356 vs. XKE vs. Honda Odyssey

[redducati750]

"Grassroots Motorsports". It was a "new tech vs. old tech" Autocross test of a Honda Odyssey vs. Porsche 356 vs. Jaguar XKE? The (near) winner.... Honda Odyssey

The Odyssey was .1 slower than the 356 on a roughly 60 second course (they called it a tie in the article). I think both the 356 and Odyssey was a few seconds faster than the XKE. They then did a plus one tire/wheel upgrade on the Odyssey (non-R rubber) and it dropped three seconds.

now i didnt read this article, it was sent to me by a friend, i venture to guess this 356 was an early lower horsepower car as opposed to a carrera 2.

What does this prove.
1.Minivans have come along way, they can now compete with antique sports cars.
2. Porsches have come a long way
3. There are editors there who have either to much free time and/or are runnung out of head to head car competitions
4. Jaguars are expensive paperweights

[VincentVega]

Great article. The 356 in the article was a little warmed over, not a deat up slow poke, not a full race care either. While not really practical, the guys at GRM again proved to me again my subscription is money well spent.

[Jack Olsen]

Hey, Jaguars have come a long way, too.

[Vipergrün]

I have blown away more than one ricer in my 240HP Silver Odyssey. Wonder what a cold air intake, custom exhaust, and some light-weight pullys would do for it

Actually, it is a nice and very practical vehicle....., if you need practicality..

[ccandgc]

Hey...dont forget the Jackson Racing Supercharger!!
I love my Oddy too!

[bell]

Originally posted by JackOlsen
Hey, Jaguars have come a long way, too.

yea but unfortunately they look alot like the new fords......hmmmmmm............ i wonder why that is

redducati750.........i would say #5.........porsche was WAY ahead of thier time

i'm sure if they matched the 356 to a same year "minivan" like a vw-bus it'd be on top, as would a new 996 compared to the honda......

[slater]

are we seriously comparing a honda minivan to a porsche 356? sure it may keep up with it, but come on... which would YOU rather drive?

[Chuck Moreland]

50 year old Porsches - the yardstick by which modern cars are measured

[ccandgc]

apparently seriously enough for GRM to line those 3 up....they must be desparate for articles...I would much rather drive the 356, but it cant handle 2 carseats, a stroller, and mom too.

[jluetjen]

Hey;
Driving my 911 is shere bliss. But I can't always manage to be by myself or with only one of my girls (wife, 5yr old or 2yr old) all the time. For those other times the Odyssey is an awfully good vehicle. It's certainly got ample power for most jobs -- including pulling on to the highway, gets 20 mpg, seats 2 + a full weekends worth of racing and camping supplies, or 4 and most of what you want or 7 and a pretty good pile of stuff.

Unless you've driven one, you'd never believe the turning circle on the thing, the handling balance on entrance ramps is really pretty good (for a FWD) and the ride of our 2000 Odyssey is as nice as any Detroit 4-door (think Crown Vic). And Honda really does know how to make a slick engine; how many other 3.5 liter engines put out a solid 225 HP? That's almost 65 hp/liter which is better then most SCWDP engines can muster! It also generates 229 lb/ft of torque (65 lb-ft/liter) which once again compares quite favorably with the 228 lb/ft of 3.6 liter Carrera.

While it's no 911, it's certainly no slouch!

[jyl]

Let's face it, cars have gotten far, far better over the years. A modestly sporty Japanese sedan -- say one of the "hotter" Accords or Camrys -- if transported back to 1950 or even 1960, would be a performance terror. Hardly anything would have come close in handling or braking, and only the most powerful cars of the time would have out-acclerated it.

So, the Odyssey is basically a Honda Accord chassis with 240HP and a body that may be big, but also benefits from modern aerodynamics.

And time marches on, toward our 911s as well. My 1989 3.2L, a very expensive high-end sports car for its time, would be hard-pressed to hold its own against a 2003 Subaru WRX, a moderately-priced four-door sedan.

So what? I know how driving an Odyssey would make me feel and how driving a '64 E-type would make me feel.

[1974carrera]

What is a Honda Odyssey?

[Rot 911]

Originally posted by 1974carrera
What is a Honda Odyssey?

Only the must have mini van for terrorizing both autobahn and track!

[rs911t]

If I recall, the Odyssey sits on an Accord chassis and suspension. That 'splains why is drives like a car.

We have 3 kids, requiring a zone, rather than man-on-man, defense. So, the Odyssey wasn't quite big enough. Now that they're older, and can sit side-by-side without killing one another, we drive a 740i. Never under estimate the big Bimmers. I've carried a xmas tree, freezer and 8' lumber in it.

[sammyg2]

There's two brothers in San Diego who rip up the autocross track in a 356 cab. Sure it's warmed over a bit but these guys are fast in AI class. I tried to compete with them in my turbocharged 914 and they smoked me. They're almost always in the top 10 TTOD at Qualcomm stadium. I'd like to see them up against an Odessey.

BTW I just bought the wife a new fully loaded Honda Pilot, same 240 hp engine but has 4wd system and 6 speed automatic trans. from the Acura MDX. It's too heavy but it handles pretty darned good and goes well in a straight line.

[atlporsche]

honda odyssey?

it's that dune buggy like thing from the 80's...

sjd

[atlporsche]

BTW...the only thing I found unfair was the fact that they ran period size tires...

you bump either car up to oddy size tires, and the oddy would get spanked...

I liked the part of the article best that talked about how the oddy would get you to your destination, and you'd remember the destination...either of the other two cars, you'd remember the trip getting there.

sjd

[Chuck Moreland]

Originally posted by jyl
Let's face it, cars have gotten far, far better over the years. ......
And time marches on, toward our 911s as well. My 1989 3.2L, a very expensive high-end sports car for its time, would be hard-pressed to hold its own against a 2003 Subaru WRX, a moderately-priced four-door sedan.

Porsches are always the car by which others are measured. If you can beat a Porsche, or even compete, that says something.

Never mind that the Porsche you can beat with your 2003 technology is 20 years old.....or 50 years old!

It is incredibly flattering, really.

[JWest]

They had to find the very lowest of the Porsche heap (technology wise) to compare the minivan to - and then it was a real contest. Kind-of a "their best can almost equal our worst"! Great article as it has made us all discuss it and the magazine!

To defend the "paperweight" E-type, neither of those cars could approach 150 MPH in stock form, and not many do today. The E-type was good for a real 140+ (the advertised 150 is questionable for production models) for hours long jaunts and that was in 1961. Maybe not the best autocrosser but you could floor it in fourth at 10MPH and run it out to its top speed without complaint. Well, maybe paperweight is going a little too far...

[David Bahr]

I'm a big fan of Grassroots Motorsports. They rock.

The Oddysey is the editor's tow vehicle for his race car. The article was really just a way to demonstrate the amazing degree of progress in vehicle design. No one at the magazine would think for an instant that the van is a potential substitute either car.

All three vehicles were initially tested on period-correct tires. However, nearly no one drives old cars on period tires. The second part of the test should have put each vehicle on the same brand and model of modern tire, sized for that vehicle's stock wheels, and then see how they compare.

The Jag was a 4.2 liter. The 356 was a 1965 356C; the only major modification was the stock carbs and manifolds were replaced with something easier to find; owner estimated it makes 100 HP. And the 356 beat the Jag by about 3 seconds! Less is more! Porsche the giant-killer lives! Someone please send a memo to Wendelin!