What is your definition of the most fun you can have in a car? As a kid, I dreamed of the chance to drive a Lamborghini Countach. To hear the noise of twelve angry Italian cylinders shouting at Ferraris each time they fired up. Only to then want a Ferrari F40, which I still consider to be the pinnacle of automotive achievement. Or perhaps to slide behind the wheel of a Porsche 959 to get the feeling that when you add classic design and the latest (for the early 90's anyway) engineering, you come away with something so technically marvelous that it defies belief. Over 200mph? In 1986? Wow, wow, wow. I chased the supercar dream right up until about last year. Then I saw the light.
The realization hit me hard - perhaps with more power since it was completely unexpected. It began to dawn on me that I really like driving at the limit of my tires' adhesion. Right at that point where they are just starting to lose their grip around a turn. Street tires squeal and whine at that moment, or just before. Race tires make no sound, but you suddenly find yourself using the steering to correct the attitude of the car to prevent a spin. You don't know if the front will slide more or the back. So you have to feel the grip and be in tune with your car to understand what might happen, how fast, and what you need to do to make it through the turn. And the best part? Being right on this edge is often the fastest way to get around turns.
The inherent problem with this focus on being at-the-limit is that you can't be in that zone much on the street - in a supercar. Even in an aggressive sports car, my Targa 4 as one example, the grip level is so high that you need to be traveling far too fast for the road to induce some slip. It's dangerous on the street and not recommended. And at a circuit, truly sliding your car through turns is not illegal, but you'd better get it right so as not to end up in a barrier or a wall. In a car with very high limits, you have to get to rather high speeds in the corners to enjoy some slip angle - and those speeds often bring fear into the equation, which can enhance fun at times, but often limits it a bit. Getting to the point of fun without the fear - well, that's just pure fun!
How can we get to the limit, stay there, enjoy it, and maybe even do it at low enough speeds to not need a dedicated circuit? Let's count the ways.
Driving in the wet - rain reduces the available traction by lubricating the road for us. Right when rain starts, oils in the road often rise up to the surface, making it extra slippery (just ask motorcycle riders when it is most slippery!). I love driving in the wet. If you haven't read, "The Art of Racing in the Rain," you should.
Driving in the snow - snow and ice really reduce the coefficient of friction on the road's surface to the point of hilarity at times. Performance tires are pretty much useless in the snow and just spin, getting no grip to speak of. Dedicated snow tires are so good now that you get really good grip on cold, icy roads. When there is a covering of snow, though, even snow tires will provide some good sliding. All-season tires get some grip and may be the best if you really want to slide around on a regular basis. In deep snow, they may meet their match and be little better than summer tires. Generally, driving in the snow is some of the best driving out there if you're doing it for fun and no one else is on the road. Just don't get things too sideways as there are plenty of obstacles to contend with. Lime Rock Park, the circuit in CT, added snow making machines last year to get their track to be snow-covered reliably in the winter. I never made it to a snow event, but maybe this year!
But the most reliable, non-weather dependent way to have fun sliding a car without fear of the local constabulary or mowing down your neighbor's petunias? Drive a car with lower limits. Why drive a car that won't slide until you hit 90mph in a 30mph corner? Who needs to get to 100 in under 6 seconds? Those numbers are mind-blowing, but on the street, they are actually robbing us of fun. And taking our money. A simple car on mediocre (safe but not "high performance") tires, might just be the best way to have the most fun, assuming you are like me. You can slide at 35mph in the 30mph corner. You have to work for every bit of speed you want, shifting constantly. You must drive a good line to conserve your momentum through a corner because you can't just mash the loud pedal to catch back up with traffic. And you can have 20 cars (not that my wife would let me) for the price of a supercar. A car that is not from the pantheon of automotive lust might just be what you were looking for all along - if you love driving at the limit. And I am now firmly in that camp. I have seen the light.
I went to prove out this theory on a circuit - at ADSI's autocross at Quonset Point on an empty runway this past Sunday. As many of you know, I've been tinkering with my 1986 Porsche 944 or my Miata-made-by-Porsche, as I like to call it, getting it ready for just this sort of adventure. I've updated many of the basic systems on the car just to get it back to what it felt like when it was new. I have aggressive tires for it but I took those off in favor of old all-seasons on phone dial wheels deliberately for the purpose of reducing the car's limits. I wanted to be at the edge of adhesion as much as I could for as long as I could. And you know what? I am proud to say I succeeded admirably. I really wanted a rear-wheel-drive car, with balance, and I think I chose well.
Our first drill of the day was the slalom - but instead of 4 cones in a row, there were about 12. This may be my new second favorite (second to the shoestring drill, my absolute favorite). It's simple. You just drive around a bunch of cones that are arranged in a straight line with your car alternating sides between each cone. Left, right, left, right. But do it as fast as your car can go. And develop a rhythm. Get the timing right. Slide the tires a little. Or a lot. And then you're having great fun. Keep pushing the car and your skills a bit more each time. What a blast! And when you are through the cones, pitch the car sideways at 60mph or so. Hilarious amounts of skidding. With an open runway, why not?
Then we drove sections of the overall autocross course. Also great fun when you can reach the limits of your tires without going so fast that you lose precision. Losing grip at slow speeds means that you still see the cones - you can drive precisely. And if you hit a cone, you won't hurt your car since you are not going that fast.
For all of you who may be thinking, "my car isn't good enough to go racing." I say hogwash. You may have the best car for the job right now! With all amateur racing, you aren't winning money or prestige or fame by putting in fast times. Your ego may want the bragging rights of fastest-time-of-the-day (FTOD), but are you the best driver? If, like me, you are there for fun and learning, the best way to learn and have the most fun is by driving at the limit for as much time as you can. Personally, I got more smiles per gallon from my old, somewhat rickety, cheap car than I have from my cars that cost much, much more. And at the end of it all, enjoyment is the reward I was looking for all along.
Would I pass up a drive in a Countach? No way. An F40? That sound still gives me goosebumps and I'd give a limb for a drive in one. A 959? Let me at it. But do I see those as life-goals anymore? No, not really. I'm actually living my goals of having massive fun in cars - and without the massive investment - right now by driving cars with lower limits. I love my old car on old tires. It makes me smile every time I drive it. Pitching it into a turn at rational speeds, legally, on roads I can drive anytime - well, it's honestly the best. No fear, only fun.
I don't want to dissuade anyone from owning amazing cars. I do still love them very much. They are gorgeous and make amazing noises. But I hope they get driven to their limits at some point - since that was and is their raison d'être. The supercars all wanted to be the best. But at some point, they seem to have left the driver behind. They escaped the bounds of laws and roads and normal humans and became objects that required race tracks. Some even defy race tracks to reach their ultimate limits. They became "willy waving" trophies instead of serious driving machines. They became more art than experience. It's like me having an Apollo rocket in the garage (don't tell my wife - kidding, Dear. Really! The deal fell through.).
So I encourage you all to dig and discover exactly what you like about cars and driving as I have done and find the right compromise for you. And then bring that thing that makes you happy to ADSI on Sunday 11/22. And let's see who can get the most smiles per gallon!!