2000 SVT Contour vs. 2007 Honda Civic Si

[BrianX]

Holy Thread Revival!

There is a hell of a lot more then paper racing cars. Nobody claimed that the SVT was the best at slalom, lane changes, skidpads or lap times. They just said it was the best handling FWD car. Handling is a subjective term.

Ummmmmmm...... yeah they did! (Well at least for compact sports sedans at the time):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bhhnVNpJUw

Here's what I'm finding for handling performance..
01 SVT Contour
.84g Skidpad
67.5 mph Slalom

07 si Sedan
.84 skidpad
68.5 mph Slalom

06 Si coupe
.85 skidpad
68 mph slalom

looks pretty close to me. /meh I still love my 07 si sedan!

There was NO such thing as an '01 SVT Contour; the '98 & '98.5's could pull a 0.84 g's in the skid, whereas the '99 & '00's could pull 0.90 g's in the skidpad.

This is WITHOUT the use of torque biasing... Throw in the Quaife from the Mondeo and have some extra-potent fun!

 

[Vetterin]

Holy Thread Revival!


Ummmmmmm...... yeah they did! (Well at least for compact sports sedans at the time):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bhhnVNpJUw



There was NO such thing as an '01 SVT Contour; the '98 & '98.5's could pull a 0.84 g's in the skid, whereas the '99 & '00's could pull 0.90 g's in the skidpad.

This is WITHOUT the use of torque biasing... Throw in the Quaife from the Mondeo and have some extra-potent fun!

Did it really take you 9 months to answer that post????

 

[Arkaign]

Did it really take you 9 months to answer that post????

lol.

No kidding. I was kinda having deja vu skimming this thread, then came to the end and saw I'd already replied

SVT Contour was (and is, if you've got one in reasonably good condition) a great handling FWD car. SVT Focus was even better. Neither one is really that relevant any more though, with the SRT Neon and then the Cobalt totally outclassing them down the line, pretty much replacing them as benchmarks for FF performance (it's pretty easy to bring the SRT up to speed in handling, and the Cobalt owns asses out of the box even if it's not aesthetically pleasing).

For new cars, it's a bit moot, Cobalt is going away, and what's really going to compete against the Mustang V6 for under $25k stock performance any more? Maybe the gov't will nanny it out of existence, but for now it's just a monster for the price.

 

[Zap]

Wow, necro thread. Ah well, since it became revived...

And after 9 years the Contour will be falling apart and worth less than a pile of dog vomit.

Yeah, I think mine was starting the downhill slide at 9 years and 125k miles when I got rid of it. I had a 1998 Contour SVT in black. I liked the way it looked, and the way it rode. For something with decent handling it was actually really comfortable and rode like, well, a big American car (albeit one with decent handling). I don't recall any other compact car I've been in that had such a good mix of decent handling with ride comfort. It definitely out-handled the Mustang GT I had before it, though of course it was slower in acceleration. I liked the torque of the engine because that made it easier to drive enthusiastically without having to rev it up really high.

I did have problems with mine. The paint started cracking within the first half year and was repainted under warranty. Mine liked to chew through water pumps - I think I was on my fourth when I sold it. My sunroof stopped working because the plastic gear melted (a common problem with this vehicle in warmer areas). Had an issue where it wouldn't hold an idle. Forgot what it was exactly, but turned out to be a somewhat common problem as well according to Contour.org. Odometer/speedometer stopped working, requiring a replacement somewhere North of 100k miles, so beware of anyone selling a used "low mileage" Contour SVT.

So, I have a Black Mica 2007 Mazdaspeed 6 now. Notice I like sporty black 4-door cars? ^_^ The Mazda handily outperforms the SVT in everything (even gas mileage) except comfort. This SOB rides rough.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

The SVT Contour is one of, if not the best handling FWD car ever made. The Honda... not so much.

You've never driven an Si then.

 

[vshah]

has anyone in this thread actually driven both?

 

[Arkaign]

You've never driven an Si then.

Yeah, they're great for what they are, though no longer really competitive at the price point. I wish they had more power, but they drive really well, and the shift/clutch action is quite nice.

I do handily prefer the older Sis though, the 5g and 6g Si will always be my favorite. The atrocity that was the 7g (cheapened up suspension dropping the double-wishbone = fail) pretty much was the end of the Si being worth a look when cars that dominate it are priced roughly the same or only slightly more (2010 Si starts at $22k base, Speed3 starts at $23k .. c'mon now).

BUT :

2012 is finally new gen of Civic, and it will apparently appear in the middle of next year. Hopefully Honda puts something out there that's more worthy. I think the Si is currently only competitive with GTI (non-flashed) and some of the Coopers. WRX, Speed3, Cobalt SS, and now the somewhat apples to oranges Mustang V6 all offer better performance to enthusiasts who want a new car on a modest budget.

 

[vshah]

yup, very much looking forward to the new Si as well. might trade up if it looks good.

 

[Arkaign]

yup, very much looking forward to the new Si as well. might trade up if it looks good.

Yep. I should mention or clarify my above statement somewhat. I don't mean to dis the current Si completely, as there are still some valid reasons for consideration such as Honda's historic reliability and high resale value. And performance-wise, it's still pretty good even if not near the front-runners at the price point.

 

[vshah]

i agree..i still love my car to death. but 250hp or so would have made it great.

 

[AMCRambler]

Well since this thread was posted I can now say I've driven a 2010 Civic SI in addition to having owned a 2000 Contour SVT. The Civic is definitely a lot more taught in the suspension so pure cornering on a track, it would probably edge out the Contour. However that stiff suspension comes at a price. It feels very squirrely in the corners whenever there is any kind of crack or variation in the pavement. For that reason I'd still prefer my Contour. The suspension was softer and would absorb those bumps better without compromising cornering much.

The other thing I loved about the Contour is that you could take a corner at high speed and it would feel very in control right up to the limit of the tires grip. The Honda is very similar in that respect but the steering is too light.

Only other complaint I have about the Civic Si is the drive by wire accelerator pedal. Thing moves like an inch and a half and it's on the floor. It also has very little resistance. The one thing the Civic has that I wish to hell the Contour had was a 6th gear. Could have been getting 30mpg on the highway with the Contour if it had a 6th gear.

 

[Vetterin]

I'm suprised that no one has mentioned how much the loved the SVT's quazi dual exhaust tone. That was a highlight of mine.

 

[vshah]

Only other complaint I have about the Civic Si is the drive by wire accelerator pedal. Thing moves like an inch and a half and it's on the floor. It also has very little resistance.

I've heard a number of people say this, and I specifically checked it when I drove my car last. i agree it is pretty low resistance, but there is a fair amount of travel. perhaps because it is hinged at the bottom, it feels like less. my foot usually rests about halfway up the pedal, i guess the travel could feel shorter or longer depending on where you rest it

DBW is a pain, i'm considering a hondata flashpro just to get rid of the rev hang

 

[CraigRT]

has anyone in this thread actually driven both?

I have... Been a while since I drove that generation SI, but I drove an SVT Contour a few weeks ago.

An SI of that generation of SVT is a much more fun car. But I have to be honest, I think the SVT Contour looks awesome. Better looking than the Civic, but that generation Civic is one of the nicest looking as well.

I might be used to Nissans, but the SVT did not feel fast whatsoever, but the SI doesn't really either until you hit astronomical RPMs. the SVT does handle well, but so does the SI.
I did not bring both cars right to their limits however, just some fast on ramps etc.