Goodbye Cayman S & E90 M3... Hello BRZ! *Pics*

[Flyin86]

Excellent review. I have the same exact BRZ... traded a 2010 Miata MX5 to get it. When I first got the Miata I wasn't happy with the body roll and soft ride... so on went Koni adjustables, a Hotchkis Swaybar Kit, and set of sticky Bridgestone RE-11 tires. Those simple mods totally transformed the car into a go-kart (still miss that car in fact). The BRZ feels very similar right out of the box to my lightly mod'd Miata.... handling and steering are both very similar. I'm still torn on the engine of the BRZ... as of right now i think I preferred the "feel" of the Miata when you really put your foot into it. I guess there's a reason MX-5's have made so many 10 Best lists... but the BRZ is very comparable in its very first year.

[Marrk]

Originally Posted by ashtray

Yeah - the area under the seats under the car are not structural - so bolting in a set of stainless steel frame rails really adds structural rigidity to the car. I didn't have any hp mods - just handling mods. The Miata only felt low on power on steep highway grades. Mostly I used it for weekend canyon carving and daily commuting. While the wider and heavier BRZ is much nicer in almost every way, that little Miata could dance on its toes with its stickier tires and smaller wheelbase.

Again, I feel the BRZ is just like a grown up more mature sibling to the Miata I had. Against the newer Miata, the differences are probably less pronounced.

I was thinking that something along the lines of an S2000 would be good(er). 250 HP + 2500 lbs would be ideal.

Originally Posted by ashtray

Now back to M3's and Porsches!

I had an E39 5 series in the late 90's - I think the E90 3-series sedan is close in size/weight to my old 528i!

Too heavy for the fun that I want to have.

Again, sorry to all for straying OT.

[edward]

Originally Posted by Soravia

I second a lot of points the OP posted. The car feels like a Miata with stiffer suspension. But falls a bit short on feelings from Steering (a bit better than RX-8). Clutch is soft compared to my 01 Miata but I guess some people like that. Manual shifter is a lot longer than Miata, RX-8, and S2K. Feels almost like my 2003 Audi A4. But A4 was smoother and less notchy. I want to know what Cayman shifter and steering feels like.
I couldn't stand the engine noise on the twins. They made it too loud and is on constantly at any speed. I wish there was a button to lock the tube out.
I think I'll actually end up with a 2013 Club in near future instead of the twins.

The Audi B5/B5.5 shift throw is like 2-3 times longer than the BRZ

[edward]

Originally Posted by Rosso_Corsa

Thanks DaJo!

Ganthrithor,

There are quite a few outside city limits, but the heat is a bit too serious this year. See, we have a law where any citation of 'excessive speed' comes with an automatic vehicle impound. If your vehicle is high value enough, they will even sell it off.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01...t-racing-case/

Oh, and they run helicopters all day long to try and catch speeders...

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Poli...523/story.html

Over the top right? Not a fun place to be a car enthusiast.

I'm sure you have way better roads and probably more manageable heat in Colorado.

WOW. Impounded for going roughly 85 miles per hour. DAYUM.

[Whitigir]

Originally Posted by edward

WOW. Impounded for going roughly 85 miles per hour. DAYUM.

Well that was because it was not a simple Over Speeding case. They were obviously having fun Treet Racing. I am sure doing that 85 MPH wasn't exactly what were going on, they could have been hitting 100 + MPH at any point.

I am sure the Impound was for a Group Street Racing call.

[mwy23]

still miss my cayman s

[Ganthrithor]

Originally Posted by Rosso_Corsa

Thanks DaJo!

Ganthrithor,

There are quite a few outside city limits, but the heat is a bit too serious this year. See, we have a law where any citation of 'excessive speed' comes with an automatic vehicle impound. If your vehicle is high value enough, they will even sell it off.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/01...t-racing-case/

Oh, and they run helicopters all day long to try and catch speeders...

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Poli...523/story.html

Over the top right? Not a fun place to be a car enthusiast.

