My Integra Type S First Drive Review

[lumper]

People pay much more than that for things they don't end up liking whether it be cars, houses, schooling, etc. Also doesnt necessarily mean that they lose the value of what they spent just to see if its something they can fall in love with. Financial risk tolerance is different for everyone.

Maybe im misunderstanding but to me it seems he didn't say he didn't like it but that his experience was different than his expectations. I don't have a problem with that, what I am saying is he shouldn't put much weight on what either of us has to say because everything is so subjective.

Marketing aside the type S will attract different types of buyers, imo it seems perfect for someone who wants an engaging roomy comfortable daily. Basically exactly what he described for his desire in a car. Frankly if I was tracking more than a couple times a year I'd probably go a different direction but, again, personal preference. I'd respect anyone who felt different. It would just frustrate me if I listened to someone with drastically different views than myself and ended up not pursuing something I would have ended up loving

You got it 100% I liked it, it just wasn't what I had expected is all, and I cant wait to spend more time with the car and learn it.

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[optronix]

Just a weird take then. Fair enough, I'll STFU.

 

[kimchee411]

Definitely appreciate OP's perspective as I'm cross shopping the M2, which has a similar wait time, for a low mileage daily. I always wanted an M car, starting with E46 M3, but somehow never got there. Sounds like the M2 would still feel more special and satisfying. I also prefer RWD characteristics and have a soft spot for the driving feel of BMWs. I have a 997 C2 for true sports car duties, so I'm looking for a more street oriented car that's track capable.

 

[VinnyDaFish]

Only 220 miles to date and really, really trying to break it in nicely. I will get the oil changed at 500 miles on the dot and begin to open it up a bit more, but no one should worry about this car doing anything but putting a big grin on your face, especially if you are lucky enough to find some fun twisty roads to enjoy where this car excels. I'm in the Dallas area, so this isn't an easy task, but I am likely going to head back to my favorite nearby twisty road as I finish this post. Just because the car has been freshly detailed in my driveway this morning and I have dearly missed having a manual transmission over the last year. I haven't had a FWD in 15 years (since selling my 2004 SRT-4), and I'm thrilled with this car.

 

[RUNN1N]

Only 220 miles to date and really, really trying to break it in nicely. I will get the oil changed at 500 miles on the dot and begin to open it up a bit more, but no one should worry about this car doing anything but putting a big grin on your face, especially if you are lucky enough to find some fun twisty roads to enjoy where this car excels. I'm in the Dallas area, so this isn't an easy task, but I am likely going to head back to my favorite nearby twisty road as I finish this post. Just because the car has been freshly detailed in my driveway this morning and I have dearly missed having a manual transmission over the last year. I haven't had a FWD in 15 years (since selling my 2004 SRT-4), and I'm thrilled with this car.

Right around 250 miles myself, and just had to buy my first tank of gas--$19.50 at Sheetz running $1.776 for everything from 87-93, probably the cheapest fill-up I'll ever get!

 

[Integra23]

Right around 250 miles myself, and just had to buy my first tank of gas--$19.50 at Sheetz running $1.776 for everything from 87-93, probably the cheapest fill-up I'll ever get!

Wow.. July 4th special. That's crazy.

 

[VinnyDaFish]

Right around 250 miles myself, and just had to buy my first tank of gas--$19.50 at Sheetz running $1.776 for everything from 87-93, probably the cheapest fill-up I'll ever get!

Ha — motivation for a bonus 250 miles.

 

[ChromaPop]

So many excellently articulated points I can't even keep up. Nailed it.

Context is a fickle thing.

I just got back from a day of autocross in my 718 yesterday (and woke up with the craziest bout of vertigo... wonder if they're connected??)- I have to admit, it was pretty bittersweet as it might be the last time I do a "motorsports event" in this car, and right now it's tough for me to imagine a Type S being able to replicate the sensations I just went through.



But that's not what this car is about! The fact I can even have that thought about it attempting to compete with my $100k+, dedicated 2-seat mid-engine sports car- while being able to put my dog in the back, have an arguably better manual transmission, far better standard stereo, and less than half the price point? That is what this car is about.

I am curious why you didn't get a manual transmission in your Boxster?

 

[optronix]

I am curious why you didn't get a manual transmission in your Boxster?

Many factors went into that decision, and I still wonder if ultimately it was the wrong decision. I guess I'll never know if I would even be thinking about moving on from it if I would have gotten the manual... but since you asked-

I blame my wife.

Kidding aside, we jointly enjoy our cars. I've had many cars in the past, and most of them had manual transmissions. I've had both a manual 981 Boxster GTS, and a PDK 718 Boxster GTS with the 2.5 liter turbo 4. Both are fantastic transmissions; to the point where I find myself noticing on almost every drive where I'd prefer a manual and where I'd prefer a PDK- on the same drive. So yeah, it was a tough decision.

