"Chances are it will end up as one of the most sought-after production cars we've ever seen" (Referring to the 959). She couldn't have been more right. 30 years on and those 959s are still the stuff that dreams are made of.
I really wish they tested todays cars this same way. Watching the cars zig zag and stopping tests and all the rest are so much more entertaining to watch...
ummmm. There are a ton of videos , of just about every single older and modern sports car ever made. with performance testing done in this way. with acceleration, braking, figure 8, and slalom testing. Between searching RU-vid and Google it would be very hard for me to believe you couldn't find them if you know what your doing.
Thanks, I realize there are other shows testers do it this way, I was mostly commenting on this particular show. I grew up with this show and at some point they changed their format and it's not as thorough as it used to be.
Todays cars they dont test like this because todays cars are made out of recycled plastics and Japanese high tech LED interior lights memorize the younger drivers thinking they have a good car.
The 959 was my unicorn as a kid in the 80s. I loved that car. The performance was amazing and the car was beautiful. Hats off to Porsche always building some incredible machines.
When I see that black Lamborghini Jalpa, I just wanna drive it fast on the highway while the song "No Easy Way Out" from the Rocky IV soundtrack is playing.
Dude Jalpas are crap, never a performance Lambo, they never went up in value compared to other serious exotics and only people who have no clue about true european exotics likes this car, go buy a Ferrari Mondial while youre at it lol!
Flashback central i remember watching this as a kid every episode and little did i know id be owning this some of the cars from my generation so its making me feel nostalgic how things work out
@@ytsux9259 it would need to be be a gr corolla, which has a completly different powertrain, to beat these cars ( not including the 959 which would smoke even a gr corolla). Also the italians still have a higher top speed.
I got a 1984 Lotus Turbo Esprit, looks exactly like the red one in the video but black interior and with twin carbs... when maintenance is done and done correctly without being cheap, it's an amazing car! Everyone gazes at you, you are the parade!
Keiffer01 You get the same effect in my 1990 MR2 Turbo and maintenance is barely required 30 years later. It’s much quicker than the Lotus too by nearly a second in the 1/4mile
Isn't he the mustang guy in the comparision with trans am and iroc z? With the ford cap. "My mustang will eat that trans am for launch"... Pretty funny guy
I’m an 80’s kid so I bought a ‘perfect’ 1989 Ferrari 328GTS (red/tan). It looks like it just came off of the assembly line with 16,000 original miles. And yes! The 0-60 time is nearly 7 seconds (today’s Honda Civic’s beat that), BUT - it’s the sexiest 7 seconds you’ll ever have in an 80’s legend. The sound is great and it always turns heads. I love it!! And so does my wife!! Dream car!!! “If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up!” - Ferris B. 😂
The 959 was WAY ahead of anything up until prob 2007. Especially the tire pressure monitoring. This was also during the time they were developing and implementing the PDK transmission for the 962 race car. They are still making headway with the 918 and soon with the Taycan
The reason for the monitoring was the awd diffs would grenade if your pressure (tire diameter) was off, and owners can't be arsed to check their tire pressure every drive or suffer drivetrain damage.
In my humble opinion, this is the last (and best) of the "classic" old school Mid-Engine Ferraris. Beautiful, clean lines, relatively simple mechanicals/repairs, good reliability and a gimmick-free, driver-focused interior. BELLISIMA !! :)
It's amazing that at the time, a standard assembly line Corvette would've beaten nearly all of these highly exotic/high-end cars for less than half the price. They ran 0-60 in 5.5 seconds and quarter mile in high 13s. Now-a-days you can pick one up for $5,000 USD
My first gen Viper had no windows and a crappy top too lol. But boy oh boy was it fun to drive - at least until those 335/35/17 rear tires needed replacing every 5,000 miles or so lol. But my heart still aches for an 86 328 GTS. Shame prices are astronomical these days
I'm making my way through all these retro reviews. Thank you so much for uploading them. Never realized the AC was so underpowered. That Lotus put out very impressive numbers. I'd take the Ferrari.
I always had a soft spot for the Lotus Esprit. I loved how quirky it was - supercar looks, supercar speed, supercar price - and a 4 banger under the hood. Why be normal?
I bought a brand new 85 Mustang GT back then. It ran a 14.8 quarter mile time and had the same engine and transmission as the Autokraft AC MkIV. I actually raced a Ferrari 308 in San Francisco and beat him but he still drove off
281cobra Do you still have it? The '85 GT is one of my favorite Mustangs. If someone around here were selling a black one with a 5-speed I'd jump on it in a second.
Roger Moore drove 2 different Turo Espirit in For Your Eyes Only.A Burgunday one that managed to look cool in the snow with a snow ski rack on it.Gold trim.Those were the days.Now I know the closest thing I'll ever have to an exoctic is a 12 year old 325i if I'm lucky.
How times have changed. 0-60 times that would put these cars well behind any hot hatch today. And yet, those were exciting cars! Not something we can say today!
I rode in a black Lamborghini jalpa in 1989....the owner was a man named John fondrisi.....very kind of him to give a young kid in the 5th grade a ride in such cool car.
$63k may have sounded like a lot but adjusted for inflation it would come out to just over $170k. A relative bargin compared to the current mid engined v8 decedent, the F8 (starts at $302k)
I know it's never fair to compare but comparing the 328's numbers to a 488 is eye opening. I'm sure at the time a 6.8 second 0-60 was fast. Most regular cars were probably doing it in 10-12 seconds, maybe worse. I think it's still a pretty car, not beautiful, but good dimensions
Man, this makes you really appreciate the technology we have today. Today is the true golden age of performance. The 80s sucked in performance. Gotta love the designs though.
c5natie1 The 80's were a dark age for the auto industry.. Only a few stand out cars in a sea of mediocre performing, bland looking, boxes on wheels which look like they were styled with nothing more than a ruler and pencil. .
4:09............THANK GOD!!!!!! I have always thought it should be illegal to have a radio in a Ferrari!!!!!!!! Want tunes, take the Bimmer!!!! And Craig imitating that Italian accent at 17:13 used to ALWAYS make me laugh my ass off when I taped & watched this episode over & over again back in the day!!!!!! In today's money, the $63,000 Ferrari 328 GTS would be $142,095.26 , the $55,000 Lotus Turbo Esprit would be $124,051.42, the $58,000 Lamborghini Jalpa would be $130,817.86 , & the $48,000 AC Autocraft Mark IV would be $108,263.06.
For 18k that year a Buick GN would've been the king. My buddy bought one new in 86 and he bought a windsheild suction cup mounted performance computer that accurately gave you 0-60,1/4 mile,braking, and more. We took the GN out when it was 11 degrees outside and got a 5.1 0-60 and 13.67 @ 104 mph 1/4 mile. Stock the car put out almost 18lbs boost.
But it will embarrass itself in the slalom. I long ago graduated from single purpose high performance cars--particularly if that single purpose is a boring straight line. Besides, I defy you to drive from anywhere to anywhere in a straight line. I *hate* slowing for corners.
Would have never thought the AC would be the cheapest, hard to believe the costs for these were 63k 328 GTB, 55k Turbo Esprit, 58k Jalpa and 48k Autocraft AC Mk IV
Who would have thought a Mustang GT was quicker 0-60 than the Ferrari 328? I realize that doesn't make the Mustang a better car, but it raised my eyebrows. Enzo Ferrari himself pretty much had the mentality that powerful engines win races with handling playing second fiddle.
