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Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:14 am
by redmonkey
Grim... wrote:Do we call them 'nitro cars'?
We call a 'spade' a 'spade' and a 'nitro car' a 'nitro car'

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:18 am
by Grim...
But we call a vacuum cleaner a Hoover and a personal stereo a Walkman.

I just assumed that when Feyd said 'nitro cars' he meant RC cars.

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:26 am
by redmonkey
Grim... wrote: I just assumed that when Feyd said 'nitro cars' he meant RC cars.
Assumption is a dangerous thing and that is where problems start, and that is also the reason you fighting a loosing battle in this thread.

Many people in the UK and mainland Europe automatically assume that because it has an auto box it will be slow. That, quite simply is not always the case.

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:31 am
by Grim...
redmonkey wrote:Many people in the UK and mainland Europe automatically assume that because it has an auto box it will be slow.
That's been my point from the beginning, that here in the UK we are far more likely to use a manual box in our perfomance cars.

I am well aware that you can get fast automatics, I just think that a manual gearbox is better suited to racing / performance cars.

As for assumption being dangerous, I did check out 'nitro cars' on google first, and I think you'll find it agrees with me.

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:37 am
by tim
no i'm not touchy about cars, bottom line is my camaro is an auto and I love it. Shifts great when on/off the pedal.

I just cant see your view cause clearly you dont know nothing about automatic transmission when it comes to performance. Its like arguing over a color when your color blind. :roll: :roll:

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:38 am
by feyd
true, for some reason google brings back RC cars for '[google]nitro cars[/google]'. Although I've never heard of such a use for nitro fuel, as it seems kinda a waste (respectively) to me, a person who loves that feeling of acceleration and speed.

Then again, you've probably never heard of a street legal car that runs off [google]Toluene[/google](specifically this) either.. but I'm working on it. ;)

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:41 am
by Grim...
Feyd - it's okay, they don't use very much ;)

Tim - My car's faster than yours :P

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:41 am
by tim
hey punks, back to the topic!

MY car!

lol :wink:

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:46 am
by Grim...
Tim - seriously, my main point is that cars in the UK have a lot of differences to cars in America.
For starters, most UK cars are manuals, where as most American cars (so I'm told) are automatics. Suspension on American cars seems very soft when compared to cars in the UK. We don't get the cool pickups that you have with the massive engines.
We don't know what an SUV is.
And, most annoying of all, you get Dodge Vipers, and we don't :(

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:55 am
by tim
lol grim, it doesnt even matter to me. Here a manual is actually really, really cheaper than a car with a auto. It doesn't matter, aslong as your happy with your manual, and i with my auto. thats all that matters

:)

btw - my truck has a manual in it, i'm looking to buy a new car that I attend to have a manual in it. So its not that I dislike them, just letting you know that autos can be used for the "race-ready seak n destroy all" person. street or not.

End of debate!! :evil: :evil:

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:58 am
by Grim...
If I ever bring my Mitsubishi to the States I'll let you know, and you can let me know which set of traffic lights to meet you at.

You'll be pleased to know that it's got active aerodynamics, so watching my rear spoiler will be especially interesting for you ;)

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:59 am
by patrikG
my car has four wheels. Do I win? ;)

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 12:03 pm
by redmonkey
What about the Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren, a road going nutter available in automatic only (or it was when it was launched) and stupidly quick and fast.

I have no real interest in cars but, I do like this one.

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 12:09 pm
by Grim...
Can you get automatic bikes, Red?

I've never head of one, but considering the last bike I had was a DT 50, I'm not exactly 'in the loop'.

Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2004 12:22 pm
by redmonkey
There are some automatic bikes out there however, due to the fact that it doesn't take too much to upset the handling of a bike and throw you off you won't see many unless it is straight line racing.

With a bike you really need to be in tune with it to drive it fast, which means knowing exactly what is going on. The problem with an auto box on a bike is you would never know exactly what it's doing and when it's about to change.

Getting max throttle down coming out of a corner requires a lot of concentration and clutch work in order to feed the power in without the backend letting go but getting enough power down to keep the guy behind you there. Therefore I don't think you would be likely to see an automatic box on your average sports orientated bike.

That being said, there are scooters and tourers readily available with auto boxes.