Fast Forward To 1:42 to the actual discussion :


One interesting point made in the videos is that it may be companies like Toyota ( with its GT86) who are returning to the basics of what made driving fun, rather than the usual suspects like Ferrari and Porsche.

I also loved that one of the hosts basically said : "Horsepower has become a consolation prize for the lack of driver involvement and feedback in modern cars."

Captured my thoughts exactly about this obsession with V8s and straight line torque especially in North America. Could this particularly American phenomenon be an unconscious attempt to make up for the latent dissatisfaction modern drivers feel about the numbness and disconnectedness of their high performance road cars? So they throw more power at their cars and go faster in an attempt to recreate the thrill they would have otherwise felt in an older, slower, less powerful but more feelsome car?

Which is why I applaud Lexus/Toyota for reversing the trend to ever larger/heavier cars in the new 4th Gen GS and the GT86.

 

i also applaud lexus and toyota in recent years for stepping back and think clearly again what driving is about and how to achieve that. the lfa, the frs, and even the 4gs are great illustration of that. they focused on weight, size, dynamics, steering, etc... it really brings back a lot of the driving excitements. i have yet to drive the frs but so far all the reviews are very positive on the driving part. lfa i don't think i need to say more, fantastic piece of driving machine. the 4gs is probably the most "surprising" one, given it's a mid-size sedan, but lexus really transformed it into a great driving machine.

regarding v8, sorry but i have to disagree. the thing is, outside of the US, i agree that v8 power might not be all that necessary because of the city infrastructure. i mean, in singapore, you can't even get to drive that fast (i am from hong kong, i know). same with most asian countries. same with a lot of places (city type driving) in europe. all that coupled with gas prices too.

however in the US? by comparison speed is quite a bit faster. going 80-100mph isn't all that hard to "achieve" so to speak, and even cruising at 80+ is pretty much daily for a lot of people. at those speed, power and smoothness can get more demanding and that's where v8 comes in.

at least to me, it's very obvious. i have had gs400, sc430, ls460l, m3, and now s550. the v8 power (tq) totally gets me the smooth and ride quality i am looking for in a luxury car. i have also had gs350, power and performance wise is actually very similar to a lot of the cars i have had. however both me and my wife never enjoy the power and ride. the car can be fast, but not the kind of smoothness and quietness. we had to work the car much harder to get what we "needed".

that, is a big difference