thanks for the replies so far! i appreciate all the input!
Well, I went out for a 20+ minute test drive of a used 2001 911T today.
For extra measure, i also checked out a used 2000 360 Modena, but honestly, it is more than i care to spend right now! (maybe sometime in the future, hopefully sooner rather than later
...)
So, I was just testing the waters of the 2 exotics above in comparo to the NSX.
Ferrari 360 Modena:
looks: The car looks outstanding. sexual. stunning. Just being near it raises your heartbeat! the lines are perfect. The glass cover of the engine looks like a picture framed artwork. definitely the most expensive and exotic looking of the bunch. headlights are futuristic looking, cool under body air tunneling. nice integrated quad exhausts in the rear bumper.
10 out of 10
interior: tan leather. very luxurious. beuatifully leather wrapped everything, and what was not leather was aluminum. the seats had excellent side bolstering for the hips and legs and especially the back. the smells are even better. the leather smell was very different from any other leather interior car i have sat in (which is plenty). seating position is very low, yet outward view is good. More space behind the seats than in the NSX. but least overall storage space.
9 out of 10
engine: start up, is a killer. the blip/rev up on starting is incredible. on a stock exhaust too..!! a tight, solid roar. definitely ferrari. throttle is solid and tight.
the F1 paddle shifters are amazing! very precise shifting.
10 out of 10
performance: not known yet. I got to fiddle with the car on/in the Ferrari lot, but not take it out of the lot. on-road test drive is reserved for a second appointment if i am more serious.
?
Porsche 996 911 Twin Turbo:
looks: mighty, strong, smooth, flowing body. definite prescence in size and shape.
best feature is the front end...definite power in the looks alone. looks the mightiest of the bunch.
8 out of 10
interior: black leather. too much plastic. some leather. the least luxurious finishing/feel of the group. only one with back seats. 2+2. can fit sub 6' adult back there tightly and uncomfortably, but it can be done. fair storage space.
nice dash. i liked it the best. well laid out. seating position is the most high and upright of the bunch. felt most like a 'normal' car. seats were the least bolstered too...steering wheel is the biggest of the bunch too...
7 out of 10
engine: sweet. very different. not as showy or beautiful as the Ferraris, but still worth looking at! start up, surprisingly quiet, but still louder and more burbly than the NSX. deep tones, unlike the more mid-pitch of the Modena.
revv is nice, loud, deeper. shift throws are long! smooth and true, but long!
10 out of 10
performance: unlike any other! I drove it hard and soft for at least 20 mins over many, many km. i didn't b*Tch launch it, but it bogs if the revs aren't kept up, just like my WRX. of my dozens of launches, the hardest was at just over 4000 rpm, and i didn't floor it right away, but slipped out and gently gassed after. it went pretty well like this. i pumped that sucker after the avg. launch all the way to 4th gear redlining each gear!! i ran full out in the gears probably only around 10 times, but they were full runs. it was getting very fast and slightly scary!
that thing pushes you back into your seat the most of any car i have driven!! actually it doesn't push you it PUNCHES YOU into the seat!!!
worlds faster than my NSX. slightly faster than my WRX. (but maybe not now with the WRXs new VF34 turbo.)
there is turbo lag. until about 2500-3000, the car then explodes to redline!!
excellent traction.
corners like on rails...very solid, very strong, most confidence inspriring. very planted, but also could feel the weight being moved around. but feels heavy though planted. not as deft or nimble as my NSX.
solid car and chassis.
the best performance of the 3. (i am told it is faster than the Modena.)
brakes are outstanding, feel like you were magnetized to the spot you first touched the brakes on. it just stops there. top notch! i found the brakes as good as the power.
*NOTE: after having put the 911T through it's paces to some degree (no i didn't have it in a 4 wheel peel out or drift, but i did push it hard!)
the 911T in my opinion is like a super steroided, super refined WRX!!!
it launches similar, it lags and spools simiarly, it pulls similar fashion, just harder. it shifts similar, it feels the same during upshifts. it is also big and heavy but solid on it's feet. however in cornering and braking, the WRX is worlds behind. however, the STi's braking is right on par with the 911Ts.
i tell you, it feels like i'm driving the WRX, only it looks better, goes faster, is better overall...but it still feels like it.
If anyone ever wanted a Porsche 911T but can't afford it, i am serious, that a WRX (sig. mod'd) will give you 7 or 8 tenths of the feel. if you seriously mod the WRX, you can pretty much attain the 911T's feel and performance. i know some will blast me for this, but i am telling you, drive both hard (the WRX needs to be mod'd up) and they will have far more similarities than differences, just that the porsche has more of everything.
10 out of 10
Acura NSX:
looks: classic exotic car looks. very Ferrari like. low slung, wedge, angular. actually stands out more than the Porsche but of course, not as much as the Ferrari, but in terms of shape and such, close. clean, refined.
9 out of 10
interior: black leather. leather treatments throughout. clean, simple and refined again. more luxurious than the Porsche, but not very close in luxury to the Ferrari, which is just pure luxury. seats have good hip and side bolstering, better than the porsches, but not as good as the Ferrari's. feels and looks dated though
8 out of 10
engine: imitation ferrari, can't beat the mid ship placement factor! also glass cover, but nowhere as picturesque as the Ferrari's. quietest of the bunch both on start up and revving and throttling on the go. shifter is smooth, short, tight and precise. best conventional shifter, but not as good as S2k, miata, etc. seating position is very agressive and very ferrari-like and oh so low to the ground.
9 out of 10
performance: behind the Porsche, but no dog either. I actually find the NSX has the some speed to go with the Porsche, but not the low/mid mad torque rush. the NSX is extremely smooth. pulls hard but not mad. pull increases and builds strongly to the 8000 rpm redline. i estimate my car runs high 13's so it's a good 1 sec. off the pace of the other 2.
the NSX handles awesome though, with the stiffest chassis (feels stiffer than the 911Ts)
8 out of 10
VERDICT:
the FERRARI 360 Modena is the most mysterious and alluring car. the ultimate dersire. the sexiest. with the modena it is about the senses...sight, smell, sound...etc.. a feeling of being so alive if you will. But priced out the wahoo, and with questionable reliability and wahoo maintenance costs, you pay for this level of excitement and heritage, she's the high maintenance supermodel girl.
The Porsche 911 Turbo is the highest performing car, acceleration (0-60, 1/4 mile, whatever), raw cornering, braking, etc.) the fastest outright. but you trade away some elegance and deftness, as well as a certain balance and feel for outright monstrosity. She is the perfect bodied olympic athlete mixed with a high class escort of the bunch.
NSX is a perfectly balanced car. Chassis is the best, handling so smooth.
I personally would not pay the difference for the Porsche from my NSX now. for a tiny fraction of the cost difference, i can make my NSX bling and a monster (like some here have suggested). She is the hot girl you meet in a club or party. not quite as ravashing as the other two, but beatiful in her own way and in the end, can bring out almost as much passion and you want to marry her and stick with her.
However, a NEW NSX is much more expensive, and in that case, I think the 911T is much more tempting for the superior performance.
i think my automotive madness and addiction had my eyes wandering and wanting to try something else, something better...however, after having tried the alternative, in the end, it was partly a case of 'the grass is always greener on the other side' syndrome and i think my preferences and driving style more suit the NSX as it is the perfect balance I thought it was, i just needed to be reminded of that.
i think i will take some ppl's advice here and start modifying my NSX for performance (mine's relatively stock now just intake and chip).
do you guys think i am making the right decision?
