Sports car Differentiation

How do you differentiate cars into different classes? Meaning what is the difference to you between a pony car and a sports car? What makes a car a supercar? I probably lump more together than most, as I see threads where someone says "that's not a sports car" about something that I would classify as one.

Pony cars are "secretary's cars" basically.  Mustangs, Camaros, Barracudas.  Small cars that are only technically four seaters.

A lot of people bitched when the Mustang went from the Falcon to the Fairlane platform.  The other people bitched when it went back to the small car (Pinto) platform.

Sports cars IMO are useless for anything but sporty driving. No top.  No more than 100ish horsepower.  Real manly men sports cars don't even have shift boots, the trans comes up through the floor with a little rubber noot to seal the gaps.  NCs are trucks compared to, say, an MGB or Midget.

Norman Garrett, one of the main engineers of the original Miata, with his  take on what makes a sports car. 

That is a question I kinda asked when looking at cars for my IMCA Sports Compact racing - "sport cars" ar NOT allowed. To me a Mitsu Eclipse is a sport car but they are OK with them. Celica GTs and Tiburons are OK in IMCA too.

So it depends on whom you ask.

Supercar=200+ club. 

Super cars are cars that try to kill you when you drive them.

There are no real super cars anymore.

I would say a sports car is any car the heavily compromises practical aspects (e.g. cargo, fuel mileage, comfort) for performance.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

What's a noot?

Shadeux (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

What's a noot?

In reply to Snowdoggie :

+1

If you have any 1960's magazines, they called what we know as muscle cars "supercars" back then. The term muscle car wasn't even coined until the late 70's. 

Pony cars are supposed to be compact-based 2+2's that are a bit sporty (Mustang, Barracuda, Camaro) but not the actual cars they were based off of (Falcon, Valiant, Chevy II) even though they were also 2+2 and drove the same. To further muddy the waters, a lot of "fastback" compacts were made (Falcon Sprint and Futura, Maverick, Dart, Duster, Demon, Nova, etc) that would really fit into the "technical" pony car term.

If it has four wheels, it's a car. Any more and it's a truck. Any less and it's a bike. Done.

My son asked me what's the difference between a super car and a hyper car. I ignored him.

My own working definitions:

Sports car: Small, rear wheel drive, two seats, zero practicality. Normally a convertible, but not always. Not necessary to have a lot of horsepower, but it could. Examples: Miata, Spitfire, MR2.

GT: Slightly more practical relative of the sports car, able to make a long road trip in relative comfort. Usually has a fixed roof or targa top with some room for luggage. May have a bad joke of a back seat. Examples: Most Datsun / Nissan Z cars, Corvette, BMW M Coupe.

Pony car: V8, rear wheel drive, two doors, four seats... at least theoretically the thing back there is a seat, and it's generally larger than what you'd find on the GT category when they have rear seats. Examples: Mustang, Camaro.

Muscle car: Enlarge a pony car to the point you can put adults in the back seat, and it's a muscle car.

Supercar: Ridiculously over the top cars in the GT mold. Mid engined with comical amounts of horsepower. If pre-teen boys don't put posters of it on their bedroom walls, it's not a supercar.

Sport compact: Performance car based on a front wheel drive economy car, possibly with all wheel drive added. If it has a hatchback, it's also a hot hatch.

I'm confused. So which Mustang is the 'secretary's car? 

The 300 hp 1969 Mustang that I bought for $900 and drove in high school? 

The new 310 hp Ecoboost four cylinder Mustang I drove to work today? 

Or the five year old Audi TT Convertible that one of the secretaries in our office actually drives. 

You have it all wrong. A sports car has a top that is best left in the garage,  

wire wheels with Rudge knock offs. 
cutaway doors that allow the driver to touch the pavement when seated. 
4 speed. 4 cylinders.  2 seats. 
flip top ( Monza style) gas cap. 
real sports cars have separate headlights. Not in the bodywork. 
a toolkit as standard equipment. 
Windshield that folds down. 
bonus points for a supercharger

double bonus points for a magneto 

triple points with a hand crank. 

Semi on topic, where do you all draw the line on 'exotic'?

911? Nissan GT-R? How about a Lotus or Aston-Martin?

cafcwest said:

Semi on topic, where do you all draw the line on 'exotic'?

911? Nissan GT-R? How about a Lotus or Aston-Martin?

$150,000.

In reply to cafcwest :

Anything they made less than 50 of. 

This is kind of like asking how long is a string.  The definition depends on who you ask.

Jay Leno's latest YouTube video featured his 1955 Packard Caribbean.  During the video he showed a picture of a period ad for the car, where Packard called it "America's most glamorous sports car." 

But what's a hatchback?

(Ducks and runs for cover)

Snowdoggie said:

I'm confused. So which Mustang is the 'secretary's car? ...

The 64-66 straight sixes that they made a crap load of, that are pretty much non-existent now because everyone thinks a Mustang means a V8.

Also known as a Falcon with a body swap.

Sports car: 2 seats, 2 doors, roof optional.

Pony car: 4 seats, 2 doors, roof optional, always designed to be what it is.

Muscle car: 4 seats, 2 doors, roof oprional, started life as a mid-size platform that had a big engine shoehorned in to make it faster.

EG:

Mustang = Pony car.

Torino = Muscle car.

Thunderbird (1st gen) = Sports car.

vwcorvette (Forum Supporter) said:

But what's a hatchback?

 

(Ducks and runs for cover)

A hatchback isn't a kind of car, it's a style of tailgate.

(Hurls gasoline on the spark.)

To me, sports cars are built solely as sports cars, have RWD, usually only two seats, and prioritize handling. They don't need to be fast (hi Miata), nor is every fast car a sports car (hi AWD boost buggies). Things get gray to me at the higher end (911s, corvettes, etc.) as they start approaching supercar status. 

I have a tough time with pony car vs muscle car. I'm in my 30s so I wasn't alive during their heyday. I get the size difference but it seems like the only modern muscle car is the Challenger. 

So what is a Mitsubishi Evo 9?

Where do you classify a CTS-V?

Focus RS and Golf R? 

How long is a string?