My friend was interested in either the EVO8 or the STi, so we drove there in my Z. Here are my impressions:

Actually, first we drove an srt-4 (you know, the neon with the turbo) for ***** and giggles. It's pretty fast, but it's a piece of ****! I wasn't expecting much though, we kinda made the decision at the last minute. I said to my friend, "I guarantee the dealer is going to tell me how it's faster than my Z" 5 mins later during the test drive, he said it. I said, "It may be somewhat close, but it's definitely not faster."

Anyways, on to the EVO8 and STi impressions. First we test drove the STi (04 I think?). Holy ****. That thing is a BEAST! Neck snapping torque. Excellent handling. The interior was very well done. Had a cool button to fix the rear wheels with a 65% bias. The tires were really sticky. The dealer told us the tires really only lasted about 2k miles (WOW! That's pretty bad). I wasn't a fan of the wing or the hood scoop, but I could get over it Side view on the Subi was nice though. Amazing breaking, and almost no body rol.l
Next we drove the EVO8. The dealer that came with us drove the car first. He was a professional racecar driver. He was saving the car for break-in, but he still showed us a good time. We went 90 off and exit that was a complete circle. We pulled enough g's to where I felt light headed (not kidding). Handling on that car was the best I've ever experienced. The dealer's driving helped alot too Also, the EVO has a TON of weight savings. It had a carbon-fiber wing, and alot of aluminum panels. The trunk weighs literally like 5 lbs. with the wing on it. It was fast as hell, but wasn't as good acceleration-wise as the STi. I love the front-end of the EVO in comparison to the STi. You could even adjust the angle of the headlamps (HID's). the interior of the EVO was garbage. The shifter was the worst thing I've ever seen. Also, ZERO body roll, and amazing breaking.
In summary, I liked the Sti better overall. I am biased toward acceleration and the Subi clearly won there. If it had all the weight savings the EVO had, it would be ridiculously fast. The STi also had WAY nicer interior/instrument cluster. The EVO, from what I could gather was the better handler. It was very impressive. I like the front end of the EVO alot better, but the side-view of the STi was better IMO. The EVO seemed more practical because the dealer said the tires last around 12k miles (as opposed to the estimated 2k for the STi), and the insurance rates were lower. The STi dealer said the insurance rates are very high. Another plus for the EVO is the fact that it has better aftermarket support. Apparently the STi suffers from the same fuel management problems our Z suffers from when modding it.
My Z felt slow on the way home I understand the torque/hp curves are different so feeling alot faster doesn't mean it IS alot faster.

Btw, I know this will read very chopy, and I apologize. I'm usually a more articulate writer...but I have school in the a.m. and right now it's 1:13 a.m. GOTTA GO!

 

this is also the delimma i am in right now.
I like the modibility (my friend ran a 12.5 @ 5800 ft of altitude) of the sti with minimal mods (DP, Exhaust, FCD, and manual boost controlelr to 21 psi)
but i hate 4 doors, and i dont like the look of the STI

i hate the evo. ugly as hell.

and that leaves me at the Z. how did it compare to your Z?
granted the Z isn't as fast out of the box, but there are a lot of pluses that come along with the Z beyond just the speed. looks, insurance, nissan quality (minus the little problems like tire feathering), better interior, 2 door, 2 seater coupe. and as proven by people on this board. start out with a base Z, and spend the aditional money that you saved over the STI, and it will just be as fast

and yes, the STI is a beast.

 

I think you hit the nail on the head, except for one thing. Now that I saw the interior of the STi in person, and sat in it, it's either the same or better than the Z's interior IMO.

I love the sound of my Z better, and although it doesn't have the grip the STi does, RWD can be more fun The Z has inferior handling to the STi and the EVO, but considering it doesn't have AWD, the Z is pretty amazing. The only thing I really wish for in my Z is easier modability.

The main thing that draws people toward the STi and the EVO (and makes them think they can beat anythig on the planet) is they FEEL so much faster. They are faster, but not to the same proportion of how much faster they feel.

If the Z had AWD with the option of giving it a full rear-wheel bias, nothing would be more fun

 

You and I must have driven very different STi's. I found the STi's handling very floaty, not confidence inspiring. And while it has lots of torque off the line, the STi has little pull at redline or on the highway. Cool car though, with lots of potential. Ugly as sin.

 

Well, the EVO defintiely handled better than the Z. I was just making a guess on the STi. The STi may be powerless at high rpms, but the EVO was powerless at low rpms :P

How would the Z compare against the EVO if it had upgraded suspension?

Although I like the front-view of the evo, both cars are ugly as sin

 

Well I test drove the STi and the Z back to back. I found the Z much easier to drive fast and more confidence inspiring. Stock for stock, I prefer the Z suspension setup. Modded, who knows...the sky's the limit. The Z is a great platform. There are a number of issues with the STi...slow steering rack, floaty suspension, etc.

 

STi and EVO although a little faster they feel a lot more faster than the Z or any other car because of the high rise (slope) in power due to boost (given you are above lag RPM) from a cruising "mode" to WOT, and because of the awesome TQ of a FI engine.

