things you notice about the 86 while driving
 

lets use this thread to talk about what it's like actually driving the car. not the standard stuff you hear in reviews, but unique, personal experiences of things you've noticed that were suprising to you. basically i want to hear about the driving characteristics of the car.

I've had a few nice performancecars in my time, and all of them seems to 'settle' on the suspension into a corner. The 86 just turns. I like that.

I like being able to avoid debris on the highway with just a flick of the wrist.

The seating position and steering - let me explain. After sitting in this car everything is just so natural that it is hidden and appears 'as it should.' This can be equated to good writing, be better it is the less you notice it. Basically the car just fits like a glove and does everything pretty flawlessly...you don't notice how spot-on everything is until you hop into a CR-V or 'regular car.' All very impressive.

I also notice how rough some of the local roads are, the stiff suspension really exaggerates broken concrete roads.

that is too funny that you mentioned hopping in a crv. that is my winter car and i hopped into it the other day after driving my brz and it felt so odd. i can't even explain how it felt. just so unnatural

On stock tires when it's wet out beware of intersection turns even at jogging speed and grandma throttle application and VSA on. The car will still throw its ass out.

There's no way I'll be getting away with running max summer tires year round like I did on my Si.

x2 That trip on I-10 past weekend was brutal...giant tire pieces everywhere!!

As my friend Garrett put it, the car is very "fingertippy." You can do almost everything you need to in the car while keeping the majority of your body still. The steering wheel and shifter are so quick and precise that if feels as if all you have to do is flick your wrist to get either of them to do exactly what you want them to do.

Pedal placement is perfect and I actually like the nice flat side of the center console to rest my knee on when driving long distances. It's high enough that it's not an edge cutting into my leg. I can't wait to get the side trim pieces covered in some padded leather or alcantara. It's gonna be perfect. :)

Visibility is surprisingly good for a small sports car. Stock headlights are great for non HID's.

The passenger seatbelt icon that goes off due to cell phones/gps sitting on the seat is hard to remember/figure out while driving if you haven't had it go off a few times. The notification light that goes off is low and to the right near the airbag on/off light instead of in the cluster so I hear the beeping, look down and see no warning lights and it sometimes takes me a second or two to remember the airbag thing. Why doesn't the seatbelt light in the console light up for both driver and passenger airbags like every other car? Minor but weird.

I'll third the other cars feeling weird sentiment. Hopped in my friend's Mini and everything felt so strange. Very upright seating position, shift lever is way down low and it's like shifting a truck, brake pedal is soft, pedals rotate in a weird angle relative to the driver.

For a $25k car, the various stocks, levers, and switches inside the car feel great. +1 to Toyota on that one I'm guessing. The Mini's feel chintzy in comparison. Aside from the budget minded HVAC controls I'd think the car cost much more going on the touchy feely of the various human interface items. I think this is one of the areas that Toyota has helped Subaru out immensely since the partnership started. All of Subaru's cars, regardless of their looks or performance have gotten higher marks than they used to since they started pulling from the Toyota parts bin for this type of stuff. The new Legacy for all it's faults was a huge step in the right direction interior quality wise for Subaru.

I think I could live with the stock sound system if not for the rattly door "subwoofers." Whatever engineer thought that up should be drawn and quartered (kidding). With the big panels in the rear where they put those joke sized speakers they could have easily fit 2 8" woofers. The mids/tweeters up in the dash make the stock sound surprisingly good though as long as what you're listening to doesn't tax the door speakers too much.

Nathan

I'll play devil's advocate.

Here's my list:
-It's slow in straights.
-Stock tires stink in terms of actual grip even more so when cold.
-Car needs a front swaybar.
-Going fast in the car makes me seem like I've reach the speed of Plaid.
-I can never hear my shift beep indicator, the noise from the sound tube drowns it out.

That's about it for now. I've probably missed something. :bonk:

I've noticed the airbag light and chime as well. Seems if i put my phone or other things closer to the seat back it doesnt affect it as much as when things are sitting more towards the front edge of the seat.

The suspension is firmer on this car than my previous Lancer GTS with Tein Basic coilovers on it. I checked my air pressure this morning and adjusted them from about 39 (cold) down to 35 as labeled in the door jam.

The stock stereo does have a little punch to it in the doors but its not the low frequencies a sub puts out. I may add an 8" sub in the trunk and relieve the door speakers of bass duty and eliminate that rattling in the doors.

I've had the chirp under the hood that i notice sitting in a drive through. Its really not bothering me though. I wander if it affects performance but I'm guessing not. Hate to fool with them swapping out the fuel pump for it...

Yeah, the chirp very rarely bothers me. Hasn't bothered me enough to want to be without the car to have it fixed.

@engee - I feel that it's quick (not fast) in the straights once you get it in the powerband but it definitely could use a bit more torque in the 3-4k range (Dur, that's where the torque dip is) so that you don't have to wring it out to pass a minivan.

I'm not sure what you mean by "speed of plaid" but it's my experience that when driving in the twisties, the car is so communicative that it feels like you're driving pretty quickly (on the stock tires) because you can feel the limit at all times but that in reality you're not going all that fast (as evidenced by my friend driving behind me on real tires in his Mini keeping up with not too much effort even though I had the power advantage).

Nathan

I live at the base of big bear mountain.. Go up and down on my GSXR 750 all the time.. I've passed numerous sports cars all the time when wearing my full leathers.. It's a great road if anyone lives close enough. I finally took my car up and down the road, in sport mode.. Mine is an auto, and it's been a long time since I had a rear drive sports coupe, I'm coming from a 02 Nissan xterra. Anyways.. I was so suprised at how much this car turns.. I've read the reviews, but till you experience yourself, I had no idea.. It just seems to wanna go faster and faster, the back might've stepped out a little once, as I heard the rather loud TC kick in, but I actually made it up and down faster then on my bike..

I'm really enjoying the balance of the car.. It is my daily and I wish the bottom of the seat was just a bit softer, after a 8 hour drive I was sore, but that's down to personal preference .. I'm a bit scared to add rims and sticky tires as I read over and over it changes the balance.. I'd also like to have a more aggressive exhuast note.. But I'm nit picking now..

I come to the FR-S out of a Miata so the "everything fits me well" is nothing new. Since I don't push the edge of the envelope I find the suspension just the way it comes out of the box is fine with me. The only thing I find a little bothersome is the short first gear.

As other posters have noted. I don't notice things when I drive the FR-S, but I do when I drive something else.

On the weekends I get to drive the family around in the Honda Odyssey mini-van. I hate it! The handling is sloppy, the acceleration is mushy, and I'm driving in the clouds.

I feel like I'm a big rig trucker! Breaker-breaker here comes the Rubber Duck.