What would make you more happy?

[Sunny]

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Sorry for the click bait title! But here is more of a philosophical question - when it comes to cars, what would make you more happy? A car that is more fun to drive but you cannot drive as often. Or one that is not as fun (but still fun) but you can drive more often. In other words - what is more important for happiness - the peaks or the area under the curve?

ps. Don't be thrown off by the specific models in the pic. They are just examples that happen to be living rent free in my head currently!

 

[martinbo]

Such a cool question to pose. I could write a 10 page essay on my views and limited personal experience. I’ll save it for later.

 

[Design FIRST]

The answer may certainly be one that is dependent on which stage of life one finds him/herself in. For me, the factor of everyday practicality paired with something that could instill a personal satisfaction of ownership could very well be my "dream car". The Porsche Taycan immediately comes to mind, base RWD drivetrain specification but otherwise configured generously. Color, trim, interior materials, rims would be important for me. They enhance the "gaze worthiness". A Sport Turismo could tempt me, although I really like the sedan as well. That having been said, I find myself really liking the Macan-E as well.

 

[Giannis]

Or one that is not as fun (but still fun) but you can drive more often.

This. I'd find no satisfaction running around in a Prius only for me to be able to enjoy a blast in a Cayman GT4 once a month.

 

[Big Sam]

Speaking from experience and at my stage of life (47-years-old with two young boys), I would say a car that enhances the daily trudge of life compared with a car which I can have a blast in on only rare occasions is of much more interest to me.

 

[klier]

From this example, I'd pick the GT4 RS 9 out of 10 times. The one time I need the M5 is when I go with my buddies.

Just one line needed @martinbo

In other words - what is more important for happiness - the peaks or the area under the curve?

An M5 under the curve pretty much is an ordinary 5er. Which is a good thing. But the GT4 RS is very special anywhere under or above the curve.

 

[martinbo]

Just one line needed @martinbo

One dimensional too.

 

[klier]

One dimensional too.

True. I can't wait to read your layered novel.

 

[Matski]

From this example, I'd pick the GT4 RS 9 out of 10 times. The one time I need the M5 is when I go with my buddies.

Just one line needed @martinbo

Dude, did you even read the post, or just look at the pictures?

Don't be thrown off by the specific models in the pic. They are just examples that happen to be living rent free in my head currently

 

[Jonathan19]

View attachment 741342

Sorry for the click bait title! But here is more of a philosophical question - when it comes to cars, what would make you more happy? A car that is more fun to drive but you cannot drive as often. Or one that is not as fun (but still fun) but you can drive more often. In other words - what is more important for happiness - the peaks or the area under the curve?

ps. Don't be thrown off by the specific models in the pic. They are just examples that happen to be living rent free in my head currently!

Not an easy choice, both are so incredible in their own right... But I think I would choose the M5 CS. The GT4 RS is amazing, but I'm in a phase where I prefer "long trips with a powerful sedan" over a "hardcore race car-like experience."

 

[tristatez28lt1]

Amazing and tough question! Depends on a few things but at the moment I’ll be selfish and go with fun maximization.

 

[Design FIRST]

"A car that is more fun to drive but you cannot drive as often."

It is interesting how the criteria has evolved over the years.

These were IMMENSELY fun back in their day. But as an everyday conveyance...not so much really. Lucas electrical components and a top that did not provide much protection from natures nastier elements made these more than a bit dodgy. Still, I'd like to have one of these. Just for fun. Unfortunately, they've become rare and pricey. And it just wouldn't fit into the catalogue of my current lifes priorities.

 

[AndreB]

Not an easy choice, both are so incredible in their own right... But I think I would choose the M5 CS. The GT4 RS is amazing, but I'm in a phase where I prefer "long trips with a powerful sedan" over a "hardcore race car-like experience."

Same, I like road trips, winter trips for skiing, etc so M5 CS for me too. I'd take GT4 RS if I drive shorter trips and live outside the city.

 

[Gianclaudio]

the peaks or the area under the curve?

Special car, every single time. Great driving isn't even a must. I'd love to have a M1 or early 70's Countach just to look at the damm thing every day, and drive it occasionally

Can use the various public transports or rentals the rest of time.

 

[Sunny]

Thanks all for the input. Keep it coming. I asked, cause this is something I have always struggled with. Most comparisons, compare similar cars. For me that is the easy part - thanks to my strong biases, I almost always gravitate strongly towards one vehicle or another in any class. It is this cross class FOMO that paralyzes me.

This. I'd find no satisfaction running around in a Prius only for me to be able to enjoy a blast in a Cayman GT4 once a month.

