Compliant Suspension tuning.  Chassis dynamics.  Low Weight and Mass.  Power to Weight ratio.  Lotus is a small company.  Bought and sold many, many times in the last few decades.  For the most part their owners looked at Lotus as just another stock in the portfolio.  How much more is Lotus?  In terms of racing heritage they are second only to Ferrari in terms of Formula One success.  However, let’s take a look at how in the world a Camry V6 becomes a bellowing super car powerplant with what amounts to proprietary engine management, a well designed exhaust and intake and a cleaver use of factory motor mount location.  Look at the spring rates, heck look at the spring size on most Lotus products and two things become readily apparent.  A.  they are very light almost pliable spring rates and B. they are  really TALL.  When you drive a Porsche, especially one with either an M030 designation or say, a GT3, what you come away with is that the cars suspension has NO give.  NO sway.  It  is punishing the road in to submission.  It isn’t so much absorbing bumps as it is FORCING the tire into contact with the surface as if by an act of sheer distain.  A British car, or more specifically a Lotus ALLOWS weight to transfer, allows blows to be absorbed while keeping the tire in contact with the road surface via fairly forceful damper rates.  The difference is striking.  First off, where as in a car that is set up very stiff you have to filter feedback going to the wheel lest is should vibrate your very forearm into numbness, in a Lotus each and every minute detail is allowed to make it straight through to the driver.  Did I just run over an ant?  In a Lotus , You’ll know.  Now, this is a very limited discussion of what is ACTUALLY going on, after all geometry, sway bars, bushings, all play a roll, but it illustrates a huge difference in approach.  Lotus’ ethos is about harmony with the road surface, living with it, using it in a way many car manufactures never seem to think of.

The Evora, and the 2 Eleven ENABLE their drivers to use every last ounce of the cars innate ability while never loosing that smile from your face.  What is pleasant from rolling off the line remains pleasant all the way up to and PAST the point where funnels of tyre smoke are obscuring your rear view.  Couple that with a driving experience which is in no way fatiguing or jarring and how could you not have a winner?

Weight.  It ruins many a fine road car.  It cripples you on the track. The fact that these cars weigh up to 30% less than their competition is no small feat, yet on a shoe string budget Lotus manages to make it happen.  While it is easy to discard the 2 Eleven as being a track day special, the Evora is DOT and TUV crash test rated, not only that it does very well.  Imagine a Nissan GTR that weighed only 2800 lbs!  would it need all the super computer wizardry? Would it need an alphabet soup of traction control and steering aids?  Does it really need the 500 whp that most dyno’s are proving?  Having driven nearly every Lotus in recent memory, and with all having south of 300 HP I have to say NO.

Lotus has accomplished no small item here.  It has built  two of the worlds best cars using parts bin propulsion and nothing short of genius design.  Other car companies, please take note.  While the 1000hp Veyron is mighty and technologically amazing, what we all really want is a car that makes us smile.  From 1st gear to top gear from corner to corner and from depression to crest.  Lotus has got it.  The horsepower wars have brought us some amazing acceleration times (who thought an automatic Mercedes Wagon would be capable of ripping 0-60 in 4 seconds 10 years ago?) but in many of these testosterone sleds cornering with vigor is squelched by chassis dynamics that simply can’t keep up without dramatic digital aid. On the whole  so high are the rigidity and cooling needs in these cars that weight has crept  up so far that even 500 hp feels only marginally entertaining.

Lotus has scaled the mountain, taken everything it has learned and shown the way to a very bright future.  Here’s to that future and to what comes next from the Passionate and Wise boys of Hethel!

For years if you endeavored to dare bring up which wheels should recieve the drive I would likely have stomped you down with, “you have 4 wheels, why not use them?!!?”.  Then after many a hot lap at a road course near you I fell in love with the sheer handling sensuality that brands like Lotus and BMW have provided us  via rear wheel drive and even weight distribution.  For the first time I was acutally experiencing steering communication that can only be provided when front wheels are unencumbered  by axles, a diff, all that other stuff getting in the way of the love letter the front wheels had been sending me.  Message received !  Over the subsequent years I owned many of the worlds finest rear wheel drive cars.  Over time I began to think , surely, surely this is the most pure, most proper set up for driving bliss.  Sure, The XJR was never going to make it up my drive way on Eagle F1’s and certainly the 911 was a handful in an ice storm, but undoubtedly it was WORTH the deficiency.

Only more recently have I again been given pause to my “all wheel drive is best” mind set.  Lately Mr. Quattro has been drawn back to the days of autocrossing my Scirocco 16v thus twisting and contorting my brain into being convinced that front drive has something to offer.  Back in 2006 when I took delivery of that candy white MkV Gti I remember reveling in the lift throttle oversteer, the AMAZING steering information funneling through that flat rimmed steering wheel.  I was beginning to seriously question the extra weight of the awd platform, beginning to question whether the insurmountable mountain which was a steep driveway was WORTH putting up with.  Then, if only to further complicate matters I had what must certainly be one of the top 10 drives of my life in a FWD Lotus Elan!?!? Heresy! You might say.   Now, first before you think me completely mad, let me share that also in the top ten are an unbelievable evening in a sorted E30 M3, a torrid excursion in a Lamborghini Gallardo, and a 300 mile flame blasting, slide enducing all-out-focus-fest in a tuned Lotus Esprit just to name a few… so there has been serious consideration given when I say… TOP 10 DRIVE.  The day was perfect, the road (that only Car & Driver and myself seem to know about , and we aren’t sharing the secret) was warmed by the sun and the ambient temperature hovering  just about 48 degrees F.  The next hour and a half had me literally laughing out loud and at one point exclaiming , “If FWD can be like this , why aren’t they all like this?”  Fantastic traction out of corners, always putting the power down , even when the chassis went light, always neutral , resisting understeer till the bitter end, rotation to the point of near ridiculousness surely motoring experiences (at least dynamically speaking ,and to be honest the car could use a tad more power and a real gear selector)  come no better.  I had just experienced motoring Nirvana in a car with obvious flaws, and the handling and performance was so good it far eclipsed what may be the worst shifter in a car ever and it was built in 1991?!!?  I tell you no lie.  Add to that the days I spent hunting down E36 M3’s on the track with an 07 GTI, certainly this FWD had something to say, some unique persepective to offer the enthusiast driver.

