So I test drove a new WRX and Speed3 **Cooper S Update**
***Update on post #33: GTI***
And I think I broke the WRX, lol. I stepped on it and wound it out to like 6k, and when I did the 1-2 shift I heard a loud POP, sounded like a firecracker. Didn't lose power or anything, but it was really strange and had me wondering. Oh well.
Anyways. I just wanted to say that there are a ton of reviews and comparisons on these two cars. I tought they would be really similar to each other and it would be very hard to compare them. But I'm amazed at how different they are.
First up, the 2010 Mazdaspeed 3. It is an out of control insane machine. Everything about this car feels like its on steroids. The steering is lightning quick. The chassis responds to every input. The brakes are super touchy and bite hard. The clutch take up is abrupt. It takes the corners with ease, and, if you can manage to keep the steering wheel where you want it while combating the torque steer, will take the corners with great speed. 3rd gear is awesome, you never really even have to shift because theres so much power available through the entire rev range. It was a lot of fun to drive hard.
The same fun to drive hard attributes made it a bit of a pain to drive easy. I could shift it easy if I concentrated on it, but it wasn't a cake walk. And I missed a few shifts because the 6 speed gates are so tight together. The sudden power delivery of the turbo came on unexpectedly a few times and the torque steer caught me off guard.
The interior was amazing. I really liked it, minus the complicated buttons on the steering wheel (the wheel itself was a nice size and weighted well). The seats felt great, the controls were exactly where you wanted them. Gauges were easy to read, and it had a nice boost gauge in the middle of the cluster.
Overall it was a joy to drive and I had a lot of fun on the test drive.
Second up, the 2010 WRX. By comparison this car felt like a family sedan that, if asked, would go like a bat out of hell. Driving it off the lot I could immediately tell how much easier the clutch was to negotiate, how the controls were more lax, even the gas and brakes. It was more plush all around. If you romped on it, it had great power and it went like stink. I think its faster than the mazdaspeed, and of course you don't have the torque steer to combat. It didn't squeal the tires at all, just squatted down and took off. I liked the engine's more linear power delivery. Actually I liked the engine itself a lot better than the Mazdaspeed's. The brakes were a let down because the pedal was really mushy. They didn't stop the car wtih any sense of urgency unless you really stood on them. The suspension was soft, and the car kind of wallowed around in the turns. I wasn't a fan of that. Overall this car was just easier to drive, and required less attention to the car itself and you could focus on what the road was doing instead.
The interior was a big let down. I'm not a dash stroker so I could care less about the materials used on the dash. I was looking at the design, and found it very unappealing. I also found it hard to get a comfortable driving position because the steering wheel, although it tilts and telescopes, it wouldn't adjust as nicely as the mazda's. I kept hitting my knee on the steering column, and that was annoying. For whatever reason I felt a lot more cramped in the subaru. The shifter was strange, it had the SPT short throw shfiter, and I could never really tell if it engaged the gear or not. Not a fan of this shifter. The steering wheel was nice, actually a bit nicer than the mazda.
So to sum it up, they are two very very different cars. The Subaru is easy to drive, fast when you want it to be, but more relaxed all around. The Mazda has the nicer interior, and razor sharp reflexes. They really do drive differently. They're priced closely, but the Mazda is about $2-3k cheaper than the WRX.
I have two more cars on my list to drive, the VW GTI and the Mini Cooper S. But as it is right now I think the Mazda is the one to get. What I'd really like would be the Mazda with a different front bumper, and the WRX's engine.
***Update on post #33: GTI***
And I think I broke the WRX, lol. I stepped on it and wound it out to like 6k, and when I did the 1-2 shift I heard a loud POP, sounded like a firecracker. Didn't lose power or anything, but it was really strange and had me wondering. Oh well.
Anyways. I just wanted to say that there are a ton of reviews and comparisons on these two cars. I tought they would be really similar to each other and it would be very hard to compare them. But I'm amazed at how different they are.
First up, the 2010 Mazdaspeed 3. It is an out of control insane machine. Everything about this car feels like its on steroids. The steering is lightning quick. The chassis responds to every input. The brakes are super touchy and bite hard. The clutch take up is abrupt. It takes the corners with ease, and, if you can manage to keep the steering wheel where you want it while combating the torque steer, will take the corners with great speed. 3rd gear is awesome, you never really even have to shift because theres so much power available through the entire rev range. It was a lot of fun to drive hard.
The same fun to drive hard attributes made it a bit of a pain to drive easy. I could shift it easy if I concentrated on it, but it wasn't a cake walk. And I missed a few shifts because the 6 speed gates are so tight together. The sudden power delivery of the turbo came on unexpectedly a few times and the torque steer caught me off guard.
The interior was amazing. I really liked it, minus the complicated buttons on the steering wheel (the wheel itself was a nice size and weighted well). The seats felt great, the controls were exactly where you wanted them. Gauges were easy to read, and it had a nice boost gauge in the middle of the cluster.
Overall it was a joy to drive and I had a lot of fun on the test drive.
Second up, the 2010 WRX. By comparison this car felt like a family sedan that, if asked, would go like a bat out of hell. Driving it off the lot I could immediately tell how much easier the clutch was to negotiate, how the controls were more lax, even the gas and brakes. It was more plush all around. If you romped on it, it had great power and it went like stink. I think its faster than the mazdaspeed, and of course you don't have the torque steer to combat. It didn't squeal the tires at all, just squatted down and took off. I liked the engine's more linear power delivery. Actually I liked the engine itself a lot better than the Mazdaspeed's. The brakes were a let down because the pedal was really mushy. They didn't stop the car wtih any sense of urgency unless you really stood on them. The suspension was soft, and the car kind of wallowed around in the turns. I wasn't a fan of that. Overall this car was just easier to drive, and required less attention to the car itself and you could focus on what the road was doing instead.
The interior was a big let down. I'm not a dash stroker so I could care less about the materials used on the dash. I was looking at the design, and found it very unappealing. I also found it hard to get a comfortable driving position because the steering wheel, although it tilts and telescopes, it wouldn't adjust as nicely as the mazda's. I kept hitting my knee on the steering column, and that was annoying. For whatever reason I felt a lot more cramped in the subaru. The shifter was strange, it had the SPT short throw shfiter, and I could never really tell if it engaged the gear or not. Not a fan of this shifter. The steering wheel was nice, actually a bit nicer than the mazda.
So to sum it up, they are two very very different cars. The Subaru is easy to drive, fast when you want it to be, but more relaxed all around. The Mazda has the nicer interior, and razor sharp reflexes. They really do drive differently. They're priced closely, but the Mazda is about $2-3k cheaper than the WRX.
I have two more cars on my list to drive, the VW GTI and the Mini Cooper S. But as it is right now I think the Mazda is the one to get. What I'd really like would be the Mazda with a different front bumper, and the WRX's engine.