My wife's point about having the PDK for a convertible ended up winning me over. The concept of just putting the top down and cruising without having to worry about shifting gears fits her use case- and she was also tired of hearing me complaining about driving in beltway traffic with a manual. PDK also fits my use case as I like to use it for autocross, where it is VERY competitive. PDK is like a cheat code for autocross. The video I posted above is a decent example of this- it is telepathic, and gear shifts are instantaneous. That was not my best run, I lost a ton of time in the slalom (and a couple other places....), but I did place 9th out of 60+ cars, mostly Porsches or race-prepped Miatas ahead of me and all on Cup2s or RE-171Rs while I was on the OEM Pirellis (except for one 991.2 GTS, guy just had a good day but I'm usually faster than him). This is all relative of course and I'm not the best driver but being in the running for FTD is a big bonus of having a PDK- I almost surely wouldn't be as fast with a manual.

That said, overall enjoyment would be higher with a manual, I can't really argue that.

 

[ChromaPop]

Many factors went into that decision, and I still wonder if ultimately it was the wrong decision. I guess I'll never know if I would even be thinking about moving on from it if I would have gotten the manual... but since you asked-

I blame my wife.

Kidding aside, we jointly enjoy our cars. I've had many cars in the past, and most of them had manual transmissions. I've had both a manual 981 Boxster GTS, and a PDK 718 Boxster GTS with the 2.5 liter turbo 4. Both are fantastic transmissions; to the point where I find myself noticing on almost every drive where I'd prefer a manual and where I'd prefer a PDK- on the same drive. So yeah, it was a tough decision.

My wife's point about having the PDK for a convertible ended up winning me over. The concept of just putting the top down and cruising without having to worry about shifting gears fits her use case- and she was also tired of hearing me complaining about driving in beltway traffic with a manual. PDK also fits my use case as I like to use it for autocross, where it is VERY competitive. PDK is like a cheat code for autocross. The video I posted above is a decent example of this- it is telepathic, and gear shifts are instantaneous. That was not my best run, I lost a ton of time in the slalom (and a couple other places....), but I did place 9th out of 60+ cars, mostly Porsches or race-prepped Miatas ahead of me and all on Cup2s or RE-171Rs while I was on the OEM Pirellis (except for one 991.2 GTS, guy just had a good day but I'm usually faster than him). This is all relative of course and I'm not the best driver but being in the running for FTD is a big bonus of having a PDK- I almost surely wouldn't be as fast with a manual.

That said, overall enjoyment would be higher with a manual, I can't really argue that.

Perfectly acceptable explanation, thanks for taking the time!

 

[Negitoro7]

Many factors went into that decision, and I still wonder if ultimately it was the wrong decision. I guess I'll never know if I would even be thinking about moving on from it if I would have gotten the manual... but since you asked-

I blame my wife.

Kidding aside, we jointly enjoy our cars. I've had many cars in the past, and most of them had manual transmissions. I've had both a manual 981 Boxster GTS, and a PDK 718 Boxster GTS with the 2.5 liter turbo 4. Both are fantastic transmissions; to the point where I find myself noticing on almost every drive where I'd prefer a manual and where I'd prefer a PDK- on the same drive. So yeah, it was a tough decision.

My wife's point about having the PDK for a convertible ended up winning me over. The concept of just putting the top down and cruising without having to worry about shifting gears fits her use case- and she was also tired of hearing me complaining about driving in beltway traffic with a manual. PDK also fits my use case as I like to use it for autocross, where it is VERY competitive. PDK is like a cheat code for autocross. The video I posted above is a decent example of this- it is telepathic, and gear shifts are instantaneous. That was not my best run, I lost a ton of time in the slalom (and a couple other places....), but I did place 9th out of 60+ cars, mostly Porsches or race-prepped Miatas ahead of me and all on Cup2s or RE-171Rs while I was on the OEM Pirellis (except for one 991.2 GTS, guy just had a good day but I'm usually faster than him). This is all relative of course and I'm not the best driver but being in the running for FTD is a big bonus of having a PDK- I almost surely wouldn't be as fast with a manual.

That said, overall enjoyment would be higher with a manual, I can't really argue that.

Expected the reasoning to be the tall gearing in the manual!

I do agree with your wife that top-down motoring kinda lends itself to being in “cruise mode” without changing gears yourself. That’s why I wouldn’t mind an eventual EV Miata to go alongside the Integra Type S.

 

[6-Speedio]

Looks wise, the current M2 is hideous as f*** and you need to grow to love it. The Integra package is so much more attractive overall. The previous gen M2 was a good looking car though.

