I choose the touring on my Emira with the V6 Manual and love it. I live in San Carlos, Northern California and mostly drive along the ridge tops of the nearby Santa Cruz mountains and along the coast. I also own a '88 Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe and have been driving it in the same hills since I purchased it nearly 30-years ago. The Emira is comparable to the handling of the 911, but of course the Lotus is faster and holds the road even better. I bought the Lotus with the intentions of selling the Porsche, but now unfortunately I find that I love them both! Touring is not a soft suspension in any way. But my take is the sport suspension is likely better suited for track use on really smooth pavement. Touring does its Lotus magic on all roads rough or smooth. If it's all about track competition, you might want the sport suspension. My $.02 worth as a 75-year-old "Driver Enthusiast".