Handling is sadly overlooked by most people. Most don't understand that handling is just as important as power if not more when it comes to driving. Just my $0.02
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It is MotorSport Ranch. I was out there many years ago shortly after the track opened. One of the employees took me around in his Fort Contour SVT in the rain. It was an eye opening experience.

I just want to go with someone who has track experience. I'm looking at a driving school that uses the track as well.

 

as they said about the F4 Phantom, with enough thrust, you can make a brick fly.

IS-F is a sedan and its just too big and heavy to handle like the S2000 no matter what kind of suspension has on it.

I had an IS350 that got to be very boring and uninspiring to drive (mainly because I don't need a 4 door car...if I did it might be a different story).

 

For me HP in a car means nothing if the car's chassis itself can't handle it. Anyone can drop a high HP engine in a car and use a ton of electronic aids to keep the car on the road. My example would be try turning off all or as much of the electronic traction control aids on a car and see how easy or hard it is to drive aggressively. If you spin out or feel like you are going to kill yourself than the cars chassis and suspension couldn't handle the power in the first place. I also go back to my experience in the NSX. I have never had the cars traction control come on and I drove that car more aggressive than any other car I've owned simply because I could and it felt good doing so.

IMHO, certain cars are built to be a drivers experience even if it doesn't have high HP. What those cars do is offer superb balance and utilize all its HP and leaves nothing to waste. Other cars have high HP engines, but the car itself could never utilize it because the electronic aids would kick in since the car would be undrivable without it. Those cars are good for 0-60 and 1/4 runs and good for merging into freeway traffic which is a good thing, but you probably wont get the same enjoyment on the curvy roads.

 

"Fun to drive" is always a subjective matter.

 

What he said. And by no means is there a single answer for anyone for any time period. There are cars that go fast. There are cars that "feel" like they are going fast but are actually slower. And there are some times and people that have fun when planting their foot at a stop light. There are times when carving a canyon is fun. There are times when having enough power to merge without feeling like you are going to die makes you feel safe and secure. There are times when driving a twisty road and easily doing the speed limit with traffic without having to work makes you feel safe and secure. A whole lot of us here have "been there, done that" with all of those.

The world is different than when I was young enough to really enjoy cars off road. Except then there weren't "track days" there were races. And anyone who doesn't tell you that race car development is a constant oscillation between power and handling is either a boob or is just lying. When your car handles well, you want more power. When you get more power, the car doesn't handle as well. Ultimately you get going pretty fast. But you are watching your progess relative to the competition and the stop watch. That is fun to some folks. On the street, fast and fun are not often related. Personally, I would have to go along with the comments about light weight making a car fun to drive. Sure, a supercar is fast but that speed places more demands and makes the car less forgiving, not more. Light weight ultimately, at least for me, makes a car more forgiving. So when you are having fun and cross right over to stupid you have a better chance of getting away without a big repair bill in the light weight car than the faster car.

But ultimately, it really is personal preference. And not only is that different for all of us, it isn't even constant over time. Urban traffic doesn't make driving fun no matter what logo is on the steering wheel.

 

Depends on what you want I guess.
When I test drove the IS 250 and 330i, I found the acceleration unsatisfying.

 

I agree with you on that. In my opinion, more power = more fun, for a short while, people will always yearn for something else after they've gotten what they wanted. It all boils down to personal decision of what is "fun". People with high horsepower cars most likely take off while getting onto the freeway, and take ramps, etc. fast if they have the suspension to handle it.

 

Certainly a lack of power can make a car miserable to drive.

 

This is an easy question.

More power always equals more fun, until there's so much power that you can't get traction or it's too hard to control.

*Handling and braking must be proportionately increased.

To the OP: You can't compare a tossable car like the S2000 to the IS-F on a twisty back road - a small nimble car will always be more confidence inspiring. A better comparison would be a regular S2000 vs. a supercharged one. Guess which is more fun?

 

What could be more fun and ego-massaging than hearing/feeling/experience that big engine roar as you crank it to 65 MPH?

 

Putting gas in the tank at $5/gal.

 

Thing to note: Bimmers are different. I've been doing a lot of Bimmer driving recently, and the thing I've noticed every time I get into one is that I feel right at home right away. The Lexus on the other hand did take me a while to feel at home.

As for the power/fun q: It's already been said I think, when you're at the car's limit & going hard it is no doubt a very satisfying feeling depending on what kind of driving you're doing. Being at the edge will always feel more fun because pushing limits gives a bit of a rush (like breaking the rules when you were a kid, doing something you probably shouldn't and getting away with it).

 

^^^ How's the M3 shopping going anyway?

 

Cabinetman, I agree with you, it is Fun to push a machine to the max, but not as fun when you feel that machine is pushing you to go faster than you feel is prudent. Thrilling yes but not as fun. Before I bought my car in 2003 I drove every new car I could want as a daily driver including every Porsche made. To this day my Boxster S is the funniest car I have ever driven. The 911's from GT2 on down have greater performance potential but not really usable on public roads.

Many professional auto journalists choose vintage traditional sports cars (MG,triumph, Austin healy, mini cooper) as their fun car

after test driving a Viper for 30 minutes I never wanted to drive one on public roads again