Cars that just Flow

Stavros Murphy

Some cars you get in to drive, it's like pushing a wheelbarrow up a hill - either the engines gutless, the gears need constant stirring, or it crashes and bangs over our crappy roads. Or there's no grip/ a bad chassis so every bend is a lottery and effort.

Others just flow along - driving is a pleasure, there's little or no effort involved, nothing comes up to break the flow and you feel like you and the car are one, flowing along the roads.

What's your number 1 flowing car?

For me it's the Gen 6 Celica - the composure, sure-footedness, great gearbox, torquey engine and amazing grip just make driving a pleasure, but it is never raucous or intrusive - it just flows.

YbFocus

I love my e60 but it can be a bit harsh at times.

A friends is200 I had for a while lately blew me away, lovely car to drive and be in! Most are well under 2k now also making them tempting

jimgoose

Jags are great - planet-like torque and that sensation of endless acceleration, all with no stress, no hassle. S-Class Mercs, old and new, are also highly recommended.

visual

YbFocus wrote: »

I love my e60 but it can be a bit harsh at times.

A friends is200 I had for a while lately blew me away, lovely car to drive and be in! Most are well under 2k now also making them tempting

I've see comments the engine and gear box on IS200 isnt a good match. I presume this doesn't apply to the auto. Never driven either so don't know

Bobo78

In my experience VAG cars are one of the best at easy, effortless and comfortable rides especially at motorways. My own VW Passat was great at driving fast on motorway well over the speed limit and it felt just as composed and quiet and safe as when I drove it 60 kph outside of town.

YbFocus

visual wrote: »

I've see comments the engine and gear box on IS200 isnt a good match. I presume this doesn't apply to the auto. Never driven either so don't know

This was a manual visual, I found no problem with it, really could not fault it

Doesn't replace the effortless torque and acceleration of my own baby
If it had that I'd probably own one!

colm_mcm

Last model Starlet. Stay with me...

Even if you've never driven before, the gearbox is precise, clutch gives great feedback and its just a very easy car to drive.

Its a bit unrefined but this gives you a great idea of what the car is doing.

djimi

YbFocus wrote: »

A friends is200 I had for a while lately blew me away, lovely car to drive and be in! Most are well under 2k now also making them tempting

Id prefer an Altezza myself, although finding a clean one at this stage seems a difficult task.

YbFocus

djimi wrote: »

Id prefer an Altezza myself, although finding a clean one at this stage seems a difficult task.

Even the is's seem to have been abused too. Hard to find a good one. The lexus has a nice 6cyl noise off it too!

colm_mcm

visual wrote: »

I've see comments the engine and gear box on IS200 isnt a good match. I presume this doesn't apply to the auto. Never driven either so don't know

One thing with the manual IS200 is the clunk going into second gear. They all do it. You get used to it but it could be off putting

The autobox is dirt though. 4 speed slushomatic that changes up and down at the wrong time.
I remember this in particular when I sold cars and would regularly drive a neighbour customers fleet IS Automatic whenever he needed servicing/repairs.
I had a 95 FTO Tiptronic at the time which had an INVECS-II fuzzy logic box. It was 10 years ahead of what lexus and toyota were selling new in 2005

Neilw

The 106 gti I bought when I was 21, 6am drives on a summer Sunday morning.

ambro25

For effortless involvement and pure driving enjoyment, my Mk1 1.8 MX-5. Mazda designers truly nabbed the fabled 'horse & rider as one' concept/philosophy. Had it 14 years this February, and it's family by now. Still not ever had/driven a car that 'flows' as well (IMHO and acc. to my preferred driving style/rythm). Though I might give subayota's modern AE86 a try, as I keep hearing/reading good things about it on that front.

For effortless mile-crunching, I'd have liked to keep it in the family and say our W203 220 CDI..but honestly, it would have to be my best friend's A8 L 3.0d quattro. 600 miles in 3 stretches in 9 hours and a bit, and ready to get the party on just out of the car.

ba_barabus

colm_mcm wrote: »

I remember this in particular when I sold cars and would regularly drive a neighbour customers fleet IS Automatic whenever he needed servicing/repairs.
I had a 95 FTO Tiptronic at the time which had an INVECS-II fuzzy logic box. It was 10 years ahead of what lexus and toyota were selling new in 2005

I went back and test drove the IS200 before I purchased lately. I really liked the car but the second time round I remembered the autobox in the 75. It was a bit slow to change and old fashioned. It struck me as being very similar to the one in the IS. I loved the engine sound however.

colm_mcm

ba_barabus wrote: »

I went back and test drove the IS200 before I purchased lately. I really liked the car but the second time round I remembered the autobox in the 75. It was a bit slow to change and old fashioned. It struck me as being very similar to the one in the IS. I loved the engine sound however.

