Sedan equivalent
 

I sold the brz a ways back in the search for more power. It was a mistake I knew heading into it but sometimes you have to scratch that itch. I still have an Elise so I'm doing okay. Now that it's time to move on from a corvette I think I want a little more utility but I don't know if any sedans that are simple drivers cars. I know there are cool things like the m cars and rally cars and hot hatches, but are there cars that are like a 4 door miata or twin?

An E36 M3 comes to mind. 3200lbs, 250hp, RWD.

Civic Type R, I never would’ve thought so in the past, but this review made me think twice.

Pretty light for a 4 door turbo hatch too. The only thing is the looks are a bit out there, but the new one with revised styling isn’t far off.

https://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142699

If you're not interested in something that looks like a clown car (Civic Type R) the Mk7 GTI is a good alternative. 3000-3200 lb depending on options. Smart LSD. And a simple ECU reflash gained me 100/100 hp & torque.

Unfortunately relatively lightweight RWD 4 door sedans, that aren't 20+ yrs old, are basically non-existent. If you're willing to deal with a bit of heft, more options present themselves. Or older, the E36 mentioned above is a good option.

If you want something that compares to the Corvette in power, there is the CTS-V and CT5-V Blackwing. The CT4-V Blackwing would be the smaller version of this.

The CT5-V Blackwing seems to be shipping now based on my local dealer.

I think the regular CT5-V twin turbo V6 is the sweet spot in performance/price though.

I don’t see how anything FWD could be remotely equivalent to this car.

I dont think theres any 4 door RWD sports cars that isnt a luxury car or something super old.

If its old it might not even be a sports car.

I suppose an RX8 might count, since its got 2 back half doors so it is technically a 4 door lol.

But those fender flares :thumbdown:

Alfa Romeo Giulia

approx 3400lbs, rwd and 280hp with an excellent ZF transmission.

The 4 cylinder giulia is fairly reliable as well with electrical gremlins from earlier model years being the most commonly reported issues. The majority of the issues appear to be fixed with ECU flashes.

Driving dynamics are excellent and road presence is great too. It's 100% the most driver focused car in it's class. Can find CPO at about ~30k. Make sure you get the sport package with LSD.

E36, unequivocally. Huge aftermarket support, platform knowledge, design and use knowledge. Car drives amazing, just don't forget to change the entire cooling system, get a non-plastic impeller waterpump, and don't use the windows unless you absolutely have to. They might not come back up

Rx8
E36m3 sedan

I’ve driven a friend’s tuned mk7 gti and it’s not really comparable to miata/FRS/s2000 if that’s what you’re looking for.

Haven’t tried the CTR but if you’re planning to track it, it’s got overheating issues at the track.

Might keep an eye out for the upcoming GR Corolla, especially if it’s anything like the GR Yaris.

The 330 Ci is not a bad choice either, often overlooked because of its meaner brother, the E46.

Sedan equivalent
 

I agree on the RX8 being fantastic to drive. To live with, not so much. My buddy gets 16 MPG commuting, and his engine is in great shape with a stand alone oil injection system.

Just get an E46 330Ci then [emoji6]
ZHP FTW, but they’ll cost you.

Agreed. Small car by today’s standards. And don’t forget the oil pump nut.

A modern 4-door sedan or something older?

Older: I would think a BMW E46 or E90 generation 3 Series with the NA 2.5 I6 and a manual would be a good starting place, no? Around 200 HP and 3,100 pounds.

Maybe also any generation IS350 or IS250.

Newer:
Cadillac ATS or CTS.. Or the CT4 or CT5.

Well by (debatable) definition, asking about a 4 door sedan eliminates sports car automatically doesn't it?

CTS-V Wagon with 6 speed MT is where it's at! (if you can afford one, they basically still sell for their new price).

If you are a "give me MT or give me something else" type, I believe with the CTS-V you have to drop back to the GEN2 (2010-2015), or go with the new Blackwing (CT4 or CT5 can be had with a manual). The 4 and 5 are probably the last big power, 4 doors you'll be able to get with a manual transmission from anyone.

well im more thinking that an old RWD 4 door car would be something like a Toyota Cressida...its not really a sporty car but it is RWD.

The Cadillacs mentioned above are all RWD and the 4/5 comes in AWD as an option.

If you can find an old IS 300

OR

IS-F

GS-F

The Chevy SS might scratch your itch or a Cadillac CTS-V (I would love to get my hands on a CTS-V Wagon)

Is a manual a deal breaker? If not that opens up the Audi RS3 or larger RS5.

It was a sad day when Cadillac dropped the wagon. Here's a little video of it racing a Ferrari California.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sUjOiCj-bQ

How is torque steer after reflash?

I thought the same thing until I read the review I quoted earlier and seeing Type R reviews from Savagegeese and EverydayDriver. A pretty amazing vehicle for FWD.

i agree type r is probably best option if you don't care about rwd..

otherwise, on paper hard to go wrong with an older bmw but in my mind 5 speed manual IS 300 is the closest thing to a spiritual 4 door 86 from toyota and especially first two gens of the impreza would be closest from subaru.

It's not new, but if you can find one, a Subaru Baja Turbo manual would be cool.

Largest issue I had with the 2.0 Giulia is that it's an SOHC 4 pot that redlines at 5500 RPM. Torque starts to fall off at around 4500 RPM. It does pull hard, but matted to the ZF8 you find yourself almost constantly slapping paddles while on a back road. While that sounds fun, the stock exhaust is very quiet, and I constantly found myself bouncing off the rev limiter. The handling was fantastic, but compared to a twin where you can enjoy winding out a gear, the low redline gets annoying pretty quickly.

Definitely has a diesel-like power delivery. It's in need of a bigger turbo but the aftermarket support for the platform is poor, unfortunately. They just look so damn good

Completely agreed on the looks. Maybe with a larger cat back I could have gotten used to the shift points by sound eventually, to be fair. While not risking warranty refusals. Still ended up getting a WRX STI at the time. That's nothing like a twin, though.

Torque steer isn't really a big deal, but I'm not a huge fan of the feeling you get through the steering wheel from all the power driving the front end. And the smart LSD can only do so much when 350 lb-ft of torque is applied while hustling through a slow turn. Instead of the LSD overdriving the outside wheel to help turn the car in you're more likely to get power-on understeer. However this car is used as my DD so it's never really an issue. Even the occasional mtn road romp is fine. Be another story if I was taking it to HPDEs or AutoX.

E90 all day long. 328i if you want reliability. 335i if you want crazy power. Pretty comfy inside. Modern crashworthiness. Excellent handler.

The E90 is such a good all-rounder. We’re on our third one and I’m really struggling to think of what is next for our family car.

Lots of good suggestions. Some I never even thought of. I found a lead on a clean and well kept Evo x that I have known of since the day the owner bought it. I think I'm going to go that route but I definitely appreciate the info since we're probably going to also have to get my partner a sedan to replace her miata.