I took a few weeks off, but here's some more test drives!
05 Legacy GT Spec B - disclaimer, this is my dad's car I've driven this car a bunch of times. Did a father & son day at the Autocross while visiting PA, first autocross I've done in close to 5 years. I don't fit with my helmet on because of the sunroof. The Bilsteins are just fantastic, the car would go wherever I pointed it, even on all seasons. The ABS was just right, you can really hammer the brake pedal. Going the other way, I'm pretty sure everyone on course heard me shouting POWEEEERRRR like some sort of youthful ginger Clarkson. Ended up 31/97 in PAX, 200TW tires would definitely have moved me up a few places. It has really good manners on the street as well. I think going down a size to the 17" wheels was the right call for PA roads.
2012 Mustang Base - I took another crack at a Mustang tonight now that I have some perspective. This one had the standard modifications: a cold air intake and short shifter. The cold air intake seemed to solve 90% of my complaints about the engine. It makes the right noises similar to the 350Z, and you get a better sense of it being a sports car. All it needs is like a 3.73 rear end and it'd probably be just right. The clutch in this example was much better, so the first one I drove must have been a fluke. Wasn't a fan of the very floaty suspension, this particular one was what I imagine a P71 is like. I actually had to countersteer a bit due to a mid-corner bump. I'm sure that could be tuned out though. I'm looking at shocks for these right now in fact.
2015 Fiesta SE Ecoboost - I mostly just wanted to see what the 1.0L is like. It's got some of that turbo spool punch that I felt the Sonic RS lacked, but only if the ECU gives you overboost (which is probably more often with a tank of 93). Otherwise it feels like a normal 1.6L. It makes cool noises! Even totally stock, when you open it up to merge onto the highway, it sounds an awful lot like an inline 6. As for the rest of the car, I actually liked it better than the focus. The pedals are at what seems like an odd angle, i felt like I was stepping down onto the clutch instead of pushing it in? I didn't mind that, but it stuck out. The shifter is heavily damped, not really that nice to use. Good all-around visibility, the chassis is light and tossable, the steering sharp and precise, not too noisy at 75. If I wanted an economical commuter to park next to my fun car, this would definitely be worth a look. The bottom line? This is the tossable little cheap hatchback that I imagine many GRM readers wish was real.
