i test drove the FRS yesterday! and im a little worried....

[pr086]

i got to take out an automatic frs yesterday, i left it in full automatic mode and put my foot down... and nothing. it was VERY sluggish, and not what i was expecting.

i drive a civic si now so i'm used to not having a lot of torque but this is not what i was expecting. it doesn't make any sense either, the frs has the same horse power, a little more torque, and is about 150 lbs lighter. maybe it's just because i was in the automatic and had it on regular auto (not the paddles), but it just felt like a "regular" slower car. i was never considering the auto, i just wanted to try out the car. but hopefully the manual is a completely different car acceleration wise...

other than that i loved it. you sit low to the ground, the suspension is stiff, the steering felt great. but i'm very worried about the power now... it doesn't have the fast revving acceleration i'm used to in my si. at least not in the auto.

has anyone driven both? why is the auto so slow? is the manual any better?

[BillY2KFRC]

The auto has taller the gear ratios, the manual should feel quicker than your Si. That's how the auto gets an extra 4mpg. Also, the less-direct connection to the drivetrain will make the auto feel a bit more laggy as well. I don't think you need to be worried.

[pr086]

that makes sense, makes me feel a little better.

[Boosted2.0]

Originally Posted by pr086

i got to take out an automatic frs yesterday, i left it in full automatic mode and put my foot down... and nothing. it was VERY sluggish, and not what i was expecting.

i drive a civic si now so i'm used to not having a lot of torque but this is not what i was expecting. it doesn't make any sense either, the frs has the same horse power, a little more torque, and is about 150 lbs lighter. maybe it's just because i was in the automatic and had it on regular auto (not the paddles), but it just felt like a "regular" slower car. i was never considering the auto, i just wanted to try out the car. but hopefully the manual is a completely different car acceleration wise...

other than that i loved it. you sit low to the ground, the suspension is stiff, the steering felt great. but i'm very worried about the power now... it doesn't have the fast revving acceleration i'm used to in my si. at least not in the auto.

has anyone driven both? why is the auto so slow? is the manual any better?

I have driven both. the auto is actually faster than the manual, but you have to put it into sport mode. Regular "D" mode is intended for economy and smooth comfy shifts for your daily commute.

The auto trans has 4 modes in total:

1 - D mode - normal daily driving
2 - D with sport mode turned on - Tranny does all shifting, but does so much more agressively than in normal D mode. It holds gears longer and downshifts mmore agressively
3 - Manual mode - Kind of like D mode with wport, only you control the shifts
4 - Manual mode with sport mode turned on - This is where the magic happens. Upshifts are amazingly fast. Downshifts are throttle blipping and amazingly fast. It will let you downshift into very high revs (not oner-rev, but very high in the range0. It will also not upshift unless you tell it - it will bounce of the rev limiter unless you tell it to shift.

The auto is pretty amazing. I still chose a manual and I feel it leaves me more options on the tuning front, and I prefer driving a manual, but those are preferences. I reccomend going back for another drive.

[Saibot]

I have the same feeling as OP.

after the auto, i was very very sad. my regular civic seemed faster lol...

then i tried the manual version. all doubts were set aside

[pr086]

i was for sure in the regular D setting. just said D under the speedo in the little info box.

[Boosted2.0]

Originally Posted by pr086

i was for sure in the regular D setting. just said D under the speedo in the little info box.

Next time hit the "sport" button on the center console. It is a whole different car. Actually all 4 of those modes I posted are different.

[Memphis]

Looks like OP missed out on some fun in the auto lol. Go back for round 2 and let us know how it goes

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by Boosted2.0

I have driven both. the auto is actually faster than the manual, but you have to put it into sport mode. Regular "D" mode is intended for economy and smooth comfy shifts for your daily commute.

The auto trans has 4 modes in total:

It's faster shifting, it's slower on the track (any type of track).

[pr086]

they shouldn't have even put this "slow mode" on the car! (in my mind it shouldn't even come automatic, but from a business perspective i understand it.)

[russv]

Originally Posted by pr086

they shouldn't have even put this "slow mode" on the car! (in my mind it shouldn't even come automatic, but from a business perspective i understand it.)

For driving around town you may want to drive a bit more leisurely and get better mileage. Can't drift all the time.

[SUB-FT86]

Originally Posted by Saibot

I have the same feeling as OP.

after the auto, i was very very sad. my regular civic seemed faster lol...

then i tried the manual version. all doubts were set aside

[ntaphse]

I have an 07 Civic Si m/t sedan and have driven both the auto and manual FR-S. From my limited exposure I would say the m/t Si and FR-S are in the same ballpark acceleration wise, and the auto just feels more tame. I did not drive the auto in sport or manual mode as I was watching a scanner and dodging traffic in the LBC in a car that wasn't mine.