Personally, I'm just not a fan of RWD. I love the absolute predictability and ease of driving at the limit of FWD as compared to RWD. I don't pretend to be a professional race car driver. I love thrashing my cars but I've come across way too many drivers that were over confident in their driving skills that end up wrecking their RWD cars. I don't thrash my s2k anywhere near as hard as I do my FK8.

Sure, the M2 starts at 62k... But who's buying a bare model M2? Do dealers even sell a completely bare M car? There's something to be said about the functionality of the ITS also, which the M2 can't compete with. An M2 as a sole car sucks for daily purposes if you're not flogging it past the 7/10 mark.... Which most drivers don't on a day to day basis.

Don't get me wrong. There is value and reason to buy an M2. But all that extra performance is kind of a wash if you don't hit the track with it. It's more expensive to maintain, it costs more to fuel and use, and its value dips faster than the ITS will, assuming the ITS goes like the FK8 still does to this day- and for all intents and purposes, I don't see that changing.

I'm someone who can readily afford a BMW and not worry about it in any regard financially, but I've lost so much respect for the brand as a whole over the last several years. I also thought Acura was trash since 2009 until maybe 4-5 years ago, but their image is slowly changing in the right direction for me.

At the end of the day, opinions are like buttholes. Everyone has one. There are plusses and minuses to every single car and we individually need to choose what works for us. What works for OP is definitely not what works for me.

 

[optronix]

Expected the reasoning to be the tall gearing in the manual!

I do agree with your wife that top-down motoring kinda lends itself to being in “cruise mode” without changing gears yourself. That’s why I wouldn’t mind an eventual EV Miata to go alongside the Integra Type S.

The tall gearing is present in the PDK too. I think I saw somewhere that the difference is almost negligible; like 3-5 mph per gear or something like that. Not sure why most reviewers try to suggest that the PDK would fix that... you're still doing very much illegal speeds by the time you shift into 3rd at WOT.

I guess the criticism comes in that you don't have the opportunity to shift as frequently with the tall gearing? I could see that being an issue... but the gearing I believe was similar in the 981 and I didn't have any issues with it. I think it's an overstated concern.

 

[Negitoro7]

The tall gearing is present in the PDK too. I think I saw somewhere that the difference is almost negligible; like 3-5 mph per gear or something like that. Not sure why most reviewers try to suggest that the PDK would fix that... you're still doing very much illegal speeds by the time you shift into 3rd at WOT.

I guess the criticism comes in that you don't have the opportunity to shift as frequently with the tall gearing? I could see that being an issue... but the gearing I believe was similar in the 981 and I didn't have any issues with it. I think it's an overstated concern.

My friend had a 981 GT4, and he never complained about the tall gearing either. I guess with the PDK compared to the manual (on the 718), the PDK gearing is less of a problem due to more gears, slightly closer ratios, and owners oftentimes leaving it in full automatic mode.

 

[ABPDE5]

My friend had a 981 GT4, and he never complained about the tall gearing either. I guess with the PDK compared to the manual (on the 718), the PDK gearing is less of a problem due to more gears, slightly closer ratios, and owners oftentimes leaving it in full automatic mode.

I think it also depends what experience you're looking for.

I test drove a manual 981 GTS ('15, 17k miles) before I decided to go with the ITS. I was so excited to (finally) buy a mid-engine, RWD, NA, Porsche. The gearing was a killer for me... unless you wanted to hang around in 1st, you couldn't regularly wind the motor out without touching 75 mph. Depending on your use-case or driving style, this could be a plus or a drawback; on track, I imagine it's often a boon for lap times, and for someone who wants to cruise around while sitting in gear, maybe pushing / coasting, it might be preferable to shorter gearing. For me, it meant reduced opportunities to wind it out, shift, rev match, etc. on B roads.

I also found the steering to be pretty numb, the clutch pedal to lack feedback, and the shifter felt rubbery and loose. I had been warned the EPS in the 981 left a lot to be desired, but I wasn't expecting the poor clutch / shifter feel (this could have been a result of how the prior owner treated the car, but it was otherwise in excellent shape, so I wouldn't have guessed that was a factor).

I came away with the realization that platform / concept aside, it's the implementation that ultimately matters (funnily enough, this is an important principle in other hobbies / work that I have). I settled on a FWD 4 cylinder; I've driven the ITS every day since I picked it up, and every time, I explicitly recall driving the 981, and I am glad I made the choice I did.

(This is not to say the 981 CS is a bad car. It obviously had a very high performance ceiling, but it didn't offer the experience I was looking for in terms of engagement / feedback, at least not when driven in a manner applicable to my use-case. I imagine if you're taking it to the track where you can regularly push it close to / beyond its limits, the chassis probably offers a lot more communication; on the road, driving "reasonably fast", it didn't.)

Takeaway: Don't obsess over specs on paper. Find the car that offers the driving experience you find enjoyable.

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