Special car, every single time. Great driving isn't even a must. I'd love to have a M1 or early 70's Countach just to look at the damm thing every day, and drive it occasionally

Can use the various public transports or rentals the rest of time.

I think the two "Gian"s nailed the two sides the debate! Having swung both ways, I feel them both .

When I got my E36 M3, 25 years ago, I went with the daily-able, but fun choice. And I am glad I did. It made the drudgery of daily commute a quick hit of adrenaline. Like @Giannis said, it would have sucked if I had to commute in a Prius all these years just to drive something special on the weekends. The car is a superhero, it does everything so well, be it track days and or bring my daughter back from the hospital after she was born.

With the GT3, I went the other way. I have to admit, I drive the car far less than I imagined I would when I got it. But the ownership still has been special. As @Gianclaudio said, I can just look at it and polish it and feel happy. But I don't think I could or would have got the GT3 if I didn't already have the solid fun daily in the M3. Which brings me to the my current conundrum, the M3 is, alas, old now - I still drive it when I can, but I don't dare do a long distance trip with the family in it.

Such a cool question to pose. I could write a 10 page essay on my views and limited personal experience. I’ll save it for later.

Get cracking .

 

[Design FIRST]

...and speaking of "fun" :

This automotive icon is, in its own special way, an absolute blast to drive. So primitive that it is overwhelmingly charming. So good at what it was meant to do, that it was also produced in France under the Hotchkiss name and was the standard small military vehicle of the post WWII French military. As said, a very special kind of fun.

 

[Giannis]

Great driving isn't even a must.

Here's where I fundamentally disagree.

It's like saying great food isn't a must, or good sex isn't a must. How many days of fast food would be ok, in order to balance a good home-cooked meal or a Michelin star dinner? How many times should you have to sleep with someone with the weight and grace of the latest 5 series, before dating a model?

 

[Design FIRST]

Here's where I fundamentally disagree.

It's like saying great food isn't a must, or good sex isn't a must. How many days of fast food would be ok, in order to balance a good home-cooked meal or a Michelin star dinner? How many times should you have to sleep with someone with the weight and grace of the latest 5 series, before dating a model?

I reckon that it would be difficult to make a "blanket assessment" on what exactly consitutes "great driving". Some may direct attention to the amazing abilities of modern Porsche product steering, suspension and drivetrains (ICE as well as battery electric). Others will highlight the rudimentary, "raw" and physically engaging experience of cars such as a KTM X-Bow, Donkervoort D8 or a number of classic sportcars such as an old MG-TC or TD, a 1960s Lotus Elan or whatever. And others may simply enjoy wafting in an old Rolls or a classic mid-to-late 1950s Cadillac. Or being beaten up by an old rough and tumble vintage Jeep or Land Rover. Different interpretations of "fun" and "good driving", all legitimate. Excuse my droning rambling.

 

[Amat46]

The happiest I’ve felt in recent times is when I’m sitting on the saddle of a two-wheeler. While I’ve had my fair share of experiences with fast cars, riding a motorbike is an entirely different feeling. Riding feel like a meditation, you’re fully present, feeling the elements around you, and it makes you feel unstoppable, almost godlike!

 

[martinbo]

Ultimately, what this really boils down to is how many cars can you afford.

@Sunny - you put forward two very special driver's machines whose emphasis is on maximising performance and dynamics of their respective platforms. Both of these are pure bucket list material for me but it's all about context.
In the context of the two cars that you presented:

• If you stipulated that I could only have one of these and nothing else, I'd take the M5 CS because there's no chance that the GT4 RS has a broad enough ambit to be enjoyable in all situations - including the daily grind or going on a road trip. The M5 CS has a far broader repertoire: it's comfortable and refined enough for daily use, is practical and sufficiently capacious, will work great as a tourer and still drives fantastically.
• However, if I was able to keep my current daily driver, then the decision is far more difficult because the GT4 RS - as uncompromising as it is - comes flying back into contention. For well-planned, occasional use it's probably THE occasion. Given my other two cars in the garage (320d & X3) I'd go for that GT4 RS but still with a measure of uncertainty. The GT4 RS is a one-trick pony (and yes - that's SOME trick) and while I've not driven one, I've read and watched enough to tell me that it's not always enjoyable: it's too loud (engine and road noise) for long distance driving and it's too firm for anything but the smoothest tarmac. The GT4 RS is hardcore and singularly focused on one thing: being epic in full-on, f#ck-off driving on great roads and, preferably, a circuit.

Some weeks back I drove a couple of laps of a circuit in a 991.2 GT3 RS and I wouldn't even class the experience as an eye-opener but rather an affirmation of what I'd been feeling for quite some time. More on that later.