Ladysteve went JDM

[Niall]

Still u cant have much of an opinion on comparison between this and a mini...unless youve driven both...which i have

QFT.

I can't help but wonder if people think new cars handle well because they can throw it into a corner and it's promptly fixed by the the traction-control/stability-control/abs/lane-departure-prevention/other-miscellaneous-talent-substitutes...

101% this. All the new cars I've driven handle relatively well but thats all because whenever you get remotely close to the limit of even seeing a bit of under/oversteer or loss of grip, a computer fixes it all for you. Worst for that was the 320d i had for a week. Yeah it went into a corner quite well but it was just boring and all computer aided.
Give me an old car where you have the option what to do any day!