Good track day performers, part two

Here’s the second (and arguably least interesting) segment of our three-part look at good track day performers— specifically, modern cars where practicality is of minimal object.

You can find the introductory post (with all the boring stipulations and so on) and part one of the list here.

Lotus Elise:

Porsche Cayman/Cayman S. The classic all-pro athlete:

Z4 M Coupe. A twitchy, tricky handler perhaps, but entertainingly so:

Mustang GT (2005-present). Think what you will of these cars, one can’t help but be impressed with what Ford has done to this aging franchise star starting from about the mid-aughts.

Honda S2000. A car we admire the heck out of, if not quite love:

MX-5 Miata. Initially debated whether or not to put this here but decided it would be unfair not to, given its oft-cited status as the ‘most raced car’ (or something to that effect) in the US (if not the world). Plus we suspect the backlash would have been fierce had we not 🙂

Corvette (C5). In all honesty, probably our least favorite car here, if not on the entire site. But for sheer performance value for the dollar, it deserves a spot on this list— you see a bunch of these at track days for a reason. And with a good aftermarket exhaust, they sound absolutely bonkers. They will tear your auditory system a new one.

Let us know what else you think deserves to be on this particular list (again, modern cars where practicality is of minimal object).

The third and final part to follow.

~ by velofinds on May 11, 2011.

Posted in Still images, What would you buy
Tags: bmw, corvette, ford, honda, lotus, miata, porsche

6 Responses to “Good track day performers, part two”

Pretty good list, all I could add would be the e46 M3, or the Pontiac/Saturn turbo ‘verts.

Colin said this on May 11, 2011 at 1:56 am
Loved the list but you forgot about one of the best unpractical track cars of all time, the Z3 M Coupe. The looks and the uniqueness of the original M Coupe makes it so much more speical to see out.

E36/8 > E86

Sachary said this on May 11, 2011 at 10:07 am
- wait a day 🙂 there is a special place for that one.
  
  motoringconbrio said this on May 11, 2011 at 10:10 am
That is perfect… This post contains my current car (Miata) and the 3 contenders for its renewal: Elise/Exige, S2000 and Z4 M Coupé. Needless to say I am a definite tracktard, and it is getting worse 🙂

Guillaume said this on May 11, 2011 at 5:24 pm
Not sure i would really care to put the Mustang there…..it is still running old balls suspension, and without modification, it really can’t keep up on tracks…..the Z4M Coupe might be fun, but would be beaten into submission by even a base Cayman i’m guessing….i hate Miatas…..so i would drive one on a track, only to smash it into a wall. The Elise is timeless of course….a perennial classic.

the C5 Z06 is an animal, but the regular C5 is a bit of a sloppy booger if i’m honest!

syed said this on May 11, 2011 at 9:44 pm
- i obviously have no way of substantiating this, but if i had to guess, i’d suspect a mustang with the “track pack” (a factory option and just about the best $1500 a mustang buyer could spend) would do just fine with other blue chip sports cars on a track, live axle or no live axle.
  
  motoringconbrio said this on May 11, 2011 at 9:52 pm