Its a funny noise, the whine sounds like a food mixer but in a good way.

ba_barabus

colm_mcm wrote: »

Its a funny noise, the whine sounds like a food mixer but in a good way.

Well it's being true to Toyota's white goods philosophy.

As for this thread, my SD1 is the only car I've owned that just flowed. It looked great and felt great to drive. I always loved it.

sogood

jimgoose wrote: »

Jags are great - planet-like torque and that sensation of endless acceleration, all with no stress, no hassle. S-Class Mercs, old and new, are also highly recommended.

+1. My daily driver is a 4.0 litre XJ6. It is a total cruiser, absolutely effortless, just hums along. It has poke when needed, but I have never found it wanting. It always has more to give. I sometimes have occasion to do a round trip from Kerry to Dublin and back again. An hour down time in Dublin and I'm looking forward to the return trip.

trout

CLS ...



/thread

Stavros Murphy

I know it's a bad, terrible, irresponsible, awfully neglectful thing to say, but if you're in a car that really "flows" and hustles along without you needing to even try, you hardly even need the indicators. I've no idea why that's the case but some cars seem to carve their own way around the streets. Others seem to need an amber beacon and a fog-horn to make any progress.

jca

colm_mcm wrote: »

Last model Starlet. Stay with me...

Even if you've never driven before, the gearbox is precise, clutch gives great feedback and its just a very easy car to drive.

Its a bit unrefined but this gives you a great idea of what the car is doing.

If fairness all the early Toyota are like that, just easy to drive great cars. Where did they go wrong?

colm_mcm

jca wrote: »

If fairness all the early Toyota are like that, just easy to drive great cars. Where did they go wrong?

To be fair the yaris is very easy to drive too. Time moves on and people want safety, high driving position etc now.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

I do like the idea of being in a big comfy car to cruise down the motorway very quietly

The closest I got to it was an s-class 5litre v8

Stavros Murphy

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

I do like the idea of being in a big comfy car to cruise down the motorway very quietly

The closest I got to it was an s-class 5litre v8

You ain't getting much closer! Beast of a car.

bazz26

Had to make a run from Limerick to our Cherrywood office the other evening. Traffic was light with cruise control on nearly most of the way, the CC really is a comfortable cruiser especially on a decent road and just ate up the miles effortlessly. Each way took me circa 2 hours.

Senna

I had an old (2000) merc E300, only it had it for 2 weeks and done 3 Donegal to Dublin round tips in it, pure pleasure to drive.

Anan1

I had a Peugeot 406 that was a real back-road mile eater.

jimgoose

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

I know it's a bad, terrible, irresponsible, awfully neglectful thing to say, but if you're in a car that really "flows" and hustles along without you needing to even try, you hardly even need the indicators. I've no idea why that's the case but some cars seem to carve their own way around the streets. Others seem to need an amber beacon and a fog-horn to make any progress.

Yeah. Even the shaven-headed t-shirted Passat types are like penguins in front of an icebreaker. :cool:

jimgoose

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

I do like the idea of being in a big comfy car to cruise down the motorway very quietly

The closest I got to it was an s-class 5litre v8

Cheeses! What would your idea of actually getting there be - a Bentley Flying Spur??

whippet

my old MKV GTi with DSG .... on any road is was just effortless, gear changes .. well it was almost like it was on a single cog .. and almost instant power when ever you looked for it.

renofan

I'd have to say my '97 Laguna 1.8 is a very comfy mile eater. As my wife is from England we regularly take the car over. Once went form Yeovil in Somerset to a village 15 miles north of Lincoln in Lincolnshire in one go no problem. In fact I think it's more comfy than the '00 A4 I'm currently driving but it's not too bad either.

ian87

YbFocus wrote: »

I love my e60 but it can be a bit harsh at times.

+1 sometimes you want to get in and almost be driven along but it wants you to do the work

HandsomeDan

Petrol 406. Sweet as a nut.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

jimgoose wrote: »

Cheeses! What would your idea of actually getting there be - a Bentley Flying Spur??

I dunno. There's something about the seats in mercs that just doesn't feel right though

bladespin

Had a Merc E class for a while, easiest car top do big miles in I've ever driven.

Sobanek

A8 3.0 TDI was just "flowing"

Taylor365

Subaru Legacy BL5 Auto.

Seriously quiet..when idling.

