Anyone Here Drive A Fast Car?!?

[cockerpunk]

For you. Other people see fast cars as a fun way to get to work or haul groceries. Other people are perfectly content building up a killer custom marker to adorn the walls of their man cave. Or a car to show off in a show or a parking lot. Personally I like building markers for the fun of the build, I prefer to play with off the shelf factory stock markers. What you think is normal might not be for other people.

and this is why we don't get along.

id rather do something, you'd rather own something. one is skills worship, the other is wealth worship.

[boo]

No, it's pride. I would rather baby and worship the things I build. I don't mind destroying the mass produced things a company builds. Those are replaceable, my build is a 1 of 1. It's not wealth worship, it's DIY worship and it's what I value most.

If I wanted a track car I'd let someone else dump their own money tearing apart a car and putting in a cage that passes inspection. I'd be buying it for way less then they put into it and could destroy it with no love lost.

[cockerpunk]

No, it's pride. I would rather baby and worship the things I build. I don't mind destroying the mass produced things a company builds. Those are replaceable, my build is a 1 of 1. It's not wealth worship, it's DIY worship and it's what I value most.

If I wanted a track car I'd let someone else dump their own money tearing apart a car and putting in a cage that passes inspection. I'd be buying it for way less then they put into it and could destroy it with no love lost.

you can buy anything you build. in fact, you can buy even better/nicer things.

why not be proud of of what you have/can do? that cannot be bought.

[boo]

Because I like building stuff more, even if it costs more then what I could buy something for new. I care more about being a unique individual then being competitive. I've accepted long ago I'm never going to be the best at anything, but I still can be unique and true to myself. So I like building more then competing.

When I do anything competitive I don't do it to be good, I do it to have fun. When I reach a level where I plateau I usually hang it up for a while, try something else until I get bored and come back.

[Nobody]

If you want skill, build your car. Not by slapping on bolt ons and changing the parts that are adequate from the factory. I am talking ground up. You want skill, that is skill.

You again deviated and changed the topic. One might say for your own nefarious reasons of getting into arguments. The topic is, "anyone here drive a fast car?". This isn't about skill, or whether acceleration is a better judge of speed versus top end. This isn't about the socio-economic questions of buyi.g versus building. Hell, this isn't even the benefits of forced induction over naturally aspirated engines.

To me, a fast car is any car that can go easily over 100mph. Or any car that has twice the horsepower over a stock engine.

So stay on point here gordo. Maybe you have been taking too many spins on the ice and you are all discombobulated. I know it must be tough to find a DOT crash helmet to fit over that ego of yours...

[boo]

you can buy anything you build. in fact, you can buy even better/nicer things.

why not be proud of of what you have/can do? that cannot be bought.

This is why engineers rarely are inventors. They are convinced that a team of engineers can make anything and everything better then what's made by an individual. Back in the day an engineer was not a degreed profession. If you could build **** and solve mechanical problems you were an engineer.

Now days everything is engineered by a comittee of engineers that went to 4-8 years of theoretical engineering school. A products' worth is only as good as the numbers it tests at.

This is why most things suck now days and why I'd rather build stuff myself. It's also why I became a CS major rather then an engineer, so I could buy tools and toys to tinker with instead of getting into numerical debates on performance with other engineers.

To me after the novelty of tracking a car wears off, it's just an engineering challenge. Trying to think of intellectual ways to save a second of time around the track. If it's fun for you, great! It's just not for me.

[blackdeath1k]

Hey now!!! Not all engineers think like that. But yes. A lot.... Maybe most. Everything I fabricated myself for my dragbike came with the decision of. Can I buy what I want or need? What's the price? And can I build it better for my personal application. Ironically I've got a lot of 1 off parts primarily because either I couldn't buy what I wanted or needed. Or the cost of buying it was so high I couldn't warrant it.

[cockerpunk]

If you want skill, build your car. Not by slapping on bolt ons and changing the parts that are adequate from the factory. I am talking ground up. You want skill, that is skill.

You again deviated and changed the topic. One might say for your own nefarious reasons of getting into arguments. The topic is, "anyone here drive a fast car?". This isn't about skill, or whether acceleration is a better judge of speed versus top end. This isn't about the socio-economic questions of buyi.g versus building. Hell, this isn't even the benefits of forced induction over naturally aspirated engines.

To me, a fast car is any car that can go easily over 100mph. Or any car that has twice the horsepower over a stock engine.

So stay on point here gordo. Maybe you have been taking too many spins on the ice and you are all discombobulated. I know it must be tough to find a DOT crash helmet to fit over that ego of yours...

i did build a car once. formula SAE. currently building another one. woop dee do. if i had the money i'd pay someone to do it hands down.

the title of the thread is "anyone here drive a fast car" emphasis added.

really all that needs to be said

[cockerpunk]

This is why engineers rarely are inventors. They are convinced that a team of engineers can make anything and everything better then what's made by an individual. Back in the day an engineer was not a degreed profession. If you could build **** and solve mechanical problems you were an engineer.

