There are two types of people, people who drive and people who are driven. Whether you drive or are driven rather depends on the car you own. Probably one of the greatest examples of a "driver's car" is the McLaren F1. It had its birth in 1994 with one purpose in mind, to be the undisputed speed king. At the time of its development the Jaguar XJ220 was the fastest production car in the world topping out at 214 mph. The McLaren would eventually knock the Jaguar off its perch with a top speed of 241 mph with the limiter removed. Gordan Murray designed the car to be as purposeful as possible. The driver sits dead in the middle of the car, the transmission is a manual which feels like the bolt on a Lee Enfield sniper rifle and it is as noisy as a road car can get. Obviously he needed quite an engine to accomplish this sort of speed so he went to one of the best in the business, the BMW "M" division. He gave them a set of specifications that they needed to meet and of course they met them all, and then some. The engine was a 6.1 liter V12 producing 627 hp and 480 ft lb of torque. Essentially it was two 3.0 liter M3 engines bolted together. That version of the M3 engine is one of the best sounding in the world, so you can imagine two of them together. The car used all the lightest materials and everything was there for a reason. Infamously the engine bay is lined in 24k gold, not to be flashy, but because gold is the best reflector of heat and it helped keep running temperatures down. Every number about this car was impressive, its power to weight ratio was 550hp/ton. To put that in perspective thats better than not just a Ferrari Enzo, but a Bugatti Veyron as well. When we look at the Bugatti Veyron, one number stands out, 987 hp. Having almost 300 hp more than the Mclaren F1, you'd expect it to be significantly faster, but with a top speed of 253 mph its only twelve more than a car that is about fifteen years older. Other than the power, the big difference between these two cars is how much more the Bugatti has. It has an automatic gearbox, a CD player, air conditioning and many other luxuries that the McLaren doesn't have. But of course all these extras add weight and spoil the performance. I sometimes wonder what the car could really do if it didn't have all those unnecessary options. This is where the analog vs digital debate comes in. The McLaren is for one who drives while the Bugatti is something where you just put two hands on the wheel and hang on. If given the choice I'd take the McLaren. It may not be as fast as the Bugatti but in certain ways it makes you feel more special, you become one with the machine every time you swap cogs with the manual gearbox. The noise of that beautiful BMW "M" powered engine engulfs you. The McLaren also looks better, it has a timeless look to it. If it were parked on a street with modern super cars you wouldn't be able to tell that it was built in the early 90's while the Bugatti's style may grow old. No doubt either car will set your pants on fire and excite you in every way, but its the way that it excites you or takes you to the limit. That is the crucial difference between something that is analog and something that is digital. Something that drives you, or something that begs to be driven. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXqSedWSu2k
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