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CARS

"The value of life can be measured by how many times your soul has been deeply stirred."

- Soichiro Honda

I'm a seriously afflicted car nut. I probably got hooked on cars when a neighbor got a Pontiac Firebird in 1969. Or it may have been when one of my father's friends came over in a brand new, silver 1969 Porsche 911T. There was just something about cars like those that stoked my imagination. I was fascinated by the articles on cars in Popular Mechanics magazine. Then the movie LeMans came out in 1971 with Steve McQueen. Now it wasn't just about the cars, it was about the people, the drama and the zeal with which car people lived.

Any chance that I might have moved on to more acceptable recreational pursuits was doomed when I saw my first issue of Car and Driver magazine. They wrote stories about exotic machines like the Lamborghini Muira. When I saw a Muira in the flesh, I just new I was one of the lucky ones to be able to appreciate the scintillating shriek of the peaky V12 engine.

Alas, I have yet to experience the thrill of driving any of the truly exotic machines, built by men who understand something I can only sense. But I've had a few interesting cars.

November 2008. After the lease (finally!) expired on the 2006 BMW 330i, I bought a car that seemed unlikely in light of my recent history: the 2008 Volkswagen GTI. The GTI is the sporty version of the Rabbit and is the Volkswagen adaptation of the Audi A3. Having had both the GTI and the A3, I can honestly say I prefer the GTI. It's quick, nimble, solid, roomy, economical...and just plain fun. Because the GTI powertrain and suspension is essentially the same as the Audi A3, it drives very much like the A3. But it is somehow a little less crude and a little more sporty. It may sound odd to say that a VW feels less crude than its Audi counterpart, but that's just how it feels to me.

February 2006. Shortly after getting a 2006 Audi A3, my wife traded her '99 Land Rover Discovery on a 2006 BMW 330i - this is the new E90 body-style that made its debut in 2005 as a 2006 model. I drive the BMW and Stephanie drives the Audi. After a year with the two new cars, I am looking forward to the expiration of the lease on the BMW so I can get back into a 2004 or 2005 330i ZHP. It just drives right. The driving experience in the newer car is, oddly enough, diminished by its "improvements." Sorry Bimmer fans, I just can't warm up to this car. That's not to say that there is anything wrong with it, it's just not as spry, eager and satisfying as the prior generation of 3 series BMWs were.

January 2006. In a lapse of common sense, I traded my 2004 "ZHP" on a 2006 Audi A3 2.0T. The Audi is a very cool car. It has a turbo-charged 2.0 liter engine that puts out 200 HP and an unbelievable amount of torque for a 4-banger - 207 lb. ft. at only 1800 RPM. But the real heart of the A3 is an incredible transmission marketed by Audi as the DSG (direct sequential gearbox), which was developed by Borg-Warner. The DSG is essentially two manual 3-speed gearboxes with two wet clutches that are actuated by computer controlled servos. The computer perfectly matches engine revs as it shifts up and down and engages the next gear in a fraction of the time of a traditional automatic or manual transmission. This technology grew out of Formula 1 racing and its application to the road-going, turbocharged Audi A3 is remarkable.

October 2004. The car I wish I still had...this is a 2004 BMW 330i with the performance package, also known as the ZHP package - the ZHP moniker is derived from the manufacturer's ordering code for the performance package option.