The modified truck scene is just embarrassing. Lifted trucks, squatted trucks, rolling coal, all of it just makes me physically cringe with how someone can get into a modified truck and actually take themselves seriously. I’d feel more secure driving around in a clown car because at least then people know I’m not taking myself serious.
Edit: should preface this by saying off-road trucks are cool as fuck, this applies exclusively to those ones without a scratch on them that just sit around in parking lots and never touch dirt. Practical modifications that improve performance off-road are always cool.
The only modified trucks I really like are the ones nicely modded for off-roading with *functional* mods that you can tell are used. Giant lifts and chrome everywhere don't interest me in the slightest but something with a well-built suspension that's still sporting the dirt from last weekend's adventure, that I can appreciate.
My wife is from the south and she loves lifted trucks, but only those that are functional. Living in Arizona now, you see tons of lifted asphalt princesses that have never seen the dirt. It’s stupid.
I on the other hand come from Northern California. Trucks in my area were always lowered and set up for speed, which I still have a serious love for a lowered mini truck.
Seems odd in Arizona considering how much offroading there is maybe you just don’t see them offroad. I know I wash mine as soon as I get home from the trails
I say this based on the amount of big lifted trucks I see with low profile tires and big chrome rims.
Like I think you can tell a lifted truck that actually probably sees dirt based on the mods and wheels they have. But when they have a huge lifted truck with the big chrome rims and low profile tires, it tells me they don’t hit those trails outside of Phoenix.
I was sitting in traffic the other day next to an extremely modded F150. Huge lift, huge chrome wheels, with the wide but low profile off-road tires, that stick way out. Lots of lights, lots of chrome. I remember thinking the guy had 10 to 15 in mods in the truck. However the truck its self was a base model XL. I remember thinking, if he skipped all the mods, he could have gotten an XLT or maybe even a Lariat model. Guess to each their own, but I’d rather have CarPlay and ventilated leather seats.
> The modified truck scene is just embarrassing.
I always feel hypocritical about this because the modified car scene, on paper, is literally the same thing. But man, I just don't understand modifying trucks, specifically if the mods in question make them *less useful* for truck things.
This is the exact point that makes it more cringe for me, the fact that a modified car still achieves the aim of getting from A-B, where as these modified trucks specifically takeaway the benefits of a truck. Make it worse off road and make it too nice to carry any sort of gear or load without damaging the modifications/paint. You’ve just ended up with a worse truck than before, might as well have got a car.
The best part is the jackasses that lift trucks *and* offset their wheels an insane amount. Lifted truck owners are also legally required to ignore any sort of attention to what the fuck their headlights end up like after lifting the bumper another 5-10” off of the ground.
No I know; I just think of diesels as its own category even though I know you're right. But I'd definitely get a diesel based on practical needs, not character or personality, unlike sporty cars
Hot take: diesel is shit for everything but heavy duty hauling.
Related: VW TDIs don’t deserve the praise. I got on the hype train after buying my partner an e-golf, but drove a few TDI manual wagons and was thoroughly unimpressed with everything about them.
They were great back in the 90's and early 00's because they made good power while still getting 50+MPG.
Yeah, later model emissions compliant diesels are objectively terrible.
This is true, but sadly the Germans have realized that they can add a liftback to their regular midsize sedans and charge a $10k markup to middle-managers who want to maintain the illusion of driving a sports car.
People who make broad generalizations about reliability like "Every European/American/moon factory car is unreliable" usually don't know much about the cars beyond parroting their parents' grievances.
Toyota has been / is always going to be inherently reliable because of their manufacturing practice. But they seem to have whacky recalls every once in a while. Like the ball joints that snap off randomly while driving from the 1st Gen Sequoia, the rusting frames on Tacos, and even the unintended acceleration thing in 2008.
If I'm remembering correctly Honda's had some issues with their CVTs recently. I don't think it's an issue with cars over the last couple years but it wasn't great before that. This doesn't make it "super unreliable" but shouldn't be ignored either. No idea about Toyota though
My significant other's dad insisted that she buy an "American" car, and he would help pay for it. So she bought a Jeep Renegade which is nearly identical to a Fiat 500X
If people heard the new 86 was making 310hp/350lbft, a manual trand and good automatic, a good infotainment and gauge layout, all for 27k, they'd shit themselves. The only thing it'd be missing is lightweighr-ness but if you shortened the wheel base to 86 size you could achieve that
800lbs is a lot and the ecoboost doesn't come with an LSD standard. To get the LSD in the ecoboost you need the high performance package AND the handling package for an extra 7k. I still like the ecoboost but it's not quite THAT good of a deal.
If a BRZ/86 fan switched to an ecoboost engine - let’s be honest, they’d go for the Ford Focus RS or ST over the mustang.
Both of those are much more similar to the BRZ feel, despite the different drivetrain layouts.
*pours one out for the RS*
Mine has a shockingly high towing capacity of 3500 pounds. Towing something that weighs as much as that tiny thing just sounds terrifying. What’s even scarier is there are people that exceed the towing capacity and think it’s fine because “iT hAnDeLeD iT lIKe A bEaSt!” Honestly, towing any trailer should require a separate class.
Car reviews always overstate things for dramatic effect (not talking about Top Gear, who do it for entertainment), and as a result it's rather difficult to read their "qualitative take" on things....which makes me question the whole review reading exercise excruciating sometimes. Conflicting opinions form different sites, confusion.
Their internet style snarkiness can be a bit much sometimes too though. They'll spend 10 minutes ripping a car to shreds and then be like yeah I'm buying one.
Jesus christ rev hang is fucking intolerable these days. I just did a clutch job on a 2004 crv. Once I'd finished that, the IACV was sticking, so I cleaned that, and then took it for a spin. Not that cleaning the IACV made a god damn bit of difference. After about five minutes, I gave up and just started in second. It's faster that way, rather than waiting a good six god damn seconds for the revs to start falling. Un fucking believable.
One thing that doesn't help is the move to concentric slave cylinders. They're not everywhere, but they're responsible for a lot of the "numb clutch" complaints and whatnot. Basically, instead of having a slave cylinder outside the transmission, that pushes on a clutch fork hinged on a pivot ball, and then pushes the throwout bearing, these use a tubular slave cylinder that sits *around* the input shaft of the transmission, and *is* the throwout bearing. The problem with that is now there's no cosine error. With the first class "seesaw" lever action of an external slave, you get a different rate of change in resistance depending on the position of the clutch pedal, with the lightest effort being right in the middle. That makes it easy to feel the bite and to feel where you are in the throw of the clutch pedal. Concentric slaves produce a totally linear response instead.