Which brings us full circle back to AWD.  I remember the first time I drove a 335 with x drive.  After spending more than a few pleasant hours in our own 335i coupe, i was prepared for the AWD car to plough, to rob me of precious steering feedback which I covet in a performance car.  Shock of shocks , BMW had actually preserved much of , if not all of the steering purity.  Now, while the 335 may not be the last word in messages coming through the steering wheel, I was more than pleasantly surprised.  It had another thing that our 335 was lacking.  Traction, blessed fantastic traction.  ”Yes, your Corvette just got obliterated” traction.  Still progressive enough to slide, yet not wasting tenths in an off the line romp.  JOY.  Even when tuned to 500 hp our project S4 had gobs of traction to spare and through careful alignment we were even able to get it to handle properly.

Recently on a rain soaked day I found myself out in our Volkswagen GTI development car.  It is upgraded in both the software and suspension departments.  I was getting on one of my favorite on ramps when I decided to boot ‘er in second gear.  Wheel spin.  Egregious , torrid wheel spin.  ”ok” I thought , that was a bit ham-fisted , lets try a roll on in 3rd.  Smooth roll on the throttle, full boost, subtle wheel spin that faded to hidious obnoxious wheel spin.  It brought to mind a night far more rainy than the day in question.  Travel back to that overcast London like evening.  I had just brought home a Lamborghini Superleggera.  The kids naturally had to know what the savage brutal force felt like.  ”To bad” I thought, “It’s raining cats and dogs and I’ll have to be progressive with my inputs” Out on the road, strapped in tightly, aimmed straight and  roll away in 1st gear. Bury the throttle, 2nd, buried, 3rd, buried.  lift.  Traction control was left on just incase my enthusiasm was a bit to boyish.  You know how many times I saw the “tc” light blink ?  Want to guess how much wheel spin there was?  NONE.  Hooked up, gone. That same car would allow heinous dry condition drifting with the correct steering input, had fabulous steering feel and on a hard launch the AWD system was totally transparent.  Sigh, AWD FTW. 

So, here I sit, again convinced that AWD is the superior platform (though unquestionably all three offer huge advantages distinct to their given cache).  Rather than going out and being a proper Sebatian Loeb impersonator I guess I’ll have to settle for  a drive in the Mini Cooper and grab the ebrake.  No matter what you drive be sure you do so passionately!

“Car Enthusiast” can’t we just leave it there? Oh the peace the world would know if we all took two steps back and realize we all essentially have the same passion. The drive, the car, the experience. As with the current political climate it seems everything in our world is becoming more and more polarized. Perhaps it is the brand marketeers of the world. Those who have researched their demographic, done focus group after focus group and refined their product until it was perfect for person X. At some point person X becomes so sure he is right about his POV that he decides to hate on person Y. “I am right, you are wrong.” It’s just that simple. Soon we develop our clique of close mates and with those numbers comes power. Now, not only are we right, but we can fight about it. Enter the Blogosphere, the Internet Forum. Ah yes, I would like a few gallons of haterade with my evening surfing please. Why do we have to always be right? Is our way best, can there be compromise ? Good questions. Let’s discuss.

A few years back, a track day buddy (and ex-grand am professional driver) and I were attending a car show. It wasn’t really so much a show and shine as it was a “check out what I got” drive in for a few hundred cars. As we walked through the sea of shimmering paint, glinting alloy and general automotive nirvana we stumbled upon a pretty fair representation of Porsche 2.7 RS clones. The car was on Victaracer semi slicks and the gent who owned this visually stunning car was finishing up a detail before he walked away. Little did I know but the whole pitcher of haterade was near the tipping point the as tension was obviously mounting on the other side of the car I came around to see “tire wet” being applied. Ok, I could see how there was a bit of irony here, racing tyre, being greased up and all… kind of an oxymoron of sorts. However, rather than subtle amusement my “racer” friend went off on this poor fellow in a loud demeaning tone which then escalated into a bit of a fit which I then had to break up.

Ok, time out. Question: Do tires look good all gray and brown ? Answer: No. Question: Does tire wet on a race tyre actually endanger peoples lives? Well, I suppose yes, but that would assume that the ooze would never come off or dissipate. Clearly our much maligned friend wasn’t about to autocross or track this beauty.

