FR-S/BRZ vs. Genesis Coupe

[MTD]

Im on Genesis Coupe number 2. First was a '10 2.0, new one is a '13 3.8. No complaints at all. No problems with either mechanically, no unscheduled trips to the dealer, build quality is excellent too.

I love the way the FRS/BRZ handle and drive, but I love the nicer interior and power of the GC.

[Rayme]

Originally Posted by Burrcold

The only parts that would be in question, are in-house drivetrain products (which are few and far between). Not saying that there is anything wrong with them at all though.

All the rest of the components are from the same suppliers that are making parts for our cars. I used to work for DENSO and we had tons of parts that went in to all Hyundai's (Genesis Coupe included). That includes starters, alternators, ECU's, sensors of all kinds, gauge cluster, HVAC components, etc. etc.

This is the reason why all manufacturers are stepping up quality, and the gap is closing. They are using global platforms, and global suppliers. The days of in-house part procurement is almost dead. Better that way.

Isn't Denso a Toyota company though? I always thought Denso makes top notch electronic components. That's good for Hyundai/Kia.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by ottopilot

Isn't Denso a Toyota company though? I always thought Denso makes top notch electronic components. That's good for Hyundai/Kia.

Denso makes components for every car manufacturer now. They still have their largest business from Toyota but they are not owned by them (they used to be Toyota's parts division many many years ago).

[davidp]

Originally Posted by AdamVR4

The turbo 4-banger with Mitsu 4G63 roots and the extra 75 hp / 125 ft-lbs really pulled me toward the GC2T.
:happy0180:

there's absolutely nothing mitsubishi in those Hyundais ..
the "theta" engine is all hyundai designed/built and it's a much better engine than the old 4g63 .. which only made it's way in the sonata (in non turbo version)

on the other hand .. the "world engine" who was based on the theta engine is a hyundai based engine that mitsubishi and chrysler used in their 4 cylinder cars like the lancer and caliber .. the last mitsubishi engine that made it's way in a hyundai was the accent's engine .. the 1.8 and 2L engines were hyundai engines since the tiburon in 96

[frsvr4]

Originally Posted by davidp

there's absolutely nothing mitsubishi in those Hyundais ..
the "theta" engine is all hyundai designed/built and it's a much better engine than the old 4g63 .. which only made it's way in the sonata (in non turbo version)

on the other hand .. the "world engine" who was based on the theta engine is a hyundai based engine that mitsubishi and chrysler used in their 4 cylinder cars like the lancer and caliber .. the last mitsubishi engine that made it's way in a hyundai was the accent's engine .. the 1.8 and 2L engines were hyundai engines since the tiburon in 96

Ah, thank you for the correction. I was just parroting what a buddy told me.

[davidp]

Originally Posted by AdamVR4

Ah, thank you for the correction. I was just parroting what a buddy told me.

No problem

[shu5892001]

I test drove the r spec yesterday and it felt awful slow for a 274hp car, and the shifter has no feedback

[gmookher]

They been making cars a long while now

It blows my mind how cheap some parts feel inside, how interior plastics, from teh showroom do not match color right, even the blacks.

Faster yes.
In my driveway, no.
Will I eat them once I am supercharged? We'll see.

[thill]

Having owned a base 2013 2.0T Gencoupe for 14+ months and getting rid of it for a 2013 BRZ Limited (for about 200 miles now), I wanted to share my thoughts on the two cars:

Having now put just under 200 miles on the BRZ, I feel I can give more detail on the Gencoupe vs BRZ:

- Exterior styling. I realize this is more of a personal opinion, but I have always preferred the look of the twins to the Gencoupe. The front end of the Gencoupe is quite polarizing, and while I did not hate it, I never loved it either. The BRZ is, IMHO, just a better looking car. That said, the BRZ exhaust is rather weaksauce looking compared to the Gencoupe, and the tires on the BRZ still look too narrow (that can be fixed). I would give the BRZ the nod here though. The car is much lower to the ground and looks more, to me, like a true sports car. I think the Gencoupe styling is more polarizing and will most likely not age as well long-term.

- Interior styling. This is probably a wash for me. Both cars have nice looking interiors and use good materials. I liked the stitiched leather look of the Gencoupe dash, but prefer the other plastics in the BRZ (for example plastics around the window and door locks is cheaper looking and feeling on the Gencoupe). The pretty much useless analog gauges (MPG, temperature, boost) in the center stack of the Gencoupe are a negative, but I also think the analog speedometer guage in the BRZ is equally useless (I always check the digital speedometer to verify my speed). The radio unit in the BRZ, for me, is not as good as the Gencoupe. I liked having some steering wheel controls, that said, I do not miss them as much as I thought I would as the BRZ head unit is right there at fingers edge. I just wish the touchscreen buttons were much larger (for example changing radio channels that have been preset). One of my complaints with the Gencoupe bluetooth was that it sometimes lost sync right in the middle of making/taking calls which was annoying. The BRZ has not lost sync once. The driver seat in the BRZ, for me, are superior. I am more comfortable in them, and the driving position is much better. There is definitely more room in the backseat of the Gencoupe and better legroom for backseat passengers. Although neither is comfortable for anyone over 5'5" I really don't think there is a winner here. Both have pros and cons. I would give it a tie. But if this were the FR-S I would have to give the nod to the Gencoupe for interior styling and finish. That said, for me, the driving position is really important and the FR-S and BRZ are superior here. So that may be enough to tip the scales for most people. Both cars offer nice features like push button star and perimeter keyless entry. The Gencoupe only offers Xenon headlights in the far more expensive 3.8 Track version.

