It would be great to always be right about everything, but not all of us can be Bradley Brownell. Some of us make mistakes, are occasionally misinformed and, every now and then, get things wrong. In fact, while it may be hard to believe, even I occasionally get things wrong. The good thing is, you can always correct your mistake and admit you were wrong, which makes you right again and therefore superior to those who have yet to realize the error of their ways.
For example, when I first heard Hyundai
was working on an EV with fake shifting, I called it "incredibly unnecessary." I mean, why would you intentionally make an EV worse just to make it drive more like a gas car? EVs are already always in the correct gear, but you're going to the trouble of developing a feature that lies? It sounded ridiculous. Then I drove the Ioniq 5 N for the first time, and as it turns out, that Albert Biermann guy might know a thing or two about building cars that are fun to drive.
Sure, the fake DCT is fake, and I can't imagine I'd want to use it every day, but it also legitimately makes the Ioniq 5 N more fun to drive. Plus, it makes it makes track driving easier, since it allows you to focus on which "gear" you're in instead of constantly checking your speed to make sure you don't enter a corner too fast. Faced with new facts, I was forced to change my mind and cross my fingers that Mr. Biermann would forgive me for doubting him.
Read more: These Mods May Look Good, But They'll Just Make Your Car Slower
New Facts = New Opinions
Ultimately, though, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N's fake DCT isn't the car opinion I was most wrong about. Instead, that honor goes to Younger Me's deeply held belief that front-wheel-drive cars suck and can't be fun. I was one of those kids who obsessively read every car magazine I could get my hands on, so even before I'd driven anything more street legal than a riding lawn mower, I had strong opinions about all sorts of cars. And if there was one thing I knew, it was that the only reason you'd go front-wheel drive was if you couldn't afford the far superior rear-wheel drive.
After a few years as an automotive journalist, I learned that was wrong, but what really put it to bed once and for all was driving the FK8 Honda Civic Type R. Talk about a revelation. I mean, I knew front-wheel-drive cars such as the Ford Fiesta ST could be fun, but the Civic Type R was on a completely different level. And somehow, torque steer wasn't a problem, either? Either sorcery was involved, or I had to completely recalibrate my understanding of just how fun a front-wheel-drive car could be. As far as I'm concerned, anyone who says they couldn't have fun in CTR is just straight-up lying to you.
But what about you? What car opinion were you the most wrong about? And perhaps more importantly, what is it that ultimately changed your mind? As always, let us know down in the comments.
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