Certainly in our community there is room for dialogue, but if you know nothing about warm tyre pressures, cam duration, or alignment will hate help you learn? NO. I have personally left forums before simply because a few “enlightened” car guys thought it was their job to inform (and at the same time demean if at all possible) all comers in the ways of “their ” car that they were so obsessed with. I know guys with some pretty impressive machinery that won’t go near a car show because they don’t want to get hate. I once had an E30 M3 with Racing Dynamics wheels, a pretty fun little car. I took it to a show once and actually had someone tell me “shame about those wheels.” I was like, “Wow, this from a guy that rolled up in a stock ride ht, stock wheeled E36 M3.” Then it hit me, in my mind I was doing the same thing. He was the “stocker”… you know, the guy that wants it stock or noway, and anything else is just wrong. I was the slam it and make it corner guy, with a “he must not really care about performance” hate message swimming around in my own mind. Being someone who has driven nearly every car in both stock and modified forms, I try to remain unbiased on the whole thing. However driving an EVO 10, though it isn’t something I can see myself driving personally, it certainly has appreciable feature. I fail to understand how someone who has likely NEVER EVEN driven the car can pronounce it “crap on a stick”. Does your car have more power? Maybe. Does it apply it better? Well, GREAT! We should all be so lucky, but let’s be friends.

Show us your P3ness!

Lastly I’ll touch on my favorite. The Hater that not only hasn’t driven the car or tried the product that he is about to hate on, he can’t even spell it correctly. OH MAN, I loves me a good forum post with some errors in a message where the antagonist is actually trying to tell you about your error, how wrong you are. Oh yeah, that’s good times… good times.

What can we do with all this hate? Well, next time you start thinking, “Oh here comes ricer boy with T4 strapped to his Civic, I am sure it detonates like a mo fo”, really look at that car. Is there something you can learn? Something you can actually appreciate? I have found that even with cars that made me laugh out loud, talk to the guy and nearly every time I have been surprised by the thoughtful, insight that has come of it.

I will open our Forum with this plea. If you have never been on a track and don’t understand why in some instances (even on the street) a slightly smaller wheel might actually be the best pick, think about it. Take a moment to ponder why the software in your car may not be best, but may be an equal or fine alternative. Take a moment to consider paint scheme, decals, et al, all are down to personal taste. Heck, one day you might even come back to that car you were about to hate on and say, “that looks hot, what was I thinking?”

There are more than a few paths to automotive bliss. At P3 we aim to cut out the guessing, and give you recommendations, but we also thrive on your input, the input of all car guys. So if you are a Euro tuner, Mopar freak, VIP style boy or Track whore… we know you would like to hang, roll, race and in the end just be brothers.

So why did we pick a Lotus Esprit as one of our first 3 cars?

Well, to start with what auto enthusiast between the ages of 16 and 50 hasn’t had a poster or pin up of one of these cars? Many have wondered what it must be like to drive a car that made Car and Driver opine, “few experiences in the automotive world can compare to being in the Esprit’s driver seat when the boost is up”. Peter Stevens (who also designed a little ditty called the McLearn F1) took an already cutting edge design by G. Guigaro and made it into what is one of the iconic supercar shapes of all time. Instantly recognizable and with performance stats that are competitive, even by today’s standards. So, in that it is just one of “those” cars we have all considered at one time or another, why not. To start with , I had run these cars for a number of years and was SHOCKED to find that, in addition to all the things you would expect (supercar drama, great handling , good acceleration etc.) they were also reliable to run. I figured it was time to shed some light on what this car was all about and further, what possibilities lie ahead for the curious enthusiast.

Now Lotus makes quite a few good cars, we will be covering the Elise/Exige in the future, but as time does march on I thought there was no time like the present to cover the Esprit. It has the distinction of being the last production car that Colin Chapman was directly involved in and that in and of itself makes it pretty special. Drive one of these cars, or just look underneath it and Colin’s ethos and engineering ideology quickly comes into view. Blessed with one of the most communicative and reactive steering feel of all time this is without question a drivers car. Get on the power just a bit to early out of that corner? No worries, the Esprit will tell you how much lock you need, then just hold the line, listen to the messages it is giving you. Worried a turbo car won’t have the mid corner correct-ability a NA car offers… PSHHH, Colin said, “keep it simple stupid” and so , this 2.2 turbo 4 is as adjustable as you could hope.

Another reason for P3 cars taking the reigns on the Esprit is that , well, many are afraid too. For the last few years I couldn’t even tell you the number of times Esprit owners, and those who would be Esprit owners, have asked simple questions to which they simply could not find an answer. “Where do I get an oil filter?”, “When do I change my timing belt?”, “Who makes speed parts for these cars?” and it goes on and on. We are going to be taking the bull by the horns on this one. With our project Esprit we have already done a coil over suspension conversion, aggressive wheels and rubber, cat bypass, exhaust, and even a map switcher that allows you to customize your Esprit driving experience. We are going to bring you weekly updates on the car, all the parts you are looking for (both maintenance and modification based). This past summer we had the opportunity to really put some of those parts to the test during a grueling 300 mile road rally. Nothing broke, smiles were plentiful and the flames from the exhaust were free to all comers.

