Ok, I here so much about what is a sports car and what is not a sports car it get's alittle confusing. What exactly is the definition of a sports car, what guidelines should a car have to be accuractly classified as sports car? Is a Mustang SVT Cobra a sports car or a muscle car, if it's not a sports car than why not, is it because of weight and non stellar handling, then what about the Saleen Mustang SC? It also has a supercharged 8-Cylinder and weighs alot, but handles like it is on rails, is it a sports car or muscle car? The Mitsubishi Evolution is not considered a sports car because it has 4 doors, yet it's performance matches and betters many other performance cars that cost twice as much. RX-8 also has 4 doors (somewhat) is it sports car, if not a sports car than what is it? So what are the guidelines for a sports car, are there any, or is it what I suspect, every bodies own opinions on what they feel a sports car is?

what you said last is the best way to describe it. a sports car can have different definitions from every person. basics i say is it has to have 2-doors, good straight-line and cornering abilities, preferably rwd, sleek looking (objective).......MY CAR! a sports car doesn't have to cost a certain price imo. but everybody will think differentely on what a sports car is.

"A true sports car is a performance car whose primary function is to provide driving pleasure, and to allow the driver to immerse himself in that experience and communicate with the road as directly as possible. Its purpose is pure and singleminded.

A true sports car is light, direct and does without the things that more pedestrian vehicles possess. It is often derived from a race car in some fashion. The car may be a direct variation of a race car. It may feature technology and design from a race car. Or the people who designed and developed it have a competition background. It has heritage.

They turn your head, they get you interested. You know just from looking at them that they offer performance and excitement. They are not ordinary cars. Even when parked, a sports car gives the impression that it is in forward motion."

I like dayna's explanation. Any car that is designed to be driven to its limits and communicate with the driver is a sports car. The reason the SVT Cobra is a muscle car and not a sports car is because it has virtually no driver communication, just a ton of muscle.

I'd have to say that a Mustang is a sports car, or more correctly it is classified as a Sports coupe, because a True Sports car is only a two-seater. A muscle car was originally a car that didn't look like it was fast but was... I forget the first true muscle cars. I'm not saying a sleeper is a muscle car. I also must agree that a sports car is a car lacking useless creature comforts.
What keeps a Mustang from being a Sports car is the number of seats, but if you passed this I'd have to say it is defintiely a Sports car. It almost has a .9G skidpad, people act like it handles like a minivan, it has accleration, styling, and top speed.

What about the Evo and STi...they arent sports car now? They have 4 doors but I'd hardly ever consider them grocery getters or family haulers...

"A true sports car is a performance car whose primary function is to provide driving pleasure, and to allow the driver to immerse himself in that experience and communicate with the road as directly as possible. Its purpose is pure and singleminded.

A true sports car is light, direct and does without the things that more pedestrian vehicles possess. It is often derived from a race car in some fashion. The car may be a direct variation of a race car. It may feature technology and design from a race car. Or the people who designed and developed it have a competition background. It has heritage.

They turn your head, they get you interested. You know just from looking at them that they offer performance and excitement. They are not ordinary cars. Even when parked, a sports car gives the impression that it is in forward motion."


read this and learn people, he just spoke the truth

that was a beautiful post :smile:

IMO a sports car could be said to be a car designed and equipped for a purpose (such as racing). A car that has been designed to compensate many aspects such as car weight, suspension, center of gravity, balance, steering, aerodynamics, etc. in a manner to be the best at what it does. This would be the same if we were to talk about a 4dr sedan. It would require more focus on amenities, comfortability, purposeful ergonomics, as well as the aspects I've mentioned above in a fashion where this car would compete to be the best in its category. The only hard part about this question is where the line should be drawn. This is where things get confusing and people turn to a more personal and subjective reason in defining them. Take the Evo for instance. Doesn't necessarily fit the norm of a sports car, nor does it model a standard sedan. It might just be easier to call it a rally sport. And a Mustang, muscle sport :screwy: . Great ideology eh? :grinno:

It doesn't matter one bit to me how many doors or seats a sports car has. As long as it goes fast and handles well, and is designed to do so, it's a sports car. Whether it's a four-door STi, a two-door Corvette Z06, or a 2-seater 300ZX TT, they are all some of the best sports cars ever made.

nah, I disagree, some cars will never become sports cars.
Just take Opel/Vauxhall or VW - nice cars, but won't become sports cars in my eyes.

a typical sportscar has two doors, 50/50 weight distribution and extraordinary handling and engine - plus it has got this special feeling, an esprit, some cars just don't provide.

so a golf, jetta, astra, 626, calibra - as examples for europe/germany, will never be sporty in my eyes.

a golf could run 9s on street tires or anything, it won't be a sports car to me.

Imho there's another seperation - there are gentle but good sports cars like Aston Martin, Jaguar X-type or Mercedes SL - very expensive but not exclusively built on performance.

And smaller, semi-sports cars like Nissan Silvia, Madzda RX7, Cobra and many many more - which are rather sporty but based on everyday cars, mass products if you want to say so.
But they still provide that sports-car feeling, even if they're more little bros of sports cars -

Last, there are radical high performance cars, where price and comfort are secondary, true sports cars. Only built for driving fast in any situation, yet used as status symbols.

christophv, you made a good point about different levels of being a sports car. While the Ford Mustang and the Lotus Elise are both sports cars, they're radically different kinds.

