What's all this talk about more doors?

As I sit here in my "thinking" room watching (and listening to) my 2009 Audi R8 scream around Grand Valley Speedway in a B-Spec race in Gran Turismo 5, I start to wonder. Had Mr. Webb published his new post yet? So I checked, and he had. You see a few days ago he and I had a discussion about the current influx of sports sedans and how we both liked them so very much. I had also told him I was in the middle of writing a post about sedans, then he informed me he was doing so as well. So we agreed to go ahead and write our respected posts and agreed not to touch on each others cars of topic...too much. Anyway I was in the middle of writing my piece and then realized it was all wrong and became angry and deleted it. Then I was reluctant to start again because in all honesty, I'm lazy. Very lazy. But then I read my counterparts new article and it inspired me. Besides, what better time write about cars then when a listening to the rumble of an R8 for background noise?

When I was a small child, I used to look out of the windows of my mothers 1995 Dodge Caravan and ogle at all of the "cool" people in their "cool" cars driving by towards the shore or Atco Raceway or wherever the "cool" people went. Yes, all the cool 90's coupes such as the Pontiac Firebird, Chevrolet's Camaro and Corvette, Mitsubishi 3000GT, Mazda RX-7, Plymouth Prowler, the occasional Dodge Viper and rare glimpses of the Lamborghini Diablo. Whatever the car was that I was eyeballing and wishing that they would someday be mine were usually convertibles, and always 2-door coupes. For when I was a child sedans were very uncool. Only losers and your mom drove a car with 4 doors. You probably had a better chance of seeing Sasquatch or a unicorn than you did of spotting a fast, let alone remotely appealing sedan. Then came puberty, both for me and for the world of sports sedans. As my counterpart mentioned the Subaru Impreza WRX and the Mistubishi Lancer Evolution were the real breakthrough in appealing sedans for the younger generation. No matter where you went their was always some kid with loud exhaust and a "bumping system" in a WRX blasting down some street at 2 a.m.

Then I grew up a little and started to realize that family men and women were also driving these new and exciting sedans. Slowly but steadily more sedans started taking on a more sporty attitude. Some notable mentions include that of the Honda Civic Type-R, Dodge Neon SRT-4, Mitsubishi Galant VR-4, Pontiac Grand Prix GXP, Chrysler 300M Special and the Chevrolet Cobalt SS. Yes some of these had more success than others, but one fact still remains. They are all currently discontinued. Weather they fell out years ago or just recently, they are still all gone. All except two of them that is; the originals, the masters, the Impreza and the Lancer. Unbeatable these two sports sedans are you say? Well I'm not saying they are, nor am I going to write about them. No, I'm here today to inform you of their fierce competition that has emerged in the past few years that could one day claim the titles of the best sports sedan.

The new 2011 Chrysler 200S showing off at the New York Auto Show.

Exhibit A: America. America has put out an increasing number of sports sedans in the last five years. Cars the like the Pontiac G8 GXP and G6 GXP sedan were up and coming sporty sedans to be reckoned with until their imminent demise at the hands of GM. No money, no cars. It  really is a shame that GM could not get themselves together in order to keep producing these two phenomenal machines. Of course the magnificent G8 speaks for itself, but the G6 GXP was no slacker. I am currently the proud owner of a 2009 Pontiac G6 GXP Sedan. I've pushed the car to it's limits and the 3.6L V6 LY7 that served GM proudly for so many years moved the car along at an exceptionally fast pace. Pushing out 252 bhp my G6 GXP has outrun disillusioned idiots trying to "race" me in base model Ford Mustangs. Ah yes the sleeper power of my G6 has put a few heavy underpowered pony cars to shame, not to mention the drivers. (My wife has even put some guys in their place.) Silly rednecks, big muscle cars are only fast when they're powered by massive V8's. Alas those great Pontiac's will probably never see production again, sad but true. But one GM car still reigns supreme as the fastest sedan ever to go around the Nurburgring, the great and powerful Cadillac CTS-V. Yes this car is amazing and with the a 6.2L Supercharged LSA V8 that pumps out a whopping 556 bhp and 551 lb-ft of torque. Simply an amazing amount of power for an American car, let alone a sedan. Let's not forget about it's little brother, the CTS. Though not as powerful (but extremely cheaper) the CTS is offered with the same engine from the G6 GXP, not too mention a direct injection 3.6L V6 VVT engine called the LLT that packs a pretty hefty 304 bhp. So GM has it down, what about Chrysler? Well the Chrysler group has completely redesigned the 2011 Dodge Charger with speed in mind. This new and better looking Charger packs a punch with the R/T models 5.7L V8 Hemi's 370 bhp, but the real prize lies beneath the hood of the SRT8 model. For 2012 the Dodge Charger SRT8 returns with a 6.4L V8 Hemi that is all natural and pumping out 465 bhp and 465 lb-ft of torque. That's not all, for Chrysler has released the new 200 S. This fast little four door is nothing but a Sebring with a face lift and some lypo, but it really moves. For it is powered by Chryslers new 3.6L Pentastar V6 and pushing out 283 bhp, and man it looks good. Did I also mention that the 300 SRT8 will have the same engine as the Charger of that trim and all SRT8 models have incorporated the "flappy paddle" gearbox? Finally, Ford has also put out some power with the re-designed Taurus SHO and the Ford Fusion S.