Then there is the P3 factor… If we have one problem here at P3 Cars, well, it’s that we are addicted to boost. For many of us nothing beats the spooling kick in the pants a turbo provides. In the Esprit’s case it is one of those best of both world’s scenarios. Since gas has gone through the roof I get people all the time come up to me at the pump, “I bet that thing gets 5 mpg”. “Sigh, well, no, I get about 22 combined … around 27 or so highway” cue shock and probably the inquisitive bystander considering me a lying lout. This car makes great power, will hurtle to 60 in 4.xx seconds, AND gets good economy. Now , I know some of you are thinking, “man, I love the Esprit but I gotta have the V8, why didn’t they do the V8?” Well, we will cover that in depth in a future installment with a direct comparison of the two cars. However, briefly , for me personally the S4 Esprit really is the ONLY choice. WIth the S4 you got a slightly enlarged cabin, and at 6.2 and several pounds I need any inches Lotus was going to give me. Second, I have run and umm, disintegrated my fair share of forced induction engines, 4 cylinders is less than 8 when you are replacing them. Third, for a few years I owned and operated a shop with a Dyno. Without too much trouble a well maintained 2.2 will see around 260 wheel hp. I have seen as high as 380 wheel on an essentially stock motor with some bolt ons. The last V8 we dynoed put down 291 whp. Nuff said. Oh wait, then there is the fact that the V8 pays a weight penalty , the clutch in the V8 costs around 3,200, when Lotus raced the V8 they ripped the engine out and used a different unit because it was deemed unreliable, and well, umm, it kind of is. SO. With our 4 cylinder Esprit we have a car that generates all the smiles, with few of the frowns, and let’s face it, when you drive a car that in a given year 100 or so were made a frown can be a very, very bad thing.

When the 2.8 A4 quattro was introduced it quickly rose to acclaim in much of the motoring press. Great handling, class leading acceleration and it did it all in a quiet and composed way that previous sports sedans costing double the price would be hard pressed to muster. For those who were the Audi faithful the thought that an S car might be in the wings was almost to much to stand. Would it have the AAN 20v 5 cylinder motor? Would Audi turbo charge the 6 or were the rumors of a forced induction 4.2 true? Soon all would be revealed and for those who were praying for a turbo, well, their dreams would be doubly fulfilled.

I remember it like it was yesterday the issue of Performance Car (later to become Evo mag.) Where the then new biturbo S4 emerged victorious from a battle against the then great BMW M3 and Mercedes C36. Here was a magazine that focused first and foremost of driver involvement and they picked the S4! Oh man, I could hardly wait for Audi to bring this beast to our shores.

At the time Audi had no plans to bring this King of all things B5 to North America, this was their MO at the time after all. Make a capable performance car (RS2 anyone?) and then leave us over here in the states dreaming, lusting and longing for more. In 2000, after a modest redesign (lights and door handles most significantly) we finally got 2.7 liter turbo 6 speed (tip was an option that hopefully none of you clicked) giant slayer and in truth, out of the box it was just about as right as Audi had gotten things up until that point. With typically restrained German styling that never gave the game away. To the guy in the other lane you could be driving a bog stock A4 1.8t, with no wings, gaudy body addenda this car was a sleeper.

Visual changes were subtle and to the connoisseur made all the difference. Xenon lights, new lower rocker sill extensions, a new grill, 17 inch Avus wheels and an aggressive maw were enough to suggest performance, and at the same time enough to conceal the added talent that lie beneath. Right out of the box the car was a performer. Limited to 250 hp for the US market , even still these cars were posting serious performance figures. Publications of the day had it ripping 5.3 0-50 times, lap times around race courses that were on par with an M3 and not far off a 996 911. This was a serious piece of kit and everyone knew it.

Tuners were quick to crack the box and get more boost that would yield easy 300 hp and close to 350 ft lbs of torque. Then we were off to the races. Big turbos, Bigger turbos, hybrid turbos, full race set ups, big brakes or bling… it all seemed to hit and continue to this day. Drive a well cared for example today, years later and this Audi still feels fresh. Still up to the task of besting the finest the world’s auto manufactures can muster.

Any time a car has this much to offer, enthusiast owners like ourselves naturally look to modifications, but what is the right set up? Much of that is down to personal taste, but here at P3 we have found a few set ups that work for us and are more than happy to let you in on the secret. Who’s intercoolers? Do I do bigger turbo’s ? All those questions are answered and more. We will have on going dedication to knowledge and update for this car, so if your car is still stock, or needs tweaked, stay tuned.

Here at P3 one of the things we hold most valuable is reliability. All of us have had, or known someone that had that 1000 hp Supra. How many times have you seen a Volkswagen or Honda that looked PERFECT crushed on those 19 inch wheels, that couldn’t be driven over speed bumps or at speed. These sound like great ideas, I mean, they CAN be done. However, actually being able to drive your cars in a variety of conditions, counting on it to start and not over fuel, actually being able to USE your car IS important. If it looks right or goes like a demon and the opportunities to use it must be preplanned… well, that just ain’t very P3.

A car that can reliably produce 500 hp with regular maintenance and care vs. one that makes 700 hp but struggles to find traction and won’t idle… we pick the first. The car with the tuned suspension with 0 bump steer and fine control and adjustability vs. the car that is crushed and looks wicked right on those huge wheels, never mind the rubbing and bucking… well, you guessed it , choice A. again.

Don’t get us wrong. Sometimes crushed works, sometimes the most reliable solution IS the huge turbos and injectors. The fact remains, if those things DON’T work, then you won’t see them as recommended P3 Parts. The S4 in particular has so many parts available for it that picking the right ones can truly be a chore. Here you can inform yourself and buy all in one easy step.

