Autocar review out

[Sport-Tech]

Originally Posted by SUB-FT86

Every critic initially hypes a car up. I remember when a long list of other cars drop critics had great things to say then when the hype died months later it wasn't all that special to them afterwards. I take their reviews with a grain of salt whether it's cars, movies or anything. I am my favorite critic.

I've noticed a tendency for the secondary, comparative reviews that come out later to generally be much more critical of anything short of a 458 or 911 turbo... makes you wonder about the effect those fully-paid junkets to the south of Spain or Hawaii in the middle of winter have on journalist objectivity.

That said, the incredible unanimity of the praise for the Tobaru across what must be 20+ reviews now is encouraging.

[JohnnyR]

Originally Posted by Rampage

NO you couldn't. Nor could you count them on all your appendages even with your shoes off. You would be surprised how many quality road couses there are in this country. Have you taken the time to go to an SCCA club race? A NASA race? Grand Am? Petit Le Mans? There are dozens of world class road courses in American and hundreds of lesser tracks around the country.

This is truth, and don't forget all the "hillclimbs/dominators" as well. There's plenty of it out there, plenty of people that participate. "LOLUSANASCAR" is a blanket knee-jerk statement thrown out when people can't comprehend that a proper motor is part of a true sports car. All those people who make fun of "muscle cars" because they can't turn as well at the 86 just look bad themselves as the 86 lacks the motor to be a complete package to be a true sports car.

I know of these hillclimbs and close track infield race days because I attend them. One of them, at a NASCAR track a little ways away from me. LOL.

[Maxim]

Originally Posted by lpnnlp

This. Plus....

<rant>

As a European expat who has lived in So Cal for 20+ years, I would like to add my observation that the daily lives of many Americans, at least those that I see in SoCal, is one of routines consisting of driving the kids around, driving to work, doing the rounds at Costco, paying bills, eating a lot, shitting a lot, and maybe fuck a little. Rinse and repeat.

There are very few holidays and really no such thing as downtime in this country. Somebody is always working somewhere, and when there is downtime, the unease of just relaxing is so unbearable that Americans need to go and shop for something...

The only way to tolerate this drab existence for these people is to become numb. Numb to their own feelings.... how they hate being shafted and exploited by their asshole bosses.... how they are being played by the political class and they end up voting for the same crap every four years... how the government pays itself first from their miserable paychecks... how the church is completely and utterly full of shit.. how their parents mistreated them growing up... and hey, let's not forget the thankless children...

So these numb people live low volume and low voltage numb and drab lives. But that is not living and they know it... They want to feel, but they have been numb so long... with so much anger pent up that they look for the slightest excuse to SNAP, so they can finally feel so strongly about something that it makes them feel alive... it reminds them that they are human. They spend so much time in the car that the only way to express anger is to smoke the other car on the freeway on-ramp... So of course you need a lot of horsepower. You also need sweets that are so god damn sweet that you get an instant tooth ache. Refined foods loaded with salt and fat in portions bigger and bigger just so they feel full for a little while. And lets not forget porn... which is now as hard and heavy as they can make it.

And all this for what? Just to excite them enough to pass the threshold of numbness. Most of these people have neither the sensory or emotional acuity to enjoy a car like the BRZ/FRS and that's a real shame.

</rant>

Sound's more like you're angry than they/we are.... *shrug*

It's pretty simple. In the states, power is cheap. Gas is cheap. There are plenty of cars that offer ridiculous acceleration, and almost all our roads are straight. Everything is far apart.

It's just that simple. American roads and conditions favor high power, long distance cruisers. Acceleration is the most accessible form of vehicle performance on our roads, and the extreme distances many of us have to drive to go see family, since our country is huge, necessitate somewhat larger vehicles. Low taxes and extremely variable weather conditions keep our roads in worse shape comparatively than European roads, making a more softly sprung (or heavier) vehicle significantly more comfortable for the kind of driving we do.

Maybe you just hang out with the wrong people? I'm military, and I still have plenty of downtime for entertainment.

Anyways, American drivers place less value on small, lightweight cars because the driving environment isn't restrictive for larger vehicles, the way it is in Europe.

And I live in Europe.

Bashing an entire people simply because the average member values different things in a car than you seems pretty....excessive. And that's something, coming from me, as I am generally a very excessive person.




