22 December

The bizarre thing is that ‘sports’ cars are built to drive on public roads. The people who buy them will drive in anti-social ways, why spend the money otherwise? We need to reframe what ‘good driving’ means, away from car racing as a frame. Good driving is efficient, safe, smooth driving. Good for passengers as well as drivers, and safer for other drivers. That’s a very skilful art, needing constant assessment of other road users. Fast driving is just like quickies for sex. Not better driving, less skilful and more mono-dimensional driving. Those who want to do car racing driving can hire private race tracks and go and do it there. That tiny group has defined what good driving is for far too long. Also the group who worship fetishes like ‘driving a stick’. Gears are old technology, get rid of them for most driving. Only needed because combustion engines are so gutless.