I'm sure you have way better roads and probably more manageable heat in Colorado.

Well that's some scary shit. With the cost of flying helicopters to look for speeding motorbikes they will need to sell more stolen exotics...

Yeah, there are some great roads within an hour of Denver, and most of them don't seem to be patrolled at all, at least from what I've seen.

[track_warrior]

Hello i can see we have similar taste in cars. Enjoy the BRZ, if you plan on tracking it you will enjoy it eve more.

[Rosso_Corsa]

Originally Posted by Ganthrithor

Well that's some scary shit. With the cost of flying helicopters to look for speeding motorbikes they will need to sell more stolen exotics...

Yeah, there are some great roads within an hour of Denver, and most of them don't seem to be patrolled at all, at least from what I've seen.

No, those are NOT stolen exotics. They are legally owned exotics driven at 'excessive speed', and then sold off!

Anyway... Marrk,

Someone on another forum told me that the 997.2 had resolved this problem. Have you heard anything?

The 997.2 have indeed solved the IMS problems. This is because the DFI engines have no IMS at all. We'll see in a couple years what new problems these new engines indeed do have but current wisdom seems to suggest getting an '09+ to save yourself the IMS headaches.

[Ganthrithor]

Originally Posted by Rosso_Corsa

No, those are NOT stolen exotics. They are legally owned exotics driven at 'excessive speed', and then sold off!

Haha, I know, I was referring to your government's expropriation of them from their legal owners.

[orthojoe]

I've got the the roadster version of the cayman (ie boxster) and will say that I love both of the cars.

Things I like better about the BRZ:
1) The steering wheel. Absolutely fantastic
2) Short shifter (my spyder was not equipped with the optional short shifter)
3) better gas mileage
4) better daily driver

Things I like better about the boxster spyder
1) exotic looking and rare
2) flat 6 sound. Nothing beats it
3) Performance.
4) better weekend/track car

Both are fun to drive on the street and the track. There's no doubt that the boxster/cayman outperforms the BRZ in every way possible, but on the street and everyday driving it's really not that important. People like to bag on the BRZ interior, but I honestly think it's a great interior. Deviated stitching everywhere, great seats, good layout and positioning. I don't get out of the Porsche, sit in the BRZ and say "gee, this interior sucks". No way. If I had to choose between a cayman and BRZ, it would be a Cayman without batting an eye. However, both have a distinctive and important role to play in the automotive world.

[Rosso_Corsa]

Absolutely stunning Spyder. Great color combo, love the red seats!

[Ganthrithor]

Originally Posted by orthojoe

I've got the the roadster version of the cayman (ie boxster) and will say that I love both of the cars.

Things I like better about the BRZ:
1) The steering wheel. Absolutely fantastic
2) Short shifter (my spyder was not equipped with the optional short shifter)
3) better gas mileage
4) better daily driver

Things I like better about the boxster spyder
1) exotic looking and rare
2) flat 6 sound. Nothing beats it
3) Performance.
4) better weekend/track car

Both are fun to drive on the street and the track. There's no doubt that the boxster/cayman outperforms the BRZ in every way possible, but on the street and everyday driving it's really not that important. People like to bag on the BRZ interior, but I honestly think it's a great interior. Deviated stitching everywhere, great seats, good layout and positioning. I don't get out of the Porsche, sit in the BRZ and say "gee, this interior sucks". No way. If I had to choose between a cayman and BRZ, it would be a Cayman without batting an eye. However, both have a distinctive and important role to play in the automotive world.

Oh hey, those cars look familiar. Your old comparison post on rennlist was one of the things that encouraged me to go out and test drive this car. You evil man :P

[orthojoe]

Originally Posted by Ganthrithor

Oh hey, those cars look familiar. Your old comparison post on rennlist was one of the things that encouraged me to go out and test drive this car. You evil man :P

Cool! Thanks, man! I hope you found my comments/comparisons somewhat accurate.