Is this lofty praise for one of the new 700-horsepower Challengers? A twin-turbo Porsche? An Exocet powered by a half-dozen superbike engines and a deranged ferret?
D, none of the above. It’s Car and Driver’s lede for its original road test on the 1984 Porsche 911 Carrera. Total engine output? Thanks to the introduction of Bosch’s Motronic injection, along with a bump in displacement from 3.0 liters to 3.2, horsepower had finally reached an even 200. That’s way less than most any new minivan. Top speed? A blinding-for-the-day buck-50 or so.
I’m lucky to own one of these Porsches, and yes, it’s still the finest car I have ever driven. You can quote me on that. Do faster models from the brand exist? Absolutely. But, like Baby Bear’s bed, this one’s just right. It has the perfect amount of power for the chassis, near-telepathic steering, and one of the most iconic views over the bow. Then there’s the olfactory treat of oil mixed with leather mixed with history.
One of my other favorite cars produces the same horsepower figure, yet people “in the know” said that I’d hate it: Not enough power. Needs a turbo. Too slow. Boring.
The object of their scorn? The Subaru BRZ. After living with one for more than a year, I can state that they were totally wrong. I unequivocally love it. It’s fun and rewarding to drive on track, and perfect for around-town use. It gobbles up the highway miles with ease. It’s good on gas, too, and offers plenty of outward visibility. Even the trunk is big enough for my needs.
Then add in comfy seats, a precise shifter, perfect pedal placement and, if I can admit, fine lines. Half a dozen years afters its introduction, a BRZ or one of the clones from Toyota still turns my head.
The haters have hated on the BRZ since day one for the simple fact that it only makes 200 horsepower. Subaru could turbocharge it, but then cost, complexity and weight would all go up. The BRZ would no longer be a BRZ. And why would Subaru make a car that competes with its iconic WRX for showroom traffic?
Some of my other faves also come from the 200 club: the Integra Type R, MR2 Turbo, a Miata with some boost, the all-conquering E30-chassis M3, my wife’s Civic Si. And I think we can now welcome the ND-chassis MX-5 to that group, as it’s close enough.
Really, though, this is more than numbers. This is about cars that are quick enough to be fun, yet challenging to drive. They force you to hit your marks. You can’t mask mistakes with horsepower. Brake too early, and the pack will leave you in the dust.
Reeling in theoretically faster cars becomes your goal. Stomp the middle pedal at the one and a half, nail the apex, track all the way out–use the curbs if you have to. Do it correctly, and the horsepower deficit quickly evaporates.
On the street, you can enjoy these cars without being a menace to society. A little while back I was cutting through Jacksonville in the BRZ. The interstate makes a right-left, downhill jog just before downtown. Of course I was heel-toeing the entire way. A glance ahead showed that I was keeping pace with a few minivans. Whatever, I was having fun. My M3 doesn’t get interesting until it’s traveling way too fast for street conditions.
What’s better than a car making 200 horsepower? How about one making about half that. Don’t believe me? I present Exhibits A though G: the original Miata, a slightly tweaked Rabbit GTI, the CRX Si, the first MR2, a well-tuned Triumph TR6 and a first-generation RX-7.
Also a fan of momentum over horsepower? Let’s hear it.
