[baege]

I've come to realize I am really all about the drivetrain when it comes to cars.

As a non track guy, I can appreciate a car that handles well, but am not tuned into the finer points.

I am like "this car handles well" and that's about the extent of my sophistication went it comes to handling

for me it's all about the drivetrain, specifically a smooth naturally aspirated motor with good throttle response and low end torque and a nice manual transmission, that is what matters most to me

for example, I went from a 350Z to a crossfire and while the 350Z definitely handled better, I was happy with the move because the 3.2 in the crossfire was much smoother than the 3.5 in the 350Z and I enjoyed the car more overall because of that.

I have driven lots of different porsches with all sorts of different suspension set ups and honestly the ones with the all the handling goodies like PTV, PASM, sport chrono etc don't feel much different than the ones without those goodies to me as I take an on ramp

but I can definitely appreciate the difference between a naturally aspirated car with a good manual and throttle response, over a turbo car with DCT and lag

and I would pick the NA car any day over the turbo DCT if even the turbo handled way better

curious where most people land on this

[chassis]

Not "all about" either.

I am mostly a drivetrain person, and handling is important. And ride.

Adjustable air suspension gives the best ride and handling combination in my experience, for a daily. For example a mid-size performance-oriented SUV.

Drivetrain needs to have adequate power (I am not a full-on ///M or AMG person) with smooth linear delivery. Lately it seems weird transmission shift programming, and clunkiness in AWD and axle systems have crept into the industry across models and brands. Examples are MB 7G- and 9G-Tronic drivetrains and the latest Cayenne.

[///MPhatic]

I picked handling, but it's only because I'm not so focused on power (which a lot of guys here seem to be). With this car it's all about fun/tossability to me, not really handling or power.

With my Lotus it's all about handling.

With my daily RDX it's all about comfort.

So it depends on the car, and IMO this car is best when it's being used as a "fun" car, meaning how it wiggles around every corner and paints black stripes easily.

[dreamingat30fps]

As always with these types of questions... depends.

What is the car for? Is it my fun car? A daily driver? Where will I drive it and in what circumstances? In FL it's pretty much drivetrain for me... there's nothing to "handle" around here. Probably didn't even think of handling until I started traveling to mountain roads.

For a daily driver to commute etc drivetrain and comfort all day. For a fun car to drive on fun roads... handling. Also I think there is more range in drivetrain differences than there is in handling. A lot of cars handle well enough that I can't personally tell the difference. Maybe if I push them to the limit on a track or something more differences would come out, but at my limit a lot of cars handle well to me.

[///MPhatic]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

In FL it's pretty much drivetrain for me... there's nothing to "handle" around here.

No way I could be happy in a place like that.

Sidewinder. by Andrew Thompson, on Flickr

Maximus. by Andrew Thompson, on Flickr

Apex. by Andrew Thompson, on Flickr

The End of Autumn. by Andrew Thompson, on Flickr

Eyes on Fire. by Andrew Thompson, on Flickr

[baege]

Originally Posted by dreamingat30fps

As always with these types of questions... depends.

What is the car for? Is it my fun car? A daily driver? Where will I drive it and in what circumstances? In FL it's pretty much drivetrain for me... there's nothing to "handle" around here. Probably didn't even think of handling until I started traveling to mountain roads.

For a daily driver to commute etc drivetrain and comfort all day. For a fun car to drive on fun roads... handling. Also I think there is more range in drivetrain differences than there is in handling. A lot of cars handle well enough that I can't personally tell the difference. Maybe if I push them to the limit on a track or something more differences would come out, but at my limit a lot of cars handle well to me.

fair point!
I am talking about the car that you bought for enjoyment, what do you care most about the handling or the drivetrain?

[Germanauto]

Handling for sure. A light nimble car that enjoys being thrown around corners, having quick and communicative steering, etc. is what brings me the most joy.

Ofc the ultimate goal is to have both.

