Leno: The Gulf Between Feeling Fast and Being Fast
This story first appeared in the November/December 2024 issue of Hagerty Drivers Club magazine. Join the club to receive our award-winning magazine and enjoy insider access to automotive events, discounts, roadside assistance, and more.
Aaron Robinson’s recent story about the Miura reminded me that years ago, I was the opening act for the great jazz musician Miles Davis, who had a lime-green Lamborghini Miura. Herbie Hancock was also in the band, and he bought a Cobra. In fact, Herbie still has it—he’s got to be the longest original owner of a Cobra of anyone in the world. It’s just a 260 with a two-barrel, but Herbie would race it against Miles as sort of a joke and routinely beat him, and Miles would get furious that he got blown off by the Cobra.
Not that a Miura wasn’t fast in its day or thrilling to drive. I got my first one almost 40 years ago, and I promise you, they are a hoot. The engine’s carburetors are basically your headrest. But nowadays, when we have Toyota Corollas with 300 horsepower and Corvettes and Challengers with over a thousand, a Miura actually isn’t all that fast. Which is fine for someone like me, who is not a race car driver and who believes that it is much better to feel fast than to go fast.
Maybe the ultimate car for feeling fast is a Morgan 3 Wheeler. A few years ago, I was absolutely flying down a mountain road in the Morgan when I rounded a corner and saw a cop. Figuring he had me dead, I pulled over at the next corner, but he never came after me. So I went back and asked him why, and he said, “You weren’t speeding. I had you at 37.” Thirty-seven! I thought I was doing 80!
Not that I don’t enjoy driving swiftly, but I don’t enjoy driving irresponsibly. I’m the type of person who worries I’ll hit the proverbial school bus full of nuns. There are a lot of fast cars around the garage, but whenever I’ve been tempted to nail it, I think of that Swedish video-game guy who broke a Ferrari Enzo in two in Malibu back in 2006 by hitting a telephone pole at 160. I don’t want to be that guy. You don’t want to be that guy. Or the guy who spins out his Mustang into oncoming traffic coming out of a car show.
Or the kid from a couple years back who was doing over 100 in a BMW and killed four students who were crossing Pacific Coast Highway not too far from here. Now he’s probably going to prison, maybe for the rest of his life, and four young people are gone. It’s horrible. That’s why I don’t drive fast on public roads. It’s also why I don’t get this obsession with open-road top-speed records. Back in 2020, a car went 331 mph on a road in Nevada. OK, you have a car that can go 300-plus—but eventually you’re just going to kill somebody or go to prison. Or kill yourself because you cheaped out and bought tires that aren’t rated for that speed.
People don’t realize how important tires are. In 2005, I was part of a crew that took a Porsche Carrera GT down to Talladega. I was running at 190, and as the tires began to wear, you could feel the car moving around a bit. After a few laps, I was coming down the straight at about 190 and a guy waved me to bring it in. I just took my foot off the gas and—ZIP!—the rear end spun around. Luckily I didn’t hit anything, but when I came in, somebody offered me a roll of toilet paper in case I needed to clean myself up.
Fourteen years later, I was in Detroit to drive the 2019 Corvette ZR-1 at 200 mph with the chief engineer, Tadge Juechter. Before we went out, I asked him to tell me about his first time going over 200. He said, “This is it—I’ve never even been close.” I stammered, “So lemme get this straight, your first time going 200 is with a retired talk-show host and comedian on a track the comedian has never seen, who is almost 70?” He said, “Yep,” and we went out and ran laps at the GM proving ground, with 212 being the highest we got. The amazing thing is that we were having a relaxed conversation because the tires and the aerodynamics had come so far since the Carrera GT that 200 felt like nothing.
But it’s not nothing, and I occasionally remind myself that a wreck at even half that speed leaves behind only very small pieces. That is, if I don’t get a massive ticket. I’ve met a lot of cops over the years, some on the side of the road. Many of them are car guys, and I think if they bust you at 20-over out in the middle of nowhere, they’ll go easier than if they catch you at 10-over weaving through traffic. But I haven’t been pulled over in years, partly because I love driving cars that feel much faster than they really are.