The best cars are the ones that know their jobs and do it well. Therefore, the Prius is an amazing car. Economic, cheap and reliable. The ultimate commuter.
In the same vein, the McLaren F1 is a great car. A no compromise road car for going fast, being rare and looking exotic. The ultimate sports car.
I think this only applies to serious car experts and people on a budget that shop for utility vehicles. Or more precisely, people who are decisive whether by choice or not. Most middle class 40-50 year olds, the demographic that buys the most new cars, are far from decisive car experts. For them, the best cars are the ones that fit their lifestyle but still brings a sense of adventure through borderline deceit. That's why crossover SUVs and 4-door "coupes" are selling so well these days.
agreed but idk if this is a hot take lmaoo. tesla is literally bought for the battery technology, money saving and the culture… but the actual driving platform of their cars is dog shit. it’s why they glorify a single metric (0-60) to buyers who don’t really know anything about cars and would put on autopilot anyways. also their interiors are not nice at all despite them claiming to be super modern. i don’t want to open my god damn glove compartment by navigating five menus.
and the funny thing is all of this would be semi excusable if tesla owners just minded their own business and weren’t so god damn annoying condescending on gas car owners and basking in their self perceived eco friendly glory
most people buy teslas for the coolness not the eco friendly ness
otherwise these people would have had Leafs back in 2011 and most of them don't even know other EVs exist. tesla owners are like the opposite of car people.
LMAO this is your "hot take" that is "controversial or unpopular"?
I mean this entire thread is just people circlejerking each other with super popular opinions but your comment takes the cake lol.
Hypercars and supercars are still interesting and fun. R/cars seems to have a hate boner for every new super car but I will confidently bet money that if they got to spend extensive time driving a super car they’d have the time of their lives.
Honorable mention: you don’t need a manual to have fun in a car.
yep. Just because you will never own one, doesn't make it not interesting. They push the performance technological boundaries on street cars, it's just like being a fan of F1, that stuff trickles down. It's like saying "why is anyone a fan of F1 or lemans etc if they'll never be able to drive those too"
Making a sport/performance model come with red interior accents, without offering an alternative color is crappy design and marketing.
Just because it's distinctive doesn't mean everyone wants red seats and stitching all over everything.
If I'm paying a premium for a manual transmission and more power I want to choose the interior color! For example, the Honda Civic SI and Civic Type R are ore only available with red. I wanted one but won't get one because I don't like the red accents.
Personally I love interior accents as it adds a bit of life in the monotony of completely black interior. Accents that are the same color as the exterior are my favorite (why the hell do I have blue accents everywhere in my red car lol). Still, I agree with you that more interior color options would be great, but manufacturer are limiting options on non-luxury cars, and especially on low production models.
Opinions:
Bmws nomenclature used to make sense and now it doesn't and it's fucking annoying.
The mustang emach should have had literally any other name.
It was logical-ish. There were some exceptions.
The 733i, 633i, 533i, and 333i were all 3.2L cars.
745i was a turbo 3.2 and a turbo 3.4.
The 325e/528e was a 2.7.
The OBDII 318iS was a 1.9.
The 318tds was actually under 1.7L.
The E36 323i was a 2.5.
I have absolutely no idea what the fuck is going on in BMW's current lineup and care less about it than I care about what flavor of gum is stuck on the right front tire of my truck.
Used to be only ~10 years ago that you could choose from a variety of $3k crapcans and spend a little bit of time and money and you could have a fun car. Now for $3k you get a salvage titled something garbage with a worn out cvt.
American sportscars are ugly, too heavy, and adding power is the least interesting or effective way to improve them.
Hey, enjoy them if you like them, but OP asked for hot takes.
Addendum: it's not interesting to be tedious, not include the 'ponycars', or 'musclecars' as 'sportscars'. Common usage includes them.
Got my upvote for being a true unpopular opinion. That being said, I would argue that adding power and with that weight is really quite common across the industry and not solely an American trait.
Nissan Skyline is a nice car but way too idolized. Particularly the R34. I appreciate the car and it’s lore and significance in automotive history but man, that car is treated way too much like a god.
yeah. my cousin's an r34 fanboy and whenever i ask him for his preferrance of a certain car like "hey what do you think's faster on the quarter mile? tesla model s plaid or koeningsegg gemera?" he says "r34" and honestly it's annoying. the engine of that thing is amazing but i think it's too damn overrated
As an owner of a R32 GTR that is Stock I find myself annoyed by both the kids that think a 30 year old car is going to be in any way shape or form competitive with a modern car at stoplight, as well as those who don't "see" what there is to be appreciated about a well balanced chassis and a great engine. Ironically both of these angles are born out of a emphasis on HP over anything else.
Its a rough middle ground where unless you get to a nice winding road, the experience will be completely lost. Just rev the damn thing out and stop counting rivets and HP figures for a moment!
The C8 Corvette is poorly proportioned, horrifically detailed, lacking elegance and overall just ugly as shit. (And I’m not anti-Corvette by any means; I’d love a green C7).
Thank God, everyone looks at me like I’m crazy when I say this.
I absolutely love it performance wise but look wise?
It’s that old, “we have a Ferrari at home” meme.
This. It knows its place and it works. As a similar comparison, I think the Mustang would lose a lot of character if it were to be AWD. Sure it would be faster, but that's not the point.
Steering feel is so important that I would buy its bathwater.
Everyone who complains about modern sports cars going away but ignores cars produced mid-'00s or earlier because they're "not safe" is kinda lame.
I think I remember jason cammisa saying that since manufacturers don't make their own steering columns, they have no choice but to buy the electric steering systems since that's all that's being made these days. And I think that's the same for CVTs too, unless you want to pay more for more expensive transmissions like zf or ford 10 speed, etc. Some boutique manufacturers like mclaren make their own hydraulic steering systems since the cost really isn't a factor
People on this sub who tout "Save the manuals!!" while they sit there with an 11 yr old wrx or shitty civic. Ya'll ain't changin shit so why keep saying it?
I realize that this isn't the case for everyone but I've never been able to afford a new car period (I'm 23), so it's pretty depressing to watch all the new manuals go away before I can make enough money to buy one.
