d15b7
Senior Member
- First Name
- Todd
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2018
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- 1
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- 116
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- 189
- Location
- 21921
- Vehicle(s)
- 2018 Civic Type R, 1995 Civic EG K24/20 EFR7163 Fortune Auto track weapon
- Thread starter
- #1
just as a fun post, cause I wasn't planning on bringing it up, but then I saw the post blow up with the 'sold my CTR for a Tesla 'muscle car'! so I've owned my '18 CTR since brand new. it's totally stock except for the removal of the 20" wheels and addition of 18" Rays (I live in the northeast USA and the roads totally are bombed out and suck here especially in wintertime, so the 18s were almost a must). I love the CTR and won't ever sell it, BUT..... I love and appreciate other cars too, and since I already own what is arguably the 'best, most bad ass FWD driver's car out there', I was starting to get the itch to also own the 'best baddest RWD coupe' out there simultaneously, so I started looking around in earnest about two months ago. after careful consideration and driving various different cars (some Porsches, some BMWs, a GT350R and others) I ended up buying and bringing home what I think, personally, is pretty much the baddest RWD coupe on the planet right now (and within a somewhat reasonable price point; I know there are some crazy super low production hyper cars out there but spending that sort of money isn't my bag, baby!!).
I ended up with a very lightly used (1700 miles) 2020 ZL1 1LE (the Extreme Track Pack), with a 6 speed manual trans, and in an ultra ultra rare color (Rally Green Metallic). she's also bone stock, and perfect condition. I love her!! (I'll put a couple pics in with this post; the color is amazing, as it changes in the sunlight. lots of metallic in it, looking very green in the sunlight. in artificial light it looks almost black barely any green to it. and the carbon fiber accents really set it off nicely I think).
OK on to the comparisons between the two:
1. Looks: I really like the way my Championship White CTR looks; it makes me smile and turn around and look back at it every time I park it and walk away. Especially the front 3/4 view. BUT -- gotta give it to the ZL1 1LE in the looks department. this baby is aggressive and mean and really looks like it means serious business.
2. Sound: I mean, come on man. the ZLE all the way. it sounds incredible, from startup to winding it out. even has a stealth mode/track mode exhaust valve system in case you want it to cruise quietly (but why would you want that?!?)
3. all out handling: by this I mean, as such on a racetrack or a smooth well paved road. the CTR handles INCREDIBLE. but the ZLE is better. the 305 front and 325 rear Rcompounds that it comes with from the factory make it grip like glue (when they are warmed up. they are terrible when cold). and the racing Spool Valve DSSV shocks and adjustable swaybars and incredibly stiff springs again make it a full race car (it has solid bushings in the rear cradle lots of other places too). the Elsd is SUPER tight and aggressive and puts the power down amazingly well. all out handling no brainer goes to the ZLE.
4. braking: the CTR brakes are great. the ZLE are on another level altogether. they are 6 piston front Brembo and 4 rear. huge huge floating front rotor (15.5" I think). braking is stupid amazing in this car. better even than the GT3 I drove. its mind bending.
5. on the road ride/comfort: HANDS DOWN the CTR. the ZLE is brutally stiff. I can't stress this enough it's brutal ride. I live in the Northeast and there is no way in hell I could daily this car. it would beat me to death. it's a freaking racecar trying to drive on the street. hands down the CTR is better in all ways in this category. the CTR in +R is about 5x softer than the ZLE (and it only has one setting. brutal lol)
6. Power/acceleration/top end etc. hands down the ZLE. it's not even close. when you floor this girl in 3rd/4th/ even 5th it lays you back and feels like the space shuttle. 650/650 is no joke.
7. shifting: both have fantastic transmissions. I think I prefer the CTR by a tiny bit. I like the precision and lightness of the CTR. but the big Tremec in this car shifts better than pretty much anything else, other than my Type R. CTR wins here by a whisker
8. comfort features interior etc: amazingly the ZLE has a ton of creature comfort stuff that I wouldn't have believed, such as heated/cooled seats and steering wheel. a fantastic sound system (way better than CTRs). a really nice infotainment system that works great (better than CTR). and really really good seats. I love the recaro seats. but the CTR seats, at least for my body shape, beat out recaros in the ZLE by a tiny margin. the interior materials are pretty nice too. still I probably give the 'interior feel and comfort' features to the ZLE. (but the totally brutal ride really quashes all that anyway lol)
9. performance gauges and features: the ZLE completely blows the CTR out of the water here. there are gauges for monitoring freaking EVERYTHING when it comes to track duty. every possible temp you could want to measure of everything. oil pressure too of course. and the PDR built in lap timing and video software is great. I even like the HUD display. no contest here.
10. fuel economy: HA HA HA! the CTR wins this by miles lol. I drive mine all the time and routinely get 25-30 mpg. in mixed driving same sort of thing I'm getting 12-13 in the ZLE. she's a thirsty girl lol.
11. value: this is hard to call. I'd give this category to the CTR mainly cause you can daily it and carry four people and it's fast and fun. and it's $30k less cost. BUT -- when you consider that the ZL1 1LE is one of the fastest track cars on the planet, and crushes most cars costing 3-4x it's cost? you can see how there is incredible value there too. and if you like to drive a car that is rarely if ever seen on the street? (not that the CTR is common, but I've seen probably at least 50 CTRs on the street in the last 3 years. I've never ever seen another ZLE on the street (I've seen two at the racetrack though).
