How much bhp for fast car?

Eigdoog

Eigdoog

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So I've stole this from another site and i just wanted to know how this forum feels about power.

They posted:

What's your view on a fast car? I class a standard focus rs as fast, stage 1 saph, Astra vxr etc. Been out in a few cars and always thought 300bhp was mega fast for s road car but others view over 500 as fast. I've been in a 600bhp Sierra and a 440bhp rs200 on the road and thought they was bonkers and far too fast for me lol.

20 years ago a rs turbo was classed as fast and non car people still consider them fast

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Ive posted back:

My A4 with 210bhp feels quick i guess but not fast at all, its quick for what it is being a dirty diesel.

The RS3 ill be getting soon
icon_biggrin.gif
with about 370bhp felt really fast but again could this be as I'm used to 210bhp?

I think everyone will have there own look upon this but as a everyday person (who's not a petrol head) will think 200-250 is quick and 250+ is fast and more than enough for anyone.

My mate has a leon FR with 200bhp and thinks its more or less one of the fastest things out there unless its a Ferrari but also a bloke i spoke to had a Corsa VXR (180bhp?) said when i asked if was quick and i quote "well when I'm driving it, its the fastest cars I've ever seen on the road and nothing has ever stuck to the back of me so yeah its really fast!" so its each to their own on this one really.

For me 300bhp is a fast car as it will always put a smile on your face plus in the real world you don't need anymore on our roads but I'm greedy so bring on more power
smile011.gif


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So discuss!
 
Depends on weight , but yes I agree with you a "fast" description starts from 300 bhp and about 300 ftlb .
 
It is all about perspective and what you are used to,one thing is certain is when you get the RS3 you will find you run out of road rather quickly so it is fast
 
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In answer to Op's question

Oh 328bhp will do nicely ;) :D
 
I drive on busy roads all the time so big BHP cars are pointless. Would I love to have one, again? Yes. For me 200-250 is plenty for UK roads. I've driven Porsche's with 400+ and been driven in an Arial Atom V8. Unbelievably fast but pointless for UK roads. I'd have my 210bhp Scirocco DSG back any day!
 
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Depends on the car and how it delivers the power, i was out in a b7 rs4 last night and my stage 1 a3 8l (213bhp) felt faster, but if you put them side by side then there was no chance i would be able to even think about keeping up with the rs4, the acceleration was just a lot more refined and smooth
 
A 150hp turbo is probably my 'any slower and this would start to **** me off' point.

A 200-250hp turbo or big six would be a nice fastish everyday car.

260hp is just getting into genuinely quick for me.

Responsiveness and a decent spread of torque is as important for me. A 260hp vtec 4 pot would just be annoying. I'd much rather have a 150hp low boost threshold turbo or a 180hp 2.5 litre six.

You don't want to sit behind someone in second at 5000rpm waiting for a passing gap or get rinsed by a diesel rep mobile because I was in the wrong gear.

and a good spread of torque
 
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Depends alot on weight. 300bhp in my A4 would be a swift car. 300bhp in a Lotus Elise would be bonkers on the road.
 
RichMk3 said:
Depends alot on weight. 300bhp in my A4 would be a swift car. 300bhp in a Lotus Elise would be bonkers on the road.
Click to expand...

Hit the nail head there . A lot of very fast light cars which don't have huge bhp , atoms / caterhams and the like ... I have had a heap of cars , and usually each one faster than the last , when you get used to it , it's not fast anymore . I remember when I bought an MG ZR160 , my first sporty car it felt like a Ferrari to me !
 
