Is driving fun anymore?

[tokuzumi]

Depends on what you expect out of a fun car. If your expectations are to treat the gas pedal like an on/off switch, do burnouts/donuts, and make constant triple digit highway stints in "Mexico", but live in a severely congested metro area, you are going to have a bad time.

I have an 04 Escalade, and a 1980 280ZX. The Escalade is just a point a to b car. Not quite beater status, but a good 20 footer (90s early 00s American cost cutting quality). My ZX is slow, but is a blast to drive. No power steering, manual transmission, decent handling because 2700 lbs, and the smell of an old car. I can't drive it fast, but it's not meant to be driven fast (let's face it; everything in 1980 was slow). My next dd will be something with some balls, but even with that, I won't drive it 10/10 on public roads.

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[Cueball]

I still like driving but agree it is not as much fun as it used to be. My goal used to be never get passed on the way to work - 30 mile commute. Now, a stop for 30+ mph over the fake speed limit is an arrestable offense. Cops use airplanes to track speed. Radar detector picks up every stupid car with BLIS (hondas, acuras, and audi are terrible). People poke along in the speed lane barely doing the limit. Argh.........

 

[pmr2000]

The old saying might apply here... "more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow!"

 

[Strokerswild]

I get the whole not being able to use the capabilities of a car on public roads. It's one of many reasons I don't have my hopped-up '07 GT500 anymore, totally unusable penis car.

My '15 is near the sweet spot for usable power, and with the right suspension tweaks it's fun to seek out the rural twisties. That's where the fun is for me anyway, since I don't spend time at the dragstrip anymore and it's too dangerous to be top-ending on public roads.

 

[The_Phantom]

The world (more specifically, places like the US, India, China, etc) is becoming overpopulated. That means more people getting their license to drive which means more cars out on the road which means more traffic.

Actually the interest in getting a driver's license and an automobile in general is significantly on the decline.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/driving-the-kids-are-so-over-it-11555732810

I can see why. ALL new cars are far too expensive, traffic sucks, and you can buy a lot of Uber or Lyft rides for the $550/mo car payment most Americans have. Not to mention saving gas/insurance. People say us Millenials are not spending and need to stop being stingy. What they fail to realize is it's the stingy Baby Boomers that pay peanuts for wages that is behind it.

I definitely don't have as much fun as I used to in my car. I like the Mustang, but I too live in Texas and people down here are barely smart enough to remember to breathe in and out, much less drive like a sane person.

 

[Ebm]

Actually the interest in getting a driver's license and an automobile in general is significantly on the decline.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/driving-the-kids-are-so-over-it-11555732810

I can see why. ALL new cars are far too expensive, traffic sucks, and you can buy a lot of Uber or Lyft rides for the $550/mo car payment most Americans have. Not to mention saving gas/insurance. People say us Millenials are not spending and need to stop being stingy. What they fail to realize is it's the stingy Baby Boomers that pay peanuts for wages that is behind it.

I definitely don't have as much fun as I used to in my car. I like the Mustang, but I too live in Texas and people down here are barely smart enough to remember to breathe in and out, much less drive like a sane person.

Darn mouth breathers! If it isn't more people on the roads it must be people are getting dumber. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised lol.

Well, the Fiesta ST is the "winter beater". I had a very cheap winter beater before, and I felt like driving that thing daily for 4-5 months of the year was killing my soul. And I actually think the ST is pretty fun to drive. I like it quite a bit for a little S box.

The Z06 is fun to drive, but not as good as the GT350 in my opinion. It's definitely faster on the street, but it really sucks on the road course compared to the Mustang. That LS engine. It's a chassis car, and I'm an engine guy.

Yeah, I think the Fiesta ST and the Focus ST would be good daily drivers. I can't part with my Jeep as a winter driver and part time driver in the other months because Jeep. Otherwise I would probably have one of the STs as a daily.

 

[StangTime]

Darn mouth breathers! If it isn't more people on the roads it must be people are getting dumber. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised lol.

I believe the problem is compounded and sadly the intelligence in the gene pool is becoming more and more diluted.

 

[bluebeastsrt]

Theres no legal place in America to enjoy these cars capabilities. Sometimes you just gotta be an outlaw. Or go to a race track.

 

[Balr14]

Between the traffic, road conditions and lack of visibility (Field of vision is ALWAYS blocked by SUVs and pickups), I am slowly coming to realize that driving a performance car doesn't make a lot of sense. It's still some fun, but not what it used to be.

 

[UserName]

Toll Road 130..... Should make it fun for you again.

Except for that 15 mile stretch that’s under construction. Lol. I have heard stories of people going 160mph plus on the 130 and even met a guy that said he hit 200 on his bike on a stretch of the 130. I always see a trooper on the tollways so general stick to the script. On-ramps are fun though.

 

[The_Phantom]

I believe the problem is compounded and sadly the intelligence in the gene pool is becoming more and more diluted.

This guy gets it. I agree.

 

[mustang1]

Except for that 15 mile stretch that’s under construction. Lol. I have heard stories of people going 160mph plus on the 130 and even met a guy that said he hit 200 on his bike on a stretch of the 130. I always see a trooper on the tollways so general stick to the script. On-ramps are fun though.

in addition to troopers, there is also potential for feral hogs. Hit one of those at high speed and it will cause a bad day.

 

[nrc]

Anyone can drive a manual on an open road. It takes a real enthusiast to drive one in stop and go traffic. Shifting is fun so more shifting is more fun.

Seriously, I'm glad that traffic is usually moderate on my daily drive and I have a few skidpad cloverleafs and fast sweeper on ramps to keep me entertained. This is why a slow car with good dynamics can be just as entertaining to drive as a fast car with high limits.

I'm trying not to rush life but I'm happy to have found some property at the end of a twisty road in the middle of nowhere that I hope to retire to in about eight years. And then I can buy a GT350 cheap because nobody can be bothered to shift them anymore.

 

[UserName]

in addition to troopers, there is also potential for feral hogs. Hit one of those at high speed and it will cause a bad day.

Oh yeah. When they opened up that stretch south of Austin there were quite a few hogs getting hit. Not my idea of fun.

 

[Andy13186]

I enjoy the hell out of my car on the street, but quite a few laws are broken while doing so. I keep advancetrac on so its not that insane or dangerous but I spin the tires alot while rolling 40 mph. I dont drive fast after merging on the highway but on an on ramp I get a solid 6 second pull up to like 120 pretty often. Just need to know some good safe places to do it and be aware of your surroundings aka... not do it infront of police, or make it a reasonable enough of a location that they may not mind.

Alot of mine is done near a dump with huge open sight lines where you can see if there are other cars or cops or pedestrians or animals within like a half mile.. and nothing to hit. The on-ramp I referred to earlier is seriously like 1/4 mile long on ramp and you can view traffic before going WOT, and its after a bridge that comes from another city so cops usually dont come over the bridge that often.

For top speed runs or roll racing we have a flat 5 mile bridge that you can see for miles down here in Florida, no animals could possibly jump out and you can see if there are cops or pedestrians on it from miles away.. it is heavily surveillance on weekends though even by helicopter or airplane since they know what people do there.

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