BMW has repeatedly won praise for their saloon cars with laud normally reserved for marques such as Porsche and Lotus. Cars such as the 2002 and 2002ti are still regulars at club events and track days. Many publications and drivers alike still hold the E30 M3 as a paragon of saloon car handling. Many of my most memorable drives have been at the helm of a E30 M3, and with that car BMW established a bit of a gold standard for what is possible with a toss-able, reasonably powered 4 seat car.

While many have felt BMW’s were the last word in dynamics, few would argue that they have lead the way in design aesthetic, interior fit and finish or for that matter (and what is doubly important to us here at P3) great turbo power plants. While the BMW devotees may have been content with the S54 motored E46 cars, hardcore tuners (or for that matter anyone who has ever “chipped” a turbo car) wanted the magic sauce. We needed BOOST!

BMW has had some successes in turbo power. Though never officially imported to this country the 2002 turbo made quite a splash with it’s reverse “turbo” script on the front spoiler to let others know what was coming up on them. However, nothing can compare to the unexplainable joy, and for that matter surprise, that greeted enthusiasts when the E90 335i and 335ix were introduced.

Taking a card straight from Audi’s play book (of note is that Audi in a much maligned move took a card from the BMW play book in shoe horning the 4.2 NA in everything they made) and introduced a new twin-turbo 3.0-liter straight-6 engine, fitted with direct injection and a high 10.2:1 compression ratio. Excitement was mounting.

Two compact but effective turbos provide huff to only three cylinders each, reducing lag and increasing torque at low engine speeds. Rated at 300 hp at 5,800 rpm and 300 pound-feet of torque spreading from 1,400-5,000 rpm, retaining rear-drive coupe and weighing in at 3,579 lbs, the drool began to froth. Our Steptronic six-speed autobox in stock form can rip to sixty in 5.5 seconds. Even the manual transmission as it is 6 tenths of a second quicker (unbelievably BMW only claims 5.6 for the manual, we aren’t sure why)! But the bottom line is BMW just handed us a tuner’s dream, a rocketship WITH great driving dynamics.

So, what to think about this? *** WARNING*** Editors rant ahead!

Well, first off, more than a few of us are left wondering why in the world the petrol swilling M3 still makes it on any bodies shortlist. To get this out of the way right now, we like torque and lots of it. The Corvette Z06? Torque enough to rip out a tree stump, and it handles very well. The B6, B7 Audi S4 and BMW M3? No, please no. 16 mpg and only decent torque and very limited modablity equals boo hiss. I would go so far as to say if you want a V8 and car that is dynamically pleasing and has track and mod cred buy an E39 M5. Then go hunt down a 2009 M3, lay waste and smile. (nuff said)

BMW has created what will surely be loved and in coming years remembered as one of the best tuner cars Germany has produced. Stylistically it is easily my favorite product of the Bangle era. In terms of interior quality, it is still not quite up to VAG levels, but easily on par with anything Mercedes can toss it’s way, and looks and functions smartly as well.

From a drivers perspective there really isn’t much to gripe about. The steering is a tad heavy at low speeds when sport pack equipped. I could personally do with a bit more driver info (water temp and boost would be nice). A limited slip rear diff would be great, but honestly from a critique perspective, that is really about it. It can easily keep pace with cars with more prestige, more price and more power. It is a true teutonic powerhaus.

At this point all the Audi guys (me included) will be going on about loss of traction in wet conditions and when it’s introduced to more boost. Well, in part there is a point there. I have now spent plenty of time in stock and modded two wheel drive 335’s. I will say this, BMW has done an excellent job (as always) with traction, grip and feel. However, the 1 wheel peel, or for that matter , the 2 wheel 2 step can only get you so far. And we here at P3 won’t be tubbing out the rear of one of these anytime soon so as to fit wrinkle wall slicks.

Wouldn’t it be a real tragedy for the Audi fan if they made an AWD 335? Oh wait, they do. Many will recall the 325ix from the 80’s. It was fitted with what at best could be called an agricultural ruffian of an all wheel drive system. Snap oversteer? Sure. Ridiculous ploughing never before seen in a BMW? Sure. To be honest it really wasn’t that bad , but proved less sophisticated and less reliable from the all-wheel drive systems from Audi, and for that matter Subaru.

When in the late 90’s BMW announced a return to AWD technology, the world didn’t exactly wait in angst ridden anticipation. However, with the 335 all of a sudden it makes sense. While still not the last word in refinement it easily eclipses MB’s 4 matic system in seamless operation and well, it flat gets the job done. Gut wrenching acceleration is now possible from a dead stop and with turbo kits coming on the market that are promising 500 whp, well, things are heating up and heating up fast.

Our P3 digital interface came to life primarily because of the lack of driver information available from the 335 instrumentation. We are the first and best at offering boost, peak recall, map switching and an ever expanding range of driver info. We have put together packages for this car that offer all the hallmarks of P3. Improvement and advancement. Quicker, better handling, more desirable in every way.

