Doug Demuro’s review of my personal 2018 BRZtS

[funwheeldrive]

I agree with him to an extent. This car should have been like a Type R compared to a GSR Integra, but the changes are not significant enough. The tS is basically a performance package with heavier wheels and a wing, and a couple suspension pieces. The Integra Type R on the other hand stood in it's own category, and is pretty difficult to clone from a mechanical standpoint.

[Rai-zero]

It’s important to know Doug drives a lot of nice cars he drives the GT3s Lamborghini, Ford GT and lot of other 5-700 hp cars. And when I drove a M3 the power was just all around, it was just a very quick car. The BRZ is nowhere near a powerful car, you can get it to move as it can do up to 150 mph (or whatever) but you can’t get it to move quickly (stock). So I just have fun with it. I don’t worry that it’s not super quick, It’s not important if I’ll do 0-100 less than 10 seconds (it won’t). If you can tease out that and get over it and stop harping on how it’s too slow. I think you can have a good bit of fun on public roads.

[mazeroni]

His rating for the Ts falls in line with cars of a similar category and cost. Having seen all of his other videos, I'd the say his rating criteria is relatively fair and errs on the side of objective. Perhaps it is a tad too predictable and dependent on cost, but what can you do. I'd rather my auto journalists not all have the same viewpoints or make judgement based on strict analysis performed in a spreadsheet.

Also, a lot of journalists are apologists of the 86/ BRZ platform, the Miata, and the like. All of these cars have glaring flaws and I think it's unfair to ignore them when the market is full of less expensive and better cars because we really want to convince people that they need to "get it." But that's me. I'm happy that the imperfections and flaws are always in your face; I would never call my FR-S a good car. It's fun, but I'm not giving it a good score in any other category.

I do see why people would want the Ts for its "Cool Factor." I think it is cool and that it will draw attention. I could do without the wing and would love if they had done something crazy like bore out the block to 2.2 liters and let it rev to 8K or something, but it is what it is.

[DrButtDrugs]

I think his assessment is pretty fair. It's a good car and he agrees, but Subaru's lineup for the last decade would have you expecting the STi version to have more power than the non-STi version, and the price difference here sort of agrees (though less costly than the jump from WRX to STi) without showing for it under the hood. I can't recall if he's done an MX-5 RF but I'd be curious if he has the same things to say about its power delivery for a similar price.

[Rai-zero]

MX-5 feels a lot quicker because it weights 500 pounds less, it’s great car but too small inside imo if you are a full size person.

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by Rai-zero

It’s a car you buy if you like the air cooled 911 or the front engined 4 cylinder Porsche type car but don’t want the hassle with a 30 year old.

IIRC the only time when this point was mentioned by the manufacturer.

Goto 3:25

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4DJtHYEfos[/ame]

[Seasaw]

Originally Posted by nikitopo

Yes, I expected a better score in practicality. At least you have a decent trunk space and you can carry 4 wheels & tires.

I agree, def more practical than most sports cars, should have gotten at least a 5/6. But you have to consider the fact that Doug is reviewing all cars, like the Honda Odyssey (32ft sqft-140 sqft of cargo) which I believe he gave a 10. When you put it in that perspective, I believe the score is somewhat justified.

Fun Factor however should have gotten a bit higher at 7/8, but I can see why he may be biased as he drives super and hyper cars all the time.

[funwheeldrive]

Originally Posted by Seasaw

Fun Factor however should have gotten a bit higher at 7/8, but I can see why he may be biased as he drives super and hyper cars all the time.

I havent personally driven one, but most of the reviews I read about the tS imply that it's not as fun to drive on public roads compared to the regular version. On the track is where the tweaks seem to shine.

[why?]

Originally Posted by NCtoBRZ

He must be the sort of gearhead that likes cars but has little to no mechanical knowledge or experience because he makes A LOT of errors in his car reviews and seems pretty clueless about much of what he reviews. His voice is pretty hard to listen to for very long as well. He must be doing something right though because he does have a lot of views on his videos...

You miss the point of what he does totally. He started on Jalopnik, and anyone with a computer and an internet connection can get the details. He is an entertainer first, and that is why people watch him.

He has built up a following entertaining people and doing slightly crazy things.

[ScoobsMcGee]

Originally Posted by rcm47

I gave him directions to an awesome twisty mountain road not to far from where he did the review but I guess he didn’t take them.

It was Doug you were talking to. If those directions had more than three steps, he either lost interest while you were still explaining, or tried to follow them and got lost.

[Sasquachulator]

Originally Posted by funwheeldrive

I havent personally driven one, but most of the reviews I read about the tS imply that it's not as fun to drive on public roads compared to the regular version. On the track is where the tweaks seem to shine.

Well its an FT86, everyone and their dog probably knows how it is on public roads by now. Easy to drive, relatively torqueless (mostly due to the torque dip in the lower RPM band), stiffer ride, mediocre sound insulation, not any more or less fun as any other car really when driven 'normally' unless pushed and tossed around corners.

Then you add the tS tweaks and you make the ride worse for the road cuz now its stiffer and more harsh, but it gives it more athleticism on the track.

[daiheadjai]

Originally Posted by funwheeldrive

I agree with him to an extent. This car should have been like a Type R compared to a GSR Integra, but the changes are not significant enough. The tS is basically a performance package with heavier wheels and a wing, and a couple suspension pieces. The Integra Type R on the other hand stood in it's own category, and is pretty difficult to clone from a mechanical standpoint.

No kidding.
For the price, I think even I would have rated the tS worse than the regular BRZ.

But then that's based on my set of priorities - someone who tracks it, or really really loves what the tS offers, would see differently.

[NCtoBRZ]

Originally Posted by why?

You miss the point of what he does totally. He started on Jalopnik, and anyone with a computer and an internet connection can get the details. He is an entertainer first, and that is why people watch him.

He has built up a following entertaining people and doing slightly crazy things.

I didn't "miss the point". It was stated that this guy was a big gearhead, but his videos clearly reflect that he isn't really very knowledgeable about the mechanicals and details of the cars that he reviews. He isn't very entertaining and his voice is like nails on a chalkboard, but I do realize that his videos are likely interesting to those who aren't very mechanically inclined and enjoy the mindless videos that so many car vloggers do with titles like "10 things I hate!", "10 things I love!", "why x car is worth $x". If he does really know what he is talking about and is just playing the role of a squealing idiot, I applaud his acting skills.

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by funwheeldrive

I havent personally driven one, but most of the reviews I read about the tS imply that it's not as fun to drive on public roads compared to the regular version. On the track is where the tweaks seem to shine.

I bet those Pilot Sport 4 tires are just too good.