Interesting thoughts from my friend who was going to buy a Type R

[Zeffy94]

One of my friends was looking to trade in his Mustang Ecoboost for something more practical. His first choice was the Type R from how he heard such good things about it from me. Ultimately he found one he was able to test drive. After he test drove it, he walked on purchasing it.

He also owns an 8th gen Si that he got for fairly cheap. When I asked what he thought of the CTR, he offered these remarks:

• The shifter felt notchy like his 8th gen Si, which has it's 3rd gear popping out occasionally
  
• The ride felt decent, but the 20 inch wheels on harsh pavement still felt pretty rough
• He loved the space in the back and the interior as a whole
• He didn't like how it felt off the line, too much power going to the front wheels which just results in wheelspin
• He said overall it was very fun to drive

So, he then went and test drove a CPO 2017 WRX STI and bought that instead. He told me that the Type R was the better performer, and the better car as a whole (interior, ride comfort, etc), but the STI felt more fun to him. He liked the rumble of the boxer engine and he said the AWD system just makes the car more fun than having to deal with FWD.

He told me that the Type R is a special car for sure, one that's unlike anything he'd ever driven before, but he liked how the STI drove better and that's why he went with the Subaru.

i always see the comparisons here between the CTR and STI but just wanted to add some more input from someone who I know. At the end of the day, both of the cars are great cars, and if you're on the fence about either one just pick which one you like more, not which one gets better reviews / all the press.

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[Neciovato]

Nice review. I don't know if it's bc a new STI is coming out but it seems like used ones are actually coming down in price. I know I originally (for a 2nd - not looking to mod type of car) I was wanting to check out the CTR and the STI as well as the GolfR and I was surprised at the used STIs being around $26k for being a couple years old.

Nice review by your friend and I agree - just bc a car gets a lot of hype from the media and obviously if you are on a 'insert car type' forum - you'll find a lot of hype as well -- doesn't mean there isn't a 'better car for you' out there. I've heard nothing but good things about the Subies (other than the gas mileage being meh but that is that AWD for you).

 

[Zeffy94]

Nice review. I don't know if it's bc a new STI is coming out but it seems like used ones are actually coming down in price. I know I originally (for a 2nd - not looking to mod type of car) I was wanting to check out the CTR and the STI as well as the GolfR and I was surprised at the used STIs being around $26k for being a couple years old.

Nice review by your friend and I agree - just bc a car gets a lot of hype from the media and obviously if you are on a 'insert car type' forum - you'll find a lot of hype as well -- doesn't mean there isn't a 'better car for you' out there. I've heard nothing but good things about the Subies (other than the gas mileage being meh but that is that AWD for you).

Yeah, the used prices DO seem to be coming down on the STIs, which I found interesting. He picked his up $23K USD with 30K miles, but he's in Canada so I don't know how much that translates to in CAD. But what he said about driving the car that makes you feel better even if everyone else says it's a "worse" car is definitely something everyone should be considering. Everyone's tastes are different, that's why we're car enthusiasts

 

[Neciovato]

WOW - $23k would be a hard price to walk away from. Congrats to your friend. The one advantage you have is that you can both drive each other cars to see the differences and pros/cons - both cars seems to have a great following as well as being considered great vehicles altogether.

 

[Dwight]

One of my friends was looking to trade in his Mustang Ecoboost for something more practical. His first choice was the Type R from how he heard such good things about it from me. Ultimately he found one he was able to test drive. After he test drove it, he walked on purchasing it.

He also owns an 8th gen Si that he got for fairly cheap. When I asked what he thought of the CTR, he offered these remarks:

• The shifter felt notchy like his 8th gen Si, which has it's 3rd gear popping out occasionally
  
• The ride felt decent, but the 20 inch wheels on harsh pavement still felt pretty rough
• He loved the space in the back and the interior as a whole
• He didn't like how it felt off the line, too much power going to the front wheels which just results in wheelspin
• He said overall it was very fun to drive

So, he then went and test drove a CPO 2017 WRX STI and bought that instead. He told me that the Type R was the better performer, and the better car as a whole (interior, ride comfort, etc), but the STI felt more fun to him. He liked the rumble of the boxer engine and he said the AWD system just makes the car more fun than having to deal with FWD.

