Car manufacturers spend millions of dollars designing, testing, and building what they hope will be the perfect sports car, only for owners to come along and find some area that isn’t quite right.
For one moment, we’ll ignore the minor niggles of cup holders, armrests, and other non-essential items that don’t quite work as we would like them to. Of far more importance are the items that are crucial to the operation of a car, can the owner use the car in all weather without overheating, or can the owner actually get into the car in the first place? These are previously reported issues among sports cars.
Good or bad, there is always room for improvement, some cars are great from the moment they roll off the production line, others may need some work.
10 Great From The Factory – Lotus 340R
The basic simplicity is what makes the 340R so unique, based on the Lotus Elise, it wears minimal bodywork, which resulted in a pure track-focused sports car. Lotus also removed all the hi-tech equipment, which is usually an area for concern with Lotus ownership, leaving just the sports car essentials.
Under the rear hood is a simple K-series Rover engine, a normally aspirated 1.8-liter 4-cylinder unit that in the super-light 340R produces 178hp capable of launching its occupant to 60mph in 5 seconds.
9 Needed Some Work – Triumph Stag
Built by British Leyland, the Triumph Stag was the UK carmaker’s answer to Mercedes SL. Designed by Giovanni Michelotti, it had all markings of a luxury grand tourer. Arriving one year late due to late development changes, among which was the larger 3-liter V8 engine that would be the main area for concern for Stag owners.
The Stag was finally released in 1970 with positive reviews, however, these would soon decline with many owners reporting the car suffered from overheating issues. Late specification changes left Triumph’s sports car with a poorly designed cooling system, under apparently normal conditions a lack of coolant being responsible for the majority of breakdowns.
8 Great From The Factory – Corvette Z06
The fifth-generation Corvette introduced some radical changes for the iconic sports car. Chassis and transmission revisions improved both the balance and handling. Introduced in 2001, the Z06 was equipped with a tuned LS1 V8 motor that produced less power than the older ZR-1, but 385hp and lower curb weight helped deliver greater performance.
Chevrolet engineers didn’t stop at the Z06’s engine, improved suspension, standard 6-speed manual transmission, and larger wheels completed the performance models.
7 Needed Some Work – Vector W8
In an attempt to break into the world of supercars, Vector Aeromotive has produced one of the most advanced supercars of all time, built largely of exotic carbon-fiber and kevlar, mimicking aerospace design. The same advanced construction would be Vector’s weakness, the W8 was hugely complex to build and lacked the development needed to meet its performance expectations.
The bold claims of a top speed of 242mph remain largely untested, most test cars suffering mechanical failure before road-testers had the chance to unleash the 625hp twin-turbo V8 engine.
6 Great From The Factory – Dodge Viper
At a time when every new sports car was brimming with excessive technology, the Viper made a refreshing change, Dodge had reverted to a simple front-engine design with rear-wheel-drive. Viper stands out from its rivals with a long low hood concealing an extremely powerful 8-liter V10 engine, even basic cars had 400hp on tap.
Extending the basis of a simple sports car even further, the Viper’s cockpit offered little protection against the elements, the roof, and side glass replaced by lighter canvas or vinyl materials.
5 Needed Some Work – TVR Griffth 500
The Griffith marked a turning point for TVR, the first of a new range of retro-modern sports cars, moving away from the previous plastic wedges the company was known for. Under Peter Wheeler’s ownership, TVR flourished as a brand, building as much of the car as possible in-house. Everything but the Rover V8 engine was unique to the Griffith.
The Griffith 500, the best of the range, was fitted with a 5-liter V8 engine and a sport exhaust which made it sound like nothing else. With 340hp available, the TVR could crack 60mph in 4.1 seconds. However, the Griffith was far from perfect, the internally designed components suffered from poor quality control, electric items, in particular, are subject to gremlins.
4 Great From The Factory – Nissan 300ZX
The importance of Nissan’s Z car line-up shouldn’t be underestimated the arrival of the second generation 300ZX in 1986 showed the world just how good sports cars should be. European carmakers at the time offered similar performance at a much higher price, the 300ZX benefited from superior build quality and higher levels of standard equipment.
A large part of the 300ZX success story is due to Nissan’s 3-liter V6 engine, turbo models with optional manual transmission were easily a match for Porsche and Ferrari.
3 Needed Some Work – DeLorean DMC-12
The promise of the DeLorean DMC-12 failed to materialize. The car itself had all the ingredients of a sports car, but under the futuristic stainless steel body lies the root of the issues. The final production cars used a more conventional steel chassis adding to the overall weight of the DMC-12, the previously planned ERM process proving unsuitable for production completely changed the design.
While often cited as one of the worst cars in history, that does not tell the whole story. The design of DeLorean was way ahead of its time, unfortunately, the car lacked the extensive development it needed to keep its promises.
2 Great From The Factory – Porsche Boxster
The best thing about owning a Porsche is the knowledge that owners can use it every day without the nagging worry of reliability. Introduced in 1996, the Boxster was the entry-level Porsche, a car that retained the high standard of Porsche’s build quality rapidly becoming the company’s best-selling model.
Far from being the fastest model in the Porsche range, the Boxster offered owners the best driving experience without having problems with stupid amounts of power. However, the Boxster was no slouch, in ideal conditions, the 2.7-liter cars could exceed 155 mph.
1 Needed Some Work – Alfa Romeo GTV
Deeply flawed, and yet highly desirable, the GTV is one of the most underrated sports cars from the 1990s. Under the leadership of Fiat and styled by Pininfarina, the GTV equipped with the 3.2-liter V6 engine is a genuine Italian sports car, proudly claiming the sports car of the year award in 1995.
The GTV will never be the perfect sports car, suffering from a myriad of trim rattles which later models tried, but failed, to repair are minor details. However, the GTV, like all Alfa Romeo sports cars, seems to be aimed at owners with smaller feet, the extremely cramped pedal box should have been fixed before the launch.
About The Author
