With a rack and pinion conversion and maybe 20 more hp it would have been close to perfect. I’ve owned more expensive cars, more fun cars (Triumph Spitfire was a hoot) but it was the best all rounder.
The 1991 Benz 300E 4-Matic sedan (W124) that a friend in law school loaned me to drive home for Thanksgiving.
It was built like a vault yet it had fantastic handling and grip.
I drove it across the Adirondack mountains during near blizzard conditions without ever once doubting the cars ability to get me home safely.
If I remember right it had stickered for something like $61,000 in 1990, which is like $100,000 today.
Best car, well of course its my current car: 1999 BMW M3.
Some other favorites are the BMW 335i, Miata, Boxster, and the F-350 dually 8′ bed turbo diesel for the ability to part traffic 40 feet ahead without so much as a horn (well I’m not entirely sure what noise the tires make while barreling down the highway).
Driving Cars:
NSX – I cannot think of any other car that can be so fast with so little power. Nevermind it’s reliability or ease for daily driver – it was the best car I’ve ever driven (and this is compared to a z06, 911 gt3, RS4, etc.).
Porsche 944S2 – 3.0 16v inline 4 cylinder with 210 hp and best of all 50/50 (front engine / rear tranny – which now Vettes copy) making it easy to handle at the limit (versus the very forgiving e36 M3 until you go over that limit and find it near impossible to recover). No turbo lag from the 951 (944 Turbo) and seamless powerband make it the Porsche track junkies favorite car.
C5 Corvette – I’ve never liked Corvettes as they always followed the “glorified muscle car” – rear spring suspension, big iron ohv v8 up front – fast on straights but slow in corners. C5 – GM did it right and showed us that 1960’s ohv technology could still surprise people.
BMW M Coupe – or M Shoe for accurate description. This car is an absolute blast to drive and for some reason doesn’t suffer the E36 M3 handling faults at the limit. Though one of the most homely looking performance cars out there it more than makes up for it in handling and silky smooth power.
Mazda Miata or S2000 – Fun, cheap and reliable. Though the early S2000s known for tricky handling at the limit – fixed with a small change in rear suspension.
Ferrari / Lambo / Exotics (forget them as only a select few rich people can really get to afford or even be allowed to drive them).
Lexus SC400. Lexus really got this car right; it was rear wheel drive, V8, lovely interior, excellent dynamics. The car was just as at home on a long drive (LA to ABQ) as it was at carving corners and street hoonage.
@carguy:
Yeah, the Audi S8 really is quite an impressive car. I got handed the keys for a few minutes last year, and it took me by surprise just how agile it was for such a huge car. From behind the wheel, it didn’t feel any bigger than my A3.
It was also an incredible high speed cruiser. After winding it up, I backed off to what felt like a comfortable sane speed, and realized I was still doing 200km/h.
Sadly, a little out of my price range though.
My current ride, a 91 eagle talon TSi with upgrades. Light weight, big turbo, coil overs, and all wheel drive. Snow drifts anyone?
Lexus IS200.
I had the chance to drive one (a sedan with a manual), once, in Europe and it was a wonderful little car. Fun enough to drive, luxurious enough to feel good, economic enough to be easy to own, likely reliable enough to drive for years. I don’t think they offered a manual-transmission version of the wagon, sadly.
In every way, except perhaps brand cachet, this car was better than a contemporary equivalent 3-Series. Ultimately, you could buy a better 3-Series, but pound-for-pound I’d choose the IS. It saddened me greatly to see the new IS softened up to such a degree.
I haven’t had the car experiences most of you have, but:
Late 80’s Mazda Rx7. I owned it for all of 6 months before the engine blew, but it was a really fun six months. Not nearly as smooth accelerating as my current Mazda6s or as stable, but it was sure fun driving the backroads at 9+/10s. It’s also the fastest I’ve ever driven a car, a pedestrian 120 mph.
2004 Mazda6s for being an all around fun and practical car that still puts a smile on my face after 3 1/2 years of ownership.
Mazda Rx8. Great handling and love those high rpms.
My favorite “car” for sentimental reasons is my ‘58 Chevy Apache Fleetside that I got from my grandfather when he died. The memories of fun times out camping in the “Old Buckin’ Bronco” surpass, by far, any measurable driving pleasure.
