Paradox of choice, what would you choose and why?

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by Hallowed_point


You bought one too?? Looking forward to seeing both of them at the Wed meets. Always preferred the BRZ over the FRS

We both have the exact same car as it turns out lol.

[EM2FTL]

Originally posted by cjblair


I thought about getting one for a while, but don't those have self-destructing engines and common flooding problems? Are there certain years that are better than others?

Flooding is only an issue if you cold start it and shut it off again without moving the car - I've done it once when the car wouldn't start (not plugged in) in -40 weather and it required pulling the fuel pump fuse and cranking the car over for about a minute. Car started up fine after that.

Yes, they do blow up... but finding one with a recent re-build at a stupidly cheap price is easy. I've got the rotary master of AB ready to rebuild once this one goes again - looking at around $1,500 + labour if you don't do it through a dealer. For me it was a no-brainer because the RX-8 was $18K less than the 370z - plenty of money left over for a rebuild kit.

The biggest downside i'm seeing is fuel consumption - i'm doing all downtown city/river valley driving with lots of stop and go and it's pretty brutal on gas.

[Hallowed_point]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
We both have the exact same car as it turns out lol.

Alright then..let's see who can out-mod who!!

[M.alex]

Originally posted by EM2FTL


Flooding is only an issue if you cold start it and shut it off again without moving the car - I've done it once when the car wouldn't start (not plugged in) in -40 weather and it required pulling the fuel pump fuse and cranking the car over for about a minute. Car started up fine after that.

Yes, they do blow up... but finding one with a recent re-build at a stupidly cheap price is easy. I've got the rotary master of AB ready to rebuild once this one goes again - looking at around $1,500 + labour if you don't do it through a dealer. For me it was a no-brainer because the RX-8 was $18K less than the 370z - plenty of money left over for a rebuild kit.

The biggest downside i'm seeing is fuel consumption - i'm doing all downtown city/river valley driving with lots of stop and go and it's pretty brutal on gas.

Just what everybody wants in a daily driver - to have to have an engine builder on speed dial

[EM2FTL]

Originally posted by M.alex


Just what everybody wants in a daily driver - to have to have an engine builder on speed dial

Haha, fair enough. I didn't really get why people are so into rotaries (despite helping to build and then race an NA FC for Chump Car) until I got this thing. The sound and feel as you rev up to 9k are unlike any other car i've driven, and if that means having Conroy on speed-dial, so be it. Plus every time I park I can't help but turn around and stare, and I didn't even think these cars looked good prior to owning one. Love is blind I guess

[bjstare]

Originally posted by M.alex


Just what everybody wants in a daily driver - to have to have an engine builder on speed dial

EM2's post pretty much re-assured that I will never buy an RX-8. I can understand loving a car and spending a little more on maintenance (i.e. something german), but buying a car where you know the engine is on a limited, and short, lifespan seems crazy to me. And you can't cold start it, then shut it off again without it flooding??

Owning one of those, that's dedication. haha

[mslbebiz]

RX8 is not for me for a number of reasons. S2000 would be nice as I've always wanted one, but there's pretty much nothing for sale out there.

[Hallowed_point]

Originally posted by EM2FTL

They are great looking cars imo..especially with those wheels. And the rotary is like nothing else but I'd be
too worried to take it out on a 1400 km roadtrip..unlike an LSx *cough swap it!*

[mslbebiz]

The latest R3 versions of the RX8 does look pretty sweet, but I just don't think I have the patience to live with something so quirky, all for an engine I would have rather seen not put in the car to begin with. If this came with a nice 4 cyl turbo it would have been way more successful, and probably still in production.

[Skyline_Addict]

Originally posted by EM2FTL
Surprised the S2K and RX8 haven't come up as options yet.

s2Ks are great cars, and IMO more fun and challenging (the additional fun comes from the challenge) to drive than a BRZ/FR-S.

keep in mind they even more raw of a car than the BRZ, and also much less practical. the BRZ is much better suited as a year round car, and not just because it doesn't have a soft top.

also the initial D tax on these cars is still crazy. You're looking at $20k+ if you want anything newer than a 2005 model. $30k+ if you want a CR.

[Xamim]

Both the BRZ and the Abarth have that go-kart feel, one is RWD and the other is FWD. I have friends that drive theirs all year round without any issues. Just make sure you got winters, just like any car.

I don't have experience with the IS-F or the 370z, but I would rate the others as BRZ>Abarth>GTI in terms of fun. The Abarth sounds the best out of the group. A friend of mine with an FRS (same as BRZ) has one of those electric superchargers and got it tuned by Toma. It gave him a decent bump in power, he says the car is perfect now.

[DeleriousZ]

20b swapped rx8 would be amazing

[faiz999]

id probs get the brz or the gti...but i have not driven either.

brz seems like more fun but the power at this elevation might be underwhelming.

[vengie]

The GTI sounds like the best choice to me, great all around DD, comfortable, easily tuned.

[mr2mike]

Jeremy Clarkson would say GTI over the BRZ by far.
But Top Gear is GTI fanboy crazy.

[Ca_Silvia13]

That and the BRZ/FRS is slow. I don't get why they are so damn popular.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by mr2mike
Jeremy Clarkson would say GTI over the BRZ by far.
But Top Gear is GTI fanboy crazy.

Actually Clarkson would probably go for a BRZ over the new 7th gen GTi, he loved the GT86 and even named it his car of the year for 2012 and also I recall in one of his specials recently he was dissapointed that the Golf would not allow you to fully disable traction control/stability control iirc.

[max_boost]

^^^

So would Khryon. Where he go?

[guessboi]

I would say GTI or BRZ
Probably would skip the 370 roadster if you are driving this vehicle year round.

At least you know insurance is a not factor of the decision.

[EM2FTL]

This forum needs a multi-quote function..

Hallowed - LSx swap would be a dream... funds to make it happen are also in dreamland lol. From what little reading i've done I know that swapping these cars is a pain in the ass though, same with going turbo on the Renesis.

Skyline - agreed the S2K's are holding their value a bit too well up here in Canada. I wouldn't go AP2 though, would much prefer the raw/twitchier AP1 car which you can get a decent example of for around $15k. My issue when I test-drove one was how cramped you are inside that car though - i'm only 6'0 and still felt very tight in there. That F20C though... hnghh.

I took a manual BRZ on the downhill in Edmonton this fall (salesman was OK with me bagging it, +1 for him), and drove an auto FR-S for a week this December (friend asked me to car-sit for her). While the handling feels good and the manual gearbox is decent, I couldn't get over the completely underwhelming power and the cheap-feeling interior. If i'm going to pay $30K for a sports car, it shouldn't look like the interior came from 1998, and it should have more than 200hp. If it made somewhere around 250 it would be a lot easier to get over the interior shortcomings, but I guess we'll have to wait and see if a hotter factory version ever comes out.

The other thing I noticed while snow-drifting the auto car is hard to capture exactly.. but it just didn't feel controlled with the tail out in the same way that my RX-8 does. I felt like I really had to be on the ball when sliding that car or i'd end up in a curb or median.

The GTI not being able to disable TC is a massive deal-breaker for me, although so is FWD.