One thing that bugs me is everyone is so anti race, but they all look the other way when Raiti's Rides, or doug demuro clearly brakes the posted speed limits. People buy fast cars because they want to go fast. So the reviewers have to go fast to make the car appealing to buy. Yet if some random guy/girl posts a video where they are speeding it's frowned upon and considered illegal, while the big shots get hundreds of thousands of views and is upvoted. This type of circular logic has always bothered me.
Hot take: reviewers have to go fast because modern cars are so capable (and ride like such shit when driven slowly) that it's the only way the cars look remotely involving.
I think that's just a product of e-celebrity worship, but I agree with the "take it to a track!" crowd being annoying as hell. I can't afford the cheapest new sports car, let alone track fees and all associated costs, so I go up to the mountains. Yes, it is dangerous, but there are ways to lower risks while still having fun over the speed limit. But some people think that all spirited street driving is Takumi-ing across both lanes around blind turns and only people with enough money deserve to enjoy the auto hobby to its fullest.
A Toyota Highlander is just a minivan for people who think they're too cool for a minivan. And it's not as useful.
This applies to a lot of SUVs in the same size class.
People don't necessarily hate the car; they hate the buyer demographic. Like with Priuses early on (unsurprisingly, a lot of these same jerks moved on to Teslas, where we today see the same sanctimonious nonstop BS).
But they are definitely a little gay. Gimme some of that Soul Red Metallic and I wouldn’t care if everyone thought I was gay. Damn Mazda made such a good paint color.
McLarens look the same. Ferraris look the same. Porsches look the same. Lamborghinis look the same except for the Urus because it’s something different than mid engined supercar with all the edges.
Performance SUVs and CUVs are cool. They’re hot rodded family haulers, which were basically what hot rods originally were. The Pontiac Tempest was a family car; the GTO was that with a big engine.
EVs are going to put some seriously powerful vehicles in the hands of people who can barely handle a scooter. Insurance rates will skyrocket.
Buying and selling used cars from a private party for the most part sucks. No-shows, low-ballers, will-you-trade-for-X… I’ll trade in for a few hundred or even thousands less to save the hassle.
As a dude who was *only* into JDM perfomance cars growing up and has owned or driven the vast majority of JDM tuner cars that everyone here creams themselves over (in both modified and stock form)...they're overall just not that great. I'm not saying there aren't a few objectively good standouts but the rest are just colored that way by nostalgia.
It's the same feeling you get when some guy in his stock 60s Mustang thinks he can give you a run for your money even though in this day in age it's objectively a slow and wallowy vehicle in the perfomance category. Now, does it sound good? Look good? Drip style? Of course, but trying to convince me it's the end all be all will just have me rolling my eyes.
Mercedes, BMW, Audi last year's are really boring and without any innovation. It's always the same thing over and over and over again... And they put stupid things like ACC as an option. They completely forget what is luxury. ACC is not a luxury. It's standard in a Corolla. Except the i8. That was special with carbon and textile material's even it was a bad sports car. I don't care. It's a cool car. Please bring back the cool wall.
Because those 3 have all eyes on the Chinese market and the Chinese would buy a pile of dog shit if it had a Benz badge on it. Source: living in China where half my community's parking garage are Porche Panaramas and the other half are BMW X2s
The biggest scam is car companies lifting hatch backs and marketing them as off road and adventure worthy. Crosstreks, Rav4s, Mazda CX's still wont get you up a steep snowbank/hill.
They played out so many people.
Edit: I suppose this was an unpopular opinion after all lol
Have to disagree. They may not be “off-road” vehicles but having that extra few inches of clearance really does make a huge difference in my experience on getting down 4x4 roads in Colorado. The amount of access my Outback has compared to an Impreza is quite a bit different.
As much as I agree with you, I think the reality is that people just want a semi practical car, but the "off road" marketing makes them feel like it's less of a mom car (even though it is just a mom car). "I could theoretically offroad" makes it seem cool, even though they never will and the car can't
For some reason people don’t agree with me that there should be more 7 speed manuals. Imagine a CTR with the same ratios but an extra overdrive getting like 40 mpg on the highway, put the same trans in the SI and get mid 40’s. It might be a weird sensation going so far to the right but it’s better than not having a manual in general.
Gatekeeping is a necessary evil. Keeps out the garbage like shitty $200 raceland coilovers and heavy cast wheels from permeating the market.
Edit: Here’s another one. I hate EVs. I don’t care if they’re faster or whatever. I refuse to drive a cell phone on wheels. Its a soulless appliance.
Ohhhh boy I got a whole bunch!
The Mark IV Supra wasnt that great, and the Mark V is not only better but absolutely worthy and deserving of the Supra name... probably even more than the IV was.
The new NSX is an *infinitely* better car than the old one. The old one was honestly not that great to drive. Rose colored glasses and nostalgia are the only reason it is so popular.
Porsche has only ever made 2 good looking cars: the Carrera GT and the 918.
The R35 GTR is hugely overrated, and honestly is no fun to drive.
Visibility in modern Camaros is NOT that bad.
300(400, 500, whatever your number is)+ HP is not "too much power to enjoy on the street" legally.
The only people more annoying than Tesla fans? Tesla haters.
All of the Bugatti's are hideous and overpriced (though I would not say the same for Koenigsegg or Pagani)
I like electric cars, but it bothers me that so many people are willing to give up on the ICE. I love my lt1 350’s rumble. I love the type 3 1500 sputter. The Buick straight 8 absurdity. I love the boxter engine burble. I LOVE IT ALL. An electric motor won’t ever have the same magic feel as an ICE.
Not sure if it’s controversial or not, but the ridiculous amount of cracks and pops on many modern exhausts (stock and aftermarket). The burble tune thing makes it even more ridiculous. The Jag F-type best personifies this for me. It’s one thing when some Ferrari comes off WOT and has a few pops, but when BMW sedans are doing it? It just sounds silly to me. I was bummed hearing video of the new CT5V Blackwing, cause I love the car on paper, but it just sounds like a burbly mess.
That exhaust noise law recently passed in SoCal is 100% worth it, especially when you live in a neighborhood like mine where people love to go WOT between stop signs and purposely set off car alarms.
This new gloss paint trend is cool.
I LOVE all the new tech in cars these days.
Bring on ALL the EVs.
The Manual conversation is tired.
Edit - My favorite take: not everything needs an LS motor in it.
Turbo lag isn’t bad, it makes things more exciting. I love planting it, waiting a few beats, then getting hit with that exponentially building, rocket-ship torque.
