Cars, it's electric! Do Do Do

[Santapez]

Even Chris Harris said if you are looking at an M3, M5, Audi RS then you should add the Ioniq 5 N to the list. And the list of comments that mention he didn't say anything about the active sound and simulated gear shifts is very long - wondering why he didn't.

This week's Carmudgen show covers the Tesla Model 3 Performance. Camissa gives it good marks and recommends it over a BMW M3. His reasoning is the M3 is turbo charged, automatic and AWD which is closer to a Tesla drive feel than a RWD, NA, manual car. And Tesla does other things better (like it's ride quality on bad roads) and is cheaper in cost.

I'm the furthest thing from an electric car fan. There are 2 diesels and a few other ICE vehicles including a 5.9 Mopar in the family. I just thought the Ioniq 5 N is very interesting and worth a look at to see where things are going especially compared to the pretty boring ICE cars that are out there.

My issue isn't at all with it being an electric car, it's the fake engine noises. It's no different than fake engine noises from the stereo in a car that now is common.

I think your M3 comparison is a perfect example. With the M3 not being NA, not being manually shifted you may as well go electric and have even better performance and possibly better handling with the weight down low. But if you want a stick-shift loud NA car, don't try to fool me with the electric car. It's paddle shifters on the minivan.

 

[Captain Brainstorm]

Even Chris Harris said if you are looking at an M3, M5, Audi RS then you should add the Ioniq 5 N to the list. And the list of comments that mention he didn't say anything about the active sound and simulated gear shifts is very long - wondering why he didn't.

This week's Carmudgen show covers the Tesla Model 3 Performance. Camissa gives it good marks and recommends it over a BMW M3. His reasoning is the M3 is turbo charged, automatic and AWD which is closer to a Tesla drive feel than a RWD, NA, manual car. And Tesla does other things better (like it's ride quality on bad roads) and is cheaper in cost.

I'm the furthest thing from an electric car fan. There are 2 diesels and a few other ICE vehicles including a 5.9 Mopar in the family. I just thought the Ioniq 5 N is very interesting and worth a look at to see where things are going especially compared to the pretty boring ICE cars that are out there.

I have a feeling he didn't mention the active sound and simulated shifts because they're just too stupid to even discuss. A lot of his other points were good, however I would still take something like an RS6 over this simply because I can take it on a 400 mile road trip and have zero range anxiety. I'm not into waiting 30-40min. for a car to charge, plus most of the places I do road trips to are in the sticks. And yea, a 4.2L turbo 8 is also going to sound better.

My issue isn't at all with it being an electric car, it's the fake engine noises. It's no different than fake engine noises from the stereo in a car that now is common.

I think your M3 comparison is a perfect example. With the M3 not being NA, not being manually shifted you may as well go electric and have even better performance and possibly better handling with the weight down low. But if you want a stick-shift loud NA car, don't try to fool me with the electric car. It's paddle shifters on the minivan.

But you can get an M3 with a manual transmission. The non-competition, rwd drive one. I think C&D did a long term review on one. Also, I don't think a heavier car is going to handle better just because the weight is down low vs. a lighter one with good distribution. Heavy is heavy.

 

[Santapez]

I have a feeling he didn't mention the active sound and simulated shifts because they're just too stupid to even discuss. A lot of his other points were good, however I would still take something like an RS6 over this simply because I can take it on a 400 mile road trip and have zero range anxiety. I'm not into waiting 30-40min. for a car to charge, plus most of the places I do road trips to are in the sticks. And yea, a 4.2L turbo 8 is also going to sound better.


But you can get an M3 with a manual transmission. The non-competition, rwd drive one. I think C&D did a long term review on one. Also, I don't think a heavier car is going to handle better just because the weight is down low vs. a lighter one with good distribution. Heavy is heavy.

Heavy is heavy, but it does seem with the extremely low COG and also not at the extremes of the vehicle they turn pretty well.

 

[Captain Brainstorm]

Heavy is heavy, but it does seem with the extremely low COG and also not at the extremes of the vehicle they turn pretty well.

I think you can take any powerful rear-wheel drive car out on a track and drift this shit out of it though, its not really a measure of how well it performs. My buddy and I drove his Tesla to VT last summer, a 330 mile trip, and it gave me a really good idea of how an electric car would fair with me, the way I drive, and where I drive:

• The acceleration and passing speed is next level, there is no denying that. Its a lot of fun, but its something that I can't deploy too much on a road trip, which brings me to my next point.
• My minimum driving speed on the highway is 80-90, which I could not do because highway driving kills range. I had it keep it below 80 which was killing me.
• Charging to 80% added almost 2hrs to the trip, between finding a charging station and actually charging.
• The steering is the numbest I've ever felt next to Suburban. It was somewhat nimble and turned in well, but there was zero feel.
• The car bent into a turn well for something that weighs that much, but you really felt the weight on transitions, of which there were many once I got onto the backroads. Tires were screaming.