My wife has a more interesting assortment to choose from, so I’ll pass this along to her, but I’m betting she would say the 1969 911T she bought in 1996 shortly after we started dating.
Citroen DS21 Pallas five speed on the column with leather interior and headrests that were like pillows.
Most fun to drive: BMW 2002. You don’t need a lot of power to connect to the road.
Best for long-distance cruising: Mercedes 300D (1985). Agree with other W123 comments above. First runner-up: Mercedes 300E 4-Matic (W124) more versatile, handles better but not quite as comfortable. Feels like it was milled from a single block of steel.
I have several, depending on where I was in life and my needs at the time.
Our current Subaru Legacy GT.
My ‘91 Alfa Spider in college and after.
And I still to this day miss the ‘81 Merc 300D I got in perfect condition for a song. Smoothest tank I have ever driven with 260,000 miles on the odo.
1967 Alfa Romeo GTV
WOW!!!
Early 90s Mercedes Benz 600 SEL. Endless and effortless power.
1994 Subaru Impreza wagon. That little car was my first introduction to the wonders of the boxer engine and the manual transmission – the low center of gravity and resultant snappy handling were a delight, and there’s nothing like shifting for yourself. I basically lived out of it for a summer, forever endearing wagons to my heart and the AWD handled WI and MN winters with aplomb. I’m not big on fancy luxury cars but put me behind the wheel of a tight little econo-wagon (I suppose the Mazda3 is the closest thing they make today) and I’m a happy guy.
Well; best is tough, for excitement handling and acceleration had to be a homebuilt go-kart with disc brakes, 1 inche off the ground and a 4 cylinder honda 750cc Motorcycle engine. At 14 years old you don’t forget that for your first ride. On to more recent rides I would like back, 1987 Audi Quatro Turbo 5 speed, and 1994 Jaguar VandenPlus. I have a buddy with a tricked out 911, but, you can’t live on the edge all of the time, or my best ride would be my last ride.
I forgot to mention two as I was reading through all the posts…
1) 1996 Volvo 850 Turbo Sedan Platinum Ed.
This was my mothers car when I was in high school… but I always begged to take it out. Loved the turbo kick and sound, great boxy style inside and out, and the special 3-coat paint that changed color in the shade.
2) 1995 Lexus LS400
This was the ultimate serenity car. Hear not. Feel not. But the thing had great power and could really grip the road… as long as you weren’t looking for it’s limit. Begged Dad for the keys to this for my Sunday morning jaunts to dunkin’ donuts.
Ahh… those were the days… :)
This is hard for me…
2004 WRX Sti: (w/ ECU flash and intake & Exhaust) I was smiling from ear to ear, laughing drove like an economy car bolted to a racer.
2001 Honda S2000: Driven in anger, the whole car feels alive, screaming all the way to 9000 rpm!
1995 Miata: (w/ FM2 turbo kit and coilovers) 2400 lbs. of turbo RWD fun, even had a ricer Momo shifter!
2006 911 (997) C4S Cab.: Unsupervised test drive of a demo car. Yes please. The sound, the feel… Wow! But not $ 120K worth…
2004 SRT-4: Underrated from the factory, stock did not include mufflers or power winds for the back seats. Tons of turbo torque, 150 mph neon w/ red brake calipers. It was under $20K and did 0-60 in under 6 sec. The kids loved it. I sold it for $19K after 10 months of front tire use. The kids really loved it.
2006 Infiniti G35 Sedan 6-MT: Looks like a yuppie sled drives like a 350Z w/ four-doors.
I would love to say my friends 996 twin turbo, but honestly it scared me. Very fast, very fun and a great wedding getaway car, but I felt like it was trying to kill me.
My favorite would have to be my Mazdaspeed Miata. Great car, great looks, great handling and enough power to have loads of fun. Sadly though, no room for wife AND baby, so it left the stable. My Mazdaspeed 3 is great, but it’s no Miata.
Caterham 7 with Lotus twin cam – such a very light car to get 12mpg from!
hmmm
1982 Ferrari 308GTSi was fun. Not very fast but so genuine… gated dogleg shifter was very accurate, great clutch, no power steering but you didn’t need it, and punching it in second getting on the highway made good progress and even better sound. It was just such an event to drive!