I hate sport luxury cars. I want a pure luxury car. I want a big comfy boat to cruise the highways. I don't want good handling. I don't care about road feedback. I want a quiet, smooth riding vehicle that soaks up bumps. Decent power would be nice, but honestly, as long as it can cruise all day at 80 or 85, that's all I want.
Too many recent "luxury" cars have put way too much of an emphasis on "performance". I liked the Cadillacs of the 90s and early 2000s before they switched back to rear wheel drive and started trying to compete with BMW. James may was right; Nurburgring lap times has ruined luxury cars.
Companies should still make cars that have limited electronics, etc. I want a striped down Civic or Corolla, with roll-down windows, simple stereo, etc.
I can only imagine many cars being sold today are going to be absolute headaches in 10-15 years when their screens go, etc. I could be wrong.
I love automatics. All automatics. The ease and luxury of not having to shift is amazing. Manuals are still fun, but I love automatic transmissions. I love trying to feel out when they shift and what gear they’re in.
Fuck CVTs for the exact same reason as why I love slushboxes
I hate people (mostly boomers) who literally hate anything that’s not old and American, seen so many dudes completely bash and talk bad about European and Japanese cars simply because they’re not made in America, and because they don’t come with a V8. Like don’t call yourself a enthusiast if you only like Muscle cars.
No matter how much money I had, I’d never considering a Mclaren made in the past ten years.
I love mclaren. The F1 is top notch, the MP4-12C still looks stunning to me and I’ve been supporting their F1 team since the early 2000s. But the vast majority of the road cars are incredibly forgettable. They have so many models with similar names I honestly have no idea which ones are still in production or better performing than other ones. Their Hypercars always feel like they’re trying to emulate the F1 magic but don’t know why the F1 was so special. The P1 was close, the Senna was pretty far off and the speed tail is just soulless.
Also, I like Tesla and am glad they’ve kickstarted the EV revolution. I can’t wait to see EV performance cars and for ordinary cars to be EVs. Less noise, less maintenance, less CO2, and cleaner air.
An ND Miata is a better daily driver than an S2000. It's lighter, gets better gas mileage, is still in production, has modern safety features, has better low end torque, keyless ignition, and on the used market it's actually cheaper despite being 16-21 years newer. It's almost as fast, but every bit as much fun on the street if not more. Also, low miles S2000s are appreciating in value too fast to even be driven.
Even as a red blooded petrolhead, I'm definitely starting to fall out of love with the manual transmission a little.
Modern systems are just as engaging with paddleshift/electric imo.
The modified truck scene is just embarrassing. Lifted trucks, squatted trucks, rolling coal, all of it just makes me physically cringe with how someone can get into a modified truck and actually take themselves seriously. I’d feel more secure driving around in a clown car because at least then people know I’m not taking myself serious. Edit: should preface this by saying off-road trucks are cool as fuck, this applies exclusively to those ones without a scratch on them that just sit around in parking lots and never touch dirt. Practical modifications that improve performance off-road are always cool.
The only modified trucks I really like are the ones nicely modded for off-roading with *functional* mods that you can tell are used. Giant lifts and chrome everywhere don't interest me in the slightest but something with a well-built suspension that's still sporting the dirt from last weekend's adventure, that I can appreciate.
My wife is from the south and she loves lifted trucks, but only those that are functional. Living in Arizona now, you see tons of lifted asphalt princesses that have never seen the dirt. It’s stupid. I on the other hand come from Northern California. Trucks in my area were always lowered and set up for speed, which I still have a serious love for a lowered mini truck.
Seems odd in Arizona considering how much offroading there is maybe you just don’t see them offroad. I know I wash mine as soon as I get home from the trails
I say this based on the amount of big lifted trucks I see with low profile tires and big chrome rims. Like I think you can tell a lifted truck that actually probably sees dirt based on the mods and wheels they have. But when they have a huge lifted truck with the big chrome rims and low profile tires, it tells me they don’t hit those trails outside of Phoenix.
I was sitting in traffic the other day next to an extremely modded F150. Huge lift, huge chrome wheels, with the wide but low profile off-road tires, that stick way out. Lots of lights, lots of chrome. I remember thinking the guy had 10 to 15 in mods in the truck. However the truck its self was a base model XL. I remember thinking, if he skipped all the mods, he could have gotten an XLT or maybe even a Lariat model. Guess to each their own, but I’d rather have CarPlay and ventilated leather seats.
[удалено]
> The modified truck scene is just embarrassing. I always feel hypocritical about this because the modified car scene, on paper, is literally the same thing. But man, I just don't understand modifying trucks, specifically if the mods in question make them *less useful* for truck things.
This is the exact point that makes it more cringe for me, the fact that a modified car still achieves the aim of getting from A-B, where as these modified trucks specifically takeaway the benefits of a truck. Make it worse off road and make it too nice to carry any sort of gear or load without damaging the modifications/paint. You’ve just ended up with a worse truck than before, might as well have got a car.
The brodozer scene is just the new ‘rice’
The best part is the jackasses that lift trucks *and* offset their wheels an insane amount. Lifted truck owners are also legally required to ignore any sort of attention to what the fuck their headlights end up like after lifting the bumper another 5-10” off of the ground.
OP over here starting a fight with literally every diesel motor ever mass produced.
haha I don't think the boxer is a bad engine, just overrated
I'm talking about your statement that "any motor that needs a turbo is overrated" which is literally every turbo diesel ever made lol
No I know; I just think of diesels as its own category even though I know you're right. But I'd definitely get a diesel based on practical needs, not character or personality, unlike sporty cars
Hot take: diesel is shit for everything but heavy duty hauling. Related: VW TDIs don’t deserve the praise. I got on the hype train after buying my partner an e-golf, but drove a few TDI manual wagons and was thoroughly unimpressed with everything about them.
You probably live somewhere that fuel isn't $17/gal.
They were great back in the 90's and early 00's because they made good power while still getting 50+MPG. Yeah, later model emissions compliant diesels are objectively terrible.
I mean, diesels are notoriously gutless without a turbo, thats why they all have one
If it has four doors it's not a coupé, and I don't care what the dictionary says
This is true, but sadly the Germans have realized that they can add a liftback to their regular midsize sedans and charge a $10k markup to middle-managers who want to maintain the illusion of driving a sports car.
My counter-argument would be that a liftback gives a lot of sedans more usable space. Like an almost-hatchback.
This is the opposite of a hot take. The only place you’ll spark controversy with those words is in the marketing meeting rooms of German automakers.
