Hello all,
I had the opportunity today to test drive my NSX and in the same afternoon a Ferrari 360F1 on the a small track. This is a description and also my opinion about the differences between the two cars:
The track was made with hazard cones on a airport landing track, the total length is 2km and the maximum speed was about 100mph, held just for a couple seconds. Most of the track has to be driven at 40-60 mph (very tight curves).
My NSX has japanese short gears, Tubi exhaust, carbon fiber intake, bilstein suspensions and 18/19" wheels. I drove 20 laps with the NSX.
The 360 F1 is completely stock, I drove 5 laps with it.
Acceleration: I reached on both cars 105 mph after the long straight but I have to say that with the NSX I felt more confortable (since I know the car a lot better) and I was pushing it more. Afterall this is my car, the Ferrari si my friends'. In the 0-60 you feel the 360 pulling significantly stronger but less than what I imagined, probably the short gears helps diminuishing the gap. NSX=6, 360=8.
Handling: the two cars handle very similarly. That was a surprise, I expected the Modena having an edge here but it was not the case. Ok, I have an aftermarket setup and very low profile tires (a lot stiffer and with a less body roll than a OEM NSX), but I was surprised anyway. NSX= 7, 360=7.
Noise/Sound : the 360 with the OEM exhaust has a sound that is quite different from the NSX+Tubi+Intake. The NSX is a little louder and has more bass. I liked the higher pitched sound of the 360 better but many friends said that altough different the sound was very nice on both cars. NSX=8, 360=8.
Transmission: I WAS not a fan of the F1. This because I drove a 355F1 before. I also drove a 360 manual before... and people, the one on the 360F1 is on another level! Really: it took me two laps to get used to it and then it was a blast! NSX=7, 360=10.
Driving position: the 360 has to be driven in a higher and less "horizontal" position. A little more rally-style. I prefer the NSX on this. NSX=9, 360=8.
Looking at the total, the Ferrari totalized 41 points and my NSX totalized 37. Probably a stock NSX would have done 34.
In my opinion these numbers do really represent the difference between the two cars. The 360F1 is better, not by a big margin but still well noticeable. Of course, as with all nice things (both these cars), the difference tend to be small even with high price difference. You can see the same behaviour with electrical hi-end equipment or nice watches...
Another small date: my best lap with the NSX was 1min:09s and with the 360F1 it was 1min:13s. If you take into account that I have 60k miles driving time on NSXs and 20 miles (not 20k! ) on the 360 (manual+F1)... this should represent very well the performance difference between the two cars. The 360 is very easy to drive fast ( I did not push it as hard I pushed the NSX...).
Photos will be posted later!
I had the opportunity today to test drive my NSX and in the same afternoon a Ferrari 360F1 on the a small track. This is a description and also my opinion about the differences between the two cars:
The track was made with hazard cones on a airport landing track, the total length is 2km and the maximum speed was about 100mph, held just for a couple seconds. Most of the track has to be driven at 40-60 mph (very tight curves).
My NSX has japanese short gears, Tubi exhaust, carbon fiber intake, bilstein suspensions and 18/19" wheels. I drove 20 laps with the NSX.
The 360 F1 is completely stock, I drove 5 laps with it.
Acceleration: I reached on both cars 105 mph after the long straight but I have to say that with the NSX I felt more confortable (since I know the car a lot better) and I was pushing it more. Afterall this is my car, the Ferrari si my friends'. In the 0-60 you feel the 360 pulling significantly stronger but less than what I imagined, probably the short gears helps diminuishing the gap. NSX=6, 360=8.
Handling: the two cars handle very similarly. That was a surprise, I expected the Modena having an edge here but it was not the case. Ok, I have an aftermarket setup and very low profile tires (a lot stiffer and with a less body roll than a OEM NSX), but I was surprised anyway. NSX= 7, 360=7.
Noise/Sound : the 360 with the OEM exhaust has a sound that is quite different from the NSX+Tubi+Intake. The NSX is a little louder and has more bass. I liked the higher pitched sound of the 360 better but many friends said that altough different the sound was very nice on both cars. NSX=8, 360=8.
Transmission: I WAS not a fan of the F1. This because I drove a 355F1 before. I also drove a 360 manual before... and people, the one on the 360F1 is on another level! Really: it took me two laps to get used to it and then it was a blast! NSX=7, 360=10.
Driving position: the 360 has to be driven in a higher and less "horizontal" position. A little more rally-style. I prefer the NSX on this. NSX=9, 360=8.
Looking at the total, the Ferrari totalized 41 points and my NSX totalized 37. Probably a stock NSX would have done 34.
In my opinion these numbers do really represent the difference between the two cars. The 360F1 is better, not by a big margin but still well noticeable. Of course, as with all nice things (both these cars), the difference tend to be small even with high price difference. You can see the same behaviour with electrical hi-end equipment or nice watches...
Another small date: my best lap with the NSX was 1min:09s and with the 360F1 it was 1min:13s. If you take into account that I have 60k miles driving time on NSXs and 20 miles (not 20k! ) on the 360 (manual+F1)... this should represent very well the performance difference between the two cars. The 360 is very easy to drive fast ( I did not push it as hard I pushed the NSX...).
Photos will be posted later!
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