Car Magazine slates 4200GT

[Andrew Richmond]

Performance Car of the Year in Car Magazine (p78 Dec 03) slated the 4200GT. Makes you think....I sold my 3200GT because of poor traction, overlight steering and early ABS cut in. Having driven 02 & 03 MY 4200's (only in the dry), I thought things were getting better but perhaps I was wrong?

[toppstuff]

Andrew Richmond said:

Performance Car of the Year in Car Magazine (p78 Dec 03) slated the 4200GT. Makes you think....I sold my 3200GT because of poor traction, overlight steering and early ABS cut in. Having driven 02 & 03 MY 4200's (only in the dry), I thought things were getting better but perhaps I was wrong?

I read this too. Have to disagree totally.
Had a blat in a Spyder and I expected to find scuttle shake and unresolved handling. I was also prepared to hate the CC gearshift.

You know what? I loved it. It felt stiff, the gearbox was OK, at least as good as the BMW M3 SMG I have also driven, and the handling was predictable and fun.

I have 996C4 at the moment, but I liked it enough to consider buying a nice used one to take advantage of the high initial depreciation.

4200's will be great used buys in a short while. There seems to be oversupply and as the winter sets in the dealers will take some offers I reckon to keep the cashflow going.

I thought Car was talking cr@p personally, but maybe they got a duff one.

[frostie]

These "Performance Car of the Year" things amuse me as they make the most stupid comments about some of the cars. Don't know whether you noticed but in the Car one when they are commenting on the Mini Cooper S Works, they basically imply that the standard Cooper S would have faired better. So why the hell didn't they put that in instead if its better

And also why did the Daihatsu YRV Turbo 130 get into biggest let down column. That implies they were expecting it to be good in the first place. Just look at the damn thing its obviously going to be cr*p !

Frostie

[Exint2]

Given that I'm seriously considering a 4200GT at the moment I've been reading everything I can find out about it, and it's obvious that the Press can't make up it's mind - not just between mags but even between different sections of the same mag.

Top Gear (in a test against the XKR) The "Maserati edges it" listing one of its major + points as the Cambiocorsa gearbox.

In the same Mag at the back under Maserati "Don't be fooled by the Cambiocorsa Gearbox" (also the XKR gets 4 stars and the Maser 3 despite the comments in the direct comparison tests!)

Some Mags treat it as a GT some as an out and out Sportscar.

Most hate the Cambio box - except those who do long term tests who like it once they are used to it.

Some mags think the 03 model year revisions completely transfomed the car - others think they made virtually no difference.

I think it just comes down to personal preference, both in the Press and personally - though the lack of universal press aclaim almost certainly contributes to the high initial depreciation - which is great for people like me who want a 12-18mth old one!

[456mgt]

Personally, I couldn't give the smallest fk what CAR have to say. If you've already tried a sufficient number of performance cars to know a good one when you're in one, you have no need of journalists. Try it yourself, it's the only way.