 

Took a ride with a guy who had an upgraded STI. He was running high boost and had done some chip and exhaust work.
He was dynoing 340HP at the wheels!

The thing was OUT OF CONTROL fast. Although he said he raced a Z w/ a procharger and they were neck and neck.
I must say his black STI did not look bad at all.
But at the end of the day I still was glad to go home in my slower but far sexier Z.

 

Finally saw a Java Black (color name?) STi in person and it looked pretty awesome IMO. Although I havn't had the chance to race an STi, I have raced my friend's stock EVO on an abandoned highway that stretches more than a 1/4 mile long. He took me by about a car from a stop and it stayed that way the rest of the 1/4, So I can tell you that the Z and EVO's acceleration seem to be pretty Similar, probly with the Z being a little quicker at higher speeds and the EVO taking the launch. My car was also stock at the time, BTW (and still is )

 

I have raced both the STi and the EVO. Both are fast, but both were last at the end. I think a lot had to do with the drivers.

 

I was wondering something... Say we were to track the Z, EVO, and STi. Would we turn VDC off on the Z, or would we be sacrificing an advantage? I know, it's more of a challenge/more fun with VDC off, etc., but to compare the cars more fairly we'd keep it on, right? I mean, lets face it, it's a hell of a lot easier to drive an AWD car than it is a RWD car. AWD is like VDC squared..hehe. What do you guys think?

BTW, please don't explain to me that VDC and AWD are different. I already know this. My point is that they both improve handling.

 

Neither improves handling.

AWD improves traction, and many consider it a detriment to handling.

VDC potentially improves vehicle control, i.e. you can't handle it yourself and you need a computer to save your ***. I guess the argument could be made that you can get through a slalom faster or something, but I've never used VDC or its equivalent on a regular basis, nor do I plan to. Not a big fan of computer intervention.

 

Who cares? Take a good look at your Z as you get out after going somewhere. Now do the same for any STi/EVO...and you want that for what? Under a sec. faster in the quarter? HELL NO...














my opinion/taste only)

 

I really want to drive the srt-4, evo and sti. This summer i will test drive them. I really cant wait to finally drive an AWD turbo.

 

GRR. I'm an idiot. I don't come across very clearly sometimes. I didn't mean to say that their function was to "improve handling." I meant to say that both VDC and AWD make the cars easier to handle for the average driver because of the added traction.

 

The srt-4 is only front-wheel drive. I dont' know if you read my initial post, but my friend and I test drove the srt-4 just for fun. My advice to use is to not waste your time. It's a piece of ****

Zpower, Idk if you've actually followed along with the thread, but I think we all agree the Z is way better looking. That's why I got my Z

 

Agreed
The EVO and STi aren't too ahead of us in the performance department anyways

 

The Z is better and heres how to prove it:

Park all three cars side by side

Get someone that knows nothing about cars

Ask them which car they think looks best and is the fastest

9/10 times they'll say the Z.

Thats why I would never really consider an STi or an Evo, there numbers are awesome but they just dont have the sleek sporty look that says high performance.

 

About a month ago I started the information gathering phase of the hunt for my next ride (I currently own a 2001 S2000). I test drove a track model Z, the EVO, and the STI on the same day.

I didn't push them to the limit because wrecking $30,000+ cars that I don't own is against my religion. However, I did get to take them around some curves at about 80% and my impressions were that the EVO had a slight handling advantage over the track model Z, but that both handled better than the STI. The STI's steering felt vague and it had too much body roll.

On the other hand, the STI was by far the fastest in a straight line. There seems to be no turbo lag, it just seems to start building power and LOTS of speed from the moment you put your foot in it. The STI also sounds mean as hell when accelerating. The EVO was not as fast and had very noticeable turbo lag, but it was still obviously faster than the Z. The Z felt "fast enough", with a good, wide power band. However, 1st gear seems ridiculuosly low. The sales person told me that you can let the Z's clutch out in first gear without touching the accelerator and it won't stall - I didn't try it, but I believe him.

I felt the interior was a split decision between the Z and the STI. The quality of the materials in the STI was MUCH better than either the Z or the EVO. Still, some of the switches in the STI seemed cheap - but the same can be said of the other two on even more switches. The speedo and tach were HUGE in the STI and had a nice orangish red glow to them with the lights on. The EVO had very small gauges, although the particular EVO I drove had the gauge package . . . RIPOFF. 3 approximately 1.5" gauges crammed in at the botoom of the center console. I couldn't recommend actually trying to read them while the car was moving. The Z won the driving position and relationship between seat, steering wheel, and shifter award. Obviously the other 2 started life as economy sedans and had no chance in this category.

Lastly, the Z felt like the most solidly built of the 3. Then again, it had better since it starts with a stronger, higher level chassis that was designed to be both more solid and more sporty to begin with.

 

Its not a piece of S its a great bargain for 20k also beware of the 04 they did some changes to it(its quicker) and C/D actually like it. Its in the new issue