Performance Frustration, what should I do?

[SkAsphalt]

I hate you for writing this post

[thill]

Originally Posted by DarkSunrise

Downshift to 4500+ rpm and wind the engine out to redline. The powerband on this car is 4500 --> 7400 rpm. It's plenty of power to overtake cars on the highway, but if you don't enjoy using that part of the RPM band, you might not have understood what this car was about when you purchased it.

Amen. You have to really push this car sometimes, but when you do, you are rewarded. I think people are used to living in the 3-5K powerband, and in this car, that is the weak spot. Otherwise plan on FI, or at a minimum, some bolt on's and a tune.

[Mesfet]

LOL at those tags

[wlfpck]

There are a lot of things to consider.

1. "new-ness" of the car (age).
2. handling ability.
3. straight line performance.
4. cost.
5. options that come with the car.

The list goes on and on.

All of these factors are all related in some way shape or form. For instance, if you want a cheap car with great handling, you may have to sacrifice the "new-ness" factor and maybe the options that came with the car.

If you want a New cheap car with good handling and good options, you may sacrifice a bit in the area for straight line performance.

Think about the new GT-Rs, Corvettes, 911s, etc. These cars all have high costs to offset the good handling, good straight line, and good options that come with the car.

There is always a balance of things. It is unreasonable to expect the exact same things in a 30k car as a 70k car. Somewhere, whether it is performance or luxury, there is something that makes up cost difference.

[WorldRallyBlueBRZ]

Sounds like that 4k you have spent on the car was put towards the wrong things....Seems like it should have been spent on some sort of boost or you really should just have another car....Im not trying to sounds like a jerk or anything but trade it it and buy something faster and stop the racing on the highway

[ichitaka05]

Font & size fixed... don't expect me to fix where paragraph ends & etc.

[WhiteThenGreyBRZ]

long story short...at least I will try to make it short... I had to cut some expenses since I bought a second house, and the very first thing that came to my mind was trading my one year old Mercedes into something less expensive. The car that has been aways on the top of my list was the BRZ, even by the time I was about to buy the Mercedes, the BRZ was my first option, but they were impossible to find, available on the dealerships, and that thing of putting non-refundable money upfront was not me at all. So I traded my Mercedes on a car that I have great appreciation, not as a sport car, not as fun to drive car, but for its Boxer engine, its AWD, and its amazing fuel economy and pricing, compared to shitty Hyundai, Kias, and VWs, so I got a Impreza Sport, a white one, with dark grey wheels , CVT, and leather seats, and the car was great, i was not the car of my dreams, but I was able to bring my monthly payments to the 400's, and that was my goal. Amazingly, less then a week later, I stop by the Subaru dealer to return my Ex-Mercedes second key, and I suddenly saw a white BRZ on their new cars showroom, and I asked, Is this available? and The sales guy said yes, so I immediately asked him to run the numbers all over again, and we started negotiating and soon we got the numbers settle, the car was mine, and that took just a few minutes. I was so excited living the dealership with the car that was on the top of my wish list, and been able to be less expensive than the Mercedes, that I didnt notice there were about 2k miles on it, I just taught that was probably the weirdest new car deliver I ever had, because it was so freaking quick.. I just got the keys and there were my car waiting for me, but at that point I was glad it was that way. I went to pick up my kid to take her for lunch, and I got a speed ticket @ 86 mph on my way there, so much I was enjoying my little baby, but then, once I got her, my adrenaline was down, and I started to think without the emotion; then I notice the lack of new car smell, and I taught that was odd. Once I got at the restaurant parking lot, I decided to pair my phone with the car, to call my wife overseas, and I start playing on the controls in order to do that, and then, I notice there was a previous phone paired to the car, and I also noticed the navigation was not working, so as soon as I finish lunch, I went back to the dealer, and tried to return the car, and get my Inpreza back, then they lied to me saying the car was already sold (lie),a and the bank had already finished everything, so there was nothing I could do. I went home, and I google how to config the Navigation system, and I found out it was missing a SD card. A day after that, I went back to the dealership, asking for the SD card that was missing, that the guy @ the service desk called someone from the sales department, and he told me the sales person the sold the car to me was no longer working there, and that he could not give me a card because the car was pre-owned. Than I got MAD, extremely pissed off, and so everything was explained then, the lack of new car smell, the missing part, the quick deliver, and all the almost 2k on the odometer that I just had found after getting this information. I try to speak with the Manager but they dont allowed me. So I left the building decided to sue them . I called a few friends, and kept thinking on moving a law suit against them, while I was keeping on negotiating a friendly solution. I wrote down a letter to Subaru of America, they replied back to me saying there were nothing they could do but asking the General Manager talk to me. So that happened, and we both agree it was not fair to pay as new, and get a pre owned car, and specially on my case, that haven't bought a single used car since I finish college, a long time ago, that was something that would bring a lots of frustration, so we agree to wait for the first available BRZ on their inventory, to get back there to solve the issue. About five and a half months latter, I saw on their online inventory, what that may be the last pack of 13 BRZ they would get, so I choose mine, out of four, and went there to finish this Soap Opera, it was still a hard negotiation around the depreciation of my white BRZ, and I found that 1k bucks would be fair, for the time I spent with the car, and the miles I put on it, and finally got my new BRZ, smelling new, 7 miles on the odometer, and no missing part.

