Any good reason to stick with 1st Gen?

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by PulsarBeeerz

All of it, my car does stoppies and plows off the road when I corner.

It is not as bad as I make it to be in some of my posts but the car is more setup and input sensitive. It is frustrating how effortlessly an S2K can turn in with less input granted they are lighter to begin with. I have to run so much static camber I shred the inside and outside of my fronts and have to rely on trail braking to help with rotation and I still can't take the same lines a comparable S2K can

[Ultramaroon]

It is frustrating how the cramped cabin of the S2K keeps me from sitting in it.

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

It is frustrating how the cramped cabin of the S2K keeps me from sitting in it.

At least you don't need an extra cushion to see over the wheel

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by NoHaveMSG

At least you don't need an extra cushion to see over the wheel

[ZDan]

Originally Posted by NoHaveMSG

It is not as bad as I make it to be in some of my posts but the car is more setup and input sensitive. It is frustrating how effortlessly an S2K can turn in with less input granted they are lighter to begin with. I have to run so much static camber I shred the inside and outside of my fronts and have to rely on trail braking to help with rotation and I still can't take the same lines a comparable S2K can

S2000 weight pretty much same as FT86 (earliest/lightest being ~2780 lb., later/heaviest being ~2820 lb). The difference is that the FT86 is 55F/45R while the S2000 is legit 50/50 (slightly more rearward with a full tank+driver).

So with full tank and driver:
S2000: 1482 lb F/1482 lb R
FT86: 1631 lb F/1333 lb R

My BRZ setup is pretty OK on fronts, but still they see a wear rate at least 1.5x the rears. With tire rotation it's not a huge prob, but is indicative that overall grip is not what it could be, and it's not as "pointable" as my stock S2k was, or my old 50/50 street/track 240Z...

[NoHaveMSG]

Originally Posted by ZDan

My BRZ setup is pretty OK on fronts, but still they see a wear rate at least 1.5x the rears. With tire rotation it's not a huge prob, but is indicative that overall grip is not what it could be, and it's not as "pointable" as my stock S2k was, or my old 50/50 street/track 240Z...

That wear is pretty on par with what I have seen. I noticed from pictures of my car that it tends to roll up hard on the inner edge of the inside front tire due to the amount of static camber I am running, and I am going to more next year. I am considering I may need to start rotating every half day front to rear.

[Dirty Harry]

1st gen vs 2nd gen

I was lucky enough to test drive a 2nd gen alone yesterday and I also took it down my local twisty backroads where I normally take my car, for about 20 mins. I then took my car down the same roads straight after.

Well first is the torque of the new engine, I knew straight away pulling out of the parking lot, down low it’s a lot stronger. But coming out of the dealer car park to do a u turn to get to the twisty backroads, I noticed the steering is light and not as connected, “give it a bit more of a chance”, I thought…. The interior is great, the new seats are way more comfortable, so much so that a long trip in this car would be a lot more acceptable than the first gen.

Down the twisty roads the steering disconnect shows it’s ugly head again, it just feels more “video game” like than the first gen. It’s too light and you can’t tell what the wheels are doing as much as you can in the first gen. This is my main gripe with the new car. Handling is pretty similar to a first gen car, the cabin noise is a lot quieter than the first gen, it is way more refined. Again making it a lot better on a longer trip.

The torque out of tight corners is welcome, but as you rev it out past 5000rpm, the sense of speed and urgency feels pretty similar to the first gen, although you’ll be carrying more speed in the new car. Also I don’t like the digital cluster as much, however this could be something you get used to with more seat time, and the automatic turn signal stalks are annoying, both minor gripes.


So any good reason to stick with the 1st gen?

I think if you want a more raw experience with better steering feel, the first gen wins. The new car is more refined, more powerful but loses some of that rawness and connectedness. I went into the test drive worried I’d be putting down a deposit for the new car. But I didn’t come out of it after the test drive thinking I must have this car. The first gen is still a great car and better in some ways. It is not an automatic upgrade to the second gen and everything is better. It also depends on the driving you do, the second gen will be a better daily, not a big issue for me as my car is really a weekend toy.

I think in summary if you have a tired high km first gen, you’d look at an upgrade. But if you have a low km first gen in good condition, you’re not missing out on much by not upgrading. I think this is even more pronounced if your first gen is modified.

1st gen pros:
Steering feel connectedness
Rawness

1st gen cons
Engine power

2nd gen pros:
More powerful engine
Better seats and more refined interior, more refined overall actually.

2nd gen cons
Steering feel
Digital gauge cluster
Automatic indicator stalks

[soundman98]

thanks for a relatively honest review.

and that's exactly why i was so hopeful for opie's fa24 conversion thread. all the positive handling attributes of the 1st gen, and all the power of the 2nd gen!

[Dirty Harry]

Originally Posted by soundman98

thanks for a relatively honest review.

and that's exactly why i was so hopeful for opie's fa24 conversion thread. all the positive handling attributes of the 1st gen, and all the power of the 2nd gen!

Cheers, I think you’d get similar results with a header and a tune, it’d still be slower I’d expect, but a lot closer.

[Dirty Harry]

They were also giving these merchandise bags away. The bag is pretty cool. But what’s inside, yep that’s right BRZ crayons!

[soundman98]

too bad they're not selling cars in all the same colors as the crayons!

[Ohio Enthusiast]

Originally Posted by Dirty Harry

1st gen pros:
Steering feel connectedness
Rawness

Do you have any mods on your gen 1?

[Dirty Harry]

Originally Posted by Ohio Enthusiast

Do you have any mods on your gen 1?

Mechanical mods:
18x8 TSW Interlagos, +45 offset, Michelin Pilot Super Sports 225/40/R18
STI Pink springs
STI axle back exhaust

My car did handle better, sits a lot flatter in the corners, but that’s not really fair considering the mods. It was stock for nearly 4 years, so I do remember what it was like, which is why I said the handling is similar.

[dsc_pat]

I should quit the internet.