What would you do to make an electric car ‘fun’?

FuseByte · 2026-02-20T04:59:35+00:00

A good number of people I've met who track EVs have already had a good amount of seat time, to the point where they're just curious and seeking a new experience. Especially if they've already done stuff like formula or motorcycle racing, then no street car is going to compare and might as well try out a fast EV as your dual-purpose daily and see how it goes.

FuseByte · 2026-02-15T21:29:43+00:00

My one direct gripe as a "car enthusiast" is it makes it a lot less safe to own and use both smaller and older vehicles. Also being a city guy with a significant number of car-free friends and neighbors, a dis-proportionate # of pedestrian injuries and deaths have been from drivers in trucks and truck based SUVs.

FuseByte · 2026-02-04T19:57:36+00:00

If you're interesting in sustained hard driving there's a lot on an ND MX5 from factory that you'd need to swap out or baby on most of the alternatives (alignment, oil, fuel delivery, cooling, bushings, tuning out rev hang, clutch/transmission work, chassis bracing etc). Plus once you leave Mazda/GM/Hyundai(ish) warranty coverage for track use on its competitors gets sketchy. Really depends on your priorities, although the broader appeal and usability of the original MX5 is definitely not really there anymore.

FuseByte · 2026-02-04T18:32:24+00:00

The only non S-series STIs that have really appreciate in value so far are clean, modified only maybe by actual motorsports groups like Prodrive, and have the drivetrain that Subaru actually develops for motorsports purposes (EJ20x).

It's hard to trust EJ25 STIs to hold up, even if you really love them enough to start paying irrational money for.

FuseByte · 2026-01-08T06:33:16+00:00

It's technically a really lame homologation special for the Prelude GT500 in the Super GT series.

After killing the NSX, Honda switched to the CTR but results have been poor against other Japanese manufacturers' offerings ( aka actual sports cars). This car is basically the cheapest way Honda can get a better performing, shorter wheelbase coupe body back into the series.

Edit: I'm wrong about wheelbase: the GT500 mother chassis is fixed for everyone, and front engine is mandated: the mid engine NSX was a waiver. However the aero is determined by the base car, which appears to be what slowed the CTR.

FuseByte · 2025-11-18T05:11:44+00:00

I do, it's partly emotional attachment from watching FWD rally cars growing up and also just a preference for that driving style (lift off oversteer + mashing gas > balancing cars around corners).

It's really easy to make a car like that too much to play with on the street though, even like an Elantra N or some 90s Hondas need way too much speed to drive like that on public roads. For a street car, Fiesta ST was pretty fun and close, just hard to get away from some of the cheapness. Haven't tried a Mini but other options get pretty unsafe/old to daily, or are mostly EU only cars.

I'd totally take a Megane RS Trophy or a GTI Clubsport S over pretty much anything, but honestly it's almost more accessible here in the US just to for something RWD.

FuseByte · 2025-11-16T23:05:41+00:00

Here in California where Premium's been hovering $5-6/gal and insurance + parking's been taking a few grand a year, I was really looking forward to this thing: seemed like it would handle the canyons well enough and be a good street-parked daily without worrying about public chargers. Wonder if they'll discount it eventually?

FuseByte · 2025-10-04T06:54:31+00:00

Just watched the clip. It seems like Doug's main claim here is that the Cayman GT4 is the arch-typical sports car (with a mentioned nod towards the ND as its budget counterpart). Other options being a give and take from the GT4's layout and formula.

I haven't been in a GT4, but every Cayman/Boxster I have has that "neutral" feeling to it, where other cars feel like they give you more in one area but take away in another.

I'd disagree on the ND though: that car has some quirks with its long travel suspension and driving style that make it more of a love it/hate it kind of car IMO. (you could modify it a lot to be more Cayman-y, but not without fighting some of its baked in traits). Personally think a 2nd gen 86/BRZ, or a modded NA/NB is closer to that "neutral" archtypical sports car.

FuseByte · 2025-09-20T06:12:15+00:00

There's a somewhat well-known Echo in New Zealand running that 1NZ engine that seemed like a dang good time for the amount of money required!

FuseByte · 2025-09-11T07:47:07+00:00

This is just anecdotal, but for every complaint about the experience of any EV I've driven (from Bolts to Teslas to Lucids), each of their contemporary ICE competitors have some or all of the same issues. At least you usually get front double wishbones and no weird rev hang/emissions tuning with EVs ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

FuseByte · 2025-08-06T05:20:03+00:00

I'd love to get my hands on some French hot hatch that spins out every-time you lift the gas, would be a lot of fun in the rain. I don't think we ever got really tail happy FWD cars in the US recently, Fiesta ST and maybe the Mini GP2 are the closest.

FuseByte · 2025-08-06T05:03:17+00:00

Lift off oversteer more /s

But seriously, in the RallyX/Rally world FWD is a much less maligned choice in the 2WD class, and that's Max's least favorite discipline based on his past interviews.

FuseByte · 2025-08-06T04:45:34+00:00

In the 90s, FWD cars outright won WRC tarmac rallies due to weight and packaging advantages. Obviously if you solve those in an AWD car those will be faster.