[WhiteThenGreyBRZ]

thank you Sir!

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by WhiteThenGreyBRZ

but I was expecting a lot more agility from a car that had the Caymman as a benchmark on its development.

The BRZ/FR-S is agile. It's one of the most agile cars I've ever driven. Agile does not necessarily mean fast. It means that the car changes direction quickly, and responds to driver input with minimal delay.

That having been said, when I was looking into buying a car last spring, I noticed something: people love to say that this car had the Cayman as a benchmark in development. People also say the 370Z had the Cayman as a benchmark. At the end of the day though, you're never going to get all of the attributes of a Cayman in a car that costs $25-35k new. You can have similar (or better) straight line performance and ultimate grip at the cost of the driver feel and agility (370Z, Mustang GT w/track pack, Camaro SS), you can have similar driver feel and agility at the cost of straight line performance (BRZ), but if you really want everything a Cayman offers, you really have only one choice: buy a Cayman. There's a reason it's twice the price of a BRZ/370Z/Mustang. Believe me, if Subaru and Toyota could have replicated the driving experience of the Cayman in every way at a 30k price point, they would have, but compromises have to be made to keep the car from becoming too expensive.

If you want good straight line performance and cornering performance, buy a 370Z, Mustang GT, or Camaro SS (or an evo, for that matter...). They have amazingly good all around performance, but they aren't (in my opinion) as instantly responsive as the BRZ/FR-S/Cayman. That might be what you're looking for though, especially since you keep mentioning Mercedes (I've never been all that impressed with the driving feel of non-AMG mercedes, to be honest, and I've never driven an AMG, so I haven't yet formed an opinion of those). From your story above and everything you've said so far, I'm not convinced that you actually want agility in a car - rather, you sound like you want it to look good, feel fast, and have an impressive-sounding spec sheet.

[2superblus]

Ok has anyone asked if the the OP has had the car tuned yet?

Honestly the a tune really will bring the car alive.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by 2superblus

Ok has anyone asked if the the OP has had the car tuned yet?

Honestly the a tune really will bring the car alive.

Why spend another couple grand and risk the health of the car when he could just jump in a car with the kind of performance he's looking for with little impact on his financials?

Tuning does put more stress on the car, done right it will never be noticed (and based on Subaru reputation be better for durability) but done for power you're sacrificing that longevity. Most people aren't cool with gambling the motor on their new car, especially if they just got it to reduce their expenses as the OP did.

It's an option, and should be done before FI if the OP decides to stick with the car, but most are of the opinion that modding because you're disappointed in the power is a loosing battle. Modding because you love the platform is different and doesn't seem to be the OP's feelings.

[InvalidJohnny5]

Originally Posted by WhiteThenGreyBRZ

thanks for the advice, bro, I was expecting some mild improvements on weight reduction, just a little wide tires, and most impotently, by cutting weight on rotating mass; like the crank pulley and the driveshaft. but then I as love the design of the car, but I taught it was missing something to be perfect, so I ended up waisting too much on thing that would do nothing on my please to drive. I was not considering a turbo, or anything hardcore before, because I am not a street racer, I was when I was very young, but now, I just want to enjoy the car, so with that been said, I would be happy with 230 hp , and maybe 200 lbs of linear torque. I was never thinking on reach 300 horses on this car, and I used to believe that with the car weight and proportions, the performance would not be as bad as I do now

No matter what anyone tells you, you will never reach 230rwhp 200tq NA. It's too much work and not cost effective, you are better off FI. I loved the car stock it handles how it should, I took a turbo cause there are many steep hills in my area (car starts slowing down even WOT...) If it didn't have that problem I probably wouldn't have boosted it, eventually I ended up swapping out the driveshaft and entire clutch assembly. Let me just say it feels GREAT! before I shed 40lbs of rotational mass I was at 240whp/185tq, I could only imagine there is less power loss through the drivetrain so I probably gained somewhere between 5-10rwhp. I may or may not increase power down the road, but for now I just want loads of tires and brake pads. It's not about having a huge number on a dyno when it comes to tuning my car, it's getting the most enjoyment out of it from every mod I do to the car. I have yet to regret anything I've installed on the car, each piece just comes together like a puzzle for me making the experience exponentially more engaging. If you are looking for a traffic light warrior this car isn't it... this car is a blank canvas with the best piece of parchment available to write on; you choose the ink for your quill, whether it is cheap or expensive. I have this car setup to drive year round from -20 to 100F. It has made many road trips and spends zero time in a garage (have almost 30,000 miles). It ultimately depends on what YOU want, I test drove a Z cause at that time it was supposedly a better bang for buck and completed hated it aside from the power. If your goal consists of gunning every stoplight you see then you should just buy a Mustang, it's that simple. You can go through the list and see you wouldn't be the only one to trade for one.

[InvalidJohnny5]

Though if you decide to sell your car I wouldn't mind taking the Raceseng pulley set off your hands.

[Khazzy]

Originally Posted by Frstorm

Strat- I wouldnt drive a miata but I love my FRS

I wouldnt either...

I think the OP bought this car for the wrong reasons. Its not fast, its not going to beat an accord, I have more than enough power to pass people on the FWY/HWY. Down shift a gear and you will be fine. But honestly I would probably grab a different car, or learn to love it...

You will know if you love the car after taking the first sit in it.