what defines a sports car? Options

[d3ath2009]

my roommate ticked me off the other day bc he said my car is not a sports car... do i asked him how my celica wasnt a sports car and all he could say is "it just isnt".... so what r eveerybody's opinions on sports cars?

[jordisonjr]

I wouldnt be paying $1600 a year to insure a 1995 non-sports car. haha

[Promasta]

celica is not a sports car, its a subcompact. it is a fwd sporty econobox with 135 hp or less. a sports car needs to be awd or rwd and actually have some power behind it so it can be competitive for racing. some examples would include corvette, gt-r, 370z, 911, r8, etc. the gt-four i would argue is a sports car since it was designed for use in rally sport, especially the wrc.

This post has been edited by Promasta: Apr 17, 2011 - 5:23 PM

[garin]

nissan maxima... the four door sports car!

[4-eyed-freek]

doesnt matter if the car is rear wheel drive, 4wd, 1 wheel drive, what ever, and most of all it doesnt matter if its fwd. it makes no differance in defining a sports car.




the renault r26... yup its fwd and it makes 230hp. yea thats more than the na 2jz.


how about this for fwd. ford focus rs... it makes 325 ftlbs of torque. 0-60 in just over 5 sec. thats faster then most rwd sports cars.


a sports car, it doesnt matter if its powered by a lawn mower engine.. a sports car is something sporty, something fun. something that puts a smile on your face. or mabey something that gets good gas millage, has looks that could kill and has 130hp.... how about a celica.

This post has been edited by 4-eyed-freek: Apr 17, 2011 - 6:43 PM

[richee3]

I'm inclined to agree with Promasta. I wouldn't say the Celica is a "sports car." More like a "sports coupe." Something small, light, and sporty, yet still economical and practical. I would say a "sports car" has a little more power and is quicker than your average car, where the 6th gen is just about average. However, the definition of a sports car is pretty vague and you could easily call the Celica a sports car.

[delusionz]

The Celica was a sports car in it's day, Whats changed? Because the Celica itself certainly hasn't.

3S-GE was and still is a high performance engine (for a 2.0L) even today, Just some countries didn't receive the correct motor.

What makes a Celica a sports car is it's styling and design, and in an uncrippled version (as originally intended by Toyota in Japan) you get the suitable engine, brakes and suspension to give you sports car handling and performance to match.

gt-r, 370z, 911, r8, etc.

Apart from the 370z which is a high performance sports car, the rest of those are supercars.

supercars is a different category to sports cars.

This post has been edited by delusionz: Apr 17, 2011 - 11:10 PM

[schmooot]

I always kind of defined a sports car as something that never came in a 4 door. Minimum requirement

[Promasta]

i would disagree delusionz
yes supercars are a different category to sports cars, they are higher end like mclaren f1, ferraris, lambos, saleen s7, zonda, bugatti, dbs, ccx...

This post has been edited by Promasta: Apr 18, 2011 - 12:02 AM

[HectortheRican]

i would disagree delusionz
yes supercars are a different category to sports cars, they are higher end like mclaren f1, ferraris, lambos, saleen s7, zonda, bugatti, dbs, ccx...

Those are categorized as "hyper" cars. There's your normal cars, sports cars, high performance sports cars, super cars, and hyper cars. In that order.

[trebilihp]

... What about handling? I think a sports car is first off all a good handling car. Since the 6th gen has a 4 wheel independant suspension and had some decent performances versions (2l engine and superstrut suspension), i think it is definatly a sports car... It is true that the st version seems like a maked up corolla, but i drove a 1.8l 1995 corolla and it doesn't feel as good as the celica at all.

[delusionz]

Your Celica may have came with a Camry motor, You may call it a Camry, but that doesn't make anyone elses Celica a Camry besides your own.

[howie_vang]

i had always been told that a 2 door is a sport car and a 4 door is not..that what most insurance look for when u go buy a car..i didn't say it so don't take my words for it..lol

[Promasta]

ya but there's isf, m5, sti, evo, etc which are very competitive on the track

[d3ath2009]

one of the biggest things ive noticed is insurance. my mom has an '06 accord with the 2.4 v-tech, definitely faster than my st, and yet its cheaper for me to be the primary driver on her car than my own. how would this be possible if mine wasn't a sports car....

[azian_advanced]

the value of her car is probably more than yours and probably less likely to be stolen/vandalized?

[delusionz]

Interestingly though, Of the 3 Celicas I've owned an SS-I, an SS-III and my current GT4, On the registration papers where it says Body type the SS-I said Hatchback while the SS-III and GT4 said Sports Car.

[yungazzdriver]

I think because people in the US see celicas used as econo cars we view them as non-sporty but everyone else around the world that had gt4's and ss*** models available are calling them sports cars. I think if in the US we would have gotten those we would consider celicas sporty. IMO i definately think its sporty. I just sold my BMW 325 coupe and I loved the way it handled, but honestly the interior was OK... the celica's interior is very closely related to the supra and feels like your own personal cockpit. Also the celica handes just as good as the bmw did..... I take the same turns at the same speed and feels good to me.......

[spolski07]

i drive a sports car

2 seater RWD 287hp 6-speed

and i have the insurance rates to prove it!

[d3ath2009]

thats the thing though... some ppl define them strictly on looks... so basically u could put a prius motor and transmission on a frame with the blown out suspension from an old cadillac with a corvette body and they would still call it a sports car.... sports car depends on the history an complete family of the car.... sports cars generally come from a model that never had a 4 door version (with some exceptions like certain hatchbacks, wrx-sti and evo, but an m5, and cars of the like, are still sedans... if u pay for a bmw u pay for the best they can offer which means its gonna handle and perform like a sports car with the luxury of a sedan)... as far as i know, i cant think of any sports cars that were offered in a 4 door version other than the exceptions mentioned above... ferrari and porsche both now have those ugly 4 door cars that are sporty based only on the past of the company.