I have two perfect examples. My C5 can go stupid fast and feel slow.
My Fiero csn feel like I’m knocking down ha high speed and I find I’m 4 mph over the limit.
In years fast everything felt fast. At higher speeds it was unstable. Today a well tuned car can make fastvfeel very slow. To the point if you are never on a track it can get boring.
I think that is why I like my Fiero. You have to work even at legal limits to drive it. The same can be said about MG and many older sports cars. An XK120 was much better than a 49 Ford but you still needed to work to drive with spirit.
It’s performance you can enjoy and not go to. Jail for it.
Jay is right!
I can relate. My 2008 Z06 feels like it’s idling at 90 MPH (2,000 RPM), but my Fiero, sitting so low to the ground, feels like it’s going 90 MPH at 60 (3800SC with the stock Getrag 5 spd). My 1931 Model A Ford (not modified) feels slow at any speed, but noisy enough to be going 100 MPH.
I was fortunate to have a father that was a legendary mechanic. He owned auto shops, a Sinclair station, and an engine and transmission shop. I built several hundred motors before I was 18. Then, in the Air Force, I built jet engines in fighter jets. I bought my brothers’80 Z/28 in ‘86. Built a CRAZY small block for it. Dynoed 545hp. Ran 3.08 gear, behind a super T-10. I would TERRORIZE exotics on the highway. Yes, admittedly I had a sickness. Police tagged me at 3a.m. @ 217 mph @8,700 rpm in top gear. That motor reside in a ‘56 show car now. I’ve driven a ‘95 Ford Escort wagon for 340k miles, and my Duramax I’ve had for 18 years has 270k. Just bought a ‘14 SS WITH 9k on ticker. No, I don’t drive it fast. It’s alot of fun, though!!
hyperv6 – Not the first time Jay Leno has talked about “More fun to try to drive a slow car fast, then to have to drive a fast car slow to stay out of trouble” and I totally agree with him. I learned that lesson with a well maintained used 1990 Corvette I bought. The car was so competent compared to “old cars” it did not get interesting, or engaging, until over 100MPH. For practical driving it was a SNOOZE! I sold it and bought a 1966 Chevrolet Corvair that is a lot more fun to drive at practical (legal) speeds. When I want quiet, convenient, and competent at 70MPH I drive my modern SUV!
I’m glad readers mentioned the Fiero because it may be the perfect example of driving a slow car fast and enjoying every minute. My frustration comes from so many new cars…and SUVs and trucks, being capable of taking off so fast. My daily driver is a 2013 Jeep Wrangler with a six speed manual. It is not fast, and almost every driver nearly rear-ends my Jeep as I take off from a stop light, momentarily pausing acceleration as I shift to the next higher gear. That’s a bit off topic of driving slow cars fast, but speaks to Jay’s point of too many people driving without thinking about their driving.
There’s a Peter Egan article about speed vs velocity (I think those were the two terms) and how they’re different, one being a sensation and the other reality. It explained perfectly why I like trying to get my MGA to do autocross, etc
This is why I bought a Miata 30 years ago and still have it. It is not a fast or powerful car, it has Camry acceleration (new Camry’s are faster), but you are connected and everything is simple and direct. (I did once get a ticket for “display of excessive acceleration” but I was sort of proud of that).
Anyone can drive a well sorted car. But only a skilled driver can harness a lesser car.
Your best drivers in history Like Earnhardt and even Senna could win in poor cars.
Two of my funnest cars (1 Series and Allante) are in the 200 hp neighborhood. My vette has a bit more than that, but I drive it with the notion that I don’t want the rear wheels passing the front ones. We had a pretty lengthy discussion a while back on what the right amount of horsepower was, and the conclusion was somewhere between 200 and 400. Frankly anything more than that is a bit of a waste, and you can tell by how people use that horsepower… to do burnouts.
