4ringssss

Anybody see the article? Is this true?

mpwolf

Now there's a magazine I trust.

2tu®bos1mission

ditto^^

NoahD

but according to SCC, a civic with a 3 foot wing 'slams' them all.

ryans4

...first off, Sport Compact Car is one of the best U.S. car magazines becuase their engineering content is good.

Way better than EuroTuner and European Car, but alas, they focus mainly on Japanese cars.

Check their project cars, you'll find that more often than not, the first thing they work on is differential tuning and reliability for increased power, not body wings and vinyl. So don't let the name full you. These guys are actually pretty good.

Now, SCC is nothing compared to Racecar Engineering, but really, what is.


So now the article...

It was a U.S. Spec EVO VIII against a Porsche C4S, an M3 and an S4. The point was to see if the $30k EVO could hold its own against the German's for less money. They start off by stating that if you care about fit and finish, interior appointments, or how solid the door sounds when it closes, all the German cars kill the EVO, but they only cared about mountiain/highway driving and track performance.

At the end of the day, the EVO in stock form did great, and they prefice that with the money you save, you can get an EVO that will abuse most of the German cars.

As for the B6 S4, they really had issues with it's weight, they said the brakes couldnt' keep up, and had bad fade (in an Audi? that's surprising). They admit the NA accelleration was phenomenal, but the handling (despite the nice suspension they mention) was always trying to fight the weight of the car. They also liked the steering feel in the S4.

As for the 911, they praise the confidence inspired handling, ridiculous repeated brake performance, and ability to drive hard with just the right feedback.

As for the M3, they picked it as the "most fun", and it will reward a driver who is adept enough to listen to what the car is doing. They said it was the most challenging, but most rewarding to drive.

At the end of the day, they liked the confidence of All Wheel Drive over the M3 "fun" factor, and when looking at money, picked the EVO (no surprise there).

But in the various tests:

700ft skidpad
Slalom
1/4 Mile
Track Time
60-0 braking
Various 0-30, 0-60, 5-30, etc. tests

The Audi did not do well, pretty much just inking out the EVO to take 3rd in most test except braking and skidpad and slalom, where either driver talent, or vehicle mass took it's toll. No question though, the motor has immediate "umf".

But a good article none-the-less, and at a manufacturer's weight of 3800+ lbs., you gotta worry about the S4 in the handling/braking tests, no matter how torque loving the motor is.

They also mention that one thing the Japanese can't do, is make a luxorious fast car, which is what each of these German cars is. So bear all that in mind with the outcome. If you are looking for a go-fast AWD car and don't care about noise, luxory, etc., the EVO and STi are great cars. But if you do want a cruiser that moves and is luxirous, the German options are great. So bear in mind the point of view of the article before you kill it.