Exhibit B: Germany. Audi, BMW and Mercedes have been locked in a three way duel for the supreme German machine for what seems like an eternity. BMW with the incredible M5 and the M3 sedan model cannot be overlooked in the sports sedan segment. As for Audi. They are no slackers in the sports sedan segment, the A4/S4 is still solid competition. Solid yes, but the real deal of Audi's sedan line up are that of the A6/S6 and the RS6 filling the sporty role. Audi has slid a powerful yet sophisticated 5.0L V10 FSI Bi-turbo engine which produces a modest 580 bhp, that even beats out the CTS-V. This is all fine and dandy but the real bruisers of the German performance sedan market are without a shadow of a doubt, Mercedes. Mercedes E, S and C class sedans are some of the worlds finest. Throw in the number 63 and an AMG badge onto those three models and you get pure lunacy. These machines are not for the feint of heart, no. They will pin you just as far back in your seat as their coupe SL and CL counterparts, I'd expect nothing less from the great AMG. Today though is not the day I get into AMG's lunacy because my good friend Mr. Webb has already done so for your reading pleasure. That's all from Germany you say? Well you are correct, because I don't even consider Porsche's sad attempt at a sports sedan with that ugly sin of a car called the Panamera even worth mentioning. In fact, I've already said to much.

The very aggressive looking Maserati Quattroporte.

Exhibit C: other. Japan has also brought a few new competitors to the table in the sports sedan segment to compete along side the Impreza and the Lancer. Introducing to you the Lexus IS-F. I can hear you already saying that Lexus shouldn't make a sports anything, but if I remember correctly both Mercedes and Chrysler started off as luxury car makers and now they both have a strong presence in the sports sedan world. Not only does the IS-F look good in my book it also performs exceptionally well. As a matter of fact in 2009 Gazoo Racing produced an IS-F VLN race car to compete in that years 24 Hours Nürburgring event. Non other then the Gran Turismo series creator Kazunori Yamauchi, who had very little racing experience at the time was one of the participating drivers. In the end the IS-F race car finished 3rd place in the SP8 class. I'd go out on a limb and say that that's pretty good for a multi-national team of Japanese and British race car drivers and game designers. Just saying. Anyway, Mazda has something to add in the form of a sports sedan and that would be the Mazda Speed6. Although the Speed6 version of the Mazda 6 has not been announced for 2011 certain sources do anticipate the return of the performance variant in the coming years. For now though you can still enjoy a brand new base Mazda 6 model which is yet still sportier than rival Accords, Camry's and Malibu's. Zoom Zoom. Also, Italy and the U.K. have made appearances in the sports sedan segment as of late with the arrival of big executive saloons such as the Maserati Quattroporte and the Aston Martin Rapide.

So what have we learned today? Well I'll tell you what, it' that in today's market not everyone can have that "cool" sports coupe. You see the truth is that people have kids that need transporting to school, soccer practice, the library and other such places. People also have friends with whom they like to go the movies with, or maybe even the beach. All in all, I now have a greater appreciation for the sports sedan segment and the direction auto makers are taking it. Who knows, maybe one day I will have a deep respect for these speedy four door grocery getters. Kind of like the respect have for classic American Muscle and the original Italian Stallions.