12. durability/quality: typically I'd give this to the CTR hands down. but (big BUT here) -- if your intended use is to really thrash and push and track the car? the ZLE feels bullet proof and by all accounts is near bullet proof. the cooling systems it has onboard are ludicrous (like 13 radiators/coolers!). they say it is near impossible to overheat. and so far with my driving it has felt extremely well put together and rock solid. it's built to be abused.
so ya, there's my 'I love my CTR and plan to keep it forever, but bought it a RWD companion and this is what I think so far' post! feel free to ask any questions you have and I'll try to answer them.
PS for daily use I can see the merit in the Telsa. but for stir the soul and feel like you are driving something REALLY f'ing special? no contest with the ZL1 1LE (or the Type R for that matter). I feel these cars are a dying breed and will soon be extinct, and thats one of the many reasons I pulled the trigger on this one right now.
I ended up with a very lightly used (1700 miles) 2020 ZL1 1LE (the Extreme Track Pack), with a 6 speed manual trans, and in an ultra ultra rare color (Rally Green Metallic). she's also bone stock, and perfect condition. I love her!! (I'll put a couple pics in with this post; the color is amazing, as it changes in the sunlight. lots of metallic in it, looking very green in the sunlight. in artificial light it looks almost black barely any green to it. and the carbon fiber accents really set it off nicely I think).
OK on to the comparisons between the two:
1. Looks: I really like the way my Championship White CTR looks; it makes me smile and turn around and look back at it every time I park it and walk away. Especially the front 3/4 view. BUT -- gotta give it to the ZL1 1LE in the looks department. this baby is aggressive and mean and really looks like it means serious business.
2. Sound: I mean, come on man. the ZLE all the way. it sounds incredible, from startup to winding it out. even has a stealth mode/track mode exhaust valve system in case you want it to cruise quietly (but why would you want that?!?)
3. all out handling: by this I mean, as such on a racetrack or a smooth well paved road. the CTR handles INCREDIBLE. but the ZLE is better. the 305 front and 325 rear Rcompounds that it comes with from the factory make it grip like glue (when they are warmed up. they are terrible when cold). and the racing Spool Valve DSSV shocks and adjustable swaybars and incredibly stiff springs again make it a full race car (it has solid bushings in the rear cradle lots of other places too). the Elsd is SUPER tight and aggressive and puts the power down amazingly well. all out handling no brainer goes to the ZLE.
4. braking: the CTR brakes are great. the ZLE are on another level altogether. they are 6 piston front Brembo and 4 rear. huge huge floating front rotor (15.5" I think). braking is stupid amazing in this car. better even than the GT3 I drove. its mind bending.
5. on the road ride/comfort: HANDS DOWN the CTR. the ZLE is brutally stiff. I can't stress this enough it's brutal ride. I live in the Northeast and there is no way in hell I could daily this car. it would beat me to death. it's a freaking racecar trying to drive on the street. hands down the CTR is better in all ways in this category. the CTR in +R is about 5x softer than the ZLE (and it only has one setting. brutal lol)
6. Power/acceleration/top end etc. hands down the ZLE. it's not even close. when you floor this girl in 3rd/4th/ even 5th it lays you back and feels like the space shuttle. 650/650 is no joke.
7. shifting: both have fantastic transmissions. I think I prefer the CTR by a tiny bit. I like the precision and lightness of the CTR. but the big Tremec in this car shifts better than pretty much anything else, other than my Type R. CTR wins here by a whisker
8. comfort features interior etc: amazingly the ZLE has a ton of creature comfort stuff that I wouldn't have believed, such as heated/cooled seats and steering wheel. a fantastic sound system (way better than CTRs). a really nice infotainment system that works great (better than CTR). and really really good seats. I love the recaro seats. but the CTR seats, at least for my body shape, beat out recaros in the ZLE by a tiny margin. the interior materials are pretty nice too. still I probably give the 'interior feel and comfort' features to the ZLE. (but the totally brutal ride really quashes all that anyway lol)
9. performance gauges and features: the ZLE completely blows the CTR out of the water here. there are gauges for monitoring freaking EVERYTHING when it comes to track duty. every possible temp you could want to measure of everything. oil pressure too of course. and the PDR built in lap timing and video software is great. I even like the HUD display. no contest here.
10. fuel economy: HA HA HA! the CTR wins this by miles lol. I drive mine all the time and routinely get 25-30 mpg. in mixed driving same sort of thing I'm getting 12-13 in the ZLE. she's a thirsty girl lol.
11. value: this is hard to call. I'd give this category to the CTR mainly cause you can daily it and carry four people and it's fast and fun. and it's $30k less cost. BUT -- when you consider that the ZL1 1LE is one of the fastest track cars on the planet, and crushes most cars costing 3-4x it's cost? you can see how there is incredible value there too. and if you like to drive a car that is rarely if ever seen on the street? (not that the CTR is common, but I've seen probably at least 50 CTRs on the street in the last 3 years. I've never ever seen another ZLE on the street (I've seen two at the racetrack though).
12. durability/quality: typically I'd give this to the CTR hands down. but (big BUT here) -- if your intended use is to really thrash and push and track the car? the ZLE feels bullet proof and by all accounts is near bullet proof. the cooling systems it has onboard are ludicrous (like 13 radiators/coolers!). they say it is near impossible to overheat. and so far with my driving it has felt extremely well put together and rock solid. it's built to be abused.
so ya, there's my 'I love my CTR and plan to keep it forever, but bought it a RWD companion and this is what I think so far' post! feel free to ask any questions you have and I'll try to answer them.
PS for daily use I can see the merit in the Telsa. but for stir the soul and feel like you are driving something REALLY f'ing special? no contest with the ZL1 1LE (or the Type R for that matter). I feel these cars are a dying breed and will soon be extinct, and thats one of the many reasons I pulled the trigger on this one right now.