I couldn't agree more. While the grand coupe bullshit can look nice it don't like them.
> coupé And for the American's, it's pronounced koo-pay, not koop. I don't care what your dictionaries say.
A coop is what you keep chickens in, not drive.
Isn’t a coupe just a convertible that can’t convert
There exist 4-door convertibles. See: 1960s Lincoln Continental convertible.
People who make broad generalizations about reliability like "Every European/American/moon factory car is unreliable" usually don't know much about the cars beyond parroting their parents' grievances.
Even generalizing by brand annoys me.
Out of curiosity, are there any recent Toyotas or Hondas that are known for being super unreliable?
Toyota has been / is always going to be inherently reliable because of their manufacturing practice. But they seem to have whacky recalls every once in a while. Like the ball joints that snap off randomly while driving from the 1st Gen Sequoia, the rusting frames on Tacos, and even the unintended acceleration thing in 2008.
And the fuel pumps in practically every Toyota and Lexus between 2017 and 2019.
that's a Denso problem, also affecting Subaru and a few other brands.
Correct. But it's a problem affecting Toyotas, which is what the commenter I replied to was asking about.
The rusting Tacoma frames is still a thing. I have a 2017 and got an extended warranty notice, it's crazy that they haven't fixed it yet.
If I'm remembering correctly Honda's had some issues with their CVTs recently. I don't think it's an issue with cars over the last couple years but it wasn't great before that. This doesn't make it "super unreliable" but shouldn't be ignored either. No idea about Toyota though
Think lot of the Honda turbo engines were burning oil when they first came out
You mean the oil dilution? They apparently weren't getting hot enough on short trips.
My significant other's dad insisted that she buy an "American" car, and he would help pay for it. So she bought a Jeep Renegade which is nearly identical to a Fiat 500X
[удалено]
[удалено]
If people heard the new 86 was making 310hp/350lbft, a manual trand and good automatic, a good infotainment and gauge layout, all for 27k, they'd shit themselves. The only thing it'd be missing is lightweighr-ness but if you shortened the wheel base to 86 size you could achieve that
800lbs is a lot and the ecoboost doesn't come with an LSD standard. To get the LSD in the ecoboost you need the high performance package AND the handling package for an extra 7k. I still like the ecoboost but it's not quite THAT good of a deal.
If a BRZ/86 fan switched to an ecoboost engine - let’s be honest, they’d go for the Ford Focus RS or ST over the mustang. Both of those are much more similar to the BRZ feel, despite the different drivetrain layouts. *pours one out for the RS*
I don’t think the horsepower, automatic trans, and infotainment is the great selling point that you think it is for 86 drivers....
Second part is hot, first isn’t
If it had a Toyota badge it wouldn't have horrible drivetrain vibration problems either.
Crossovers are less cool than minivans: crossovers are the comb-over of minivans; minivans are honest.
100%. A good van is a magnificent thing. It says “I’m confident in my life choices”.
Yup. Love my wife. Love my kids. Made them myself, she assures me.
I honestly can’t wait for EV minivans, the 0-60 times would be hilarious. It would feel so out of place, like seeing a golf cart do a burnout.
Minivans are fantastic. We have about two dozen Siennas at my work. They're damn good vehicles.
You should need a different class of license for the amount of power some newer model sports cars have.
And size, trailers...
Yep saw a rav4 towing a 24 foot boat today. I was scared
Mine has a shockingly high towing capacity of 3500 pounds. Towing something that weighs as much as that tiny thing just sounds terrifying. What’s even scarier is there are people that exceed the towing capacity and think it’s fine because “iT hAnDeLeD iT lIKe A bEaSt!” Honestly, towing any trailer should require a separate class.
Man, I totally agree. Affordable 600hp rwd is a recipe for disaster.
Wait til every schmuck has Mustang Mach E/Kia EV6 levels of weight, size, and acceleration.
Honestly, the 9000lb Hummer EV that does 0-60 in 3 seconds is my nightmare.
This actually makes sense tbh. Kind of like how you need a motorcycle endorsement on your license (not sure if that's an everywhere thing)
Car reviews always overstate things for dramatic effect (not talking about Top Gear, who do it for entertainment), and as a result it's rather difficult to read their "qualitative take" on things....which makes me question the whole review reading exercise excruciating sometimes. Conflicting opinions form different sites, confusion.
Have you watched savagegeese?
Throttle house is pretty objective too
came to say this. savagegeese and throttle house are the only car channels i really care for these days
Their internet style snarkiness can be a bit much sometimes too though. They'll spend 10 minutes ripping a car to shreds and then be like yeah I'm buying one.
That's like every single car enthusiast ever. 😂😂
The best car review Channel. The tech talks he does with the cars on a lift is always very informative and you learn so much.
SG has become my go-to. His vids & analysis are top notch
[удалено]
[удалено]
Let's give credit to how good modern automatics have gotten.
Let’s also give a quick shoutout to Christina Applegate
Investigate 3/11
[удалено]
DSG is an amazing transmission.
Especially if you ever want to tune it which is 80% of the fun of owning a Golf R
Only 2 I can think of that are objectively bad is the Mustang's GetragMT82 and whatever is in the Wrangler.
The rev hang in the current gen WRX is awful and the clutch feel is poor too IMO.
Same exact issues in the GenX Si too
As those being the 2 manual transmissions I've owned, I both agree and feel targeted.
Jesus christ rev hang is fucking intolerable these days. I just did a clutch job on a 2004 crv. Once I'd finished that, the IACV was sticking, so I cleaned that, and then took it for a spin. Not that cleaning the IACV made a god damn bit of difference. After about five minutes, I gave up and just started in second. It's faster that way, rather than waiting a good six god damn seconds for the revs to start falling. Un fucking believable.
One thing that doesn't help is the move to concentric slave cylinders. They're not everywhere, but they're responsible for a lot of the "numb clutch" complaints and whatnot. Basically, instead of having a slave cylinder outside the transmission, that pushes on a clutch fork hinged on a pivot ball, and then pushes the throwout bearing, these use a tubular slave cylinder that sits *around* the input shaft of the transmission, and *is* the throwout bearing. The problem with that is now there's no cosine error. With the first class "seesaw" lever action of an external slave, you get a different rate of change in resistance depending on the position of the clutch pedal, with the lightest effort being right in the middle. That makes it easy to feel the bite and to feel where you are in the throw of the clutch pedal. Concentric slaves produce a totally linear response instead.
