Kinda figured that what you really meant was, "Why don't American manufactures use European philosophies" but didn't want to assume.

What you're really asking is, "why don't more American companies use V6 or Turbo 4-bangers in their sports cars?"

Porsche Caymans don't have backseats. It's a Roadster, not a Coupe.

BMW 4-Series coupes come in 2.0 4-Cyl and 3.0 V6 Configurations.

If you want an small-motor, light weight car that you can throw around corners, Ford addressed that with the 4cyl Turbo Mustang.

Your complaint isn't that Americans don't make awesome sport-coupes. Your complaint is that they don't put high performance, small displacement motors in their sports cars.

Their small displacement variants are treated more as economy cars to help with EPA issues.

Your BMW 4-series Coupe offers a 300HP V6 as its top engine choice, meanwhile, that's the economy version of a Mustang, Camaro or Challenger.
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A ZL1 1LE Camaro cost about $70K and will outperform any other foreign car in that price range to 2x the cost from straight line to cornering.

Think about this, $70K beats these cars-

https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-car...ring-in-71604/
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BMW 430I Coupe: $45,000, 3,827lbs, 3.0L 300HP V6

Ford Mustang GT: $36,000, 3,705lbs, 5.0L 485HP V8
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I'm not worried about that, but just having the Camaro in production makes the Mustang better, the competition of both cars. Over the last decade both the Camaro and Mustang have taken turns being faster and more powerful than the other, just like back in the mid to late 60s. I look forward to the new offerings of Ford and Chevrolet, and think they need each other.

Camaro probably needs a complete overall, like the Mustang received in 2015. The current rumors suggest that won't happen though.
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Yes, the Vette is a great sports car, and I agree wholeheartedly with everything you said above. But I did exclude the Corvette in my OP, as it's a 2-door 2-seat sports car, not a 2-door 4-seat sports coupe. Different type of car.
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The idea that American sports cars dont handle well is a complete myth.

In comparison to smaller, lighter cars it may not feel as light and feathery. But that's more of a driving feel thing than anything else.

And quite frankly, i prefer heavier cars at higher speed freeway driving.

Lighter cars feel like they bounce and flow with the road. Heavier cars feel firmly planted, even at 100mph.
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But you included the Cayman, which is a 2-seater. The Porsche Cayman is a roadster more than anything. And the lightweight, tight handling is a feature of a roadster.
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I didnt say anything about a Vette.
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Hmmm Isn't this an American coupe? Even though the rear window does not go down you call them coupes. Aren't they sedans????













Cadillac was stupid not to put this on steroids and roll through 2023 but NO.. they dropped it.



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Yes, but so what? I mean, again, I think it's great to go really fast, but a sports coupe should also handle well. And the 4-series BMW is simply a better handling car. And in the fit and finish department there's no comparison. As a complete car the BMW is just a much better overall sports coupe than the Mustang.

And before we get too far afield, my point is that there's really no good reason an American car builder can't make a really good sports coupe. It's not like they don't have the money or the technical capabilities. But it's like when I was in HS doing my homework, when I'd do the minimum effort to get a B. American car companies seem to be still operating as if they just want to get a B on their homework.
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You're right, my bad. My brother had a Cayman, and I swear i thought the thing had 4 seats. Two very small back seats, but I thought they were there.

A roadster is a T-top or convertible by definition, IIRC. A hardtop version would be the coupe.
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Misread that, my bad.
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By definition, a coupe is a 2-door 4-seat car, so yes this is a coupe. A sedan, by definition is a 4-door 4 seater.

And I don't have any experience with this Caddy. Which one is it?
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My 30 year old 500E (like it's sister the 300CE (coupe) 3200lb) are both heavy cars (3700Lbs) and at 100mph150mph are very secure on the roads. This car has be track proven to do 170MPH one the limiting device and chips were upgraded.

A new Z-28 Camaro weighs in at 3820lbs

A New Nissan GT-R weighs, wait for it, oh it's 3933lbs

Light and feathery my ass

Originally Posted by Detoxing:
The idea that American sports cars dont handle well is a complete myth.

In comparison to smaller, lighter cars it may not feel as light and feathery. But that's more of a driving feel thing than anything else.

And quite frankly, i prefer heavier cars at higher speed freeway driving.

Lighter cars feel like they bounce and flow with the road. Heavier cars feel firmly planted, even at 100mph.

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Part of the weight problem with modern cars is the fact that they have to be saddled with so many safety features, including all the airbags, and that stuff just weighs a lot. And since we live in America, we just have to live with that fact.
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