Recent Drives

[Frisky Dingo]

So, I've had a good week as far as fun vehicles and test drives go. A quick run-down on a few-

 

Roush Supercharged Raptor with full ICON suspension (3" lift) and 35's- Wow, what a beast. The guy that traded it in said it had 700hp, but he's full of it. Their website says the Stage 1 setup is good for 525hp, and that sounds right. Either way, for a big truck, the thing moved out pretty good. It had no problem lighting up the back 35's and with the headers and full exhaust, it sounded absolutely monstrous. this thing would scare little kids. It was extremely loud, but still sounded really, really good. It was a total chore to drive, though. No way would I want to DD that thing.

 

MB CLS63 AMG w/ RENNtech R1 Pkg- This one really does have 700hp. Well, 696, anyway. And more importantly, 800 lb-ft of tq. This thing was just retarded. It had some of the most absolutely savage acceleration I've ever experienced in a car. You had better have a big gap in front of you if you plan on taking the right pedal to the firewall on this one. The first time I laid into it, my passenger's sunglasses got launched off her head (onto the back shelf) and the sunroof shade slid all the way open from the closed position. The way it fully comes on at about 3.5k rpm is truly eye-widening speed accumulation. Absolutely no way I could have such a car for a regular driver. I'd get my license revoked. It's too fast, and it's too effortless to catapult to 'arrest me' speeds in the span of a block. Damn if it wasn't fun though, and it would make a killer cross-country car.

 

I got a much longer drive in the LP550-2 Spyder. I may have been a little too harsh on it the first time. The E-gear is still a huge sore spot, and it's not the most direct/responsive driver's car by any stretch of the imagination, but there is a certain organic feeling to the steering and neutrality to the handling that is appealing. I think a manual Balboni Spyder would just be mega, and it's well-deserved of the many times its found its way onto my 'Dream Garage' lists.

[A Horse With No Name]

Raptor sounds fantastic but I cannot warm up to MB products...regardless of how brutally they accelerate.