No idea we dont get MR. But the 300 and the 300 SST here are exactly the same inside apart from the paddles and the shifter leaver of course

 

Yeah I feel ya Gumbo, and I can understand not wanting the gearbox to do everything for ya! I just wanted to get that off of my chest before all of the "SST haters" jumped on this thread...you should see the rest of the site, it's ridiculous! Hopefully you're insight will let people know just how good it is! As far as the interior, I've yet to sit in an MR (sat in a GSR) but from what I can tell from pics, the black trim, and the leather interior are quite a noticeable upgrade from the GSR. Just my 2 cents

This site has hi-res pics of the interior of both the GSR and MR!
http://wallies.be/galleries/thumbnai...lbum=12&page=3

 

very nice review.. alot of places i've read everyone like the STI better than the EVO

 

I'm well aware of Prodrive and their ties with Subaru; that's why I asked . Hell it's just as much Prodrive as it was Subaru that Mitsu battled for years in the forests and canyons of Europe.

 

thanks for the great review!

 

I was straight to the point with one of the instructors on the skidpan. He works for Prodrive as a chassis developer and has developed parts for Aston and Subaru. I said come on then Sti or X. He smiled and said well obviously the links with Prodrive and Subaru should be ignored and he would have to be to totally impartial. He said the Jap reviews will probably go for the Sti because they love their stats but he admitted the X was a much nicer car in terms of drivability. He loved it and was a top bloke

 

Thats because they are morons but Ive never driven an Sti and never will

 

Yeah it's amazing how many people have this same mentality. "it's amazing but I'll pass." i would never knock people's preference, i just don't understand it. maybe it's because i actually would PREFER my car drove like the ones in gran turismo? fun for me is going as fast as the limits of my car will allow. if that means letting the computer shift perfectly for me every time, bring it on! sounds fun! i think it's mostly because people spend their whole lives mastering the perfect shift and heel toe technique. to have something come along to make those skills redundant and puts newbs on a level playing field is probably a tough pill to swallow for some...like PDXEvo said after his first track event, people were complaining that the car is "cheating" in the corners...lol! i would love cheating on the corners and the gearshifts too!

 

the funny thing is that there hardly seems to be this kinda feeling about ferrari's clutchless F1 tranny. IMO it's just that the evo lacks the speed or sense of speed in stock form to really care about keeping both hands on the wheel. i mean if clutchless trannies work for a 430 scuderia, i'm all for it on an evo. the only thing is that the evo is a FAR cry from the scuderia eh? maybe if the SST can handle it, a 400 whp MR would make people realize the SST is a more sporting tranny than rowing your own gears?

IMO it's like this: the stock evo simply isn't "fun" enough that you have to seek enjoyment out of changing gears. with something like the scuderia, changing gears almost seems like a distraction from the driving experience!

 

Thats YOUR choice, I love driving. I dont want perfect shifts, I want to change gear myself, feel involved. Even on a track the SST, at times, made me feel like a passenger. I dont want that

Like I said if you are looking for paddle shifts you will absolutely love the SST it does its job perfectly. But its just not my cup of tea, I found it very boring regardless of how quick it shifts. If I just wanted to travel quick Id catch a train

 

Nobody is saying the SST isnt good it is. But plenty of people dont like the paddles on the Ferrari either. You never seen Top Gear? People arent necessarily looking for perfect shifts at lightning speeds. They are looking to enjoy driving and for me the SST took some of that away.

I can accept that some people will absolutely love it so why cant others accept that some of us just dont want it

 

I've seen almost every episode of Top Gear, yeah maybe they complained about the old 355 and 360's paddle gear box (everyone did), but not once did they complain about the F430's! In fact, Jason from Fifth Gear also talked about how good the tranny was! Also remember, that Ferrari's and Lambo's trannys are NOT dual clutch like the Evo's SST. BTW, you're generalizing saying people are looking to enjoy driving and not for perfect shifts...I guess it depends by what "enjoy" means to you. I personally, like perfect shifts at lightning speeds

 

honestly if i were to drive a ferrari, I don't freaken care what gear box it has. I am driving a ferrari man!

 

Thanks for the review. Looks like a ton-o-fun!

l8r)

 

Like i said, i would never knock people's preference, and i respect your opinion and the many others like you. It's just that personally i don't understand it because it defies the point of the advancement of the technology of performance cars. the only reason i can come up with is that many of the skills people have accrued over the years are no longer useful with this technology, which doesn't mesh with their pre-conceived notion of driving. if you step back and take an objective, logical look at all the complexities of this car, you'll see a gaping hole in the technology where what amounts to a rod is shoved into the gearbox which manipulates the cogs by hand. there was a magazine that said something along the lines of "if you think you can best the SST, you are fooling yourself." i don't think anyone seriously thinks they can. and i hardly think f1 drivers are just along for the ride...so i really can't wrap my head around that point.

EDIT: Oh yeah, thank you for the write-up & media. Very informative!