If you were to visit your friendly Audi dealer in late 1995 and asked , ” what can I replace my S4 with” you would have gotten the delightful answer of, “why an S4 of course!” Indeed , the world was set to receive the greatest S4 of all time. The 2.7t biturbo 6 speed equipped S4 delivering 265hp in European trim. Immediately magazines were pitting Ingolstads finest sports sedan against the BMW M3 and Mercedes Benz AMG C36 . Much to every Audiphiles delight the S4 handily SMASHED the competition, delivering 0-60 in 5.3 seconds and beating both cars to 100 and in the quarter mile. What was more all road testers praised the car for it’s much more neutral handling and increased resistance to understeer compared with the old car. Here in the US we saw the writing on the wall. Germany creates another car to lust for and we will NEVER see it on these shores. Stop the presses! Toward the end of 1999 some three years into the cars production and having been ready for a freshen up in 2000 we were told that we would , infact, be getting the B5 S4 for model year 2000. At the same time we heard that Audi would be releasing an RS4 in Avant only and with … wait for it… near as dammit 380 hp and reaching sixty miles an hour in 4.8 seconds! 100 would be dispatched in a 911 turbo like 11.9 seconds…from the FACTORY. Our ship had come in. Though rated at 250hp for the US market magazines such as Car and Driver were able to match performance numbers set in Europe. This was a serious piece of kit indeed.

Almost immediately software was developed that would see the S4 making over 320 hp with a simple Chip, Exhaust, intake combination. Soon parts from the RS4 were available from both Audi and in the aftermarket. By 2002 there were big turbo kits and cars putting down reliable and consistent wheel horse power numbers around the 500 mark. Few of us who considered ourselves true Audi Fans could hold back. The cars have remained strong in the used market and are still commanding big money for real cars. However, when you think of everything you are getting for your money. It is a near unbeatable value.

When I set out to think about what my first article would be, it wasn’t too hard. At the core for those of us that can find no better expense of time and money but to find the perfect corner on the penultimate afternoon during the crispest of autumnal days. The first time you thread the KEYHOLE just right at Mid-Ohio, or at 16 when you find yourself gazing through the side window of your parents car in a snow-filled abandoned parking lot. At the core, the freedom and the thrill that is driving has been wired so totally in our brain that, at times, we long for little else.

Back in the Fall of 2006 I found myself taking delivery of a brand new Candy White GTI. I had driven it at launch and test drove several and could scarcely believe that this kind of performance was available for under $25,000. The car had the build quality of the RS6 I had at the time (and if you haven’t been in one and at this point this surely I have lost the plot… go drive one), felt EASILY up to exceeding the stock performance predictions (later proved out by a stunning STOCK dyno run that yielded 207 hp and 221tq at the wheels after being properly run in !!), had one of the best esp systems on any car PERIOD, and would even get it’s tail involved in the action. WOW. I was able to take the car to track days, many memorable road trips and even see what the cars potential was with a brace of performance mods. This little GTI had really moved things on. With it’s lively neutral chassis tuning, ample thrust from it’s standard setting 2.0fsi motor and it’s all things to all people interior I wondered what else anyone really needed. It accomplished so many tasks so well, Easily besting E36 M3’s on the track and providing more back road fun than it had any right to. After 20k miles it was still rattle free and proved to be a real driving machine. Still the question always begs answering , “what if I spent a bit more money…”

Not too long ago a Lamborghini Gallardo 6 speed found itself in my care for quite an extended period. Within the first few miles I realized, they had finally gotten things right. The car was all of a piece (something which no Diablo could ever claim) it was composed, fast and competent and yet somehow as wieldy as a 2.0fsi GTI. Within a few hundred miles I was seriously enamored. Lamborghini had done it (albeit with quiet a bit of help from our friends at Audi) and I came to enjoy some of the best drives of my life. One of the most memorable trips in that car was a long 400 mile highway run across several states. The glistening Orange Gallardo was easily as comfortable as an E class Mercedes. Turned so many heads I stopped counting. Further it provided the kind of mile crushing in gear acceleration that would see state troopers seriously questioning if they should even give chase. Fitted with an exhaust that was well mannered and tasteful at idle and while cruising , but containing the kind of bark that, at one point, literally made the soccer mom and he brace of bemused children collectively; drop their jaws, jump and cheer and literally flinch for cover when the throttle was blipped under an underpass. A car of cars that not only brought me great pleasure but an enumerable amount of fellow drivers as well. It was truly worth the price of admission. To my point every time I drive a truly high end piece of kit, be it an SLR or the newest offering from Ferrari I can’t help but here that little voice in the back of my head say, “you will never be able to drive and enjoy a 100 hp car ever again!” I have to say that with the advent of ever more capable cars being released this point has been underlined over and over again. With the cars we are being sold today things really and totally are being moved forward at a blistering pace. Are we to crush our E30 M3’s, Miata’s, Lotus Europas and the like?

Having the good fortune of having access to a stream of cars certainly has it’s privileges. A few short months ago a fairly unique and rare car was offered to me that I simply couldn’t pass up. A venetian Blue Porsche 928 S4 with a manual gear box and a Limited Slip rear end isn’t something you see everyday. I couldn’t pass it up. I have to confess with all this new machinery passing threw my hands it took a few days to really draw the interest in choosing it to be my stead for an afternoon of back road passion pursuit. At first my worst fears seemed to be close to reality. The seating position was less perfect than that of a Cayman S. The interior was quiet a bit noisier than I had remembered, and while powerful all the controls seemed to be a step or two more disconnected than the S8 I have been driving earlier that day. Out on the road that quickly faded. We have truly lost the plot with modern airbag A pillar design. While structural integrity is important to you and me (and certainly my kids), the PANORAMA afforded by the slim pillars in this car was SHOCKING. Then there was the throttle response …. OH, that is what a throttle cable was used for. Not 4 corners in and heavy on the power a hair before the apex (keep in mind I had been driving an Audi a few hours previous) and the ensuing slide was easily ridden out with the perfect amount of opposite lock prescribed to me THROUGH that thin rimmed airbag-less wheel. Wait a second, stop the presses. I was in a 100k mile, sub 15k dollar car and enjoying my socks off. Never mind that the A/C was struggling to cool my 6 foot 2 inch frame as adequately as a new honda civic would. I was rediscovering automotive Nirvana.

