Favorite Q-ships?

[UnderTheWeepingMoon]

Whoa... how many gallons does it do to the mile?

Haha. He used to drive it all the way from Cleveland to uni and back every day (about an 80km round trip) and had to fill it up every day on the way home. It didn't help that he has a lead foot.

 

[griffo]

No Mazda Miata, Porsche Boxster, BMW Z4, Honda S2000, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, Toyota MR2?

They are all sports cars, and the old MX5 (miata) was P!ss Poor.

This thread is definitely very american, lol, Evo's and impreza's subtle? I think not.

What about this?

Doesn't look that dissimilar to a standard carlton and lot of younger people dont know what they are


FACTFI LE

ENGINE: In-line six, 36 5cc,twin turbos
POWER: 377bhp - 5200rpm, 41 9lb ft @4200rpm
TRANSMISSION: six-speed êbox
SUSPENSION
Front: independent by MacPherson struts incorporating twin-tube dampers, anti-roll bar
Rear: independent, multi-link with self-levelling,coil springs,twin-tube dampers
BRAKES: ventilated discs all round
LENGTH: 87.7in
WIDTH: 76in
HEIGHT: 56.5in
WEIGHT: 3641 lb
TOP SPEED: 175mph
0-60mph: 5.1 secs

Source: http://www.lotusespritworld.com/

 

[Monocrom]

They are all sports cars, and the old MX5 (miata) was P!ss Poor.

Main issues were being able to fit inside one of those things, and a horrible lack of power. But they are very tossable. Think of it as a Go-Kart with a few extra features, and that's pretty much what you're getting if you buy one.

 

[Onuris]

IMHO the ultimate sleeper is the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG wagon.

Looks like an ordinary wagon...

Until you open the hood...507 horsepower, 465 ft-lbs torque, 0-60 in 4 sec., excellent brakes and handling. And has great cargo capacity.

Only the fender badges hint that it is something special...

My girlfriend's parents have one- an 08, her dad says that the cops barely even pay any attention to them, even when speeding. In fast moving traffic the cops have gone after older v6 Firebirds and Mustangs and ignored the wagon.

I have driven it a few times, and am impressed with its performance, esp considering its size. I have a 98 Porsche Carrera4 which has a few performance mods to it, and to me the E63 feels quicker, but that may be due to the fact that it is an auto, and I'm not shifting gears like in my 911.

 

[StarHalo]

They are all sports cars

They're all rear-wheel drive and compact, per Fallingwater's note. Very tossable.

 

[Patriot]

Fallingwater both of the cars you posted would be considered very sporty looking with an appearance of performance, at least here in the US.


I think the Camry is the best fit yet with a 6 second 0-60 times. That would be known as a true "sleeper" or Q-ship.

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

Q-ship from the factory? Or is tinkering allowed?

I once drove a Toyota Cressida that looked dead bang stock, other than someone putting rather outrageous tires on it. Then you pop the hood and there's a heavily modified twin turbo straight six out of a Supra looking up at you! The owner used to take it to the drag strip and regularly embarrass 800hp muscle cars.

There's at least one 500+ hp turbo-5VZE(that's a 3.4l V6) powered Mk1 Mr2 running around here.

:buddies:

 

[Coop]

If you're talking sleepers, Mitsubishi evo, Subaru wrx, BMW M-models, Audi S-models, Volvo T5 & R models, Seat Cupra, Volkswagen GTI & R32 models and the like sure as hell don't count...

A sleeper is a car that doesn't give anything away until you see it in action... Badges, bodykits, spoilers and all that kind of stuff hints at the not everyday performance, so make it impossible for a car to be a sleeper.

 

[tradderran]

Sunbeam Alpine Tiger. 271HP
260 CI V8 Ford.
Giant Killer

 

[dudemar]

My favorites are the Audi S8 and Infiniti M45.

 

[Radiophile]

Ultimate Q-ship from the 80s and early 90s - the Ford Taurus SHO. That all aluminum V6 was basically a V6 version of the ZR1 Corvette engine and made that car a serious sleeper. If I recall, Road and Track had an article about Q-ships back then, and specifically featured the SHO.

The '85-'87 Buick Regal T-types with the dual turbo 3.8 litre V6 were definitely Q-ships. Not as obvious as the Grand Nationals with the spoilers and badging, but nearly as powerful in stock form and easily upgradable to the same performance levels as the Grand Nationals. And of course there was the GNX which looked like a Grand National, but was blessed by Buick with even more performance. I tried to talk my brother in law into buying one back in the day, but he wouldn't budge and bought a Saab 900s instead.