[thill]

Originally Posted by pr086

they shouldn't have even put this "slow mode" on the car! (in my mind it shouldn't even come automatic, but from a business perspective i understand it.)

Every car manufacturer has to be concerned about fuel mileage. I think this mode makes sense for a lot of daily commuting, and many people may prefer it if/when gas hits $4-5 a gallon.

[pr086]

ntaphse, can yout talk more about how the manual frs compares to the si? it's good to hear from someone that has experience with both. i know the frs won't have that vtec kick like we get at 6k, but i felt nothing like that level of acceleration when i was in the automatic frs.

what does driving the manual feel like compared to the si?

[SUB-FT86]

But isn't the biggest difference between sport and auto being able to rev higher? It's not like sport has untapped hp/tq. In regular DD I don't think that would make a big difference unless you DD around 5-7k rpms daily right?

[Saber_TRD]

Originally Posted by pr086

they shouldn't have even put this "slow mode" on the car! (in my mind it shouldn't even come automatic, but from a business perspective i understand it.)

Maybe they'll do what they did with the Celica. The TRD edition came only in a 6MT, no AT at all for the TRD version. If you wanted AT you had to go regular GT or GT-S. The 86 does have that fancy nur-spec kit that looks very similar to the TRD Celica kit. I could see this happening again in the future.

[fistpoint]

Originally Posted by pr086

ntaphse, can yout talk more about how the manual frs compares to the si? it's good to hear from someone that has experience with both. i know the frs won't have that vtec kick like we get at 6k, but i felt nothing like that level of acceleration when i was in the automatic frs.

what does driving the manual feel like compared to the si?

The new Si doesn't even have the VTEC kick anymore. The new Si is pathetic with it's steering light enough for a person having a stroke, to it's soft clutch pedal that pushes itself in from just a slight breeze or an insect landing on it. Or the ridiculous rev-hang that keeps your rpm's up even after you've shifted! What the hell was Honda thinking?!?

The driving pleasure of the previous generations is long gone. Now it's a DX with more HP and accessories. This coming from a 20 year Civic veteran.

[burt]

I had the same experience when I test drove the automatic. It made me rethink the buying of the BRZ completely. I got a chance to test drive the manual yesterday and I'm definitely back to wanting to purchase the car.

The automatic has tall gearing but even the manual BRZ has taller gearing when compared to the Si. I'm coming from driving a Integra with ITR gearing with 4.7 FD (not daily).

Test drive the manual and then see how you feel.

[Primo86]

Originally Posted by Saber_TRD

Maybe they'll do what they did with the Celica. The TRD edition came only in a 6MT, no AT at all for the TRD version. If you wanted AT you had to go regular GT or GT-S. The 86 does have that fancy nur-spec kit that looks very similar to the TRD Celica kit. I could see this happening again in the future.

I came from a 7th Gen. Celica also (yours looks great BTW.) I think you are deff. right about the TRD version and its kit. Heres the sad truth: they only offered the Celica TRD Sports M in the Japanese market, and a few made it to the Euro scene. Very limited number unless you lived in Japan. This will most likely be the case with a TRD FR-S if one comes to exist; especially considering the limited production, which the Celica really didn't have.

[Primo86]

This thread makes me so happy I bought a 6MT. =] I came this close to ordering an auto because I do a lot of city driving and don't have much manual experience, but luckily Esoteric Performance (FT86 Club member) talked me into the proper manual because of the gearing, diff, and driving experience. I am so glad now.

sorry for the double post.

[Saber_TRD]

Originally Posted by Primo86

I came from a 7th Gen. Celica also (yours looks great BTW.) I think you are deff. right about the TRD version and its kit. Heres the sad truth: they only offered the Celica TRD Sports M in the Japanese market, and a few made it to the Euro scene. Very limited number unless you lived in Japan. This will most likely be the case with a TRD FR-S if one comes to exist; especially considering the limited production, which the Celica really didn't have.

I wasn't referring to the Sports M, that beauty was indeed a rarity. I believe the Modellista will be the Sports M equivalent for the 86, that will likely never see the light of day over here. Along with this TRD version of the 86.

I do hope this kit, so dubbed the nur-spec, comes our way. (Squeezing as many smecksy pic links in there as I can ) As that reminds me of the TRD version North America received... on a Toyota (shameless plug for want of Toyota and not Scion/Subaru).

Edit: Fixed links as apparently google translate forces you to the main page.