Audi A4

[12,000 RPM]

Yeah, the 4Runner + S2000 = 340xi money.  But I have more utility, more fun, more reliability, less depreciation, etc. 

I can't imagine ever spending $37k for a 180 hp 3-series to sit in traffic.  An Accord isn't the same dynamically, but for the daily drive, driving dynamics really aren't at the top of my list.

Whats wrong with a 180 hp 3 series? It's just as fast as your S2000, with way more headroom for additional HP:

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2013-bmw-320i-test-review
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2000-honda-s2000-archived-test-review

And I'm assuming you commute in the S2K when the weather is good, so driving dynamics are a factor for the daily grind. The practicality and reliability are the only real knocks... but there are cheaper and more reliable options within the poser class. For someone who needs 1 car to do it all, including be half decent on a back road, poser class is the only choice. Nobody is taking an auto Accord V6 sedan canyon carving.

[SJ_GTI]

None of any of that makes any sense to me.

You won't buy a camcord, but you will drive a Golf.

And if you had to settle for a auto, you would buy a S3 over a 235/M2/335i/M3? Uhh...ok. 

Your reading comprehension is terrible. 

[MrH]

Whats wrong with a 180 hp 3 series? It's just as fast as your S2000, with way more headroom for additional HP:

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2013-bmw-320i-test-review
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2000-honda-s2000-archived-test-review

And I'm assuming you commute in the S2K when the weather is good, so driving dynamics are a factor for the daily grind. The practicality and reliability are the only real knocks... but there are cheaper and more reliable options within the poser class. For someone who needs 1 car to do it all, including be half decent on a back road, poser class is the only choice. Nobody is taking an auto Accord V6 sedan canyon carving.

Dear god those S2000 times are soooooo slow.

http://www.motortrend.com/news/honda-s2000-3/

A full second slower 0-60, and .9 seconds slower in the 1/4?  What were they doing?

[MX793]

Dear god those S2000 times are soooooo slow.

http://www.motortrend.com/news/honda-s2000-3/

A full second slower 0-60, and .9 seconds slower in the 1/4?  What were they doing?

Yeah, that's like THE worst times anyone has gotten in an S2K.  Even significantly slower than other tests C&D did.  From their "Blow Dryers" comparo in '02

http://media.caranddriver.com/files/2003-audi-tt-vsbmw-z4-honda-s2000-nissan-350z-porsche-boxsterblow-dryers-test-results.pdf

0-60 in 5.4, 1/4 mile in 14.1.

[12,000 RPM]

320i is still "real world" faster- look at the 0-60 times. AP1s are dogs on the small cam, which is where I imagine you spend most of your time in traffic Plus they dyno within 10-15WHP of each other. It's not a valid complaint IMO.

[GoCougs]

What is going on here. S2000 is so much quicker than a 320i - a full second 0-60 and in the 1/4 mile - it's not really even a discussion.

[12,000 RPM]

An S2K clutch won't last long with the launches they do to get those times. The 5-60 rolling test is more indicative of what you (Cougs) would be able to get out of these cars on a regular basis. I'm sure the 320i's top gear roll ons are significantly better too.

[CaminoRacer]

Accord and Camry are fast food.  Yes, you can survive eating only that, but it's hardly steak tartare and truffle mac. 

Nah, they're more like O'Charleys or Chilis. Nice places with decent stuff that will satisfy you, but not anything special.

[MrH]

320i is still "real world" faster- look at the 0-60 times. AP1s are dogs on the small cam, which is where I imagine you spend most of your time in traffic Plus they dyno within 10-15WHP of each other. It's not a valid complaint IMO.

The BMW is .7 slower from 5-60 from a roll.

[MexicoCityM3]

Ok. When did this become about comparing sports car and compact sports sedans? Totally different categories.

[Char]

Your reading comprehension is terrible. 

No, it's quite good. I'm just saying, if you had to settle for an Automatic, there is no reason to settle a S3/4 when you can just buy a superior machine outright, even in automatic form.

[Raza]

Nah, they're more like O'Charleys or Chilis. Nice places with decent stuff that will satisfy you, but not anything special.

What the hell is O'Charleys?

Anyway, whatever mediocre restaurant you want to call them, that's all they are, and the point stands. 

[Morris Minor]

What the hell is O'Charleys?

Anyway, whatever mediocre restaurant you want to call them, that's all they are, and the point stands. 

It is to food as a Camry is to cars. Boil in the bag, slap it under a heat lamp, serve it up to people who just don't care.

[Char]

[12,000 RPM]

It is to food as a Camry is to cars. Boil in the bag, slap it under a heat lamp, serve it up to people who just don't care.

