General Comments:
Picked up this car in April/06, and have been very satisfied ever since.
Fun to drive, good acceleration, and very good handling, probably due in part to the stock Pirelli tires which are very good. The transmission and changing gears is solid. The turning radius for parking doesn't seem incredible, but the cornering while on the road is much better.
Gas mileage is pretty good. The GT performs much better with mid-grade or supreme fuel. It will run on regular, but I prefer the better performance with the mid-grade. My gas mileage is about 9L/100km according to the car's computer, in about 80% city 20% highway driving.
Comfortable seats.. I'm 6'4" and am always comfortable in it, much more than I was in the 4 door model I tried. Long trips have been fine. Back support is good, with the lumbar support being adjustable. The back seats are OK for smaller people or short runs.
CD/Mp3 player is great. The sound system is pretty good, though it is very bass and treble oriented. The mids don't seem to come out as well, though I'm still pretty happy with the system overall. I would have preferred a more sophisticated equalizer.
All the controls on the car seem well placed and well designed. The interior of the car is simple and functional.
The trunk has lots of room, though the opening is small, as mentioned in another review. This car is definitely not a cargo-carrier, but the pass-through seats have come in handy for skis, and other objects.
Unfortunately this car was rear ended on the highway about 3 months after I got it. Though it took awhile to get fixed, so far, almost a year removed from the accident, everything is fine, and there have been no lingering problems with the car. I'm taking this as a good sign of the build of the car for the future.
My friend recently said the car still has the "new car" smell, even though I've had it over a year. I'll take that as another positive.
10th Mar 2008, 09:27
I can't believe people complain about gas mileage of little 4-bangers. Just relax, and be happy that you don't have to drive a V8.