definition of high performance

[madness]

What's the definition of a high performance car? I searched, found nothing, so please direct me, but don't flame.

This relates to bimmers in that I am trying to see why edmunds.com seems to recognize the e46 m3 as a high-performance car while the e36 m3 is not. I bet it has to do with engine power. I'm interested because when I called the insurance about cost of a 330Ci, they only asked if it was a high performance and the lady couldn't give me a good definition. She said "does it have turbo, and such..." Makes me think, because if I'm allowed to go by edmunds.com, then an e36 m3 would not be high performance and insurance wouldn't change :devillook

Anyway, I'll be calling the insurance company again to clarify, just wanted to see what you guys knew about that.

[qmainracing]

Edmunds has to go through thousands of cars, and probably does not spend much time debating if a car is "high performance" or not...
Minus the savs'...BMW = High performance luxury cars

[SpecM]

-Very, very subjective.

-High performance? Higher than what? A 325i? Well a v6 Accord has "higher" performance that an four-banger Accord but it is not a "high performance" car. See? Its very unclear. Just tell the lady "no, its just a regular 330i" next time.

-Who cares anyway? If you like the performance of your car, thats all that matters.

[Daved]

You could just make up a hp over weight ratio to define which car is high performance and which is not.

[MD326]

ill go with high performance is any car under 5 seconds from 0-60. just my stab at your question.

[madness]

-Very, very subjective.

-High performance? Higher than what? A 325i? Well a v6 Accord has "higher" performance that an four-banger Accord but it is not a "high performance" car. See? Its very unclear. Just tell the lady "no, its just a regular 330i" next time.

-Who cares anyway? If you like the performance of your car, thats all that matters.


Not a question of what I like... the question is, if I get an e36 m3, will it be considered high-performance by their definition? I'll be calling them shortly to ask for a more precise definition. Maybe they will just say "if the manufacturer considers it high performance it is high performance" in which case all M series will be high performance.

[madness]

ill go with high performance is any car under 5 seconds from 0-60. just my stab at your question.

I like that definition, cause I think an e36 m3 is not high performance under that definition, right?

[Croak]

Then that'd be like saying a Lambo Countach, Ferrari Daytona, and just about ANY 60's muscle cars were not "high performance", because they didn't do sub-5 second 0-60 times.

In 1995 when the M3 hit the U.S. streets, a ~3100 pound 3.0 liter 240 hp car with a .89g skidpad, 115ft 100-0 braking, and a 7k redline out of the box was considered pretty damned high performance.

Keep in mind Edmunds didn't even EXIST in 1995.

Insurance companies rate by accident rate, engine output, amount of doors, replacement/repair costs etc, along with driver age. You'll find that they do indeed rate the E36 M3 as a high performance car, with a high accident rate and high repair costs, though the older models get a little break because the TOTAL cost of replacement is lower as the cars depreciate every year (repairs don't get much cheaper though).

The E36 M3's high accident rate is because it's a fairly powerful RWD in a country that's been dominated by underpowered FWD cars for the last two decades, and it has either no traction control, or a fairly unsophisticated traction control system, depending on model year. It also has a much lower median buyer age than the E46 M3, because of the now huge price difference.

Testosterone and lack of driving experience are not a good combination. ;)

[325rider]

FOR TODAYS STANDARDS^^^^^ I agree that high-performance is sub 0-60 time of 5.1-2ish seconds. This is just a definition for the average person who knows nothin about cars. For enthusiasts, I would say sub 120ft 60-0 distance, 1/4 mile of under 14 seconds, and good handling at a about .90 skidpad or higher. Just my .03cents!