Hi all, im Cory and im new to the board. I currently drive a 2000 Honda Civic Si (electron blue) but have had the itch to buy a new car since mine has 117k miles on it. I've been reading this board for a while and finally decided to go test drive a Scion tc at the local dealership. My first impression of the body was great! I love the sporty coupe design with a very clean and modern look. The interior was really nice and the console looked very futuristic.. I got the key from the dealer and took it for a spin.. it was an auto and was the cherry black version.. the first thing I noticed was the sticky tires and tight steering which I loved. The seats felt snug and I sat lower than in my civic (and it's lowered!).. the radio sounded decent and the sunroof was nice but the cheap sunroof material was tacky. As I took off it didn't feel as peppy as I thought it would considering it has 163 lbs of torque compared to my civic si's 111lbs.. but then again it was an auto w/ the ac on.. i loved the peppy topend feel and was very responsive when I touched the gas. I also noticed a lot of people checking the car out as I drove around. Anyways.. the car was very nice but in the future I would really love to test drive the manuel version to see if it has more power. Anyways im still researching this car and hope to learn more from your posts. Thanks!

 

cory..

yeah i had a 96 civic coupe and i can appreciate more torque in this car compared to the civic's. Don't have to rev and wind this one out as much to get going.. The seats are definitely lower than the civic. But the ride isn't as jarring in the tC.. much more comfortable when hitting a bump and yet still retains the sporty feel.. Toyota did a good job on the bushings here. Some tC's i've noticed that the sunshade is warped and does look cheap.. thankfully mine (later production sequence) isn't warped and feels of decent quality.

just replace the stock bridgestone potenza re92's with something better like what I did and the car sticks even more! It's amazing.. put some pirelli pzero nero m&s on there (Stock size) and wow what a difference.. steering is more direct now.. if that is even possible!

i have an auto tC and the acceleration is great.. just have to get it out of 4 speed and put it into 2 or 3 speed to rev the engine.. then it wakes up.. but no complaints.. the drivetrain is one of the smoothest i've ever experienced, including my 96 civic coupe..

the manual version DOES have much more power. but you end up turning around 4000 rpms at 80 mph.. Is your Si that high at 80? 117k on a civic is really nothing my 96 had 133k and still running strong.. gave it to a family member..
Some on this board have had problems with the manual, from replacements of the trans, to clutch and shifting problems.. The shifter is good, but not as razor sharp as the civic's..

 

thanks for the response.. yeah my Si is a bit higher going 80mph w/ higher rpm's.. i have an intake, header, exhaust and is lowered on kyb agx shocks and neuspeed sport springs w/ yokohama avs es100 tires... im getting out of the civic/fast and furious scene and want something with pep but with a nice look as well and toyota reliability.. my old crx si had 240k miles on it so im with you on the high miles thing. So the stick does have more power off the line? thats what im really looking for.. im sick of a no torque car

 

well if you end up gettin a tc you def will get a hell of a lot of torque