Perceptions often stop us from doing things we probably don’t need to worry about anyway. It was brought home to me recently when I went to pick up some landscaping materials at a local nursery.

I was driving a German sports coupe and as I was backing up to the skids of soil and stone, the guy in the Jeep beside me said “don’t tell me you’re going to soil it by putting in bags of mulch.”

“No way,” replied I. “I’m picking up pebble gravel.”

He looked at me like I was wasn’t worthy of driving such a car, let alone bright enough to understand what he meant.

It’s not the first time, I’ve come across this. In fact, I’ve been guilty on one or two occasions of perpetuating the myth that there are some vehicles in which you don’t do some things. The reality is that the daily driving limits on most vehicles usually our own personal limits – whether that involves driving or just using them.

One February some years back, the local media guy from Porsche called up and offered me a 911 Turbo for a week. “You bet,” said I jumping at the chance. “How’s the availability for May, or is that looking too far ahead?”

“I don’t know if I’m still going to have it May,” he replied. “I was thinking next week, if it’s free for you.”

“But it’s February,” said I incredulously.

“So? They drive them year round in other parts of the world, you know. It’s all-wheel drive and it’s on snow tires, so you shouldn’t have a problem unless you do something really, really stupid.”

Obviously, he knew me too well. And he should, since he’s taught me a lot of advanced driving over the years. He knew the car could handle it; he knew I could handle it; so what was holding me back from experiencing what I consider the finest high-performance car in the world?

Well … it was February! I lucked out, as it turned out, as it became unseasonably warm the following week and the worst climate conditions with which I had to deal was a deluge one while I was driving around one evening.

Need further proof? Russ Bond took an Audi R8 camping last year … it wasn’t wilderness-trail type access, but it must have been quite a sight for other campers to watch one of the premier performance cars in the world pull up to the site beside theirs.

And way back when, I borrowed a Porsche 928 and prior to an evening out with some friends I suggested we take their car as the rear seats were practically non-existent in the 928.

“Are you nuts?” they replied almost in unison. “When do you think will be the next time we’re going to get a chance to drive around in a Porsche?”

Moral of the story: don’t let your preconceptions of a vehicle ruin your enjoying it to its fullest.

Tags: 911, 928, Audi, auto design, high performance, Porsche, R8, sport coupe