BRZ vs modified Mustang GT

[ansibe]

I just bought a BRZ, and I've been driving a 2011 GT with suspension and light engine mods for a couple of years now. It's actually closer than you might think!

My GT has excellent suspension calibration on koni yellows, but there's no getting around that stick axle in the back. Mid corner bumps upset the car big-time. What the GT has on OE rubber is way more grip, and better balance (thank you DaSilva Racing) than a brz. Now that I've lived with the BRZ for a bit, I'm amazed how good ... my Mustang is!

The stock BRZ has good balance, with a tendency to push, and fantastic suspension calibration. Very little body sway, and it deals with mid-corner bumps beautifully. It's amazing how easy it is to get this car near its limit. Very satisfying to drive. It is gutless, though!

It's hard to talk about 'limit' handling without considering the motor. The brz is weak, and has a huge hole in the mid range. Pretty much no chance you're using this motor to balance the chassis! The coyote 5.0, however, is a gem: free revving, with power everywhere! Best engine I've ever used. You have to try one to believe how good they are. My GT's gearbox is just as good as the subaru's (maybe I got lucky there), and because of the monster motor you never have to shift anyway. Less shifting means more attention to cornering speed!

I love my GT, but I'm in no rush to trade my brz. Life is good!

[TouchMyHonda]

Whoa, a mustang owner talking about cornering speeds. I like you.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by TouchMyHonda

Whoa, a mustang owner talking about cornering speeds. I like you.

This place is the Twilight Zone today.

[Superhatch]

A GT with the track pack and Recaro's is 35K. Id guess that the STI will be around this price too. I have only driven the base GT and while impressed with the power the overall feel of the car was not to my liking. I'd really like to get into a GT with some modifications to see if my impressions change.

To me the GT is true to it's name and is a Grand Touring car, which differs from the intention of the BRZ which can be defined more as a sports car.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_car:

A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for spirited performance and nimble handling. Sports cars may be spartan or luxurious but high maneuverability and minimum weight are requisite.

While you can compare them in some regards, I think the overall feel of the cars is very different and the intention of the designs are not the same. I like the BRZ because it feels like a very raw car, but not because of a large motor. It feels like I am connected to the car, and by proxy connected to the road. This is a feeling that is not conveyed by the Mustang imo. Also the retro interior feel seems dated, and should be updated in the same way the rest of the car has been.

I appreciate them both for what they are, and I think they both meet the expectations of their designers, but they have two different souls and this should be recognized rather than trying to compare them so often.

[DarkSunrise]

I liked the 2013 Mustang GT that I test-drove. Good power, good sound. I can see the appeal of muscle cars and why people buy them.

But BRZ it is not. It's like comparing a knife to a sledgehammer.

[ansibe]

I like both of my cars (BRZ and GT), and i feel very privileged to be able to own both. They are different, and they both make me happy.

But the GT is my track day car. It seems counter-intuitive, but it has all the grip of the BRZ (more actually), is pretty benign at the limit, and it has real power to spare. In the mustang you have to actually manage the power, which adds a dimension to the track experience which you simply can't get in a BRZ. Adding track rubber to the BRZ will only make that worse.

How do you guys drift your cars? I can barely make the back end step out in second gear, never mind hold a slide! I've seen it done (on youtube) so I know it's possible, but how???

[InvalidJohnny5]

Lol I can drift at 3K even when I was stock...it's not very hard at all. Try going hard then downshift into a turn and handle it from there. I can usually hold it without clutch kicking, but it necessary give it a kick to keep the slip coming.

[thill]

And turn off the traction control

[ansibe]

Originally Posted by thill

And turn off the traction control

I thought the TC was the 2.0 L ICE under the hood! Seriously, this is good advice!

Invalid, i see you're backing it in like a fwd car then holding the slide. Cool, I'll try that. In the mustang you just add a little cornering g in second gear and caress the throttle. Presto, you're looking out the side window!

[Ryeong86]

Originally Posted by ansibe

I like both of my cars (BRZ and GT), and i feel very privileged to be able to own both. They are different, and they both make me happy.

But the GT is my track day car. It seems counter-intuitive, but it has all the grip of the BRZ (more actually), is pretty benign at the limit, and it has real power to spare. In the mustang you have to actually manage the power, which adds a dimension to the track experience which you simply can't get in a BRZ. Adding track rubber to the BRZ will only make that worse.

How do you guys drift your cars? I can barely make the back end step out in second gear, never mind hold a slide! I've seen it done (on youtube) so I know it's possible, but how???

Turn off traction control and vsc and you will slide like no other... My fr-s wants to kick out the tail end even on better tires.

[Jaylyons1]

And you can get a new GT for a hair less than a new BRZ. Makes it tempting, but I'd have to drive one that has suspension mods to see how it really handles before I'd consider one. May wait it out for the 2015 and see how it does with a better rear end.

Originally Posted by Ryeong86

Turn off traction control and vsc and you will slide like no other... My fr-s wants to kick out the tail end even on better tires.

I don't have that problem myself but I run conti sport contact 3's. My car loves to dig in and hold on. ^_^

[Miniata]

In addition to my BRZ I have an '08 Mustang GT with a few suspension modifications (Koni struts, front swaybar) and wider, stickier tires (265/40-18 Yokohama AD08). When I bought my BRZ I was hoping that maybe it could replace my Mustang (and maybe my Miata too), but I just can't give up the torque of the Mustang.

This year I've autocrossed both cars in the same class (RTR) and done pretty well locally with both. I'm usually faster in the BRZ because it is easier to hustle around an autocross course, but when I have an experienced Mustang driver co-driving my Mustang, he usually turns comparable times to what my BRZ does.

[EAGLE5]

I've test-driven many a mustang and have never been willing to actually pay for one. They always felt numb. I also mostly drive on a bumpy canyon road. That won't go well with the primitive axle. On a track, I'm sure a modified Mustang or track pack one can handle well, but I'm also sure it won't feel sublime. Just raw, loud, fast, and grippy. Those aren't bad things, but not what I'm looking for.

And if you can't kick the back out on a twin, you got problems. I have to drive purposefully not to kick the tail out.

[regal]

Might as well be comparing the BRZ to a truck or the Mustang to a restored porsch 944. Trucks, mustangs, twins, and 944's are all great cars, but 500 lbs is a lot of weight that gives completley different driving dynamics

Since you mentioned suspension mods for the stang, don't forget just $3500 buys an supercharger for the BRZ and once the tuning bugs get worked out its going to make the BRZ a Cayman caliber vehicle.

I do agree the twins have a tendancy to push, I haven't figured that out possibly the low front spring rates.