He told me that the Type R is a special car for sure, one that's unlike anything he'd ever driven before, but he liked how the STI drove better and that's why he went with the Subaru.

i always see the comparisons here between the CTR and STI but just wanted to add some more input from someone who I know. At the end of the day, both of the cars are great cars, and if you're on the fence about either one just pick which one you like more, not which one gets better reviews / all the press.

Hmmm I think your friend made the right Choice

 

[NapalmEnema]

I had an STi, and believe that if your buddy had gotten over the initial test drive and really started pushing the car he may have made a different decision. I've had a 2008 STi for over 100k miles, after than an EVO. I never thought I'd like a car more pushing it than an EVO, which I put a hair over the STi... then I got the Type R. Man this car just loves to be thrown around and does it so well. I agree the torque off the line of an STi is entertaining, but the overall? Dunno I would be hard pressed to choose most any car over the Type R after spending some time with it. Car is silly good. Also hard hard pass on that 2.5 engine in the STi - make sure your buddy gets rid of that thing before the headgasket goes at 100k - ask me how I know. :x

 

[tinyman392]

One thing to keep in mind is that the Type R is an incredibly hard car to drive hard off the line. It takes a lot of finesse and patience due to the fact that it puts more power at the wheels and has half the wheels to provide torque. But, once you're towards the end of 2nd gear or 3rd gear and up, the Type R is going to be the more fun car to drive without any large learning curve. But in most every day driving situations, getting off a light efficiently and quickly becomes a difficult task to do with the Type R as there is more thought, skill, etc. required to pull such an action vs the STI where you can simply just give it full throttle and the AWD system will get power where things need to go and there is no learning curve, no finesse, no patience, no skill required to get off the line quickly.

Another car that was worth looking at for your friend was a used Ford Focus RS. Same abilities of the STI off the line as it's easy to get off the line without any issue. But can still pull hard in 2nd gear and nearly as hard in 3rd gear for most everyday driving scenarios. They do tend to run a little more expensive (27-30k right now) though.

 

[Zeffy94]

One thing to keep in mind is that the Type R is an incredibly hard car to drive hard off the line. It takes a lot of finesse and patience due to the fact that it puts more power at the wheels and has half the wheels to provide torque. But, once you're towards the end of 2nd gear or 3rd gear and up, the Type R is going to be the more fun car to drive without any large learning curve. But in most every day driving situations, getting off a light efficiently and quickly becomes a difficult task to do with the Type R as there is more thought, skill, etc. required to pull such an action vs the STI where you can simply just give it full throttle and the AWD system will get power where things need to go and there is no learning curve, no finesse, no patience, no skill required to get off the line quickly.

Another car that was worth looking at for your friend was a used Ford Focus RS. Same abilities of the STI off the line as it's easy to get off the line without any issue. But can still pull hard in 2nd gear and nearly as hard in 3rd gear for most everyday driving scenarios. They do tend to run a little more expensive (27-30k right now) though.

Yeah, it's frustrating to launch the CTR off a light, but once you get up to the end of 2nd gear, it goes great. Problem is, by that time you're either exceeding the speed limit or you will be the moment you shift into 3rd. With the Subie, as soon as the turbo boost builds (near 4k...) it starts flying. The CTR would catch it eventually since it pulls harder once the wheels hookup.

Regarding the FoRS, I think he said he didn't want another Ford, plus the ride quality on those are pretty punishing from what I hear.