- Driving characteristics: Here is where the cars are quite different (and where I want to spend the most time discussing the cars). The Gencoupe is based on the Genesis sedan platform. It is a larger and heavier car (roughly 700 pound difference) and you can feel it immediately. You sit up higher in the Gencoupe and the driving position is not as good. That said, the Gencoupe has a little better visibility and it took me awhile to get my blindposts covered in the BRZ. The Gencoupe has good handling. It is fairly responsive, but the Gencoupe has more understeer, and it relies a lot more on the tires to keep the car under control. Throttle response is not as good with the Gencoupe, and a big complaint I had about the Gencoupe was rev hang. The BRZ has far more feedback when driving the car and, for me, it instilled much more confidence when taking a tight turn quickly. It is not that the Gencoupe was hard to steer, it just requires you to think more, where the BRZ is so intuitive, and well, fun to drive around a tight turn. The gearbox is zero contest. In fact the more I drive the BRZ, the worse the gearbox in the Gencoupe seems. The throws in the BRZ are so much shorter. The shifter is notchier and it is hard to miss a gear. In the Gencoupe the throws are much longer and far more vague. 2nd to 3rd was sometimes easy to miss, and 6th gear is a huge long throw. There is simply no contest here. On a scale of 1-10 I would rate the BRZ gearbox a 9 and the Gencoupe a 5 (at best). Hyundai has to correct this for the next model. Subaru and Toyota should change nothing. It is that close to perfect. Like the gearbox, steering in the Gencoupe is just more vague. Less driver feedback, more electronic feeling. Again not close. BRZ all the way. The car simply feels much more balanced and intuitive to drive and is just so damn fun to drive through a tight corner. I find myself smiling driving the BRZ through a corner, whereas in the Gencoupe, I want to just get through the corner so I can punch it on the straightaway. And that is where the Gencoupe has the big advantage. The car has a lot more horsepower, and makes gobs more torque. Peak torque comes quickly withthe Gencoupe and I always loved it when the turbo was making full boost. It is a blast. That said, the rev hanging and somewhat noticeable turbo lag were annoying. But in a stop light race in a straight line there is really no contest here. But I will say the BRZ is not slow. It is a quick car, but the engine responds better with higher revs. Once you get used to the powerband and where the torque dip is, you can compensate. It just takes more work. I still think the BRZ needs more horsepower and torque. Not a ton more either, just a little more I don't want a 300hp 300 ft lbs of torque in this car for a daily driver. Honestly, 20-40 more hp and 20-30 more ft lbs of torque would do it for me. This said, there is no contest here for me. The BRZ is the better drivers car. It is just so much more fun to drive, especially on a curvy road. The Gencoupe, behind the wheel, just feels and drives more vague. It is not a bad car at all. It is just not as good as the BRZ. That said, if you want a stop light racer, the Gencoupe would be the better car.

- MPG is close, but I am averaging about 2mpg better in the BRZ vs the Gencoupe when driving them comparatively. Over time, the BRZ might actually be up closer to 3mpg. But I doubt this is a deciding factor for anyone buying a RWD sports coupe. Pretty impressive the Gencoupe gets close gas mileage considering how much heavier the car is, and considering how much more hp it makes.

In the end, I liked the Gencoupe. It is really not a master of anything, but somewhat good at everything. I love the BRZ. It is just such a great drivers car. So much fun to take out in a twisty road. The loss of hp and torque is more than offset by the driving characteristics of the car (the driving position, the gearbox, the handling, the feedback).

For someone considering these cars, you really need to do an extensive test drive back to back. I think the Gencoupe has so much power, many people don't notice all the little quirks the car has vs the BRZ. Which feels slower right away, but is a car that shines on a twisty back road.

[wootwoot]

Thanks for the review. I lurked over at the gen coupe forums once or twice to read what they had to say about this comparison. It was, for lack of a better word, ridiculous.

Again, thank you for your informed comparison.

[davidp]

just a little update but im at almost 20 000km's on the brz and i can say that im a bit disappointed .. car has squeaks and rattles just about everywhere.. taillight condensation.. feels like there is something loose in the back and on cold starts it drives like crap .. i also have a vibration problem in the shifter and power always seems inconsistent when accelerating.. and when stopping at a light sometimes the idle just falls till it almost stalls then comes back to normal ..
after having all these problems i just can't imagine this car standing up to my gencoupe in the long run .. i've traded the GC at 90 000km and the car had a lot of mods and took a lot of abuse and ive never had that much problems with it .. and mine was a first year model also.. i dont even beat on that car and it feels like its already giving up

[DoomsdayJesus]

Originally Posted by davidp

just a little update but im at almost 20 000km's on the brz and i can say that im a bit disappointed .. car has squeaks and rattles just about everywhere.. taillight condensation.. feels like there is something loose in the back and on cold starts it drives like crap .. i also have a vibration problem in the shifter and power always seems inconsistent when accelerating.. and when stopping at a light sometimes the idle just falls till it almost stalls then comes back to normal ..
after having all these problems i just can't imagine this car standing up to my gencoupe in the long run .. i've traded the GC at 90 000km and the car had a lot of mods and took a lot of abuse and ive never had that much problems with it .. and mine was a first year model also.. i dont even beat on that car and it feels like its already giving up

An awful lot of this is in TSBs and is warrenty covered. I know it's not an excuse, but you may as well get it fixed.