2001 VW GTI 1.8, Revo Stage II about 230whp… with a stock turbo and water/methanol injection this car spun the tires from a roll in second gear. Hilariously fun, love these cars.
2004 Dodge SRT-4 with 18g turbo, 6-puck carbon race clutch, all solid poly motor mounts, some HKS computer thinger, bunch of other goodies… oh my god this car was more fun that i have words for. I’ll try: wheelspin and torque steer at 60 miles an hour, downhill in 3rd gear. Retardedly fast.
2006 Infiniti M45 – dad’s current car. It’s something of an isolation chamber and you’d never notice how fast or potent it was, but when you plant your foot it positively slams you in your seat. Hard. Very comfortable, handles GREAT for a large car… great, just lacking character. But that Nissan VH45DE is a winner of an engine.
2007 Infini G35S – loaner from Infiniti. Perhaps even better than the M45. It is a true rocketship; i can’t believe how powerful that engine is for a mass-produced non-turbo V6. WAY better to drive than a 350Z (and I’ve driven a few.)
2001 BMW (E46) 325i sedan – my friend’s car – extremely modified (AAW chip, K&N short ram, full Borla exhaust with resonators removed, E46 325iA rear diff with shorter final drive and E36 LSD component, E39 M5 clutch and AAW 11.5lb flywheel, B&M short shifter, Koni Cup Kit and H&R adjustable front and rear sway bars, probably some other things I’m forgetting) – this car is a bit short on power despite the mods but it can cover a curvy road at a truly alarming pace. A stock WRX wouldn’t know which way it went on a curvy road. Review on my website here: http://www.tehcarblogz.com/road-test/bimmers-theyre-not-just-for-bankers-bmw-325i-road-test/
AW11 Toyota MR2 with some bolt-ons: go-kart with a license plate.
Porsche 914/4 2.0 with 2.5L stroker motor, twin Del’Orto carbs – holy crap fun
honorable mentions – 2007 Civic Si sedan is a fantastic all-around daily driver, 2008 Caliber SRT-4 sheerly for entertainment value, MazdaSpeed3 for the same reasons, Mazdaspeed Miata for being a really fast gokart with a plate… so many
I guess it’s harder to ask me what’s the worst car I’ve driven
oh wait, no it’s not! 2006 Toyota Camry 4-cylinder automatic! God what a turd.
I don’t know that I’ve ever driven a car that would make anybody’s “best” list for any reason, so it’s all relative…
So, try not to laugh… a borrowed Fiat 131, back in 1978 or so. I’d driven nothing but Detroit iron (mostly on bias-ply, of course) up to that moment and the handling, which seemed laserlike by comparison, was just a joy to experience. And it had a 5-speed stick, which was much fun compared to the two-speed PowerGlides of yore.
Runner-up – again, try not to laugh… Our ‘82 Cavalier wagon, which was the first American car I drove that reminded me of (but did not equal) the Fiat for handling. And this one, we owned, so I got to keep enjoying it.
1/ What’s a “best car”? I’ve driven a lot of what Jonny calls “fancy metal” but none of it wins “best” in any category. In fact, I usually find that the further up the automotive prestige chain you go, the more compromised cars become.
The best car overall I’ve driven is the Maserati Quattroporte Executive Sport. But I’ve never felt more intimate with the road than in a Triumph Spitfire or Fiat 2000 Spyder. Modern Corvettes always feel like “best cars” when I’m in them, because they have roomy cabins for sports cars, in-the-asphalt handling, loping high-speed transport character, dynamic immediacy and aural rewards. The best starship executive express I’ve driven was a 1998 Lincoln Mark VIII LSC. Specifically the LSC. That Ford large coupe platform was strong, sophisticated and capable, in which the InTech 32 valver just hummed around the century mark. Its long wheelbase subdued freeway. Its NCC-1701 interior was beautiful and would still feel like it’s borrowed from the future.
2/ Gasoline isn’t horridly expensive, just more expensive than it was. It’s still easily the least expensive volume liquid you use, other than tap water. And unlike tap water, gasoline will have price troughs during which it will again be cheaper in real terms.
Phil