Alongside 'do you want to swap mate' the 'so what’s the best car you’ve ever driven' question is the one I get asked most frequently as a motoring journalist. Especially at dinner parties. And my answer is always the same.
'The Ferrari F40' I will reply, hoping secretly that the speed and confidence of my answer will force the conversation in another direction. To which the person who originally asked the question will inevitably ask 'Why?'
Thinking about it now, I’m not entirely sure why I always say it’s the F40 – because I’ve driven many cars since that are 'better' than the Ferrari in every conceivable way, ie faster, roomier, sexier, better sounding, more economical and so on. Yet the F40 is always the one I come back to.
I think this is because it’s the car that left its mark on me the most the first and only time I drove it, which was on a cold and empty piece of road that winds its way across the moors just north of a town called Kirkbymoorside. It terrified and thrilled and excited me, all in equally overwhelming terms, and all at exactly the same time. It freaked me out to be honest, and for a while all I wanted to do was climb out of it and be somewhere else.
But it’s the memory of driving it that has remained so rich in my mind. It’s a memory that may well have changed and become richer and less disturbing than it actually was as the years have gone by. But there was a lesson served up by the F40 that seems more relevant than ever in 2013; that perfection itself is not always the result of containing no flaws. Perfection, indeed, may even occur BECAUSE there is the odd inconsistency in the finished product.
Put it another way; a Ferrari F40 wouldn’t see which way a Ferrari 458 Italia had gone over a decent road, but if you presented me with the keys to both and the last gallon of fuel on earth to pour into just one of them, the 458 wouldn’t get a look in.
Progress sometimes comes in the strangest of forms. You may even need to look backwards to move forwards sometimes, and that doesn’t mean resorting to pastiche or retro design.
The F40 was as modern as it got at the time but it still paid homage to cars that had gone before it. And it’s been copied but never bettered many, many times since. That’s why it’s the best car I’ve ever driven.
So go on then, what’s yours, and why?
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BMW manual
BMW 5 series manual, diesel with 3L engine... until the E60: after that, the steering feel lost a bit too much.
I tried cars that are faster than that, but what makes me feel good is the quality, the cruising abilities, the comfort, the economy when I want to and the smile on my face when I put the foot down. When I drive it, I feel I don't want to drive anything else and that says a lot.
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Probably a Lamboghini Gallardo, a well used early manual car. Thought it was going to be a beast but was actually totally chuckable and way faster than anything I've driven. Sounded great too. You could floor the throttle mid-corner and it just stuck and went around, great fun.
After that it's probably a BMW 130i 3dr. Sounded lovely, went extremely well and handled sweetly.
And I still have spot for my old V40 T4, too. Entertainly laggy and blunt but a lusty 300Nm from 1855cc and discreet in dark blue.
best car ever driven
best cars ive driven depends on road conditions ie e46 m3 great until it rains,my mates tvr griff same,my volvo 850 t-5r until you get to a bend,but the best car ive driven was a few years ago my missus ford puma 1.7 cracking little car, unfortunatley not designed for 18 stone blokes used to get back ache for a week after driving it!!