ZDan

Pretty sad days when a 3100 lb.(!) fwd econobox (albeit with decent power) is considered a "sports car".

Bring me back small/lightweight rear-drive sports cars of yore!

Hyundai really missed the mark by aiming at the G35. Shoulda targeted the S13 240SX!

Oh well...

mingster

looking at the last years of 240SX sales, i would say the business decision to go after G35/G37 was well executed. don't forget we're mostly enthusiasts here, and hyundai is here to sell as many cars and make as much margins as it can. appealing to a small group of people like us usually doesn't make a whole lot of sense if there were no mass appeal.

TheDonEffect

^ yup. Also, it's positioned right there against the accord coupe and now deceased solara coupe and will entice folks who like the idea of a 3 series coupe/g35 coupe but don't want to fork over that kind of dough.
Not surprising though that the MS3 won out, it's a fantastic performer with a well sorted chassis. However I'd still take the gen coupe.

Abdizzle

Bunch of elitist bastards. As if it being FWD has any baring what so ever given their target audience. They are aiming it at people who want utility with a bit of a sporty edge, not "Sports Car" elites like yourselves who think anything FWD (Everything in Honda's lineup) is a disgrace.

I'm more than willing to bet that MS3 would offer plenty competition against an S2000 around a track. But that's not the point, the point is most of you don't even track your cars to warrant the advantages of owning a RWD car + most of you need to come back down to earth.

foxy_s2k

All of a sudden, I don't want the Genesis. Ever.

[QUOTE]
Much of the handling story on these cars simply can't be told by the numbers

ZDan

However, 240SX popularity skyrocketed AFTER its demise, and NO automaker has taken advantage of that niche.

I still think Hyundai made a MISTAKE targeting the G for these reasons:
1. They not only have to compete against the more-powerful G37, they also have to compete against used G35's (which I'd rather have than either the Genesis coupe or G37)
2. They're moving too far upmarket at the very point in history when U.S. tastes in automobiles are moving downmarket (regardless of talk of economic "recovery", we should not, CANnot go back to spending more than we make)
3. They wind up being yet another oversized/overweight coupe, in a market that has plenty of them (new and used) that are better.
4. The small/lightweight/cheap rwd 2+2 coupe market is currently being served by NO one, and the pent-up demand is pretty significant. Had Hyundai gone smaller/lighter/cheaper, they'd have had the market to themselves.

They made a conservative decision, and they won't sell as many cars or make as much money because of it.

zachismisitok

If it helps, I own both a regular mazda 3 and an s2000... I also track the s2k. I know the ms3 can perform well on the track (in fact an instructor here drives one). I won't take away from it. BUT, I still prefer RWD. I simply disagree with the comparo, and believe I have the experience to justify it. I don't really care who the car is aimed at. If they are going to market it as mazdaSPEED, I think it is fair for us "elitist" to aim at it. I think FWD starts to hit a wall when you get past the level of the ms3. Why do you think most race cars are not fwd.

JonBoy

+1

A local guy here in Texas tracks his MS3. He embarrasses a lot of S2000s in that car and we have a lot of really good drivers here.

FWD or not, it's a very quick and capable car on the street and on the track.

Malloric

[QUOTE=ZDan,Sep 15 2009, 03:10 AM] However, 240SX popularity skyrocketed AFTER its demise, and NO automaker has taken advantage of that niche.

I still think Hyundai made a MISTAKE targeting the G for these reasons:
1.

ZDan

The niche market expanded quite a bit AFTER the 240SX died. I believe that there is more of a market for that car now than there was while it was around.

My judgment remains that *I* think it would have been smarter for Hyundai to "aim lower" than the G35/G37 and hit a segment where there is pent-up demand and no competition.

In any case, it certainly would have been more INTERESTING if they'd done that, rather than give us another G35.

2-seater would be fine, but as far as I'm concerned, for a street car, a 2+2 hatch makes a lot of sense.

Corvette is not "light" in my book. Just about everything else is just heavy! Suffice it to say I won't be spending $50k on a new car anytime soon...

You can put STUFF back there. The additional space comes in quite handy.
As far as that goes, I'd be all for a small/lightweight 2-seater coupe/hatch as well...

But anyway my point was that it woulda been nice if Hyundai had, instead of giving us yet another 3400 lb. coupe, if they'd gone smaller/cheaper/lighter, less lux and (if it saves a few $$$ and weight) less power. Say 2800 lb. with an n/a and the turbo 4. Minimal luxo features. No stability control. 16" base and 17" option wheels (do we really need 18 and 19"?! NO) Maybe it would have been a sales disaster, but they'd have sold at least one!