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audi upgrades
I used to have an RS Turbo and considered that to be quick in the day, then I got an RS 1600i, (which I still have), and although it was down on power, genuinely felt quicker than the Turbo. We are talking 128 and 115 bhp respectively.
Today, I run a 3.2 A3 with 250 bhp, the most powerful car I have had and it's plenty quick enough. 4th gear and foot down will end up at 100 mph in the blink of an eye and any more is asking for plod trouble.
By the way, before the MK 3/4 Escorts, there was a very clean Group 1 RS 2000. It had 180 bhp, 45's, lsd and lots more, but although it was f*****g quick, it always felt dangerous, especially in the wet.
If I tried to do the half of what I do in the quattro with any of the previous cars, I wouldn't be here.
It's all about power delivery, not raw power.
 
RS1600i, very nice, , any pics ? Pal had a black one back in the day , loved it ...
 
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@Jake 61 my uncle took delivery of the first brand new RS1600i Escort in Scotland. As you say, it was rapid in comparison to most cars of that era.
 
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Bainie said:
RS1600i, very nice, , any pics ? Pal had a black one back in the day , loved it ...
Click to expand...

I do and it's black...!

20151205 153405

It never saw a Golf GTI in front of it...:whistle2:
And the other two,

20151205 153649 001

The Turbo was a gem but got nicked in Paisley.

20151205 153657

The RS 2000 GP1 was a complete beast, blinding in the dry but just plain dangerous in the wet.
Got written off the night I sold it and I wasn't a bit surprised.

:salute:
 
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Wow ... Thats a stunner , the Rs2000 is gorgeous as well , was behind one few months ago and couldn't believe how small it is !

Love the spots as well , round above, square below , them were the days :)
 
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Bainie said:
Wow ... Thats a stunner , the Rs2000 is gorgeous as well , was behind one few months ago and couldn't believe how small it is !

Love the spots as well , round above, square below , them were the days :)
Click to expand...

I could have sold it several times over now, but what's the point, it's an ever appreciating investment, so it's here to stay a while yet. The Top spots are Cibie Oscars and much better than standard but I do have a full set of originals in the shed for when the time comes.
And yes, every time I see an RS 2000 I can't get over how small they are compared to today's cars. The night I bought it, I took it to the local car park where all the hot hatches hung out and trashed the back tyres doing doughnuts...! 15 minutes of smoke and just enough tread to get home.
A 6-8 mpg hooligan, it had to go, but what a grin factor.
 
Love the old fords , buying fiesta supersport still on my to do list !
 
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Jake 61 said:
View attachment 74344
It never saw a Golf GTI in front of it...:whistle2:
Click to expand...


Funny you say that , back in the early 90's there was at my work place the Ford Escorts Vs Golf GTI war , till one day..

It wasn't good , I'm not proud , a stupid race but I took him at 100 mph in a 1.8 mk 1 and it put it to bed .
 
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Bainie said:
Love the old fords , buying fiesta supersport still on my to do list !
Click to expand...

Had one of them as well. You should definitely look for one.

Gazwould said:
Funny you say that , back in the early 90's there was at my work place the Ford Escorts Vs Golf GTI war , till one day..

It wasn't good , I'm not proud , a stupid race but I took him at 100 mph in a 1.8 mk 1 and it put it to bed .
Click to expand...

Yep, been there and done that, not proud now either. But back in the day, I was a complete Ford nut and I could never allow a Volkswagen to pass me. 1600 vs 1600, the Fords always got the better of them.
The Group 1 RS was renowned for trashing a local quattro. The guy couldn't believe I passed him and neither could I.
I had many people on the doorstep wanting to buy it after that. (Good job there was no corners involved)....!
 
I would agree - 'fast' is very subjective. Fast in the straight line or through a twisty section of track or road. I like a fast car that is good at both :)
 
audi upgrades
As all have said before,alot of bhp is not always fast if the car has to much weight.i had an astra j vxr with 280bhp it never felt fast but it was,it was also a heavy lump.now i have the s1 with 50bhp less but it feels a hell of alot faster than my vxr ever did.
 
As I've said before i do love my Fords! That RS2000 looks great! Would love one!