Anyways, good to see another very positive review. The 7.7 0-60 is quite disappointing, since it's quite a bit slower than a 27xxlb car with 200hp really should be doing....

But that's primarily due to the way it's likely being driven, and this magazine also likely shifted to 3rd before reaching 60mph. The 6.4 sec 0-60 is much more in line with what I was expecting out of this car, and the fact that a regular magazine was able to accomplish it is good enough for me. Actual felt acceleration should be quite good...I'm glad the shift points are placed to accomplish good real world acceleration rather than spaced wider to maximize an on paper statistic.

[86fanatic]

Originally Posted by Rampage

NO you couldn't. Nor could you count them on all your appendages even with your shoes off. You would be surprised how many quality road couses there are in this country. Have you taken the time to go to an SCCA club race? A NASA race? Grand Am? Petit Le Mans? There are dozens of world class road courses in American and hundreds of lesser tracks around the country.

I'm sorry but most of the events that SCCA hosts are at tracks which are a few notches above a go kart track. Cones in a parking lot is not exactly confidence inspiring. Even including those tracks - there are plenty of people who live no where near anything resembling even a glorified go kart track.

In terms of the actual historic race tracks in the US, there's really not many. Laguna Seca, Indy 500, Daytona. Two of those are ovals by the way (well Daytona has an oval configuration).

Getting into less historic fields, there's Willow Springs, Roebling Road Raceway, and a few other here and there that are 2+ miles long and pretty decent. But again, chances are you live no where near one. I know I don't.

[Genomaxter]

Lucky for me New Orleans just got a race track with a road course, autocross pad, skid pad and kart track. So my car will enjoy itself.

[GrimmSpeed]

Now, don't skewer me for saying it, but even at its "less than fast" 0-60mph time, i can guarantee this car will be a blast to drive. I don't know if any of you folks were previously 240sx/200sx/180sx/silvia owners, but this car is very similar in size, as well as similar to power output (non-usdm). Those cars are not exactly fast, but they sure were a blast to drive.

And this car is looking to be vastly superior, even around the twisties.

The power WILL come in due time as well, i promise you.

Chase

[Alkiera]

Originally Posted by 86fanatic

I'm sorry but most of the events that SCCA hosts are at tracks which are a few notches above a go kart track. Cones in a parking lot is not exactly confidence inspiring. Even including those tracks - there are plenty of people who live no where near anything resembling even a glorified go kart track.

In terms of the actual historic race tracks in the US, there's really not many. Laguna Seca, Indy 500, Daytona. Two of those are ovals by the way (well Daytona has an oval configuration).

Getting into less historic fields, there's Willow Springs, Roebling Road Raceway, and a few other here and there that are 2+ miles long and pretty decent. But again, chances are you live no where near one. I know I don't.

You forgot Watkins Glen? In operation since 1948, runs NASCAR, SCCA, US Vintage Grand Prix and other events; 2.45-3.4 miles long depending on configuration, 141 ft of elevation variance, features left and right turns, even for the NASCAR race!

I know some people who do HPDE events out there; I really want to run one, but they're kinda pricey. There are some smaller tracks that are closer, but that's where I'd want to track my BRZ.

[Spaceywilly]

Originally Posted by lpnnlp

This. Plus....

<rant>

As a European expat who has lived in So Cal for 20+ years, I would like to add my observation that the daily lives of many Americans, at least those that I see in SoCal, is one of routines consisting of driving the kids around, driving to work, doing the rounds at Costco, paying bills, eating a lot, shitting a lot, and maybe fuck a little. Rinse and repeat.

There are very few holidays and really no such thing as downtime in this country. Somebody is always working somewhere, and when there is downtime, the unease of just relaxing is so unbearable that Americans need to go and shop for something...

The only way to tolerate this drab existence for these people is to become numb. Numb to their own feelings.... how they hate being shafted and exploited by their asshole bosses.... how they are being played by the political class and they end up voting for the same crap every four years... how the government pays itself first from their miserable paychecks... how the church is completely and utterly full of shit.. how their parents mistreated them growing up... and hey, let's not forget the thankless children...