Now days everything is engineered by a comittee of engineers that went to 4-8 years of theoretical engineering school. A products' worth is only as good as the numbers it tests at.

This is why most things suck now days and why I'd rather build stuff myself. It's also why I became a CS major rather then an engineer, so I could buy tools and toys to tinker with instead of getting into numerical debates on performance with other engineers.

To me after the novelty of tracking a car wears off, it's just an engineering challenge. Trying to think of intellectual ways to save a second of time around the track. If it's fun for you, great! It's just not for me.

ironic these statements being made by the very people trying to use numbers to disqualify cars from being fast. lol

this is because you are building your car to go faster, not learning to drive it better and thus go faster. unless you are randy pobst, someone else can drive your car faster around a track than you can. that means you don't need to buy more parts to go faster, you need to learn how to drive better. its not an engineer your in need of, its driving lessons.

[boo]

Racing = geometry and physics done really fast. After you figure that out its just developing the muscle memory over many years til you get too old that your muscle memory begins to decline. It's not the end all be all.

And to most of us its pretty boring buying a car that performs in the average salaryman's muscle memory around a track. It puts most of us in the range of a boring econohatch or a Miata, neither of which are fast cars, even when driven fast.

I think we all know what a fast car is, you know it when you see it. We don't need to do engineering mental math to figure it out. Just like we don't need to do engineering tests under controlled conditions (racing against the clock around a track) to enjoy a fast car.

[cockerpunk]

Racing = geometry and physics done really fast. After you figure that out its just developing the muscle memory over many years til you get too old that your muscle memory begins to decline. It's not the end all be all.

And to most of us its pretty boring buying a car that performs in the average salaryman's muscle memory around a track. It puts most of us in the range of a boring econohatch or a Miata, neither of which are fast cars, even when driven fast.

I think we all know what a fast car is, you know it when you see it. We don't need to do engineering mental math to figure it out. Just like we don't need to do engineering tests under controlled conditions (racing against the clock around a track) to enjoy a fast car.

wow, so where is your WEC LMP1 trophy case then?

lol

[boo]

Short of rally x which has very uncontrolled conditions I think it's mind numbingly boring watching people race the clock over and over, and after a certain point it gets boring to do. Eventually most people sack up and race other people. Funds willing.

Of course racing against other people you are definitely going to destroy your car, so it really has to be a car you don't care about.

[cockerpunk]

Short of rally x which has very uncontrolled conditions I think it's mind numbingly boring watching people race the clock over and over, and after a certain point it gets boring to do. Eventually most people sack up and race other people. Funds willing.

your point?

[boo]

your point?

That's most of what you've posted, both cars and video, is pretty boring. Even for car people. While you might think it's interesting, it's not for most of us.

I enjoy seeing pics of a cool engine swap or a built up streetcar a lot more then seeing slow cars race the clock. It's what I'd expect from this thread.

Again, it's like how I'd rather see vids of someone ripping 30+bps on a sweet custom mag in a backyard then watching some noob run around the field with a stock Tippman. Now maybe if it was 2 PSP teams playing each other with Tippmanns it would be interesting. But it would still be outside of the context of "who has a fast marker".

Unless its a Miata with a V8 swap I'm really not interested in seeing it here. I know the engineer in you cringes at these backyard basterdizations, but I find them amazingly fascinating.

[cockerpunk]

That most of what you've posted, both cars and video is pretty boring, even for car people. While you might think it's interesting, it's not for most of us. I enjoy seeing pics of a cool engine swap or a built up streetcar a lot more then seeing slow cars race the clock.

right, because as you've established you'd rather own something, than do something.

so, logically, videos of folks doing things, are less interesting than pictures of things people own.

it all makes sense.

but cars are for driving, paintball equipment is for playing paintball. you can invent any kind of other "game" to play with them, but we already did that, its called racing, and paintball. why bother making up your own imaginary games, when we have actual games to play?

Answer: if you don't have the skill to win the actual game, invent your own game and rules so you can win every time!

and im not saying that i don't have preferences too, about what is cool and what isn't, i just don't attempt subjugate reality to my preferences. or make excuses for them. i don't need silly rules about what is fast or not, a fast car is one that beats a field of cars under the same rule book. whether that car is cool or not, makes no difference. the clock doesn't lie, the clock doesn't care how much forum cred you have, or how much power your car put down on the dyno. its really very simple.

reminds me of this EPIC rant on stance and why its dumb. which boils down to there is an established point to these things, be they cars or paintball equipment. and while there are other things, like how they look, how cool they are, etc, the point is pretty straightforward. and the only reason to make those other things the primary point, is because a person or group can't compete in the real point of the game, be it racing or paintball.