Everyone can't be discerning about everything. Example: the shoe thread

[CaminoRacer]

It takes too much effort to be picky about restaurants all the time, unless you're in a big city where there are lots of unique hole in the wall places. Most of the country only has chain restaurants to choose from.

[12,000 RPM]

People deserve better than chain restaurants

One thing I love about CLT

[MX793]

It takes too much effort to be picky about restaurants all the time, unless you're in a big city where there are lots of unique hole in the wall places. Most of the country only has chain restaurants to choose from.

The midwest, maybe.  I don't live in a "big" city, but we have a fair number of good, unique eateries around here.  Several have been featured on Food Network programs and similar.  I suppose I take it for granted, as I'm not much of a foodie and seldom go out to eat.

[Raza]

It is to food as a Camry is to cars. Boil in the bag, slap it under a heat lamp, serve it up to people who just don't care.

Thankfully, I live in a city where, if these places even exist, restaurants like that can be wholly ignored.

[Morris Minor]

We have them all: Chilli's, Applebee's, O'Charley's. And the rest.  The best food is in the small food court in the local Asian supermarket: mom & pop street food favorites from Korea, Vietnam, China

[Lebowski]

With Yelp, you can find a decent independent place to eat in most areas, IME.

Yelp imo has kind of negated one of the bigger selling points of the chain restaurants, which was while it might not be great at least you know what to expect.

[CALL_911]

The midwest, maybe.  I don't live in a "big" city, but we have a fair number of good, unique eateries around here.  Several have been featured on Food Network programs and similar.  I suppose I take it for granted, as I'm not much of a foodie and seldom go out to eat.

Without a doubt Syracuse does well on the food front

[veeman]

The thing about chain restaurants is that they're significantly cheaper.  Significantly.  When I'm with my wife alone, I avoid chains.  But with kids, I seek out chains.  If I go to a local Italian restaurant, 2 adults and 2 kids will cost $100 if I get wine.  If I go to Olive Garden, that will cost $60 with wine.  Mostly when I eat out with kids in tow, I just want to be served, not have to do dishes, and have some conversation.  If the food is decent, that's good enough.  I can't really concentrate on the meal anyways because I gotta make sure the kids are catered to.

[12,000 RPM]

The thing about chain restaurants is that they're significantly cheaper.  Significantly.  When I'm with my wife alone, I avoid chains.  But with kids, I seek out chains.  If I go to a local Italian restaurant, 2 adults and 2 kids will cost $100 if I get wine.  If I go to Olive Garden, that will cost $60 with wine.  Mostly when I eat out with kids in tow, I just want to be served, not have to do dishes, and have some conversation.  If the food is decent, that's good enough.  I can't really concentrate on the meal anyways because I gotta make sure the kids are catered to.

It really depends on the place. Down here the little independent places can be as cheap as the chains, though the independent places are usually better. Olive Garden is awful though. No swipes but I am hoping having kids doesn't kill my appetite for good food. I'd rather cook at home if going out with them is that miserable.

[veeman]

It really depends on the place. Down here the little independent places can be as cheap as the chains, though the independent places are usually better. Olive Garden is awful though. No swipes but I am hoping having kids doesn't kill my appetite for good food. I'd rather cook at home if going out with them is that miserable.

Maybe because I'm vegetarian the chains don't bother me as much.  It's hard to mess up pasta and tomato sauce.  I would imagine the quality of meat at Olive Garden wouldn't be that great.  Their never ending salad is awesome.  And I never fork over a lot of cash for expensive wine, even at a very upscale restaurant.  That's just throwing away money in my mind.  A 50 dollar bottle of wine is usually 25 dollars down the street at the local liquor store.

[12,000 RPM]

Ah yea vegetarian eating would change things a lot.

[CaminoRacer]

There are lots of good places in Cincinnati but it's a 25 min drive instead of 10 min. We go out to eat every weekend but lots of times we're busy working in the garage or whatever and want somewhere fast(ish) and easy.

[Rich]

FoodSpin

[Morris Minor]

I woke up a little when I read  C&D's review of the 2017 A4. Looks like a nice car. 0-60 in the low 5s is impressive for a 250hp 4-banger. And the super-silent cabin is impressive - quieter than an S-Class & a Lexus LS?? Wondering if they're doing noise cancellation through the sound system.

[12,000 RPM]

They are probably able to tune out road noise frequencies through better chassis design. Agreed on performance- only a few tenths off from the V8 S4, with almost double the gas mileage. If you don't care at all about the driving experience it's a pretty big win