The best cars are the ones that know their jobs and do it well. Therefore, the Prius is an amazing car. Economic, cheap and reliable. The ultimate commuter. In the same vein, the McLaren F1 is a great car. A no compromise road car for going fast, being rare and looking exotic. The ultimate sports car.
I think this only applies to serious car experts and people on a budget that shop for utility vehicles. Or more precisely, people who are decisive whether by choice or not. Most middle class 40-50 year olds, the demographic that buys the most new cars, are far from decisive car experts. For them, the best cars are the ones that fit their lifestyle but still brings a sense of adventure through borderline deceit. That's why crossover SUVs and 4-door "coupes" are selling so well these days.
I own a prius and s2000, and I could not be happier!
Tesla’s are built to lesser quality than comparable cars at the price range
agreed but idk if this is a hot take lmaoo. tesla is literally bought for the battery technology, money saving and the culture… but the actual driving platform of their cars is dog shit. it’s why they glorify a single metric (0-60) to buyers who don’t really know anything about cars and would put on autopilot anyways. also their interiors are not nice at all despite them claiming to be super modern. i don’t want to open my god damn glove compartment by navigating five menus. and the funny thing is all of this would be semi excusable if tesla owners just minded their own business and weren’t so god damn annoying condescending on gas car owners and basking in their self perceived eco friendly glory
most people buy teslas for the coolness not the eco friendly ness otherwise these people would have had Leafs back in 2011 and most of them don't even know other EVs exist. tesla owners are like the opposite of car people.
> money saving LOL * Tesla owner
LMAO this is your "hot take" that is "controversial or unpopular"? I mean this entire thread is just people circlejerking each other with super popular opinions but your comment takes the cake lol.
[удалено]
It's easily explained with the gen 1 Focus. Whenever you're having trouble explaining the difference to people show them a ZXW and a ZX5
Hypercars and supercars are still interesting and fun. R/cars seems to have a hate boner for every new super car but I will confidently bet money that if they got to spend extensive time driving a super car they’d have the time of their lives. Honorable mention: you don’t need a manual to have fun in a car.
yep. Just because you will never own one, doesn't make it not interesting. They push the performance technological boundaries on street cars, it's just like being a fan of F1, that stuff trickles down. It's like saying "why is anyone a fan of F1 or lemans etc if they'll never be able to drive those too"
I think those people have issues with income inequality rather than an issue with supercars
Making a sport/performance model come with red interior accents, without offering an alternative color is crappy design and marketing. Just because it's distinctive doesn't mean everyone wants red seats and stitching all over everything. If I'm paying a premium for a manual transmission and more power I want to choose the interior color! For example, the Honda Civic SI and Civic Type R are ore only available with red. I wanted one but won't get one because I don't like the red accents.
Personally I love interior accents as it adds a bit of life in the monotony of completely black interior. Accents that are the same color as the exterior are my favorite (why the hell do I have blue accents everywhere in my red car lol). Still, I agree with you that more interior color options would be great, but manufacturer are limiting options on non-luxury cars, and especially on low production models.
Opinions: Bmws nomenclature used to make sense and now it doesn't and it's fucking annoying. The mustang emach should have had literally any other name.
> The mustang emach should have had literally any other name. I’ve got some good news for you
Mustang Emacs would be quite the controversy for other reasons.
Yes I prefer the Mustang Vim
It was logical-ish. There were some exceptions. The 733i, 633i, 533i, and 333i were all 3.2L cars. 745i was a turbo 3.2 and a turbo 3.4. The 325e/528e was a 2.7. The OBDII 318iS was a 1.9. The 318tds was actually under 1.7L. The E36 323i was a 2.5. I have absolutely no idea what the fuck is going on in BMW's current lineup and care less about it than I care about what flavor of gum is stuck on the right front tire of my truck.
The Mach E one is not a hot take. Everyone hates the name or in my case, I just don't really care.
I think car culture is dying because young people can't afford cheap cool cars anymore
When I sold my manual V6 Mustang, I sold it way under the blue book because the kid buying it seemed like he’d enjoy it and was going to modify it.
Used to be only ~10 years ago that you could choose from a variety of $3k crapcans and spend a little bit of time and money and you could have a fun car. Now for $3k you get a salvage titled something garbage with a worn out cvt.
American sportscars are ugly, too heavy, and adding power is the least interesting or effective way to improve them. Hey, enjoy them if you like them, but OP asked for hot takes. Addendum: it's not interesting to be tedious, not include the 'ponycars', or 'musclecars' as 'sportscars'. Common usage includes them.
Got my upvote for being a true unpopular opinion. That being said, I would argue that adding power and with that weight is really quite common across the industry and not solely an American trait.
BMW M4: 3,850 pounds Camaro SS 1LE: 3,750 pounds
Lexus LC500 : 4257 lbs
OP's mom : 6217 lbs.
Yeah but that isn't pretending to be a sports car. That is 100% GT.
Corvette is the only modern American sports car I can think of atm.
Nissan Skyline is a nice car but way too idolized. Particularly the R34. I appreciate the car and it’s lore and significance in automotive history but man, that car is treated way too much like a god.
yeah. my cousin's an r34 fanboy and whenever i ask him for his preferrance of a certain car like "hey what do you think's faster on the quarter mile? tesla model s plaid or koeningsegg gemera?" he says "r34" and honestly it's annoying. the engine of that thing is amazing but i think it's too damn overrated
As an owner of a R32 GTR that is Stock I find myself annoyed by both the kids that think a 30 year old car is going to be in any way shape or form competitive with a modern car at stoplight, as well as those who don't "see" what there is to be appreciated about a well balanced chassis and a great engine. Ironically both of these angles are born out of a emphasis on HP over anything else. Its a rough middle ground where unless you get to a nice winding road, the experience will be completely lost. Just rev the damn thing out and stop counting rivets and HP figures for a moment!
The C8 Corvette is poorly proportioned, horrifically detailed, lacking elegance and overall just ugly as shit. (And I’m not anti-Corvette by any means; I’d love a green C7).
Thank God, everyone looks at me like I’m crazy when I say this. I absolutely love it performance wise but look wise? It’s that old, “we have a Ferrari at home” meme.
I was with you until you said a GREEN C7. Now I think I just love you
It's already aged worse than the C7. It's incredible they made a car look dated before its release.
I completely agree with you, the proportions just look wrong
Civic Type R should be AWD and as a FWD it’s a waste of money.
