I read it again for the second time today that the e60 with sports puts down 0.92g on the skid pad which is better than the cayman which is always talked about as being one of the best handlers out there.

Whaaa???? Where'd you read this?

I read it today in one of the big 3 us mags comparing a caddy cts to a g coupe-They mentioned they did not include the 535 because it was way more expensive but wrote a short write up about how it still kicked arse and to boot it could hang with the cayman with the lat gforces of .92 I believe.

They said the same thing about the boxster but since the cayman is the new dog it is referenced I guess.

"One of the big 3". Is it not easier to list the actual name of the magazine, page number, etc...?

Speculation!!!

....Russ, which magazine did he say I missed it too?? Big three...GQ, Glamour and Playboy??:D

In fairness the Cayman typically posts more than .96g on most tests (both Road & Track and Car and Driver got .96 on their tests) but here's a link to a table from a MotorTrend test to find the best handling car of 2007 which shows it pulling over 1G.

http://www.motortrend.com/features/112_070...r/photo_20.html

Here's the full test (the Cayman placed second overall)

http://www.motortrend.com/features/112_070...st_handling_car

skidpad measures grip, not so much handling.
slalom is a better test for handling.

haha what do you think determines handling? Grip my friend-and what determines grip is the combination of forces created buy a machines suspension setup, design/downforces v. lift, tires grippiness

Basically everything that goes into the handling of a car results in better "grip" as measure objectively by g forces. Lateral g-forces are the lowest common denomnitator of the total sum of factors that go into producing "handling" in a vehicle-and since people need objective numbers-the lateral g force best encompasses all of these factors because you cannot achieve high lateral gs if the handling/suspension is not top notch.

You can however tkae a POS car and slap SUPER stick track tires on and make it grip in a skidpad test just as well as a cayman-but usually when these skidpast tests occur-they are with street tires that the cars come with.

ALthough people do underestimate the imnportance of tires in overall handling. Both in the literalstickiness of the rubber and the stiffness of the sidewalls make HUGE differences in cornerning.

Also you cannot have a good slalom speed if you have poor lateral gs on a skidpad-they prettymcuh go hand in hand since what determines how fast you can slalom? It is whoever can make several quick turns the fastest without losing "their edge" or having any tire slip which requires good lateral g production-which in turn is a result of overall suspension/design blah blah blah etc

So which magazine and page number is it, you seem to have completely avoided that question.

Dude its not hard to look up yourself if your that interested-I told you the test was caddy v M-there is onlyh one current u.s issue with the story.

I dont read the car magsm ore than once/twice a year on an airplane and yesterday was no different-I litereally grabbed the popular 3 mags off the shelf-read them on the plane and then gave them to someone else when I was done so I have no clue.

I am sure it was motortrend, carn driver and whatever other popular mag is out there-I didnt even lookat the title but it was one I recognized.

geez do an internet search if your that interested-you can find tons of the skid pad values on the e60 if you are that interested.