I guess weight does come into it but are we talking about real world fast or pub fast? When i had the fiesta st i told people it had a 2 litre, 150bhp and they said wow it must be fast, so talking about a small fiesta with 150bhp might sound fast but its really not...
 
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The RS 2000 was frighteningly fast, in the pub or out of it.
We're talking 1978, it was designed and built to go sideways through a forrest very quick.
The Group 1 version was nothing like the watered down 2.0L. (Although, it did look just the same with a bigger exhaust and lower suspension).
 
@Jake 61 - All these old performance Ford's are bringing back a lot of happy memories for me tonight
I learnt to drive in a couple of new RS2000's (to name but a few Ford's)

Had a white Mk2 RS Turbo Escort after a stint in a mk2 XR2
Got a 16v Astra GTE after the Escort Rs Turbo - Thought the Astra was rapid with 150bhp! lol
 
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Hey @Bristle Hound, those were happy times back then and every Ford I had was cherished.
I had a go in my mate's Astra GTE and I thought it was blinding quick, never did end up with one though.
The one memory that is embedded, was the first time I had a run in his quattro. I've never experienced anything like it for acceleration. He never did let me behind the wheel, (I'm not surprised), but I will never forget that run.
I'm just glad to be able to still have the 16i, it was and still is special.
 
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Agreed @Jake 61 :thumbs up:
You are a very lucky man having than 16i

Quattro's were the thing of group B WRC monsters for me at that time
Remember seeing Michelle Mouton driving one of the group B Audi quattro's, sideways on a particularly greasy road section near to where I used to live. The noise, the spectacle! Awesome just doesn't cover it!
 
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I consider myself very lucky indeed to have lived through that part of motoring history @Bristle Hound, owned one or two pieces of that history and have a serious run in the legendary Audi quattro.
All that remains, is getting my hands on a nice, (V6), S4 in the future. I'm sure you will understand that.

:yes:
 
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I prefer to have a fun car to drive than a fast car, but if the fast bit comes as part of the fun, I'll take it! :racer:

My mk2 16v isn't fast at all, it's fast enough I guess, but fun to drive. 8L S3 is quite nippy and responsive, it's fast, but usable. A6 has circa 350bhp+? Took me a month to get use to using the power on the road, but it's a heavy beast! I consider it overkill for town driving, but the power is handy for overtaking, joining onto moving traffic from a standstill/coming out of junctions etc. It's not a fun car to drive though, too big and bulky.

But back to the question of what's classed as a fast car? Depends on the person driving it and the needs for the circumstances surrounding you.
 
300bhp in my RS Turbo makes for a quick car. Looking forward to rolling her back out the garage.



300bhp(Ish) in my A4 is still quick but not on the same level.

 
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I always thought hire cars were the fastest.
 
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Soot1 said:
Just inputed my Westfield stats, 378bhp per ton. :surprise::sm4:, wondered why it scares me on track.
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Did Lotus 7/Caterham/Westfield cars not have the highest bhp per ton, when they came out...? (Depending on the power plant used).
Never mess about with one of these on the road or track, harsh lesson very quickly learned.

:yes:
 
Jake 61 said:
Did Lotus 7/Caterham/Westfield cars not have the highest bhp per ton, when they came out...? (Depending on the power plant used).
Never mess about with one of these on the road or track, harsh lesson very quickly learned.

:yes:
Click to expand...
Yes they would have and continue to do so, although other specialist light cars such as the Ariels will be even higher bhp/ton. Caterham Levante and Atom Ariel V8 would be the all time highest bhp/ton for a standard production car. They are very expensive of course. My little1998 bathtub was a bargain at £8000 with all the mods I have done-----so far:sm4:
 
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Oranoco said:
300bhp in my RS Turbo makes for a quick car. Looking forward to rolling her back out the garage.



300bhp(Ish) in my A4 is still quick but not on the same level.

Click to expand...

What turbo are you running on your A4?
 
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