[ALLTRBO]

I got into a debate today with my supervisor (whose opinion and experience I greatly respect on most things) about fast/powerful street cars. He's on the strictly practical side and says that no one should have a (street) car that accelerates or tops out any faster than it HAS to for any condition it'll reasonably come across (ie. My wife's 4-door automatic Civic is still too fast, though he's mainly referring to sports/muscle cars). He's all for limiting every car to 85-90 mph, and doesn't think any car should have a better power/weight ratio than the average econobox. He feels that people should only be able to have what they want (in this regard) so long as there is a HUGE tax on it so that, basically, no one can afford it. According to him, people who drive fast cars, by human nature, will automatically drive them more dangerously to some degree and cause more accidents, and the cars are a pointless drain on natural resources (oil), etc. etc. He says that on some basic level, it's all about fulfilling one's "macho-ness".

Now he isn't some pointless ranter, he is a very intelligent and very accomplished person who has done his share of stupid things when he was young, and in my job he is definitely a valuable mentor. He is spot on in most everything he speaks of, and when he isn't, he's willing to listen to the other side of the argument. He definitely isn't a greenie tree-hugger, either.
That being said, it bothers me more than it typically would that he essentially thinks I'm an idiot on the subject and that he disagrees with just about all of my points.

Yes, powerful cars are definitely more than one needs, but it isn't about practical needs. While their are many, many idiots who have these cars to fulfill some form of "macho-ness", it's far from all of us. For me personally, it's about the physics as a whole... the feel, sound, how the mechanics of the entire system work together to create something perfectly harmonious, even the aesthetics of the thing, those sculpted lines that flow together to create a look of purpose. All of it meshes together to create a whole that is more than the sum of the parts, something more than an A to B, something more than a bland tool to get you from here to there. It's what some would call a passion, something beyond the "practical". I would love driving my cars just the same, staring at them with a smile just the same, if there were no one else on Earth (though that would be awfully lonely without any gearheads with which to share conversation about them).
It just so happens that it also gets you from here to there.

I bought my 2010 V6 Camaro because I liked the way it drove better than the SS, it felt like less of a fast 'truck' (keyword: truck). I also love all the technology in that sweet V6, and it's still no slouch. I've always been a V8 guy, but I'm a car guy first and foremost. The V8 is better in the ways V8's are, but I liked the V6 car this time. While that is already enough to make any "practical" person scoff in disapproval, I'm now thinking of trading it in on a '12 SS because I got T-boned a couple weeks ago from a red-light runner and although they're fixing it, it'll never be the same to me. So, the new SS's FE4 suspension along with the new steering wheel feel must have done something because now it feels more sporty to me, more balanced, more enjoyable to drive. Now I want the V8 car!

No doubt about it, the Camaro is a LOT of car in either form, and can get anyone into a LOT of trouble. However, opening it up for a couple seconds on an EMPTY stretch of highway, taking that "15 mph" corner at 35 mph when there is no traffic around and when you can SEE all the way around it, playing with the edge of traction from a stop sign to 60 mph when no traffic is in sight, or easily (and legally) passing the jerk in the fast lane who's going 10 under the speed limit? That isn't the epitome of stupidity in my eyes. Practical? Hell no. Reasonable? With half a brain and some manner of self control... I think it is. None of that is to mention the local drag strip, autocross, or road course for those of us who are self inclined and able. There isn't much that's better than driving your A to B to a legally sanctioned event, blasting it around for a couple of hours, then driving from the B back to the A!

Now lets forget all of that... When it's time to cruise back home from work late at night, I listen to the constant thrum of carefully timed explosions while sitting in my comfortable cocoon of relative safety (6 airbags and 5-stars aren't bad!), and I just enjoy my drive. It makes that point B to point A much less stressful.
If I want to drive half-way across the country, I get in and do it just the same. Smooth, quiet, and comfortable are three words that come to mind.

The amazing part? That's all in one car. I can't do that in the Civic, which is very ho-hum, basic and utilitarian... not something that can help me put away my worldly cares for a short time, not 'me'. If it is 'you', then congratulations! I get it!
Many different cars are 'them'... slow ones, ugly ones, and even powerful ones.

Is all that really so selfish, macho, and just plain stupid? Really?