Upon returning back to P3 head quarters I snagged the keys to the newly acquired C230k coupe. Here was an even less expensive car that , to be honest, wasn’t exactly heralded by the automotive press as a whole. To my complete satisfaction , though flawed, I was able to find and extract the joy from caining this car as well. I had stumbled on to what I had suspected, neah , KNEW all along. It is the DRIVING we love. Certainly having the right car can help, but as I have found from years of modifying cars … the engineers have PUT the right car … IN most cars. It is up to us to extract that Rightness. This is not to say every car has latent potential (ask anyone who owns a Chevy Malibu), however it is the drive and our ability to connect with the world that is key to this passion we all share.

I look forward to sharing my passion with you. Here at P3 our goal is to help you FIND the potential in your car. Make it available at a one stop location. Then fuel that fire with the content that currently just doesn’t exist. Here we go, buckle up… put that helmet on if you have it. We are going for one Hell of a ride.

Now that we had a car, and had decided to make it one of our 08/09 project cars all that was left for me to do was drive one. So, I went looking for once because there was no way in heck I was driving an Automatic. Upon finding one I remembered what it was I loved about BMW’s…. their freaking crazy obsessive lawyers and their state of the art iDrive. If that chime were to have sounded 1 more time, I wouldn’t have been able to drive the car. I would have immediately gotten out in protest and possibly kicked the car. That didn’t happen. If you work for BMW or are one of their design engineers, please go drive an Audi with MMI or even a Lexus and replace iDrive (which is total crap) with one of those competent and easily superior systems. After my rant I started the car and was met by a surprisingly sophisticated, complex and low exhaust burble. My first thought here is that the tone is just perfect and will really be hard to improve upon. It needs a few more Db, but honestly in is just so correct as it is. We shall see what gains and compromise can be made here but it surely won’t be first on our list. Pulling away the car seemed to have the composure and suspension compliance that has made BMW famous and the standard by which others must be judged. The shift action was positive enough but in many ways substandard to the newest offerings from Porsche and even Audi. The interior design doesn’t connect with me , being at once square and slashed (perhaps an attempt and flow from the exterior) while using textures that are subpar even for an Acura product. The seats are comfortable and it is easy to get in a correct and composed driving position. “So the motor, what of the motor?”, you may be asking. Well, it easily trumps the competition from Infiniti, Audi (3.2 A5), etc. I would have to say the first most startling revelation I had was that, with a PSS9 or equivalent suspension upgrade and a chip (both of which we will be trying soon) I would FAR prefer this car to the new M3. Power delivery on the factory map is far to linear for you to get excited about the car being a twin turbo, it is almost as if they wanted to disguise that fact. They couldn’t hide it , because why it delivers V8 like torque it returned a fantastic 24.4mpg on my drive. That is exactly what a turbo can do for you.

Taking the car on one of my favorite back roads proved what so many swear to , and that is that BMW is the ultimate driving machine. I wouldn’t echo that sentiment but I would however say that as a regular non M car this car is fantastic. Switching all the nannying gear OFF this car rotates well on the brakes, puts power down great out of even the tightest switchbacks and overall let’s one really “meld” with their car. That isn’t easy for a manufacture to do in a car like this that has to be everything to everybody. Slap an M on the back and buyers know (and half expect) for the ride to be a bit on the germanic and jarring side. Not so with this 335. It provides an almost British like highway ride with a truly responsive shock and spring that responds quickly even to mid bend bumps.

Overall the car really is as impressive as everyone says it is. As we await our 135i coupe that costs (GASP) about $2,600 less than our 335i coupe… it is hard for me to fathom why anyone would buy the 135. It weighs near as dammit the same, it costs near as dammit the same and it looks like someone stuck their 335 long ways in the trash compactor room from Star Wars Episode IV. Other than the smashed more compact dimensions not exactly wowing me our little 135 is going to really have to shine to best the 335, which I am sure we will be able to whip into a state of tuned excellence for not too much dough.

