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Italian
Fruits of Passion
Words by Alessandro Marrone
Photos by Elisabetta Gilardenghi
Take a true car enthusiast and ask him what is the aspect that most loves about this world of sensual shapes of metal and smell of petrol. Ask what revolves around this passion, this way of life, this constant search of the perfect moment and place. It is not easy to explain, but it is easy to understand – you live for that moment when you feel one with the car, while underneath your tires are struggling on corners at the limit of their grip and you blast into the next curve, so that the thrill can go up your spine again. It’s a feeling, an emotion that makes you free, live, and makes you forget the stress and problems of everyday life. It’s those moments that make you realize that, after all, life is a crazy cool and that you are behind the wheel of it and you can decide the journey and all that is around.
Francesco and Luigi know that well, so similar and yet so different, they have embraced in the same way and embody to perfection that spirit, thanks to two cars miles away from every point of view, but they can hit the target straight in the middle, whenever they are popped from a foolproof bow. It is a matter of philosophy, tastes and first impact feelings, as some cars are sewn on us like a pair of gloves. Take for example the Lotus: the founding father, a certain Colin Chapman, does not need any introduction, man of outstanding ability who was able to found his own company without ever compromising, also obtaining excellent results in motorsport thanks the famous phrase “less is more”. His racing cars were not famous for their reliability and when they broke the penultimate lap, he was usually stating that they should still hold a lap more – just one – two would be useless, exactly as claimed by the Commendatore Enzo Ferrari ( “The perfect racing car is the one that breaks a moment after the finish line”). Everything was calculated according to a specific need, to go fast and win. The same is applied to the mythical Elise, manifest for the purest driving pleasure and sports car of modern times: a small two-seater with the engine in the rear center position and two seats tucked inside a recess called interior, devoid of any comfort and any driving aid. A car for those who want to experience the thrill of speed without being able to spend half a million Euros, but above all a car for those who really want to feel as captain at the helm of a special adventure that starts each time you give life to the small but brilliant engine behind your back. Luigi’s approach is different, as having owned and loved a 997 GT3, he has recently passed at the wheel of a 991 GT3, one of our favorite cars. Why? If you claim that perfection does not exist, drive one and you’ll get an idea. A velvet glove hugging an iron fist – that’s how I would describe it: the iconic 911 is wider here, lower and much more bad than before, thanks to the huge rear spoiler and the more pronounced front bumper, while the PDK shoots a gear after the other, squeezing the 476hp 6-cylinder up to 9000 rpm. There is more weight, a lot more technology and obviously more power, but the perfect combination of gear and brakes is something obscenely joyful, a drug from which you can’t escape. Now do you understand why these two worth any excuse for jumping on board for some kilometers of driving, right?
Look at it, so tiny and with that little almost smiling face, the Elise S1 seems coming straight out of a cartoon. It has a line that I would call “instant classic” and despite the model owned by Francesco has turned 16, you wouldn’t tell that at all. You always hear the opinions of curious passers-by trying in every way to figure out what car it is, or you feel any unevenness on the road surface under the wheels, which without power steering does not even filter the smallest of the ants and transmit all the feedbacks possible to the driver and his passenger. The seat rests virtually skimming the ground and through a “wooden table” chassis, the feeling of being on a go-kart is even more emphasized. It only weighs 699 kg (dry), that’s why 120 horses are ok – that’s why the 1.8 4-cylinder Rover does its dirty job and that’s why on a mountain road you would have a hard time figuring out how to shake off Francesco and its Elise. Aware of the precarious reliability of some components in here, he has replaced the radiator, but also the brakes, exhaust and suction filter. Intelligent and targeted modifications, in order to reach the limit only caring to mate the 5-speed manual gearbox with the rear wheels and exit from corners defying the laws of gravity. If nowadays we are practically victims of sports cars or exaggerated sedans with thousands of horses, which are most often cut by the electronics or exploited for half of their power, there will be no road that would not be sufficient to put this Lotus to the test. It loves to be kept at high revs and be treated rudely in order to give all it can and confirm that its dad was right – that’s why you get home you’ll replace your Playboy’s poster with that of Colin Chapman and thank him for really learned what it really means to drive hard.
If usually is your young teenager son trying to explain how to use a Smartphone, now the roles are reversed (apart from the fact that here you have to do with two friends), and while the young Francesco enjoys his raw little English girl, Luigi remains faithful to the house of Stuttgart, showing off his second GT3 full of cutting-edge technology and engineering. The model we are talking about is a 2015, in white and that leaves all of us mouth watering. Porsche knows damn well how to make good cars, suited to everyday’s life and without the slightest fear for a fast track, or a winding road. We have tested the 991 GT3 on numerous occasions, it is one of those cars that make you really wonder what the hell they will invent next time, to move beyond the bar of performance and fun. The 3.8 is behind the rear axle, the 7-speed PDK gearbox is lightning-fast and efficient and the needle stops the scale just above 1400kg. By countering the recent trend to poke turbos even under the hood of supercars, the GT3 remains faithful to the natural aspiration and this is one of the aspects which draw a huge smile to Luigi when he enters its preferred habitat: the track. This boy has a heavy foot and is not happy until he does not touch the limiter, that split second before clicking the paddle behind the wheel and throw another gear, yelling those 476hp and the 439Nm of torque. Entering a corner and moves softly as a classical dancer, but after reaching the apex, sunk the accelerator and turns into a homicidal maniac freshly escaped from a psychiatric prison. Listen to its scream – even more – now that does not have the original silencers (-19kg). Luigi has also improved the suspension and mounted Brembo Race brake discs, but since it has a company that produces that, he has also provided some details in carbon fiber – not bad right? Saying how the GT3 is fast and precise what would be useless as reiterate that Megan Fox is one of the most beautiful women in the world – you all know that. And that’s why despite the so faithful line to its ancestors, a Porsche with a huge rear wing never go unnoticed. “Okay, here we go again, goodbye driving license” – Luigi tells us how one evening, seeing flashing lights from the car behind, started to think about the best excuse to save some points – but luckily they were only guys with mobile phones in hand, ready to capture the queen of the track days – narrow escape, at least this time.
Whether it’s the ‘Ring, Spa, Monza, or the hairpins of some Alpine pass, these are the best two protagonists that a strip of asphalt could want, the best two weapons that you would like to have at hand to turn a day of driving, a wonderful day, and able to turn a blast on some good roads in a real event. It’s up to you to decide if you prefer the lightness and purity of the Elise or the power and precision of the GT3, if you are those who love tight grip on the steering wheel or you have the guts to brake meters after everyone else, trusting to a superfine mechanical package. Probably, just like me, you would take both of them, because even though in different ways, they perfectly know how to satisfy, without making you feel the lack of anything. The moment you step off from one of these two cars – and passed the discomfort of having to leave them for going to work, to eat, to sleep – your only thought is to get back on board. That’s ‘cause driving becomes a real desire, a physiological need that you must feed, finally feeling alive, finally free.
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