Max Verstappen slams front-wheel drive cars as 'worst thing ever'
COMMENT: Max Verstappen is the best driver in the world.
But that doesn't mean he is always right.
The Red Bull Formula 1 star recently starred in a video alongside British motoring journalist Chris Harris, driving Ford's supercharged Mustang GTD.
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Max Verstappen is a four-time F1 world champion. Photo:The pair talk about driving techniques, the finer points of racing, and how Formula 1 has evolved.
They also talk about road cars, and one point divided car enthusiasts – Max's stance on front-wheel-drive cars.
Harris asks Verstappen if he likes front-wheel-drive models – a type of vehicle that includes the Honda Civic Type R and Volkswagen Golf GTI, and the F1 ace was clear in his response.
'I think it's really boring,' Verstappen said.
'For me, it's like anti-driving … it's like the worst thing ever.'
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Verstappen is not a fan of budget performance cars. Photo: AP Photo/Denes Erdos
Harris agreed, and described the layout as 'wrong-wheel-drive'.
Supercars and racing cars with enormous power outputs and astronomical prices are almost exclusively rear-wheel-drive, with some four-wheel-drive exceptions.
Most budget cars are front wheel-drive.
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Honda's Civic Type R is an outstanding machine.
Cars like the Mini Cooper, VW Golf, Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla send drive to the front wheels, because it's cheaper and easier to build a car that way.
Car makers don't need to buy extra parts, and they don't need to make space for differentials and driveshafts in the back of the car.
Most front-wheel-drive cars don't have stacks of power, so they don't need to distribute their torque across four tyres.
All-wheel-drive can be vital in slippery conditions such as ice, snow or mud.
But it isn't necessary for most people, most of the time.
The Hyundai i30 N is a driver's delight.
As for Verstappen's take that it represents anti-driving?
My experience is wildly different.
I'm lucky enough to test-drive most new cars that go on sale in Australia, from Peugeots to Porsches, or Fiats to Ferraris.
Yes, most front-wheel-drive cars are not designed to thrill drivers.
But some of them are, and they're capable of delivering driver satisfaction in a manner that much more expensive cars struggle to match.
Hand-on-heart, I've had more fun in front-drive, manual hot hatchbacks than I have in $500,000 supercars – both on the road and the track.
A great hot hatch is a joyous thing.
They're far more relevant than overpowered exotics in the real world. It's much more fun to hustle s slow car than to be frustrated in a 500kW exotic, especially if you don't have access to an F1 car on weekends.
Cars like the Ford Fiesta ST and Hyundai i30 N will make you laugh out loud.
And if you learn to carry corner speed and master the art of weight transfer, a great front-wheel-drive machine will leave you cackling with delight.
I've owned one for 10 years.
My Renault Megane RS is a brilliant machine.
Renault Megane RS 265 at Challenge Bathurst 2019.
I've taken it on track more than 50 times at places like Albert Park – home of the Australian Grand Prix – and Mount Panorama, home of the Bathurst 1000.
The front-wheel-drive Megane will dance on its tiptoes, slide through corners like a rally car, and even spin out of control if you're not careful.
It's a brilliant car. And having tested more than 1000 cars as a motoring writer, I can tell you that it is a long way removed from being 'the worst thing ever', and certainly doesn't represent 'anti-driving'.
Of course, I'm not a Formula 1 driver. But neither are you, and together, we'll be just fine if we choose front-wheel-drive cars.
Originally published as Why the world champ is wrong about front-drive cars
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