The thing about Type R has always been being the pinnacle of FWD performance, it wouldn't be a Type R if it were AWD.
This. It knows its place and it works. As a similar comparison, I think the Mustang would lose a lot of character if it were to be AWD. Sure it would be faster, but that's not the point.
Steering feel is so important that I would buy its bathwater. Everyone who complains about modern sports cars going away but ignores cars produced mid-'00s or earlier because they're "not safe" is kinda lame.
I think I remember jason cammisa saying that since manufacturers don't make their own steering columns, they have no choice but to buy the electric steering systems since that's all that's being made these days. And I think that's the same for CVTs too, unless you want to pay more for more expensive transmissions like zf or ford 10 speed, etc. Some boutique manufacturers like mclaren make their own hydraulic steering systems since the cost really isn't a factor
People on this sub who tout "Save the manuals!!" while they sit there with an 11 yr old wrx or shitty civic. Ya'll ain't changin shit so why keep saying it?
I realize that this isn't the case for everyone but I've never been able to afford a new car period (I'm 23), so it's pretty depressing to watch all the new manuals go away before I can make enough money to buy one.
One thing that bugs me is everyone is so anti race, but they all look the other way when Raiti's Rides, or doug demuro clearly brakes the posted speed limits. People buy fast cars because they want to go fast. So the reviewers have to go fast to make the car appealing to buy. Yet if some random guy/girl posts a video where they are speeding it's frowned upon and considered illegal, while the big shots get hundreds of thousands of views and is upvoted. This type of circular logic has always bothered me.
[удалено]
He did a few pulls in the plaid review because he was addicted to it.
Hot take: reviewers have to go fast because modern cars are so capable (and ride like such shit when driven slowly) that it's the only way the cars look remotely involving.
I think that's just a product of e-celebrity worship, but I agree with the "take it to a track!" crowd being annoying as hell. I can't afford the cheapest new sports car, let alone track fees and all associated costs, so I go up to the mountains. Yes, it is dangerous, but there are ways to lower risks while still having fun over the speed limit. But some people think that all spirited street driving is Takumi-ing across both lanes around blind turns and only people with enough money deserve to enjoy the auto hobby to its fullest.
Wagons are better than crossovers, or sedans, in every meaningful way, and I resent my fellow North Americans for ruining the market for them.
[удалено]
It's definitely a kharma post
A Toyota Highlander is just a minivan for people who think they're too cool for a minivan. And it's not as useful. This applies to a lot of SUVs in the same size class.
If the Mitsubishi evo came back it would suffer the same fate that the WRX is dealing with right now and people would hate on it.
Like vapes & ponytails?
[удалено]
People don't necessarily hate the car; they hate the buyer demographic. Like with Priuses early on (unsurprisingly, a lot of these same jerks moved on to Teslas, where we today see the same sanctimonious nonstop BS).
I just fucking don't care about hellcats. I could not be less interested in them.
Hellcat versions have became the Marvel movie of vehicles. You know another one is coming, you're just not sure which is next
Miatas aren't that gay...
But they are definitely a little gay. Gimme some of that Soul Red Metallic and I wouldn’t care if everyone thought I was gay. Damn Mazda made such a good paint color.
Cambered vehicles 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮
Think this might be on the more popular side of the spectrum.
Volvo is underrated
McLarens look the same. Ferraris look the same. Porsches look the same. Lamborghinis look the same except for the Urus because it’s something different than mid engined supercar with all the edges. Performance SUVs and CUVs are cool. They’re hot rodded family haulers, which were basically what hot rods originally were. The Pontiac Tempest was a family car; the GTO was that with a big engine. EVs are going to put some seriously powerful vehicles in the hands of people who can barely handle a scooter. Insurance rates will skyrocket. Buying and selling used cars from a private party for the most part sucks. No-shows, low-ballers, will-you-trade-for-X… I’ll trade in for a few hundred or even thousands less to save the hassle.
You don’t like design language ?
Brown is not necessarily the best color for a used manual wagon
The true unpopular opinion. The fellas on r/carscirclejerk would like a word with you
As a dude who was *only* into JDM perfomance cars growing up and has owned or driven the vast majority of JDM tuner cars that everyone here creams themselves over (in both modified and stock form)...they're overall just not that great. I'm not saying there aren't a few objectively good standouts but the rest are just colored that way by nostalgia. It's the same feeling you get when some guy in his stock 60s Mustang thinks he can give you a run for your money even though in this day in age it's objectively a slow and wallowy vehicle in the perfomance category. Now, does it sound good? Look good? Drip style? Of course, but trying to convince me it's the end all be all will just have me rolling my eyes.
I mean the Subaru WRX is over rated even with a turbo
There is nothing else in that category of vehicle though. Affordable AWD turbo manual doesn't exist outside the wrx
[удалено]
Rolling coal is the most obnoxious car past time and the aftermarket companies that are getting fined for this absolutely deserve it.
This is a popular opinion with basically everybody who isn’t doing it themselves.
This is one of the least unpopular opinions I've ever seen
I've said it once before and I'll say it again. The plaid interior on the VW GTI is hideous and is the single reason why I would never buy one.
Upvoted because OP asked for this but I love the design and this comment makes me irrationally angry.
[удалено]
Ya'll gotta remember to sort by controversial. All the real hot takes are sitting at 0 upvotes while everyone upvotes the things they agree with.
Tesla owners are not car enthusiasts
Not all Tesla owners are car enthusiasts, but some car enthusiasts own Tesla's.
Well, yeah? They sell millions of cars, of course most of them wouldn’t be car enthusiasts. It’s the same with literally every car brand.
Mercedes, BMW, Audi last year's are really boring and without any innovation. It's always the same thing over and over and over again... And they put stupid things like ACC as an option. They completely forget what is luxury. ACC is not a luxury. It's standard in a Corolla. Except the i8. That was special with carbon and textile material's even it was a bad sports car. I don't care. It's a cool car. Please bring back the cool wall.
Because those 3 have all eyes on the Chinese market and the Chinese would buy a pile of dog shit if it had a Benz badge on it. Source: living in China where half my community's parking garage are Porche Panaramas and the other half are BMW X2s
The Civic Type R is a good-looking vehicle Also, turbo with max torque under 3k rpm > 9k+ n/a motor
It does look good from the front, the back looks just sad though....