So these numb people live low volume and low voltage numb and drab lives. But that is not living and they know it... They want to feel, but they have been numb so long... with so much anger pent up that they look for the slightest excuse to SNAP, so they can finally feel so strongly about something that it makes them feel alive... it reminds them that they are human. They spend so much time in the car that the only way to express anger is to smoke the other car on the freeway on-ramp... So of course you need a lot of horsepower. You also need sweets that are so god damn sweet that you get an instant tooth ache. Refined foods loaded with salt and fat in portions bigger and bigger just so they feel full for a little while. And lets not forget porn... which is now as hard and heavy as they can make it.

And all this for what? Just to excite them enough to pass the threshold of numbness. Most of these people have neither the sensory or emotional acuity to enjoy a car like the BRZ/FRS and that's a real shame.

</rant>

Someone should turn this into a commercial for the BRZ

[WolfpackS2k]

Originally Posted by Dark

I see a lot positive comments on the site than on autoblog, MT and IL. Why American websites suck so bad?

Probably because the governments over them tax them to death to the point where they are just happy to own a car at all.

[WolfpackS2k]

Originally Posted by Rampage

NO you couldn't. Nor could you count them on all your appendages even with your shoes off. You would be surprised how many quality road couses there are in this country. Have you taken the time to go to an SCCA club race? A NASA race? Grand Am? Petit Le Mans? There are dozens of world class road courses in American and hundreds of lesser tracks around the country.

THANK YOU for posting that. I swear the amount of ignorance I see on this site is more than all the other car sites I visit combined.

[Liftcontrol]

Originally Posted by lpnnlp

This. Plus....

<rant>

As a European expat who has lived in So Cal for 20+ years, I would like to add my observation that the daily lives of many Americans, at least those that I see in SoCal, is one of routines consisting of driving the kids around, driving to work, doing the rounds at Costco, paying bills, eating a lot, shitting a lot, and maybe fuck a little. Rinse and repeat.

There are very few holidays and really no such thing as downtime in this country. Somebody is always working somewhere, and when there is downtime, the unease of just relaxing is so unbearable that Americans need to go and shop for something...

The only way to tolerate this drab existence for these people is to become numb. Numb to their own feelings.... how they hate being shafted and exploited by their asshole bosses.... how they are being played by the political class and they end up voting for the same crap every four years... how the government pays itself first from their miserable paychecks... how the church is completely and utterly full of shit.. how their parents mistreated them growing up... and hey, let's not forget the thankless children...

So these numb people live low volume and low voltage numb and drab lives. But that is not living and they know it... They want to feel, but they have been numb so long... with so much anger pent up that they look for the slightest excuse to SNAP, so they can finally feel so strongly about something that it makes them feel alive... it reminds them that they are human. They spend so much time in the car that the only way to express anger is to smoke the other car on the freeway on-ramp... So of course you need a lot of horsepower. You also need sweets that are so god damn sweet that you get an instant tooth ache. Refined foods loaded with salt and fat in portions bigger and bigger just so they feel full for a little while. And lets not forget porn... which is now as hard and heavy as they can make it.

And all this for what? Just to excite them enough to pass the threshold of numbness. Most of these people have neither the sensory or emotional acuity to enjoy a car like the BRZ/FRS and that's a real shame.

</rant>

Wow! America is a shitty place in your holy European estimation!
Other than Germany, almost every European country has gone down the tubes because of the communist/socialist policies the governments are forced to adopt due to the lazy bum citizens that want to sit on their asses and get something for nothing.

If you are so disturbed by the American lifestyle it is surprising that you live in this deplorable country with its deplorable and pathetic citizens.

Why not take you rear end and go back to the world of the sane and smart Europe? Why waste the remainder of your miserable life in this miserable country where you have to work for a living?

[Sport-Tech]

Originally Posted by 86fanatic

In terms of the actual historic race tracks in the US, there's really not many. Laguna Seca, Indy 500, Daytona. Two of those are ovals by the way (well Daytona has an oval configuration)

S-E-B-R-I-N-G. (As in 12 hours of.)

[86fanatic]

Originally Posted by Scion FR-S

S-E-B-R-I-N-G. (As in 12 hours of.)

Yes, I fully admit I missed more then a few. But between the ones I mentioned, Watkins Glen, Sebring, we have north east, florida, and california covered.

My point still stands that most people don't live anywhere close to any of these awesome race tracks.

[Sport-Tech]

^ Road America, Mid-Ohio, Lime Rock, VIR...