drcollie

I guess we all come away with different impressions, and probably a lot has to do with the course layout and what kind of blacktop the event is being run on. At Fex Ed field they had a lot of room and laid out a pretty fast course, but the surface was this blacktop slurry sealer that is very slick, unlike most parking lots at stadiums. That will definitely affect the way a car feels.

I was not disappointed by any of the Audis we drove other than the A3, but I have to tell you I expected to be blown away by the R8 and I wasn't. Great car, don't get me wrong....but one of the guys in our group said to me "Ready to get out of that Porsche and get an R8 now?" and my reply to him was "No, I'm kind of partial to what I have".

If there is a better sports car out there than a 991 for all-around use, I've not driven it yet. And that includes all the various Astons and Ferraris I've been in.

HelpMeHelpU

Really awesome write up. Thank you.

I did the event in NJ a few weeks ago, too, and agree that it was well run (except the drive around the stadium part) and far exceeded my expectations. We also got in the R8 first and fortunately we were first in line behind the pro, so it was a blast trying to catch him and watch his line (...but not too carefully, of course). After we finished the guy behind me said something like "What did they put in your gas tank, rocket fuel? There was NO WAY I could catch you." What fun. The friend I brought with me, a neurologist no less, had never been in a performance car, much less thrown around a track in one, and he had the time of his life that day.

I don't know how much I would read into the comparo cars they brought, because their objective of course is to make the Audis shine, so you never know what they may have done--intentionally or otherwise--to make the other cars not perform at their best.

Conspicuous by their absence were the S4 and S3, both of which would have been obvious contenders in that crowd.

I am a life-long Audi owner, including a host of S cars, and recently bought my first real car, a Cayman S (....which I expect will be only the first of many, many Porsches in the future). Audi makes great products, but they are totally uninspired compared to their cousins at Porsche.

The Audi Diving Experience is definitely worth it if you get the chance. Enjoy!

WCE

The Truth in Engineering company would never cheat... or would they?

drcollie

I do not think they did any cheats, but they did not put sport packages on the cars, either. The competitor cars were base model, all-wheel drive units. Some of that didn't require cheating anyways, the BMW 228i has such a cheap interior, that your base Toyota Corolla is much nicer inside - BWM did that to themselves. Don't forget the BMW's are on Run-Flats, those are OEM tires, and there is no way you can get a performance drive out of a car on Run Flats. But its BMW that insists on delivering the cars that way, so they are right in having them on the cars to test out. When I was buying BMW's (and I have owned six of them) the Run Flats came off immediately and were either trashed, sold or stored.

On the Mercedes E Class, you can feel the yaw in the car and lack of transition capability. That's a car designed to run down the Interstate in comfort, not do autocross. I don't think anyone will defend it otherwise.

I was pretty hardcore BMW back in the 90's and early 2000's, but they have changed and chased the luxury model end of the spectrum, not the sporting side of it. Most all BMW guys I know jumped out of the brand (except for you - MJB) and went to other marques, notably Porsche.

ZX9RCAM

Still waiting for a response concerning the CLA.
Was it the CLA 45 AMG?

Archimedes

You're right. Senior moment, it was the 128is. Horrible car. I think it was rated somewhere between 225 and 240 hp, but it felt like 150. I literally couldn't think of a good thing to say about the car when I got out of it. And I've owned a 525, 330is and an M3 and loved them all, so I'm not a BMW hater by any means.

tron786

I have a 528i and a C2S. Totally different cars for different purposes. Can't drive one like the other and vice versa.

fbroen

Thx for writeup. Sounds like good times.

With the "Truth in Engineering" slogan having been a bit, um, stretched lately -- how confident were you the other brand cars were set up to proper factory specs?

Four Ring Circus

Apologies for asking Audi questions on the Porsche site, but have you signed up for marketing events like this? I have owned 3 Audis in a row including 2 A8s and am wondering how to get involved in events like this (I have done Skip Barber twice and would love more opportunities to wring out some cars). Heck I even test drove a P85D at the Four Seasons in Maui and signed up for local NJ events- nada! Sometimes I feel that I am dismissed due to age (40), but what luxury car company wouldn't want a young person who could be a customer for 30-40 more years?
Tying this back to Porsche, I am curious about other young people's experiences with Porsche. I am a lurker on here doing my research for a c4S Cabrio hopefully in the coming year. Younger people- do you feel you get respect? Do you feel slighted? Just because I wear an expensive suit and shoes and watch to work I don't want to have to deal with that shallow crap to be taken care of buying a car. Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks

drcollie

I think the invite for this sort of thing has a lot to do with social media, including this forum. I get invited to a LOT of events (last Wednesday to a pre-screening of the new 007 Film SPECTRE invited by Aston Martin) and next Sunday have an invitation to drive any new Bentley I want for the afternoon. The people that get to go to these events seem to be the ones that write about them.

I have written articles for Roundel, done instructing and many autocross events over the years, and posted in many, many forums and car club blogs.

Notice too, that I don't hide behind pseudonyms in my forum ID's and posts. I post my real name all the time, both as a forum ID and in my signature. If you want to get noticed and tagged for these kind of things, being FOUR RING CIRCUS isn't going to get you identified. Use your real name when you post so people know who you are.

cajerseyboy

Love how Audi lets you drive the ****ty mercs and BMWs against their sport S line and R8. No wonder Audi came out on top. Now can the mods take down the Audi post on the 991 rennlist? I feel my stomach turn when I see the A name in the title of the thread. So out of place. Sorry for throwing this thread up to the top of the list. DAMMIT!

MJBird993

A friend of mine gets invited to a lot of these things, but he's very wealthy and so is probably on some high net worth secret mailing list. DRCollie lives in a super zip code and buys Aston Martins and about one Porsche/Audi/Mercedes/BMW per month, so the DMV records probably look pretty congested for his address.

Like FRC, I too have had multiple Audis and no invite, multiple BMWs and no invite, multiple Porsche and no invite (other than dealer activities). However, I recently moved across town from a "decent" zip code into the "premier" zip code, and I've noticed in just 4 months that the quality of unsolicited catalogs has gone up. So I expect an invitation to drive the new S557 AMG GT Black Jeremy Clarkson Edition pretty soon.

If you Google yourself and can hook into one of those "research your ex-girlfriend" web sites, it is a bit disturbing (to me) how much they know about you, including not just age but probable income, sexual preferences and the name of your dog.

Woof.

drcollie

But MJB...you don't have a dog!

Four Ring Circus

Duane- thanks for info.
I am thankfully in a stage where I am too old for social media and my kids are too young to be on it (I am sure in 5 years that I will be on whatever the latest and greatest social platform is because my daughters will been there).
Good advice though- I can definitely see how these automakers are looking for social media trendsetters or influencers. I figured that at least my dealer would watch out for me. I figured wrong!

Tcc1999

Just a thought about Audi. You are spot on about the A3. I don't understand that car at that price point. It is too bad that they did not trot out an S3 as it is a much better package; a bit pricey for what it is but offers a number of set up options and is fun to drive. Not nearly 911 fun, nor as technically adept, but if I only had $50K tops to spend and needed/wanted a smallish (w/ 4 doors) and sporty car it would be one of my choices.