 

[Dwight]

One thing to keep in mind is that the Type R is an incredibly hard car to drive hard off the line. It takes a lot of finesse and patience due to the fact that it puts more power at the wheels and has half the wheels to provide torque. But, once you're towards the end of 2nd gear or 3rd gear and up, the Type R is going to be the more fun car to drive without any large learning curve. But in most every day driving situations, getting off a light efficiently and quickly becomes a difficult task to do with the Type R as there is more thought, skill, etc. required to pull such an action vs the STI where you can simply just give it full throttle and the AWD system will get power where things need to go and there is no learning curve, no finesse, no patience, no skill required to get off the line quickly.

Another car that was worth looking at for your friend was a used Ford Focus RS. Same abilities of the STI off the line as it's easy to get off the line without any issue. But can still pull hard in 2nd gear and nearly as hard in 3rd gear for most everyday driving scenarios. They do tend to run a little more expensive (27-30k right now) though.

Well the type r isn't really a drag car

 

[NapalmEnema]

Well the type r isn't really a drag car

Neither is the STi at the end of the day. Most hard launching them won't last both cars are best in an Autocross / rolling setting - at that point, imo, the Type R feels like a next generation compared to any STi that is presently available.

 

[ian408]

I thought it was a well written review except the launch part. The Type R doesn't do well in 1st. Everyone who owns one knows that. It's even backed up by the manual which talks about performance to about 3.5k RPM. That said, get rolling, shift, and move on. The shifting issue sounds more like driver error but I can understand why that's annoying.

No complaints about other cars in the class though I'm sure they have their own issues too-just need to learn how to drive them and you're good.

 

[Zeffy94]

I thought it was a well written review except the launch part. The Type R doesn't do well in 1st. Everyone who owns one knows that. It's even backed up by the manual which talks about performance to about 3.5k RPM. That said, get rolling, shift, and move on. The shifting issue sounds more like driver error but I can understand why that's annoying.

No complaints about other cars in the class though I'm sure they have their own issues too-just need to learn how to drive them and you're good.

Yeah, 1st gear is pretty much useless to floor it in. You have to wait until the upper reaches of 2nd before all of that power can be harnessed.

Anyone who can launch the CTR perfectly though, I envy you, cause i'm awful at it.

 

[tinyman392]

Yeah, 1st gear is pretty much useless to floor it in. You have to wait until the upper reaches of 2nd before all of that power can be harnessed.

Anyone who can launch the CTR perfectly though, I envy you, cause i'm awful at it.

I don't ever hard-launch my car. I normally hit around 60-70% in 1st gear and maybe 70-80% in 2nd gear (Sport/+R modes). These numbers can change depending on the weather conditions obviously (it's been a little wet and cold lately) so I can't give it as much throttle. I also run using A/S tires so if you have stickier tires in hotter weather (or did a burn out or two to heat them up) you might be able to push these throttle positions up a bit. Some users on here have stated that if you have certain tires they should hook regardless (I'm kind of weary of such claims).

The key is to experiment and practice. The nice thing is that the car tells you precisely where your throttle pedal is mapped. Tires spinning? Well then you're a little too hard. Tires not spinning? You might be able to push more. Search for a sweet spot. As you drive it more and more you'll be able to figure out how to deal with weather conditions, temperature and how to react as your tires get warmer throughout the drive.

I did something similar to figuring out the brake pressure to use to stop the squealing of the front brakes (for the most part, it was useless if I hit stop and go traffic) to find the sweet spot I needed to be at to stop them from squealing. Though I've swapped brake pads since then.

 

[ian408]

Yeah, 1st gear is pretty much useless to floor it in. You have to wait until the upper reaches of 2nd before all of that power can be harnessed.

Anyone who can launch the CTR perfectly though, I envy you, cause i'm awful at it.

It's like driving an F-150 pickup truck with larger tires

For me, I just launch and around 2500, bang it to second, then third soon after. It's a timing thing and you'll only get better by doing it. Oh, and don't slip the clutch either.

 

[jayevo23]

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