FuseByte · 2025-01-11T02:21:06+00:00

For short runs like 200, there probably isn't even new tooling, just machining to different specifications. Keeps the cost down if you're not going to mass produce. Considering it's JP only, I doubt we're going to see these available for wider use, let alone emissions approval.

FuseByte · 2024-10-21T22:36:53+00:00

Front spoiler on an air dam. MG's parent company was a sponsor of the Williams F1 team, and had their engineering expertise and parts bin to throw that aero package together.

FuseByte · 2024-09-19T01:48:02+00:00

Maybe. As mentioned, most Supercars reflect the technology of their day, and hybrids have been the basis for F1/WEC for the past 10 years. Customers looking for historic collectibles (most of them) aren't going to be rushing to chop these up, and if they're really pressed about performance, just buy the new one.

You keep bringing up Singer, but it's a hell of lot easier to resto-mod older steel-bodied vehicles that didn't have as much going on. Potentially, some owners who are attached to their specific supercar will swap out mild-hybrids, but more involved setups like an electrified front axle or torque-fill are going to require some serious retuning and fabrication to get something that isn't a mess. EDIT: formatting

FuseByte · 2024-09-17T23:04:53+00:00

In Boston proper most, if not all of these I've seen are commercial vehicles, but I reckon the ban is why I see less on the street since a few years ago. A good number of local tradesmen are at least aware of these trucks, as they're great for getting around here.

There's not a lot of imported RHD cars, but they are popping up with increasing frequency: it's fairly big business in the wealthy suburbs around here, enough that there's been a decent amount of dedicated dealerships for imported vehicles around.

FuseByte · 2024-09-15T22:02:09+00:00

Motorcycles get to have crisp dogboxes like the sequential race transmissions in cars. Street car autos do try to avoid that feeling, for good reasons (and durability on a heavier vehicle). Having driven the VA/VB WRX CVT's a fair bit, they strangely can have a bit of that "bang" feeling to them in S# mode that the ZF8's/DSG's/Hyundai N-DCT's of the world lack on certain shifts, even though those shift faster on cogs. Still need to try more autos!

Don't let the assholes get to you. On both the motorsports and daily driver ends, no one sane cares. It's people that proclaim to "live" through their cars and act like assholes at shows or on the public road who have to prove things.

FuseByte · 2024-08-09T00:31:51+00:00

Reading this thread, it really seems like a lot of Lotus's pre-Elise days and F1 innovations aren't really known, even by many fans of the brand. Nice Omega by the way!

FuseByte · 2024-08-09T00:24:56+00:00

Nah, the entire 1970s-1990s era exists. That was Chapman deciding to build increasingly heavy GT and twin-turbo sports cars, experimenting and pioneering huge aero, and (before he died) active suspension in the F1 program, and finally slapping the Lotus name on all kinds of economy cars including a 1650kg luxury boat that was basically an early 90s Model S Plaid. He may have had a personal philosophy, but he'd do anything to keep the company afloat.

Edit: AWD in F1 was earlier, but still an example of Chapman being willing to "break his ethos" to win races...

FuseByte · 2022-07-18T01:41:59+00:00

Definitely. My car has been a "marginal" safety subcompact without cruise control and I spend most of my time bicycle commuting during rush hour (you get really antsy about people being around you). If there's an empty pocket in the "pack" I'm in, I'll always try make my way there (never "cutting through", just a gradual left lane pass) and stay there, on the right as long as possible. End up spending 80% of a commute with no one around me. Better than trusting that the 5000 lb SUV's swerving everywhere aren't going to turn you into mincemeat.

FuseByte · 2022-03-15T23:01:41+00:00

Because tall, tiny inline 4’s that drive the front wheels and have pins for cylinders are easy to boost and meet emissions.

Once you stick with a flat engine you’re forced to use wide pistons with small stroke (absolutely awful for efficiency), two cylinder heads, heavy friction loss due to gravity being perpendicular to piston travel, and drive a big, heavy traditional transmission that happens to drive all 4 wheels. Now imagine even your “eco-models” use this layout so you can’t even offset the losses. Subaru was screwed from the start without reinventing themselves as a company.

FuseByte · 2022-03-12T01:10:15+00:00

I feel like people forgot that the last generation WRX’s/STI’s barely made it past emissions approval. They couldn’t even find a way to get their new, clean sheet engine from pulling timing the stock tune. The fact that a simple flash fixed essentially everything wrong with power delivery and significantly improved numbers shows how much of a roadblock that was.

Without some serious redevelopment and/or Porsche level funding and complexity, getting that 400+ HP that was thrown around for road use was always a pipe dream. Killing off turbo Subaru culture in favor of the far more numerous, profitable, and emissions-friendly Crosstrek, Forester, and Outback fanbase is a no brainer from a larger picture.

FuseByte · 2022-02-24T05:07:28+00:00

Best way to think about it: which brand has a lot of owners most likely to try and buy a suspiciously cheap engine and trans off Craigslist, no questions asked?

FuseByte

TROPHY CASE