Alright...you guys asked for it!
First off, I have my own handcontrols that are portable. I took them from car to car. I will post a pic where you can see what I am talking about if none of the current pics show them.
Here are my thoughts on the cars:
Ferrari 430 Scuderia - If you are looking for a track car and don't want a GT3RS, THIS IS THE CAR! This thing is unreal. We were not allowed to put it in "race" mode or defeat the traction control and I never even felt the need to do so. In race mode it shifts in 60ms and I am not sure what the shifts are in regular mode but they were WAY faster than any other car I drove! It was telepathic too. It knew where you wanted to go and took you there. VERY, VERY easy to drive quickly! An amazing car to say the least! To spartan and to hot to use everyday, but for a track machine it would be VERY, VERY hard to beat.
Lamborghini Gallardo SuperLeggera - I call this car the Prince of Darkness because of its dark interior and more so its sound. Deeper than all but the SLR and much more brutal than any, other than the SLR. Loved the V10 howl though. I don't know if this one had a brake problem or what, but there was no bite and then FULL BRAKING no matter how fast or slow you were going and those brakes are SUPER POWERFUL! There is no finesse in this car. The shifts were slow and severe and the down shift blips were loud and obvious (vs. the total finesse of the Scud). Probably would have been better in a different shift/traction mode. Considering it is 4wd it has really good steering feel. Not nearly as direct as the telepathic Scud but it was very good. I would say other than the brakes this car might be a touch better than the Scud for street use, but I would need more time with both to be sure.
Audi R8 - This is the closest thing to a 928 in this group. Very, very comfortable, very easy to drive, very forgiving. Not as fast as most of the rest of the group is was quiet and everything was right where it should be and it was just precise. You could easily use this car every day. Now if they would build this car with a Boxster body or a 928 body or an Italian supermodel body or something other than the ugly metal they draped it in I would be in love... BUT, to my eye it was just as ugly in person as it is in pictures. That is totally subjective and I know others just LOVE it, but not me. You can't beat the car for comfort and speed though. It is truly Germanic as you would expect from Audi.
Maserati Granturismo - If I could only have ONE CAR it would be this one! You can seat four adults in this thing. It is plenty fast, makes good sounds, handles VERY WELL and is drop dead GORGEOUS! This is the one car in the group that can do it all! I loved this car! It was the last of the cars that I drove and I fell in love with this thing! Someday I WILL OWN ONE! It was a 928 with real back seats and slightly less sporting nature. If they hold up over the long run this car will be hard to beat for decades. Not to fast, but certainly no slouch and good handling nature without going over the top! As noted if it holds up over the long haul these cars will become real icons and highly sought after!
McLaren Mercedes SLR - The GOD OF THUNDER! This car is WILD! From the moment you enter this car it is trying to KILL YOU! Roland (40 year pro racing veteranand WCD instructor) was shotgun in this car for all the drivers and for good reason! This car WILL KILL YOU! Now, it could be that they got the recent alignment wrong or it just does not like the tires it is on, but this car was ALL OVER THE PLACE! My '92 GTS is the same way but it is on crap tires right now so any pavement irregularities cause the car to be all over. The same was true of the SLR BUT the big difference is the steering on the SLR is WAY to fast! Not to mention with all that HP on tap you can get into trouble in a real hurry. This would be a great supercar to have though as it is really striking looking. In fact I saw the prototype of this car a long time ago at the Indy F1 race and loved it. Then the production version came out and it had to many gills and too long a nose and I didn't like it anymore, but in person this car looks much better! Nothing like it out there. That said, Roland said he would take a Carrera GT over an SLR or an ENZO ANY DAY! He has driven the wheels off ALL of them so he should know! It is one WICKED fast car FOR SURE!