 

[Monocrom]

The '85-'87 Buick Regal T-types with the dual turbo 3.8 litre V6 were definitely Q-ships. Not as obvious as the Grand Nationals with the spoilers and badging, but nearly as powerful in stock form and easily upgradable to the same performance levels as the Grand Nationals. And of course there was the GNX which looked like a Grand National, but was blessed by Buick with even more performance. I tried to talk my brother in law into buying one back in the day, but he wouldn't budge and bought a Saab 900s instead.

It's amazing what GM could produce, just over 20 years ago.

To think... There was a time when performance addicts considered getting a Buick. Seems so long ago. (I guess it kinda was).

 

[Fallingwater]

No Mazda Miata, Porsche Boxster, BMW Z4, Honda S2000, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, Toyota MR2?

We have all of them but the Genesis, but they aren't the same type. Compact cars are like the VW Golf: small, but the space gets put to good use. The ones you mention are a lot more sporty, and impractical for everyday use. Owning a car is stupidly expensive around here, so most people can't afford to have a fast car for fun and something slow and cheap to run for everyday use; as a consequence, there is a strong desire to have cars that are both fun and relatively cheap to run. So, compact hot hatches with turbodiesel engines - but most are FWD, hence my original complaint.

Fallingwater both of the cars you posted would be considered very sporty looking with an appearance of performance, at least here in the US.

Yeah, the Evo was a mistake. I'm still convinced the Ibiza qualifies as a sleeper though. I don't know what the situation is in the States, but people rarely pay any attention to small cars around here (probably because there are so darn many, and most are pathetically slow), and if they see large rims and spoilers the first thought isn't "whoa, that must be fast" but "heh heh, the owner is a silly ricer". Which is actually true most of the time... there are plenty of riced Puntos that would be put to shame by that Ibiza.
Besides, you could always buy a Ibiza Cupra and put the spoilers and tires from the standard version on it

There is, by the way, a big problem for wannabe owners of sleepers around here: our law does not allow engine swaps. Some people export the car to Germany, swap the engine there and reimport it, but it's a bureaucratic nightmare and very expensive. Most just prefer to spend the same money on a car that is fast from the factory, but those rarely have ordinary looks.

 

[StarHalo]

Ultimate Q-ship from the 80s and early 90s - the Ford Taurus SHO.

I remember the SHO being all the rage in those days, Car and Driver even had a wagon version made just for kicks.

But Ford isn't done with the SHO idea..

It's amazing what GM could produce, just over 20 years ago.

Don't forget that GM still makes Corvettes and Cadillac V-types..

(we're just waiting for that level of quality and performance to trickle down to the other, less expensive badges..)

 

[Monocrom]

Don't forget that GM still makes Corvettes and Cadillac V-types..

True... But they're not exactly Sleepers.

 

[griffo]

6.0 W12 Phaeton

4.9 secs 0-60 Audi S8

0-60 in 4.8 Secs XJR


These have all got to count, sepecially the jag. Their all have mightily impressive 0-60 times considering their weight (by UK standards)

 

[ABTOMAT]

LT1-powered Buick Roadmaster

And I can't help but chuckle every time I see the current Cobalt SS sedan specs.

That was the first thing I was going to mention. In a related note, I'd really like to pick up a clean 1994-96 Caprice 9C1. More rugged than the Buick.

 

[gswitter]

That [Roadmaster] was the first thing I was going to mention. In a related note, I'd really like to pick up a clean 1994-96 Caprice 9C1. More rugged than the Buick.

Yeah, but nothing screams "I'm gonna whup your ***!" like a wagon with faux wood siding.

 

[seaside]

Yeah, but nothing screams "I'm gonna whup your ***!" like a wagon with faux wood siding.

I am not much of a car guy, but this was the car the dealer rent me while my honda was waiting to be fixed.
It was like... I can sleep in it while I am driving it... to compare with my old honda back then.
Is it Buick LeSabor arrounds late 80s to early 90s?

 

[StarHalo]

YUP! I am not much of a car guy, so I am not sure the name of this car. But this is the car I was thinking about. Is it Buick LeSabor arrounds late 80s to early 90s?

That's the Buick Roadmaster, the last of the great "estate" station wagons made here in the US.

Buick's slogan at the time was "The great American road belongs to Buick", and when the Roadmaster came out, the joke was "The great American road belongs to Buick, because there isn't room for anything else.."