Initial impressions: FL5 vs. GR Yaris vs. ND2 Miata

[mbaapk]

It's my daily and it's perfectly suitable for one. Taking delivery in the middle of winter has not been ideal with the factory summer tires though.

I'm borrowing a car while the temps are low so that I don't damage the tires driving in 20° weather. Back to back the Type R is much more comfortable than the 2009 Acura RDX I'm driving in nearly every way. I'd argue that the suspension is just as compliant in comfort mode but it's the 19" wheels that make it so jarring. I'm excited to go to 18" wheels and 35 series tires as I think it will make a big difference.

First thing I did was put high perf winters on it to avoid turning ps4s into hockey pucks.

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[JAMSXR]

I just don’t think the majority bought this car to daily. Some will have, definitely. But the majority bought it for a fun car and already have a DD. A lower trim level Civic would be perfect for a DD. This car, not so much.

Not going to clog the thread with our back and forth, but we can respectfully disagree.

We should start a poll, most of the reply’s here are people using it as a daily, no doubt it varies by region

We all have different fleets/needs, but the whole premise of a hot hatch is affordable performance matched with practicality. If I didn’t need occasional daily/family practicality, there would be a number of other cars (911, Cayman, Alpine, Lotus, Aston Martin) I would have considered in front of the Type R.

 

[CTR]

Frankly this would not be my first choice of fun car if I was younger or didn't have kids. It is a great blend of being practical but still being extremely fun to drive. The Integra Type S will likely be an even better daily at the sacrifice of weight and cost.

Agreed on making a new thread/poll where we can all discuss it on there instead of cluttering up this impressions thread.

 

[crash___]

maybe i'm a bit on the younger side of ownership, but i've been daily driving the ctr due to my other car (a lexus isf) would give any person over the age of 50 a ruptured spinal disc. the interior, the space, and how well tuned the dampening on comfort is, makes this probably the perfect only car for an enthusiast. idk man i think this car was built to be abused as a daily and a track car combined. i bought the car and i'm gonna use the shit out of it idc

 

[JAMSXR]

This was a bit of a strange thread to hijack, but in conclusion, Audi and Lexus drivers be aware - no real surprise!

Back on topic, I would love a go in a GR Yaris, very popular in the U.K. but I have heard it could do with adaptive suspension

 

[M!!!]

I'd consider switching to 18s on the FL5 to soften the ride!

 

[007]

Nice!

I just bought a 2022 GR Yaris. Waiting for it to be shipped. The CTR is still on my bucket list. If things go well, I’ll own and drive both back-to-back sometime next year, followed by an in-depth assessment and comparison.

These are my favorite new driver’s cars in existence atm.

 

[holland1]

Nice!

I just bought a 2022 GR Yaris. Waiting for it to be shipped. The CTR is still on my bucket list. If things go well, I’ll own and drive both back-to-back sometime next year, followed by an in-depth assessment and comparison.

These are my favorite new driver’s cars in existence atm.

What's the cost to bring one of those in? And can it be registered?

 

[007]

What's the cost to bring one of those in? And can it be registered?

Unfortunately, you cannot import a GR Yaris to US and register it legally, unless you wait 25 years.

I’m an American staying in Thailand. Here, the import tax was insane, but I had to have this car. The GR Yaris has been my dream car ever since it debuted.

 

[M!!!]

The Yaris is firm but far from punishing even on bad city roads, though the Civic for me is a better ride-handling balance for a daily driver

 

[lrk322]

@Hkc it sounds like the Integra Type S would be a much better fit for what you were looking for. You still might be able to get solid trade in value in the future if you decide to go that route. This is no doubt a stiffer ride than most other cars but still fairly compliant in Comfort mode.

Expecting it to go from stiff to comfortable without some compromise in vehicle dynamics is probably not possible at this price point. Maybe when the Type S comes out we'll get lucky and can just swap the ADS module to get a softer daily driver feel.

I know this has already been mentioned, but the Fk8 has a suspension that is not as stiff in Sport mode and even softer in comfort, yet appears to have 99% of the handling benefits of the FL5 with better steering feel as noted by some reviewers.

Maybe honda needed to make the car stiffer, being slightly heavier and larger to get those few seconds ahead of the fk8. If it was just as comfortable but posted about the same times, numbers lovers would scoff?

Still trying to figure out why they needed to make it stiffer when everyone praised the ride on the fk8. Even @savagegeese 's explanation that they made it stiffer as a sort of last hurrah to be the best-performing ICE Type R on the way out, doesn't make sense to me. It's a few seconds faster around the track, but it's worse to drive every day? Seems like a step backward.

 

[CTR]

From what I understand Comfort mode in the FK8 was too floaty and you couldn’t actually corner aggressively. How many FK8 owners really drove in Comfort when everything else was worse?

It seems like they made Comfort suspension setting actually useful because they knew a lot of people would use it with Individual mode in the FL5.

 

[savagegeese]

I know this has already been mentioned, but the Fk8 has a suspension that is not as stiff in Sport mode and even softer in comfort, yet appears to have 99% of the handling benefits of the FL5 with better steering feel as noted by some reviewers.

Maybe honda needed to make the car stiffer, being slightly heavier and larger to get those few seconds ahead of the fk8. If it was just as comfortable but posted about the same times, numbers lovers would scoff?

Still trying to figure out why they needed to make it stiffer when everyone praised the ride on the fk8. Even @savagegeese 's explanation that they made it stiffer as a sort of last hurrah to be the best-performing ICE Type R on the way out, doesn't make sense to me. It's a few seconds faster around the track, but it's worse to drive every day? Seems like a step backward.

Most of all their testing was done at Suzuka which is glass, the stiffness there was a non issue.
The explanation was this was supposed to "hardcore" with a higher starting envelop for performance. Now what does that actually mean. The dampers are a price point choice, they did not have unlimited budget. So you don't have dual valves or fancy flow paths like more expensive brands spec. So if you are someone who can't stand it or this is a primary car then the Integra Type S (R Touring) will be a better choice. If I was daily driving the Type R I would 100% swap the dampers with Ohlins. I don't have the time like I used to or I would be in SC working with them prototyping and having them do a R&T kit specifically for FL5 and top hats.

 

[Kfo_cpa]

I picked up a FL5 last weekend and I really like driving in comfort mode. I was worried the car was too stiff but so far comfort mode has been treating me good. One thing that caught me off guard is the road noise - it can get loud in the cabin. I wish the tires had the same performance, but a little quieter.

 

[CTR]

So if you are someone who can't stand it or this is a primary car then the Integra Type S (R Touring) will be a better choice. If I was daily driving the Type R I would 100% swap the dampers with Ohlins. I don't have the time like I used to or I would be in SC working with them prototyping and having them do a R&T kit specifically for FL5 and top hats.

What do you think the chances are that the Integra Type S dampers can be installed on the Type R along with ADS module? The cars are so similar I think this could be an alternative.

How long does it take for Öhlins to develop kits like this?

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