[Humdizzle]

you can usually have most of both. plenty of good handling, lightweight, manual/dct cars out there. but getting that last piece of the pie with a good sounding engine (flat 6, v8, v10) is the hard part. i would pick lightweight most of the time though. 4000 lb v8 car vs 3200 pound 6 cylinder... i'd take the lighter car.

[ShocknAwe]

Can't live your life in the extremes. Give me a small car on the lighter end of things with a nice tail happy drivetrain. Good mix.

[pbonsalb]

99.99% of my driving is not on a track or sparsely populated mountain, canyon or other windy roads so the drivetrain is more interesting to me. I had a manual E90 M3 for 10 years and modified it and enjoyed it, but have no regrets about moving on to an F90 M5 that I have also modified for more power and better handling. The AWD puts more of the power down under more circumstances and the auto trans is very well tuned. It is a great all around car — fast, handles decently, comfortable, big enough to carry a lot with the seats down, good winter driver with the AWD and all seasons or snows (I have both on wheels as well as summers on wheels), and my average over the las couple of years is 21 mpg combined. I also have a smaller and lighter and highly modified E36 M3, but don’t drive it much any more.

[tturedraider]

I’m not all about either. I’m all about both. I am definitely all about the inline six and I suppose some might say since I’ve chosen an F30 I must not be all about handling, but I don’t see it that way and, thankfully, BMW did improve the handling pretty substantially with the F30 LCI, which is why, in addition to the B58 motor, I would only consider an LCI F30. I came from an E46 ZHP and an E90 330i sport pkg and I just don’t have any kind of significant problem with the LCI F30 with the 704 M Sport suspension. Back to the powertrain. I did specifically choose the 2006 E90 330i, because I wanted the naturally aspirated N52 with the upgraded three stage induction system. And I chose to go to an F30 because I wanted the B58 and ZF8 powertrain combination.

[Alfisti]

Assuming you're talking about a car you want to hustle, it will depend on the roads. The GTA is a burial ground for sharp handling cars. Arrow straight roads in appalling condition. If I ever sell my toy car it won't be due to the car itself, it'll be because the roads are so shite.

[Donatello.]

Both. That's why I have a Miata & a Hellcat

[pbonsalb]

Originally Posted by Donatello.

Both. That's why I have a Miata & a Hellcat

Which one do you drive more and how much more?

[Donatello.]

Originally Posted by pbonsalb

Which one do you drive more and how much more?

Really depends on the weather. Top down weather & I don't need the room of the Hellcat? I'll take Miata.

Going somewhere I don't like the parking situation? Neither lol.

This is Miata #6 for me. Picked it up this past summer. I've definitely driven that more than the Hellcat so far.

[nicholasn]

Gotta be a balance. I just rebuilt the front suspension on my CBR and set it firmer than it was prior to taking it apart. Handling was noticeably sharper than before, but it was agonizingly stiff and punishing even on the smallest imperfections in the road. So I dialed it back slightly, and it's not as ridiculously razor sharp now but it still handles well. Is it as flickable as the 300 I had previously? No, but that had a third as much power and felt really slow on the road. Same applies to cars.

[baege]

damn, it's pretty much a landSLIDE so far

[Donatello.]

Needs to be a 3rd option for both

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by baege

fair point!
I am talking about the car that you bought for enjoyment, what do you care most about the handling or the drivetrain?

It's a miata so I guess handling. Again I think most sporty cars I would buy for fun handle well enough for me anyways. The more I think about it the harder it gets. I can see not wanting a car if the handling was very poor, but I would equally not want a car with a shit drivetrain, lots of turbo lag, slow revving etc.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by baege

fair point!
I am talking about the car that you bought for enjoyment, what do you care most about the handling or the drivetrain?

Every car I buy is for enjoyment...

[dreamingat30fps]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

Every car I buy is for enjoyment...

Sure every car I buy is for my enjoyment, but not for my driving enjoyment. In fact some cars I buy because I enjoy driving as little as possible.

[Higgs Boson]

neither, I don't even like cars.