Autocar Names Britain's Best Driver's Car 2012
 

Click on scans for full review:

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They kind of give a way the winner to early for my liking.

I like to be kept guessing till the end, but you can guess about half way through the Porsche section of what car will come out on top.

Still another great review for the 86 :)

Wow did not expect that result. I'll post more comments later after people have had a chance to read.

Good God almighty, who would have thunk?


:burnrubber:

That's impressive. Seems they consider it better than the Porsche and AMG compared to MotorTrend.

That's awesome. Makes me proud to be an owner! Although I have a hard time believing that a Cayman R is less fun around the track than an 86 :iono:

If I were to try to get inside their heads, I would guess that it's because (a) so much more is expected from the Cayman, (b) it's an unmatched riot to go fast in a slow car (and/or in an underdog car), (c) they, along with the rest of us, are just so happy that someone has made a car like this again, and that happiness translates to extra fun in driving it.

Having compared the FR-S against a Cayman S when car shopping, I have to agree with a lot of their comments about the 86. When you drive a Cayman and FR-S back-to-back, what strikes you is how similar the two are (i.e., how many things the FR-S gets right). The perfect seating position, the quick steering, the responsive engine, the precise transmission, and the neutral handling. The only areas where I thought the Cayman S were clearly better were power (obviously) and engine sound. That's it.

You can see how benchmarking against the Cayman really paid off for Toyota/Subaru. It's as if they asked themselves, how many areas can we match the Cayman in for under $30k? And that's the list they came up with. Everything but the engine pretty much (you can argue brakes as well).

If purchase price or cost of ownership is a consideration in these reviews then the GT86/FR-S/BRZ is going to win all the comparisons. It would have won the MT 2012 Best Drivers Car if price had been given weight in the contest.

Couldn't help but think the exact same thing as I was sitting behind one in traffic last night.

Great review though. I'd like to say I'm surprised at the result...but I can't :happy0180:

Wow, surprising result to me. But I've only ever driven one of these cars.

And the area where the 86 is clearly better is cost - both purchase price, obviously, but also upkeep. I'm told that not only do parts for the Cayman set you back big $$, but also labour is high because, among other things, getting at the engine is awkward.

This.

I also cross-shopped a used Cayman S vs. FR-S and while I liked the Cayman better (duh) I just couldn't justify the extra cost of the Porsche. The FR-S is literally 85-90% the same car at 40% of the price...

:w00t: Thanks for the scans. Having never driven a Porsche, I can't really compare, but to see reviews like this just makes me smile. Man, I love my car!