The Day With Nissan Silvia - Day 5

Damn, the week is over already. We're beyond sad; we are heartbroken. For a week the JDM EvolutionSilvia has been our car. Yeah, we've tested the vehicle and we've taken lotsa notes, but more than anything this has been like driving and temporarily owning our contemporary dream car. Oh well, we take satisfaction in knowing that there is a company that legally imports the lovely Silvia. That means, someday in the not-so-distant future, we'll, too, will own our own RHD Silvia.

Styling
The Silvia is a looker, period. If you missed our first day, we cited that, "Subtle design makes for a car that has an extremely pleasing exterior. From a front three-quarter view we can see the Silvia's downward-sloping character line that also wraps around the rear window. A secondary character line might not work on other cars, creating a busy profile, but seems to work well here. " We still stand by that statement and think the last generation Silvia is a billion times better looking than the previous generations.

An excellent exterior design is only complimented by the equally impressive interior design. It's fairly simplistic within the confines, but what there is, we like a whole lot. Nissan has done much to change the otherwise pedestrian looks of the Silvia into a car that has tons of appeal, inside and out.

Performance
Like some of the new cars on the market, the Silvia gets its power from a 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder engine. In comparison to the Evo VIII and (Japanese) WRX STi, the Silvia doesn't see as much power; it outputs 247 horsepower @ 6,600 rpm. Then again, the Silvia doesn't boost nearly as much as the AWD duo. The factory setting is barely past 7 lbs and a simple intake, downpipe, exhaust and boost controller could leave the Silvia pumping out easily over 300 horsies.

On the handling side of things this Nissan doesn't benefit from the fancy all-wheel drive like the Skyline GT-R, a Getrag tranny or even traction control (like the Z). But the Silvia does manage to hold its on when in road holding. Since this is a front-engine, rear-wheel drive vehicle it can get a little crazy under hard turning acceleration. But with that said, it's also the ideal car for anyone interested in the art of drift.

Comfort
It's no less or no more comfy than the WRX or 350Z. And that's pretty damn good for a car that has the above mentioned performance. Front passenger legroom is fine, but headroom could use a few more inches, especially if you're a taller guy or girl. Getting in and out of the Nissan is a bit of work as it's a really low-slung vehicle. Another price we pay for a vehicle of this type.

Trunk space is also suspect as we really couldn't shove much back there. But, aside from the '89-94 240SX, the Silvia has always suffered from a smaller-than-normal caboose. For all intents and purposes, the Silvia is really a two-seater. Those small back seats work for insurance purposes and as a place to put your crap.

The Competition
Once again the competition for the Silvia is fairly sparse. We can say 350Z, RX-8, Evolution VIII and WRX STi. But the real competition is none other than the Skyline GT-R. Pricing is likely to be in the same realm--maybe a tad cheaper than the famous GT-R. But for right now part of the appeal of the Silvia isn't just its deadly good looks, it's also the fact that the car, at this point in time, is rarer than the GT-R and is the perfect drift-mobile.

The Day With Nissan Silvia - Day 3

Driving Impressions
It's really amazing how something as simple as driving on the right side of the car can really throw people off. Then again, the fact that we're on the "wrong side" might not be the only reason people stare, point and stop us on the street. The Silvia is a dead sexy two-door and there hasn't been a single person whom we've spoken to that didn't like the JDM Evolution-legalized Nissan.

We were stopped by a bus driver off Market today, "It's a damn shame. Why don't Nissan release that car here? It's beautiful." We nodded in agreement and shot off looking for the 101 south, but his words are shared by many people.

The Figures
Fuel economy numbers on the 2.0L powerplant are comparable to the Lancer Evolution VIII and WRX STi. The Evo gets about 18 miles to the gallon on street and 26 on the highway; the Sub sees two more on the street and two less on the highway. Based on the numbers thus far, our JDM Evolution Silvia seems to hit about 19 on the street and roughly 28 miles to the gallon on the highway.

We did take it fairly easy on the way up to the bay area; we almost made it to the city without having to re-fuel. The 2.0L turbocharged engine seems to have a good balance of everyday drivability and go-fast power when you need it. With gas being as much as it is now, the Silvia will run a pretty penny at the pump. The fuel tank seems slightly smaller than the 240SX's 17.2 gallon one, but ran us over $30 for 91 octane.

If you insist on being a speed demon the Silvia will gladly go from 0-60 in about the same time as a Nissan 350Z. That's about 5.5 seconds if you haven't been paying attention to the performance numbers.

Comfort
Ride comfort in the Silvia is not much different than the 350Z. Actually, we take that back, the ride is a bit softer and it shows in the turns when the four-seater's body displays a bit of roll. For a vehicle with so much power we're wondering why the suspension is so soft. We can't say it doesn't help ride comfort. Even the awful streets of San Francisco don't do much to detract from the ride.

Legroom up front is almost identical to that of the previous generation Silvia/240SX. That also means that rear passengers won't be too happy with the accommodations--not if they're any taller than, say, 5'2''. In the name of design, we'll deal with some cramped interior dimensions. Ditto goes for the tiny trunk that is barely large enough to shove a bag with a week's-worth of clothing.