[dgs]

Originally Posted by inpuressa

I read somewhere from a famous car engineer that the maximum power you can put in a FWD car for the best performance is 250hp.

Yep, I've heard the same thing, and I absolutely agree with it. The horsepower and torque auto manufactures are putting through the front wheels these days is down right ridiculous and irresponsible. Torque steer is not fun, and can be very dangerous in the hands of an inexperienced driver. The MS3 is a nice car in the Grand Touring package and has some cool luxury features the STI doesn't even have. But AWD > FWD any day of the week. Especially a RWD bias car like the STI.

FWD would keep me away from ever looking at cars like the Mazdaspeed 3 or Acura TL Type S. FWD is okay in a car like the Honda Civic, but absolutely not my kind of setup for a sporty/performance car.

[pisymbol]

Ditto. In fact I really liked the Type S but the fact its FWD means its NEVER gonna be a true sports car and compete with the likes of BMW, Infiniti, etc.

[inpuressa]

bit OT, but this is one of the better FWD's out there.

YouTube - Hot Version (Spoon Civic Type R VS J's Racing S2000)

[Controlo]

FWD FTL? YouTube - Bisi - 9.57 @ 142mph

[Digitalfiend]

^ What does that have to do with anything? I can pull up videos of RWD cars running 7s and 8s @ 160+. The sad fact is, AWD and RWD are superior for making big power in a daily driver. Powerful FWD cars get old extremely fast.

[Stedenko]

Originally Posted by Digitalfiend

^ What does that have to do with anything? I can pull up videos of RWD cars running 7s and 8s @ 160+. The sad fact is, AWD and RWD are superior for making big power in a daily driver. Powerful FWD cars get old extremely fast.

I think the Mazdaspeed3 is a super fun daily driver for someone who wants a car that has lots of zip but isn't a performance enthusiast. I think there are more people like that around than there are hardcore modders/racers, so it's a good market.

With that said, I was about to buy the Mazdaspeed3, but I couldn't get over the fact that it was FWD. I loved driving it though. It was super fun car.

[Digitalfiend]

Originally Posted by Stedenko

I think the Mazdaspeed3 is a super fun daily driver for someone who wants a car that has lots of zip but isn't a performance enthusiast. I think there are more people like that around than there are hardcore modders/racers, so it's a good market.

With that said, I was about to buy the Mazdaspeed3, but I couldn't get over the fact that it was FWD. I loved driving it though. It was super fun car.

No question the MS3 is marketed very well. It's great bang for the buck, especially if you don't mind some of the trade-offs. In a couple years my wife's car will need replacing and I'm hoping that Subaru comes through on their "40% gas mileage increase" statement by then as I know that is important to my wife.

[Stedenko]

Originally Posted by Digitalfiend

No question the MS3 is marketed very well. It's great bang for the buck, especially if you don't mind some of the trade-offs. In a couple years my wife's car will need replacing and I'm hoping that Subaru comes through on their "40% gas mileage increase" statement by then as I know that is important to my wife.

Yeah, same here. I don't commute to work in my car so it won't rack up a lot of kms, but I don't think my wife realizes how bad the STI is on gas. I also know that she'll be a bit surprised that it needs high octane so I kind of didn't really share that info.

I pick up my DGM today after work.

[Digitalfiend]

Originally Posted by Stedenko

Yeah, same here. I don't commute to work in my car so it won't rack up a lot of kms, but I don't think my wife realizes how bad the STI is on gas. I also know that she'll be a bit surprised that it needs high octane so I kind of didn't really share that info.

I pick up my DGM today after work.

Congrats. My wife knew all about the gas consumption thanks to my old STi. One month I spent ~$500 because of all the driving I did plus track days. It probably doesn't help that I only use 94 octane.

The new car is a little better on gas than my old one, so she is happier about that.

[Stang2STI]

Mazdaspeed3

Yeah I would say Mazda knows how to market that car .

I think everyone pretty much summed what you can compare between the two. I do like the the little upscale features that the Mazdaspeed offers but AWD is a HUGE plus.

[LSE]

enough said.

[JuggernautTCW]

Originally Posted by inpuressa

I read somewhere from a famous car engineer that the maximum power you can put in a FWD car for the best performance is 250hp.

250 at the wheels?... thats a lot!

[Digitalfiend]

Originally Posted by JuggernautTCW

250 at the wheels?... thats a lot!

I don't think he meant 250 at the wheels...he said "in a car".

[Stedenko]

Originally Posted by Stang2STI

Mazdaspeed3

Yeah I would say Mazda knows how to market that car .

I think everyone pretty much summed what you can compare between the two. I do like the the little upscale features that the Mazdaspeed offers but AWD is a HUGE plus.

That video was horrible. I kept thinking through the entire thing, "what an ***hole driver." Then when the FWD car does donuts in the parking lot it was stupid. I know it's just a toy car, but sheesh.

[hef]

anyone who would do a comparo btwn the sti and mazdaspeed 3, should buy the mazdaspeed 3.

after going from a 2002 wrx to a 2004 saab 9-3 Arc (at least it came with a turbo gauge!), i made the decision to stay AWD for life. for me, the choice would be easy.