300-400 is the sweet spot for a street car and track car. Most anything more is just marketing to sell with a bigger number.
Few will ever top speed and if they use all 1064 HP on the track they will crash.
A 22 can kill you just as much as a 44 Magnum. But Dirty Harry did not carry a 44 cal.
You mean he didn’t carry a 22… Harry was famous for the 44 Magnum
Exactly right, .44 Magnum.
I’m still trying to get a ticket in our ’47 CJ2A Willy’s. I’m constantly taunting the cops around here and they ignore me. It will squeal both rear tires from a dead stop on dry pavement since it has a locker and 5.38 gears. They don’t care. They sometimes give me that admiring smile and laugh. You can do whatever you want in a Willy’s. Drive down the sidewalk, nobody cares. She’s the bell of the ball wherever she goes.
Totally agree. I also have a ‘47 CJ2A.
All of 60hp, crappy 9” drum brakes, & 50 mph feels really fast.
Sounds like Jay hit his head again.
I own a GR86 and many times I feel soooooo fast. Then a Heavy Duty pick up truck just overtakes me.
I’m certain my car is really much more fun, so I just relax.
I was driving my 2005 M3 in the summer on a lone stretch of open road at 120 MPH when an F350 came up on my ass and made me pull out of the way.
“More fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.” That is that magic of a first gen Miata (or RX7 or Formula Vee)
Came here to say that
I get this, to the point made about how the Morgan feels fast going slow. Of my boring daily cars through the years, I had a 2011 Scion xB. It was not truly fast, it was small and only had 158 horses, but at only a hair over 3k lbs, and with that 5 speed manual, short wheelbase, and the low stance, it felt amazing driving “fast” around the city. It was able to stick to the road well and didn’t have much in the way of body roll in corners. It was a blast in roundabouts as it could take a 35mph one at 50 and not even feel like it was struggling for grip.
I have an ’06 xB and it’s still rolling just fine w/328K on the odometer. Hoping to get it to 400K. It’s way fun to drive on serpentine/curvy roads (SR 14 between Stephenson and Vancouver, WA), particularly w/the summer low pro tires on it. I wanted a Corolla wagon for my commuter car but Toyota had stopped making them to cram their dammed SUVs and mini vans down our throats.
I’ve got a 69 Camaro that’s a Yenco wanna be. It’s got a mildly built 454 with 4:10 gears. I put a Tremec TKX with a .68 overdrive. It roars down the road at any speed and is pretty darn quick compared to stock cars of its era. It may not be near as fast as some of the modern stuff or the Restomods that are out there, but its a whole lot of fun.
I always remember “It’s is more fun to drive a slow car fast, than a fast car slow.” I’ve terrified several people driving them in my Ford powered MG TD replica on the highway. 65 mph feels like 90 and ever other vehicle on the road looms very large. My coupe is a 1987 Porsche 944S these days, and those 190HP seem to be just the right amount of fun. But I would still love to take a drive in a certain 1000HP, rear wheel drive Toronado I saw on a tv show a few years ago back…
I tend to drive my old 911 a little bit over the speed limits but never at crazy and dangerous speeds because then the fun goes away.
Been velocitized a little in the past, mainly in various old mustangs – sorry, didn’t have much better to compare to – but recently have mainly given it up with age – due to poor vision, driving less with emotions and reactions, increasing liability, + probly just from getting older if not any wiser. So, with all due respect and concern for him, based on news reports, it might be a good time for Jay Leno to slow down a little bit, too. Keep on driving, but you gotta know when to stop.
The car I love driving the most is my Fiat Abarth! Feels (and sounds) like you are flying! My Porsche is faster, but much more serene…
I rented an Abarth in south Texas once. It felt super squirrely to me, jumping a foot right or left on the bumpy two lane roads. And don’t get me started on torque steer! That turbo 1.4 was worse than a Plymouth Champ a buddy used to own.