Team-BHP - sport car suspensions

while i can understand the logic of buying an SUV like the Cayenne and ML320 for mumbai roads where exactly does one drive a Ferrari or 911/944? I saw a yellow Ferrari (360?) at JW some time back and a red 944 etc...but what got me thinking was this red 355 that was strugling to get out of 1st gear all the way from 7 bungalows to somewhere near lokhandwala in andheri sunday (29th Aug) eve.

I really felt sorry for the driver. Besides how does one negotiate speedbreakers and potholes in these machines.

whoa u seen it too on Sun. I saw the 355 on the 4-Bungalows - Lokhandwala road too. BTW thats Spidermans Ferrari.
Anyways talkin about roads for the 355/360 (i dont know abt the Porsche guy), but Spiderman is one guy who makes a race track out of normal roads. And i'm sure Sports cars suspension are tuned for Indian roads before they are got into the country.

wouldn't that apply to any car that is capable of 0-100kmph under 5 secs and having a groud clearance of less than 100mm?

i have seen potholes that measured more than 100mm deep (easy to do when they are full of water) and am sure there are "speed breakers" that are higher than 100mm too.

Hey Navin,

Well, about the 360 & 355.... (im not sure abt the 355) but i have heard that the 360 suspension has been raised a bit for india...it seems kinda noticeable at times as well.
Secondly, the 360 and 355 are pretty much driven ONLY along specific routes, which mostly dont have speedbreakers... i donno about that side of town..but all the way from mahim to regal there is only one speedbreaker, and thats IF you choose to go via worli seaface. Plus, i have seen the spidey take the 355 over the speedbreaker there...and he does it diagnally, one wheel at a time...(kinda like the way you are supposed to correctly cross a trench when off roading).

When its not the monsoon the roads really arent too bad, if you stick to known stretches. But in the monsoon i donno how these guys have the b**ls to take out their prancing horses.... once about a month back, when the roads were at their worst i saw a 348TS doing 40-50km/h on marine drive....MY heart was in my mouth as to if he hit a pothole!! (however he did find one good stretch of road and FLOOR it and left me far far behind

)

Also, dont forget that guys who own 360s and 355s here own f50s abroad. Guys who own S2000s and elises here own diablos and 360s abroad..etc etc etc....

Have money, will fly.

cya
R

i know the 355 i saw had to do a U turn because the driver might have known of a sppedbreaker ahead. i drive mahim to regal often and yes i dont remember ANY speedbreakers on that route. in fact i seem to notice that there are many more per km in the 'burbs (north of mahim). why? are surburbian drivers more rash? funny the 'burbs have more potholes per km too. maybe if we move mantralya to BKC this will change!

lastly maybe i should let u guys in on a small secret...i used to drive some reasonably fast cars in the 80s (928S, 308GTB, Formula Nissan). Even took a SAAB 900 turbo down the Taconic at 80mph+ (i called white knuckle driving - an analogy to white river rafting). State Troopers would sit on the shoulder and beam me but not dare chase. I guess post 9-11 and DWI/DWUI laws and political correctness and all that nonsense all this might have changed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (navin @ Aug. 31 2004,17:39)]maybe if we move mantralya to BKC this will change!

Absolutely!....its amazing how the road from malabar hill to the mantralaya is PERFECT, and as soon as you take the right from matralaya towards YB chavan it gets pathetic!

Quote:

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]
i used to drive some reasonably fast cars in the 80s (928S, 308GTB, Formula Nissan).

oooh...tell us more...some pics also!

Quote:

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]white knuckle

Now thats a term i hear a lot (especially in the snow), i know what it implies...what what does it mean? where did it originate from??

cya
R

ps - also tell you nephew abt TBHP!

white water rafting - when water is turbulent it foams and looks white. white water or white river rafting is a adventure sport that orginated in Europe and moved to the US. My fav. spot was Mad rRiver Glen however parts of the Colorado are considered absolute nirvana. white knuckle driving was a figment of my mind. when you are stressed and you clench your fist hard you will notice the tops of th knuckles loos colour. white knuckle driving refers to your date's (or other passenger's) knuckles. If you have white knuckles while driving you are gonna get hurt.

as far as white and snow are concerned these terms were often slang for powdered and "cut" cocaine. check out Black Sabbath's Snowblind ot learn more.

todl him. he is not a true car nut. he likes expensive cars like anyone else but cant tell a tranmission from a gear knob. not to worry. i just subscribed to a mag that is offering a DIY 1:24 scale kit of some sports car. Once i get that i will show my son the innards of a car. He (my son) loves to go to the National Garage service station in Santa Cruz and see cars being repaired. Lets hope he keeps that up for a few more years.

i drove Formula Nissan at a track called Lime Rock in CT, USA the othe cars were friend's cars. The SAAB was my ex boss's.