For the past few years, I’ve been somewhat of an honorary Honda S2000 (S2ki.com) club member in North Texas. I really enjoy the events they organize. Initially I somewhat fit in, at least having a convertible, with my Nissan 350Z Roadster. Then the baby came, and now I have the G35 sedan. While missing the open air aspect a bit, I always look forward to actually keeping up with the crazy fun S2000s in my family car. Saturday was to be the 7th semi-annual Boston Mountain Tour (BMT), organized by the OK and AR S2ki.com clubs, beginning in Eureka Springs, AR.
Due to the distance from North Texas to Eureka Springs, a tour to the tour was planned for Friday. Someone affectionately named this drive the Pre-Boston Mountain Tour Tour (PBMTT). Friday morning at 6:00 am came early after a late night of last minute preparation and packing. The car was packed and prepped for a couple hard days of driving to and in the Boston Mountains of NW Arkansas. By 8:00 am, cars were arriving in Melissa, TX ready for some fun. The majority of these cars were infiltrators as well.
Thirteen of us left for Eureka Springs that Friday morning around 8:45 am. We had plans to meet one more before leaving Texas, and three more in SW Arkansas. We had 425 miles to cover and wanted to do so before dark. Unfortunately the infamous and annoying daylight savings time change the previous week was making this much more difficult. The goal for the day was to be rounding curves more than driving in a straight line. I think we succeeded in doing so. It was a wonderful day on great roads filled with high speed sweepers and tight twisties, both on and off-camber. Some of the downhill sections had me wishing I had swapped to track/street brake pads like I did for the last event. But even with a brief downhill section of having to adjust for a little brake fade, I had a wonderful day of enjoying a very fun route which did not include a single Interstate or major highway. Unfortunately though, DST won the daylight race…by less than an hour. It was dark when we arrived in Eureka Springs, hungry and tired.
Saturday morning was the beginning of the actual Boston Mountain Tour, and as usual it was impeccably organized. We began with a parking lot full of amazing cars and drivers full of anticipation. After the drivers’ meeting, we hit the road in three groups. The first BMT I attended last spring was over many of the same roads. Regardless, the full day of driving was beyond fun and on some of the best roads ever made for sports cars. The highlight for me was most of the morning where I chased the leader of my group in his new S2000 CR. Needless to say, I had to concentrate a bit and keep it really smooth to keep up in the twisties. That guy could drive! We had a morning and afternoon break, photo opportunities of all the cars, and a great lunch and dinner. Thank you to all the S2ki.com members who made this event happen. I can’t wait for the next one. Maybe then I’ll go check out the Rowdy Beaver.
Click any of the pictures to view the entire gallery.
Recently I had the opportunity to drive the new Hyundai Genesis Coupe at Hyundai’s Adrenaline Tour event at Texas Motor Speedway. This was not your normal promotional event, as far as the public is concerned. To the surprise of many, Hyundai had set up what was essentially a simple autocross course. Great! For some like me, it was time for some hoonage. For some others it obviously was time to enjoy a leisurely drive and closely examine each cone as the Genesis Coupe ambled along. Seriously, who test drives a sports car that slowly?
Before getting in line I took a closer look at a 2.0 Turbo Hyundai had on display. Fit and finish was surprisingly good. I wouldn’t put it on par with the 370Z interior, but it certainly is leagues better than the earlier 350Z. The layout was well designed with everything easily within reach. The driver’s seat was comfortable yet supportive. It later held me nicely while exploring the limits of adhesion. The back seats were a tad small but would be survivable for short trips if you’re less than 6ft tall.
So on to the experience. Hyundai allowed each person two laps, each lap choosing between the 3.8 liter V6 or 2.0 liter 4 cylinder Turbo engines in either automatic or manual transmissions. Let me preface what follows with the fact that I had one 30-40 second lap in each car, so my impressions can be taken with a grain of salt or even completely thrown out the window. Take your pick.
I took my first lap in the 6-speed V6. Clutch take-up was easy, quick and I had no problem getting a smooth launch. Power delivery was nice and linear but I felt there should be more considering the 306 hp and 266 lb-ft of torque. There was a good amount of initial turn-in understeer but once settled in the turn, a good jab of the throttle would bring the tail out nicely. Steering feel was quite good, although I often briefly wondered what the back end was doing. The brakes had good feel and were fade-free, as expected from a Brembo setup. There were some offset bumps at the end of the course intended to upset the car and demonstrate chassis rigidity. Honestly, I have no idea how this should have felt, as I was too focused on the clanking front right suspension as it hit each bump. I realize these are abused demo cars, but for only having a few thousand miles, it still left a bad taste in my mouth.
Next up…the 2.0 liter Turbocharged inline-4, also a 6-speed manual. I got in this car expecting a somewhat different experience. Considering a 106hp deficit when compared to the V6, obviously it wasn’t going to launch out of each turn as quickly. However, I anticipated a lighter feel and being able to carry a little more speed into the turn. So that’s exactly what I did. I came into the first turn a little faster than before. Bad idea. The front end plowed on ahead as I turned the wheel. Successive turns felt better balanced, as I had more appropriate entry speeds, but the car still felt quite heavy and underpowered. Now the V6 had felt a bit heavy too, but you could muscle it around a bit and make it obey. Not so with the 4 cylinder. There is about 100 lbs difference between these two cars, but unfortunately it’s just not that noticeable. In this car I was able to pay attention when rolling over the small speed bumps and it did quite well. I heard no creaks or groans and for a stiff sport suspension it soaked it all up nicely.
I think a buyer looking for a fun, somewhat powerful car will be more apt to want the V6, while the 2.0 Turbo might lean more toward a fun commuter car for someone who occasionally wants to enjoy a back road. The 2.0 Turbo has decent power for daily driving and will still return 30 mph on the highway. It may do well with the tuner crowd too, who have always loved anything with a turbo. The more hard-core might want to spend the extra $3k for a little more precision and power on a 370z, but for the money the Genesis Coupe is a steal that buyers won’t regret.
=========================================== Click Here to browse my photo gallery for this event.
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Here’s a short video I put together. If you have a fast connection,
click the YouTube icon and watch it in HD!