I think there has to be a line drawn somewhere. While the STI and the EVO certainly have the performance, they lack the sleek design of a sports car... a young kid knowing nothing about cars is still able to recognize a Vette or even a Camaro as fast, but a WRX will look like his mommy's sedan. But they are sport, rally sport, a totally different and fairly new (not new but new in mainstream) genre. Sports cars are designed for the track, while these cars are designed for the rally... so it's not they are not sports cars persay, they just have their own category.

you got a point, i tell my sister "hey you see that car, its an sti, its almost as fast as the vette" and she goes, "that thing, are you serious"

nah, I disagree, some cars will never become sports cars.
Just take Opel/Vauxhall or VW - nice cars, but won't become sports cars in my eyes.



Vauxall vx220;)...i say that is a sports car(its basically a turbo elise)
http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/features/0404scc_vx220_02_s.jpg


Also IMO the definition of a sports car is along the lines layed out by dayna. A vehicle designed with performance as the main goal.


While looks are still important, they are not all. I see the EVO for example as a sports car, despite is sedan roots.

Stig drove the Evo FQ300 around the TG track in almost the same time as a Murcielago. So how could anyone say that a car with such performance is not a true sports car.

Neutrino...what does your avatar mean?

same could be said for the CTS-V. then again, if you want to get real specific, I guess the evo and cts-v would be "sports sedans"


(and where did that come from nissanspdr? lol)

I guess there should be two different terms here. A sports car is a car that goes fast, and looks like it. A performance car is a car that is simply made for speed, whether it looks like it or not. The Corvette is a sports car, whereas the STi is a performance car.

sounds good

Ok, I here so much about what is a sports car and what is not a sports car it get's alittle confusing. What exactly is the definition of a sports car, what guidelines should a car have to be accuractly classified as sports car? Is a Mustang SVT Cobra a sports car or a muscle car, if it's not a sports car than why not, is it because of weight and non stellar handling, then what about the Saleen Mustang SC? It also has a supercharged 8-Cylinder and weighs alot, but handles like it is on rails, is it a sports car or muscle car? The Mitsubishi Evolution is not considered a sports car because it has 4 doors, yet it's performance matches and betters many other performance cars that cost twice as much. RX-8 also has 4 doors (somewhat) is it sports car, if not a sports car than what is it? So what are the guidelines for a sports car, are there any, or is it what I suspect, every bodies own opinions on what they feel a sports car is?


i think the term sports car originated from britain, and it originated from a two door, two seater, rear wheel drive, drop top, with good handling. performance wise, most early sports cars didnt have a lot of power, they just handled really good. i guess if you go with the classic definition of a sport car, the evo, mustang cobra, or the rx-8 wouldnt be considered one, but things change, like definition of words, and car technology.

Hmmm, I just thought of something else... I mentioned the original muscle cars, those big four or more seater cars that surprisingly have power... I know the import people are gonna hate this, but the STI and EVO are today's 21st century "muscle" cars.
Also, the all-encompassing word would be "performance car" IMO.

Actually, if you go to some STi sites, you'll usually see a few muscle car fans saying the exact same thing. And then buying the STi :)

I have a V6 stang and I would probably call it sporty looking, but it lacks the power to be called a true sports car. In my opinion, Mach1 and SVT cobra would definitely be called sports cars. Their suspenions have been tuned, they both get around .9G, they both are VERY fast and they both are sleek.

The problem w/ the v6 cars (owned a v6 Camaro) is that they kinda are a fake, a regular 9-5 car in the guise of a sports car. Though they fit the definition in one respect the miss in the other.

This brings up a good point, I mean, where do cars like the Integra Type R fit in... I mean, they obviously look like sports cars, driving one is a joy, but statistically they fall short, performing well within the range of family sedans.

The problem w/ the v6 cars (owned a v6 Camaro) is that they kinda are a fake, a regular 9-5 car in the guise of a sports car. Though they fit the definition in one respect the miss in the other.

This brings up a good point, I mean, where do cars like the Integra Type R fit in... I mean, they obviously look like sports cars, driving one is a joy, but statistically they fall short, performing well within the range of family sedans.

im wondering about that also.. i mean the civic/integra type R, are made for the track.. and they can be whooped by a s2k or any similar car.. so does that mean they are/are not sports cars? i duno.. confuzing stuff heh.. but lets say.. u have your own car for racing.. lets say.. an integra type R.. and u enter it into a races... it beats a crapload of "sports cars" so does that mean its a sports car itself?.. oo man im confuzing myself

I dont think that a sports car can be defined the same way that they were defined even as recent as about 10 to 15 years ago. With the way the sport-compact scene has exploded in that time, you cant really say a sports car can only be rear-wheel drive, two doors, and a large displacement engine. I think of a sports car simply as a car thats built almost exclusivly for performance. There really shouldnt be to many things that dont make the car go faster, stop faster, or handle better. Ferrari Enzo is the absolute definition of a pure sports car but a car doesnt have to be THAT extreme to be considered a real sports car. My answer is vague but It just seems like the automotive world is so much more diverse now and setting exact specifications is kinda tough.

I mean, where do cars like the Integra Type R fit in...

Type R has to be considered a sports car IMO.

Um i have a 95 honda civic sedan and its a sports car um yea sport car

Um i have a 95 honda civic sedan and its a sports car um yea sport car

why not? im sure all the kids from high school will think my car is a sports car also