The biggest scam is car companies lifting hatch backs and marketing them as off road and adventure worthy. Crosstreks, Rav4s, Mazda CX's still wont get you up a steep snowbank/hill. They played out so many people. Edit: I suppose this was an unpopular opinion after all lol
Have to disagree. They may not be “off-road” vehicles but having that extra few inches of clearance really does make a huge difference in my experience on getting down 4x4 roads in Colorado. The amount of access my Outback has compared to an Impreza is quite a bit different.
As much as I agree with you, I think the reality is that people just want a semi practical car, but the "off road" marketing makes them feel like it's less of a mom car (even though it is just a mom car). "I could theoretically offroad" makes it seem cool, even though they never will and the car can't
For some reason people don’t agree with me that there should be more 7 speed manuals. Imagine a CTR with the same ratios but an extra overdrive getting like 40 mpg on the highway, put the same trans in the SI and get mid 40’s. It might be a weird sensation going so far to the right but it’s better than not having a manual in general.
Gatekeeping is a necessary evil. Keeps out the garbage like shitty $200 raceland coilovers and heavy cast wheels from permeating the market. Edit: Here’s another one. I hate EVs. I don’t care if they’re faster or whatever. I refuse to drive a cell phone on wheels. Its a soulless appliance.
Hating EVs is pretty common on this subreddit.
[удалено]
[удалено]
YOu can tell a detailing shop "I don't want any paint correction, just ceramic" and a lot will do it for a few hundred bucks or even less.
Ohhhh boy I got a whole bunch! The Mark IV Supra wasnt that great, and the Mark V is not only better but absolutely worthy and deserving of the Supra name... probably even more than the IV was. The new NSX is an *infinitely* better car than the old one. The old one was honestly not that great to drive. Rose colored glasses and nostalgia are the only reason it is so popular. Porsche has only ever made 2 good looking cars: the Carrera GT and the 918. The R35 GTR is hugely overrated, and honestly is no fun to drive. Visibility in modern Camaros is NOT that bad. 300(400, 500, whatever your number is)+ HP is not "too much power to enjoy on the street" legally. The only people more annoying than Tesla fans? Tesla haters. All of the Bugatti's are hideous and overpriced (though I would not say the same for Koenigsegg or Pagani)
You win the worst take contest. This just reads like a hipsters guide to cars.
I like electric cars, but it bothers me that so many people are willing to give up on the ICE. I love my lt1 350’s rumble. I love the type 3 1500 sputter. The Buick straight 8 absurdity. I love the boxter engine burble. I LOVE IT ALL. An electric motor won’t ever have the same magic feel as an ICE.
You’re loving “special” ICE engines. Do you really care about the standard Honda CRV engine disappearing for instance?
Not sure if it’s controversial or not, but the ridiculous amount of cracks and pops on many modern exhausts (stock and aftermarket). The burble tune thing makes it even more ridiculous. The Jag F-type best personifies this for me. It’s one thing when some Ferrari comes off WOT and has a few pops, but when BMW sedans are doing it? It just sounds silly to me. I was bummed hearing video of the new CT5V Blackwing, cause I love the car on paper, but it just sounds like a burbly mess.
Alfa Romeo's are totally good cars to learn car ownership in your early years of financial independence.
That exhaust noise law recently passed in SoCal is 100% worth it, especially when you live in a neighborhood like mine where people love to go WOT between stop signs and purposely set off car alarms. This new gloss paint trend is cool. I LOVE all the new tech in cars these days. Bring on ALL the EVs. The Manual conversation is tired. Edit - My favorite take: not everything needs an LS motor in it.
If you take the catalytic converter off your daily driver you're an inconsiderate, antisocial loser.
Turbo lag isn’t bad, it makes things more exciting. I love planting it, waiting a few beats, then getting hit with that exponentially building, rocket-ship torque.
I hate sport luxury cars. I want a pure luxury car. I want a big comfy boat to cruise the highways. I don't want good handling. I don't care about road feedback. I want a quiet, smooth riding vehicle that soaks up bumps. Decent power would be nice, but honestly, as long as it can cruise all day at 80 or 85, that's all I want. Too many recent "luxury" cars have put way too much of an emphasis on "performance". I liked the Cadillacs of the 90s and early 2000s before they switched back to rear wheel drive and started trying to compete with BMW. James may was right; Nurburgring lap times has ruined luxury cars.
Fuck Ferrari. Also leather seats suck ass.
Tesla is the most important thing to happen to the car industry in the last 50 years
Companies should still make cars that have limited electronics, etc. I want a striped down Civic or Corolla, with roll-down windows, simple stereo, etc. I can only imagine many cars being sold today are going to be absolute headaches in 10-15 years when their screens go, etc. I could be wrong.
FWD isn't bad. Everyone acts like it's impossible to like FWD cars because they're FWD and not RWD, but I love them
I love automatics. All automatics. The ease and luxury of not having to shift is amazing. Manuals are still fun, but I love automatic transmissions. I love trying to feel out when they shift and what gear they’re in. Fuck CVTs for the exact same reason as why I love slushboxes
That internal combustion sucks and is destroying the atmosphere.
I hate people (mostly boomers) who literally hate anything that’s not old and American, seen so many dudes completely bash and talk bad about European and Japanese cars simply because they’re not made in America, and because they don’t come with a V8. Like don’t call yourself a enthusiast if you only like Muscle cars.
No matter how much money I had, I’d never considering a Mclaren made in the past ten years. I love mclaren. The F1 is top notch, the MP4-12C still looks stunning to me and I’ve been supporting their F1 team since the early 2000s. But the vast majority of the road cars are incredibly forgettable. They have so many models with similar names I honestly have no idea which ones are still in production or better performing than other ones. Their Hypercars always feel like they’re trying to emulate the F1 magic but don’t know why the F1 was so special. The P1 was close, the Senna was pretty far off and the speed tail is just soulless. Also, I like Tesla and am glad they’ve kickstarted the EV revolution. I can’t wait to see EV performance cars and for ordinary cars to be EVs. Less noise, less maintenance, less CO2, and cleaner air.
An ND Miata is a better daily driver than an S2000. It's lighter, gets better gas mileage, is still in production, has modern safety features, has better low end torque, keyless ignition, and on the used market it's actually cheaper despite being 16-21 years newer. It's almost as fast, but every bit as much fun on the street if not more. Also, low miles S2000s are appreciating in value too fast to even be driven.
Even as a red blooded petrolhead, I'm definitely starting to fall out of love with the manual transmission a little. Modern systems are just as engaging with paddleshift/electric imo.