So smooth i actually filled her up once at a petrol station WHILE THE ENGINE WAS STILL ON! :eek:

veetwin

I've never driven one but I'd say a BMW 640 Gran Coupe would be a fairly effortless mile muncher. If there is a sexier car out there at the moment I haven't seen it!

dharn

Amazingly nearly every make of care has been mentioned here by now theycant all be great

Taylor365

dharn wrote: »

Amazingly nearly every make of care has been mentioned here by now theycant all be great

In this country, some people consider a jiggidy, black smoke exhaling, shoppin trolley handlin, combine harvest sounding, weapon of a car to be smooth....


...just look at all the donedeal ads. 'Sure it's mint lad'.

mb1725

dgt

Peugeot 406. Drive it all day and just munch the miles :cool:

E39 is another nice barge to commute long distances in

traco

Best car I had that flowed was a 96 E36 328i, effortless to drive, great balance, plenty of go and yet comfy.

Moved up to a 97 E36 M3 Evo which was faster but much harder to live with and in real everyday driving the extra power was not really usable as when it came on song you were well over legal speeds.

unkel

E38 BMW 735i

In the car at 6AM for a brutal, yet fast, non-stop 4 hour drive to the far end of the country (before there were motorways). Then putting in a long working day, overnight in hotel, long working day and drive home

I could drive that car with my left knee and my right foot. Which left my hands free for smoking, eating, talking on the phone (not hands-free), drinking coffee and I could watch telly at the same time too. That was a good few years ago though

ottostreet

In terms of pace, I love my FTO, just feels like the 'right' amount of power. Nicest car I've had in terms of 'flow' though was an E46 330ci. Was very pleasant and smooth, and all cars should aspire to it as a minimum standard!

Stavros Murphy

ottostreet wrote: »

In terms of pace, I love my FTO, just feels like the 'right' amount of power. Nicest car I've had in terms of 'flow' though was an E46 330ci. Was very pleasant and smooth, and all cars should aspire to it as a minimum standard!

I've never actually driven any BMW(jasus). I've had mercs, fast nissans, fast toyotas, still have a good few rapid cars out on the drive but never a beemer. No idea why as I go through cars like socks. I've a bit of a blind spot on them. Lots here praising them..might need to try a beemer..

YbFocus

Come to a meet and I'll give you a drive in mine, you may like it even if it is devil fuelled!

Stavros Murphy

YbFocus wrote: »

Come to a meet and I'll give you a drive in mine, you may like it even if it is devil fuelled!

You can run my Skyline around the carpark in return. It's moreish.

YbFocus

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

You can run my Skyline around the carpark in return. It's moreish.

Have there been pics of this skyline? I missed it

Really want one at some stage!

Stavros Murphy

YbFocus wrote: »

Have there been pics of this skyline? I missed it

Really want one at some stage!

I posted them in the past - old account. It's nice. Lovely car that I still catch a glimpse of and go "sheesh, what jammy git drives that". I've not grown sick of looking at it, but jasus, it's an effort to drive - no "flow" at all - Very harsh, very low, very hard, quicker than it is able to be and takes a lot of driving. The Celica is a hairdressers car by comparison, but so much easier just to drive around in. The skyline seems to want a track as opposed to a road.

YbFocus

What version Stavros? I'm a real fan of the 32's think they're the best looking

Don't get me wrong, as un-petrolhead-ish as a 530d may be it can give some great thrills and return some great mpg. Just not on the same trip

It's a great car for someone doing a load of miles (I do 40-50k miles annually) that doesn't want a borehole car altogether and in fairness the M57 block is pretty bulletproof.

Great car to live with, great car to drive and be in. But it misses out on something that I've had in other cars.

This is a good topic you've got going man

Stavros Murphy

Its an R33 with a breathed on 2.0. I initially didn't want the grief of the 2.5t and tbh the 2.0 is plenty quick enough to dint your licence. I have a 2.5 engine on a pallet but just can't be bothered at this stage - the gatsos have me bet down. And I drove to Cork for the 2.5 engine.. I have work to do on it tomorrow but like I said, it's a crashey, hard fecker just to drive around in - speed-bumps are a pain, it's on 19s and low profiles so potholes feel like landmines, the suspension is uprated(me) with adjustable coil-overs and polybushed so it's hard as feck and it has a dramatic body-kit and bonnet which usually means there's teenagers around it when I park up. The missus despises it!

YbFocus

Had a pal of mine running an Rb25 in a 200sx before which was nothing short of a disaster, unreliable for him anyway! Another chap runs an rb20 to this day without any hassle whatsoever

Also I done the hole slammed and kitted thing with a Focus many years ago and wouldn't go back, grand bit of comfort now and I like it