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Story time: a couple weeks ago I had to drive Sarah's car. I noted it felt a little sluggish, but didn't think too much of it. However, when I really got on the gas, the car made a lot of noise...and not much else. I noted that I could hear the turbo spooling but it definitely wasn't force feeding the engine any air. Fast forward to this past weekend. Sarah drops off the car to the Hyundai dealer, and sure enough, there is definitely a boost leak. From the sound of things, the entire turbo is going to have to be replaced. Total cost? Nada. The car is still under Hyundai's excellent 10 year/100k powertrain warranty. However, the car will be unavailable the next few days. So, Sarah is driving my our Ridgeline to work, and I get the S.
Also, over the weekend I had the S in for its annual inspection for NY and the ritual changing of the fluids. While I was there, I talked to the salesman that I worked with when I bought the Ridgeline. I mentioned my thought of maybe replacing Sarah's car with something more fun down the road, like maybe a Civic Si, an Accord Sport, or a CTR. Well, turns out they had the Si and the Accord Sport on the lot. I was tossed the keys, and since I had time to kill, I went out on a little jaunt.
I started in the Accord Sport 6MT, and I have to say it was the most un-Honda drive I've ever had - in a good way! I know we're all used to the hi-revving nature of the S, and most of Honda's engines are like this - even the Ridgeline doesn't seem to perk up till you go past 4k rpm. The Accord was the opposite of any Honda I've driven. At 2200 rpm, you could drop the hammer, wait half a second for the turbo to spool, and it would just take off. It was low end grunt that is so atypical for a Honda. The 6MT is no rival to the S2000, but operated nicely enough. Visibility is excellent, and the car is quite comfortable for what it is. I only had a few twisties to throw at it, but it soaked them up well and only gave a hint of understeer. This car is definitely on my shortlist if I decide to look at a replacement for the Sonata.
Next I tried out the Civic Si Sedan. Visibility was a bit more compromised than the Accord, but still functioned well enough. while also a turbocharged car, it didn't have that same frenetic urgency at low rpm like the Accord had. It definitely felt more Honda-like in that you had to rev it to generate power. However, the redline comes in at a scant (for Honda) 6500 rpm, and it just felt like a very narrow window to work in. I know that comment from an AP2 S2000 owner sounds hypocritical, but I honestly felt like the car needed more low end grunt or a higher rpm limit. Handling was secure and predictable. Definitely a bit more of a growl from the exhaust than the Accord, but that is something to be expected. It did have a sport mode button, and when pressed the graphic showed some suspension bits firming up on the dash, but I was hard pressed to feel much of a difference between the two modes during my short drive. I suspect it would permanently stay in that mode should I ever own one.
Sadly, no CTR on the lot to compare to. The Civic Si is a bargain at $24k sticker, but I almost feel like I the Accord Sport at $30k is a much better car. Now, could you buy the Si and with the extra $6k have a much faster and better handling car? Sure, but I guess I'm getting older and I just liked the Accord a bit more with its extra size and comfort.
05-13-2019, 08:55 AM