Overall it was a decent ride, but not a very exciting one aside from the acceleration. The interior styling was not my taste, but taste is subjective. If you're not a car person and can get past the range anxiety, then I guess its an option. For something that was over 6 figures (man, did he buy it at the wrong time), it was disappointing though. For that cost, I would want something a little more exciting than a point A to point B conveyance. For something to run around in locally day to day, I can see the value of an electric car, but not at these prices.

 

[don]

I think you can take any powerful rear-wheel drive car out on a track and drift this shit out of it though, its not really a measure of how well it performs. My buddy and I drove his Tesla to VT last summer, a 330 mile trip, and it gave me a really good idea of how an electric car would fair with me, the way I drive, and where I drive:

• The acceleration and passing speed is next level, there is no denying that. Its a lot of fun, but its something that I can't deploy too much on a road trip, which brings me to my next point.
• My minimum driving speed on the highway is 80-90, which I could not do because highway driving kills range. I had it keep it below 80 which was killing me.
• Charging to 80% added almost 2hrs to the trip, between finding a charging station and actually charging.
• The steering is the numbest I've ever felt next to Suburban. It was somewhat nimble and turned in well, but there was zero feel.
• The car bent into a turn well for something that weighs that much, but you really felt the weight on transitions, of which there were many once I got onto the backroads. Tires were screaming.

Overall it was a decent ride, but not a very exciting one aside from the acceleration. The interior styling was not my taste, but taste is subjective. If you're not a car person and can get past the range anxiety, then I guess its an option. For something that was over 6 figures (man, did he buy it at the wrong time), it was disappointing though. For that cost, I would want something a little more exciting than a point A to point B conveyance. For something to run around in locally day to day, I can see the value of an electric car, but not at these prices.

I still get jazzed thinking about driving a B6 S4 with full Miltek exhaust up to VT many years ago. 340HP and it's heavy weight isn't too eye opening now but with the 6 speed manual it was really enjoyable. A recent trip with my 1500 Duramax wasn't much slower overall but having exhaust note bouncing off concrete going thru NYC or downshifting into turns on the Merrit and passing someone on a hill in VT will make me smile remembering it.

There will always be car people but the ability to just have a transportation appliance these days will appeal to a lot of people. Under 70mph, silence, and comfort (aka numbness) will be fine for them. I've also noticed at rest stops people are numb as well so a 2 hour break for a charge won't be an issue for them.

Speaking of Tesla and the FSD mode mentioned above, Dr Jason Richardson said on the latest Unclicked BMX podcast that his Tesla in FSD made the merge onto a California highway pretty hairball and it parked itselft in the passing/left lane. Seems to go along with what you found out about speed and energy use with a Tesla.

 

[Captain Brainstorm]

I still get jazzed thinking about driving a B6 S4 with full Miltek exhaust up to VT many years ago. 340HP and it's heavy weight isn't too eye opening now but with the 6 speed manual it was really enjoyable. A recent trip with my 1500 Duramax wasn't much slower overall but having exhaust note bouncing off concrete going thru NYC or downshifting into turns on the Merrit and passing someone on a hill in VT will make me smile remembering it.

There will always be car people but the ability to just have a transportation appliance these days will appeal to a lot of people. Under 70mph, silence, and comfort (aka numbness) will be fine for them. I've also noticed at rest stops people are numb as well so a 2 hour break for a charge won't be an issue for them.

Speaking of Tesla and the FSD mode mentioned above, Dr Jason Richardson said on the latest Unclicked BMX podcast that his Tesla in FSD made the merge onto a California highway pretty hairball and it parked itselft in the passing/left lane. Seems to go along with what you found out about speed and energy use with a Tesla.

Ha! I still have a B6 S4 with a full Miltek tech exhaust with a 6 speed manual. Still sounds good, and at 3800lbs its light by todays standards.

 

[don]

Ha! I still have a B6 S4 with a full Miltek tech exhaust with a 6 speed manual. Still sounds good, and at 3800lbs its light by todays standards.

lol - great minds...

The S4 still looks very handsome and unique and I'm sure the Miltek sounds just as good as I remembered. I loved driving mine.

 

[Captain Brainstorm]

lol - great minds...

The S4 still looks very handsome and unique and I'm sure the Miltek sounds just as good as I remembered. I loved driving mine.

Even though its 20yrs old, it still pulls hard and those Recaro's are best seats I've ever sat in, regardless of price.