Alright well I decided I would go for some test drives today.

So here is some thoughts on the 350Z and the TSX in comparison to the RX8. I've had the RX8 for 2 months now. I figured some might like to see this comparison.

TSX:
Styling:
Nice, but not as "showy" as the RX-8, doesn't stand out, but is distinct and does have a nice edge to it.

Interior is nice, I like the black interior with silver trim, it is clean but some pizzaz. Everything is nicely within reach and there is plenty of storage all around.

Steering:
ICK, the steering felt too LIGHT, the wheel felt to skinny and HUGE in my hands compared to what I am now use to. It didn't really give me the confidence of good / sharp handling it felt kind of numb.

Braking:
ICK again, sorry but the braking felt weak, it felt like I had to put the pedal to the floor to stop the car scared me at first, I like the quick touch of the RX8 brakes. Although at first I thought the RX8 was too touchy.

Engine / Acceleration:
Not bad! It is not as fast as an RX-8 but it had plenty of power for everyday use. The engine loved to rev, although not as easy as the 8, and it felt a little stressed after 5500 rpm. The feel is the same, the torque is constant because of the i-vtec so you don't get a big kick, giving a very similar sensation as the 8.

Shifter / clutch:
SMOOTH as silk, the clutch felt very similar to the 8 and I was able to instantly adjust to it. The shifter though was so smooth. It would take a bit to get use to I think, I wasn't always certain if I was in gear and I didn't FEEL anything when putting it in, no notch at all. Kind of eary actually. I never missed a gear though.

Pedals:
Heal and Toeing didn't seem possible, I only tried twice and it just didn't feel right, the pedal are either too far apart or not leveled for it. The RX8 does this wonderfully.

Suspension:
Very smooth and quiet, soft ride but not too soft, felt sure and not floaty, similar to the 8 but softer for less road feel.


350Z:

Styling:
Well I won't go here, I like it from the side, the front is "ok" but I don't like the back all that much. anyway.....


Interior is ok, a little gimmicky, kind of plasticy.... I could probably live with it, but it's no RX8, the RX8 is much more driver oriented in my mind.

Steering:
Steering to me felt VERY similar to the RX-8, although it was stiffer. I had no problems with it, I even backed it into a spot and it was easy to do.

Braking:
Again, similar to the 8, sure, althought it seemed like the TSX in I had to push harder to get the desired braking.

Engine / Acceleration:
Sweet, the power sure is there.... But you know what? It's NOT all that much faster than the 8. The Z has more torque so when I hit the gas it felt like it was going faster, but when I looked at the speedo I wasn't! Total opposite of the 8. Although this is kind of NICE because you have less chance of getting a ticket! The engine doesn't like to rev as much and you feel like you have to shift at 5000 RPM. I hit the rev limiter once because well, it stops at like 6500?? But there was a lot of power. One thing I wanted to see was at 100Km/h in 6th gear, step on the gas does it FLY? NO! It doesn't you still have to downshift. Same as the 8.

The nice thing is it kicks you back for a second which is cool, but that's all.

Shifter / clutch:
The clutch was stiff, it's a sports car so expected, it let go REALLY high so it took me awhile to get use to it. My back hurts I think it was the stiff clutch The shifter wasn't horrible it was comparible to the 8. Not as smooth but not bad at all.

Pedals:
Didn't try to heal and toe, not really a chance to with the route I took.

Suspension:
Not bad! I expected the thing to be rough as all hell. Not so! Although the plastic interior was "popping" on the bumps it wasn't much harder than the 8's ride. You could feel the road more which wasn't bad, but it didn't beat you up at all! I was REALLY surprised actually.

Interesting things to note:

I hate 2 doors, trying to get out of the Z was HORRIBLE! So hard when you park close to another car.

The windows go up and down SOOO fast in the RX8, I didn't realize how awesome they were until I tried the TSX, they were so slow it was painfull.


Anyway out of these cars, I like the RX8 better still... interesting indeed.

 

The new TL seems like a great option and is on par with the RX-8 in straightline performance, and is supposed to handle rather well. I think it's a couple grand more than the 8 however, and I'm not even sure if they're out yet.

Ike

 

I've decided the TSX is not for me, and as a result I doubt the TL would be. Too big of a car, I like smaller cars.

 

FWD vs RWD.

No comparison.

 

Yup...our old 1977 Ford Fairmont can run circles around an Integra Type R.

 

Didn't get to drive but got a ride in an S2000.

WOW, LOVED IT!

Especially the sound of the engine at full throttle!

I'm seriously considering one now, although not till next year. Or maybe I'll save some $$$ and just get a miata. We'll see.

The S2000 was VERY similar to the RX8 in terms of ride and looks for sure.

I don't really need a big car, but I like a decent trunk. The S2K trunk was larger than the miata's trunk which is useless.

Nice car all around.