The right car is the wrong car? Yes, sometimes that can be true. In my case even when the car did actually meet, exceed and live up to every expectation I had for it. However, there was a small problem I hadn’t considered despite the fact that I had driven said vehicle on several occasions. Let me start by just saying I thought Car and Driver, Road and Track and the like were all mad. Only The British publications of the day got it right. From 1989 to 1995 the world’s finest automobile had been made and we all missed it. I didn’t, I knew it. I had a feeling that old Colin Chapman had been right, learned something in those turbo charged F1 years and had secretly created the world’s finest car. With the refinement that came in 1987-1988 in chassis improvement and a gorgeous redesign spearheaded on a shoe string the car was, in my mind, the perfect car. With weight kept to circa 2,600 lbs dry and a minimum of 264 hp (around 300 with the factory programmed 4 sec overboost) handling , acceleration … everything was perfect. Yes, you guessed it the Lotus Esprit Turbo. At this point you would be asking, “but wait, Tim, you enthuse so poetic about the 1993 car in the project car section of this very site.” Indeed it shall be clear, read on. Somewhere around the year 2002 the stars lined up and I was blessed with the stewardship of my own 30k miles, pristine and black 1989 Lotus Esprit. There is a lot to love about that particular year, if like me, you long for the purity of a car with no airbags, abs or other weight adding encumbrances. I had driven a few other ’89’s and this one just blew those away, being better maintained, sharper and more importantly , fleeter than I had remembered. Right from the off the car was as good or BETTER than I had imagined. Fabulous sounds, lustfully boosty acceleration, literally telepathic steering. This car was immediately drifted perfectly from apex to apex and hurled toward corners at speeds reserved for cars wearing dedicated track tires. It truly inspired that kind of confidence. However. Those first few drives were undertaken bare foot, because with my size 11’s fitted , I literally couldn’t get enough articulation at the pedals , and worse my knees literally were forced against the steering wheel. Tragedy had struck. I had my dream car, it was everything I wanted , except… I didn’t fit in the blasted thing. I soldiered on for about a year and then had to sell the car to search for a newer Esprit. I will provide a happy aside to this story by saying that with the advent of the S4 interior in 1993 the Esprit gained several inches in every interior space dimension. I now have an Esprit that I fit properly in and yes your hand still falls gracefully inches from the wheel on to the perfectly placed shifter, the steering still tells you what kind of ant you just ran over and with even more power it will still squat and slither where ever you direct it. You see my point though. Had I not been in the business of shifting cars regularly anyhow, my …umm.. tailoring error could have easily been a decade long struggle that lead to either A. having a car I never drove , or B. me being dead because my hands met my knees and had no where to go.

So, say you did buy the right car, you are a happy driver but now you want to take it that step further. It is time to modify. Prepare for phase two. This time to get an example that will allow you to either empathize with me or look down on me as a fool… either way, if you are truthful with yourself, you know this has happened to you. Ahhh yes, the early 90’s. Many great (ok, granted they weren’t that great) cars of the late 80’s and early 90’s had great big turbo’s strapped to them and had all sorts of potential just waiting for tuners to unleash. Now, many of these cars had so many problems, and at the time I had far too little money to actually undertake any kind of “project” but why would that stop me. I needed a blow off valve and I needed it bad. After all my Audi 200 Avant was now making around 21 psi and was wicked fast in the quarter (trapping a then stellar 14.1 … what is that sound? are you laughing?!?! May I remind you that this car weighed close to 4,000 lbs !) It was indeed blow off time and no one would be safe until I had one. SOOO, with a little research and a company that swore they ran this on their own car, I bought a new silicone hose and BOV set. It arrived looking very much like I had made it my self, but why should that concern me , this thing is sweet on their car , right? Fast forward an hour or so…. I was off. 1st gear braaap, psssssshhhhh, 2nd gear braaaaaaaaaap, ffffappppppsssshhhh, third gear… braaaap (stop sign) fffpssssshhhhhh, cough , cough stall. WHAT? Start it back up and my poor 200 was straining to idle at 3 or 400 rpms. Surely This was a mistake. NOPE. After some tinkering and finding a spring manufacture that would give me a higher rate spring , I finally got the car to idle, but the truth is , the car ran like CRAP with that vent to atmosphere valve. The mixture was all wrong back on throttle, it would still dip and dive trying to run right, it was all wrong. How wrong ? About S370 bucks wrong. At the time I think that is what I made in a week and a halfs work…. PAINFUL. Was the company at fault? Partly, they should have been straight about the issues the part had (which they stopped offering about a year later). Was it my fault? Well, certainly I shared some of the blame but even after research and talking to others I still wasn’t clear that anyone felt similarly about the part. Further, at the time it was one of those things that not many had tried. I had actually modified my car and made it perform….FAR WORSE.

That is why we created P3… not just a resource for educated knowledge and opinion, not just an e-zine or simple parts portal. We want to help you buy, build and enjoy the perfect car. Here at P3 we have DECADES of experience in parts creation, track time, sales… literally every aspect of the automotive industry. If we try a part and don’t like it. We will tell you why and then find one that works right! Every PART we create or sell will be graded and given a full test. Not a few miles . Mixed loops , hundreds of miles. You can be sure that we share your passion and love all the same cars you do. If you have wondered what a certain car would be like… be sure we have too. With our project cars absolute MAX performance will never be our goal. Creating a better DRIVERS tool will be. If a certain spring rate makes a cars turn in response sharper. We will choose it . If a certain spring rate eliminates roll, but breaks the rear view mirror free from the car …it will be vetoed. If we can’t find the right part for an application… we will make it. PASSION drives us. To that end , you can’t make a car better if you don’t really know what it is like from the start. We will PROFILE all of our chosen cars to the point which, the information and detail we give you… you won’t find it anywhere else. Real world driving, real world explanations… and in a world where we aren’t all multi millionaires, VALUE will play a huge part. Any one with money can by a Ferrari 430 Scuderia, anyone can enjoy that car. Getting that Joy or Passion quotient as we will refer to it… we will aim to extract that from even the most humble Miata. In a world where facts and figures are easy to look at we aim to perfect YOUR car in YOUR favorite corner in YOUR real life. The images, video and content we provide will fuel that fire even when you cannot yet own your dream. Welcome to P3, welcome to our Drivers Revolution.