What's the Point of High-Powered Cars in a World of Speed Limits?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the relevance and practicality of high-powered cars in the context of speed limits, particularly questioning the necessity of vehicles capable of exceeding legal speed limits when such speeds are rarely permissible in most countries. Participants explore the implications of consumer choice, government regulations, and the societal costs associated with high-speed driving.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants question the purpose of high-powered cars, arguing that they are unnecessary given the existence of speed limits, particularly in most countries where speeds above 70 mph are not allowed.
  • Others highlight the consumer-driven nature of the automotive market, suggesting that manufacturers produce what consumers desire without imposing restrictions based on speed capabilities.
  • There are claims regarding the social and economic costs of speeding, with some participants advocating for speed limiters as a potential solution to reduce traffic incidents.
  • Some participants argue that limiting car speeds may not effectively address the causes of preventable accidents, suggesting that other factors contribute more significantly to traffic incidents.
  • Disagreements arise over the definition of a "reasonable" car and whether it is appropriate for governments to dictate what consumers should want in vehicles.
  • A few participants challenge the assertion that high-speed driving is the primary cause of accidents, proposing that other factors may be more critical.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views, with no consensus reached on the necessity of high-powered cars or the role of government in regulating vehicle capabilities. The discussion remains unresolved, with multiple competing perspectives on consumer choice, safety, and regulatory responsibilities.

Contextual Notes

Some statements rely on assumptions about consumer behavior and government roles that are not universally accepted. The discussion also reflects varying interpretations of safety statistics and the implications of speed limits across different countries.

  • #91
wolram said:
Now you are being silly, you can go what ever speed you want on a race track, i love F! and follow Mercedes, you did not answer my question by the way.

Well, how would I be able to do that if every vehicle had an underpowered 1600cc engine and could only travel 70mph?
 
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  • #92
wolram said:
Just tell me this, setting aside Germany, how many of you WANT to break the law and drive over speed limits 70ish in most countries?
How many of you want to break the law and travel through towns villages above the 30mph limit?
How many of you do break the law?

As long as you do not ban guns, I would say that unlimited cars are the least problem you have.
 
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  • #93
wolram said:
Just tell me this, setting aside Germany, how many of you WANT to break the law and drive over speed limits 70ish in most countries?
yes
How many of you want to break the law and travel through towns villages above the 30mph limit?
no
 
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  • #94
wolram said:
... why are these huge engined cars sold world wide, what is the use owning a car with a v10 engine capable of 200mph when your local motorway has a 70mph top limit.

Why do we allow houses greater than 100 square feet, when that's plenty of room to lay down in? Think of all the wasted energy.
 
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  • #95
Our car goes 300mph.

We will sell a few nearly as capable.
 
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  • #96
The old (and tired) "why do you/someone need x"?

Especially when x can be used to (a) put someone in danger and / or (b) break a law.

I'm a hunter, as well as a firearms enthusiast, so I often hear the "why do you need a <insert hand, semi auto, large calibre etc..> gun? - to which I usually reply "why do you NEED a <big screen TV, a nice car, cold beer on a hot day> ? , to which the obvious answer is you really don't, do you?

For the topic at hand, I just bought a new F150 pickup with a dual turbocharged 6 cylinder motor. It goes like a bat out of hell, and would leave many of the "muscle cars" I drove in the 70's eating its dust. Do I "need" acceleration like that? No I don't, but I also pull a travel trailer through the mountains, and although I don't "need" to be able to pull it up long grades at the posted speed limit, I like to do so, and I'm sure 99% of the other motorists traveling in my direction like the fact that I do too..

Living in a society where faceless bureaucrats in some gov't body decide what I need and don't need is not very appealing.

I'm a little too fond of liberty, I guess..
 
  • #97
Cars today are wonderfully engineered. My car is 420 HP, stops and corners exceptionally well, is comfortable, quiet, safe, and still gets almost 30 MPG on the highway. I had a compact 4 cylinder car that got almost 45 MPG, and I quickly hated it. 700 miles after I purchased that car, a deer stepped out in front of me. The skinny tire little car made what should have been avoidable become like watching a tragedy unfold in slow motion. I could not steer around the deer, I could not stop. The tiny little hard tires just slid and slid as I hit the deer. I could have avoided the deer if the car stopped and steered anything like a performance car, but the car could not do anything well. It was single focus on MPG, and not a good country rural road car. Buy what you want, but don't force me to buy what you want.
 
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  • #98
wolram said:
Just tell me this, setting aside Germany, how many of you WANT to break the law and drive over speed limits 70ish in most countries?
How many of you want to break the law and travel through towns villages above the 30mph limit?
How many of you do break the law?

Why do you keep equating engine size and speeding? It's a false connection. Except for the fastest highways I can exceed the speed limit most everywhere in a 1.8L Corolla. Except when I am going uphill in the mountains. Then, I need a larger engine both for climbing and for dealing with reduced efficiency due to altitude.

In your zeal to regulate engine sizes to control speed, are you going to permit an allowance for high altitude? For climbing hills? For pulling trailers? What's your formula that permits me to have a 3.0L instead of a 2.0L? Maximum vehicle curb weight? What are you going to do when I need a 5.0L to pull a large trailer carrying a tractor but don't have the trailer hooked up all the time. Your engine size arguments fall apart.

The argument is pointless from another view as well, and that is the speed limits themselves. In far too many places, well meaning (and ignorant) bureaucrats set the speed limits far lower than they should be. Everyone violates the limits and everyone becomes a criminal, except for those who actually follow the stupid speed limits thereby making the roadway more dangerous by creating speed differentials.

It has been shown that people drive at a safe speed, not the posted speed. Many governments, including the State of Texas, have a law on the books that speed limits are to be set at the speed at which the 85th percentile of drivers go. It's routinely violated by municipalities who want to collect ticket revenue.

You want to control speeding? Educate the driver. Don't limit engine sizes.
 
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  • #99
The bottom line is if we do not understand complex systems that have many dozens of variables, we should not dictate rules for those systems.
 
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  • #100
HowlerMonkey said:
Our car goes 300mph.

We will sell a few nearly as capable.

What car would that be, out of curiosity?
 
  • #101
If you really want to save lives, you'd require cell phone manufacturers to design their phones to self destruct if activated inside a moving car. [\hijack]
 
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  • #102
The biggest thing that blows my mind is the fact that we add ethanol which is not efficient in terms of power per volume. So we buy 10% ethanol fuel that is cheaper but also weaker so we lose in gallons per mile.
 
  • #103
KonaGorrila said:
The biggest thing that blows my mind is the fact that we add ethanol which is not efficient in terms of power per volume. So we buy 10% ethanol fuel that is cheaper but also weaker so we lose in gallons per mile.
It's a fair bit more complicated than that. Power per unit fuel is not the only factor. For example, ethanol dramatically reduces greenhouse emissions. But let's not go down that twisty-turny sideroad.
 
  • #104
DaveC426913 said:
For example, ethanol dramatically reduces greenhouse emissions.

Really? It rather depends upon the ethanol source and the ethanol percentage. Corn produced ethanol in E10/E15 mixes are at best a wash, worse than pure petrol when land use changes are taken into account.
 
  • #105
cjl said:
What car would that be, out of curiosity?
tumblr_n56ndkHp5Z1r8c46jo1_1280.jpg
 

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