Define a sports car, clear this up.

[road warrior]

Is it hard to get in and out of?
Is the ride appalling on anything other than a race track?
Does it have the fuel economy that would make a Sheikh think twice?
Will it turn on a six pence, even at 70MPH?
Will it leave your eyeballs pressing on the back of your skull when you press the loud pedal?
Do the neighbour's curtains twitch when you fire it up early on a Sunday morning?
Can you picture yourself setting a blistering time on the Goodwood hill climb while wearing your tweed cap and leather racing jacket and getting the nodding approval of the "chaps" for your efforts?

If the answer to all of the above is YES, it's a sports car

And do you get excited just looking at it.....and have an overwhelming desire to put the roof down even though you know you will freeze your knackers off?
Hmm coupes are for pussies.....

 

[Marlon]

marlon 's description of a sports car speaks volumes bloody nice shot of a sport car

Cheers fella

 

[road warrior]

I think convertible or fixed roof matters not. I think important things are 2 seats maximum, 2 doors maximum, predominantly rwd, under 1500kgs. any 2+2 is a sports GT at best. any 4 door is a sports saloon at best. a 2 seat, 2 door car over 1500 kgs is a GT.

I like that definition - after all whether you had a DHC or FHC E-Type it was still a sports car! But the weight limit might mean F-Types are GTs! :lol:

And maybe 911s are "sports GTs" - surely there is nothing wrong with that?

And ///M3s etc are sports taxis. Sorry I meant sports saloons of course.

A sports car is what you drive when you're a bit of a cad...
terry-thomas-car.jpg

I say chaps...

 

[buzyg]

I like that definition - after all whether you had a DHC or FHC E-Type it was still a sports car! But the weight limit might mean F-Types are GTs! :lol:

And maybe 911s are "sports GTs" - surely there is nothing wrong with that?

And ///M3s etc are sports taxis. Sorry I meant sports saloons of course.

A sports car is what you drive when you're a bit of a cad...
terry-thomas-car.jpg

I say chaps...

More tea caddy in this house.

 

[MACK]

Instinctively I want to say rear wheel drive, 2 seats, a big chunk of power and a vert.

1) Needs to be a Vert. But that said you've never going to convince me an E86, a Cayman or a 911 etc isn't a sports car, so there goes the vert aspect.
2) Rear wheel drive, well what about all those 4 drive 911s running around, you can't say the two wheel drives are a sports car and the four wheel drives aren't. Lets not even get onto front wheel drive Audi TT's etc! Ok lets go there for a minute for me a front wheel drive Audi TT is much more of a sports car than say a rear wheel drive Merc SLK/SLC or whatever they're calling it this week!
3) A big chunk of power, yes but er no! All those MX5's running around with as little as circa 115bhp. Again your not going to convince me they aren't sports cars. But that said and even referencing the above; re which wheels are driven, you probably ain't going to convince me a Ford Street Ka (remember them! ) is! Maybe 0-60 rather than outright power/power to weight is a better measure.
4) 2 seater, again what about all those Audi TT's and 911.

Your kinda left with just "Small, reasonably light, nimble and fast." But then the likes of Fiesta/Clio's come into play and they ain't sports cars either.

In the end your head just hurts thinking about it!

Anyway is this a sports car, its a vert after all!

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/driver-caught-masquerading-renault-megane-15744145

 

[Kern47]

To me its purely about the looks/physical differences...

A van is clearly a van
A hatchback clearly looks like a hatchback
An estate is a long hatchback
A saloon has a separate boot
A sports car looks small, low, and has 2 seats (while a soft top clearly makes it a sports car, coupes can make it if they 'look like a sports car')
A supercar is a sports car on steroids

And on 911's etc... I tend to class those as supercars going on their performance, with the 'lesser' Porsche's still maintaining their sports car status

 

[Hilly30si]

Always thought of this as a sportscar

 

[wspohn]

Can't buy the idea that only an open car can be a sports car. An E type coupe doesn't lose the status of a sports car because the roof is fixed.

Over a certain size or with rear seats that are more than nominal where all you can fit is a brief case and a closed car can become a GT car. All of my cars are sports car with the exception of the Jensen Interceptor, which I'd call a GT car.

 

[road warrior]

Nope, if it's got a fixed roof, it ain't a sports car, and that's including the e type. No no no no!