Driving observations. My old 05 RSX Type S and my 07 Si. Differences...

[marksi07]

I've had my 07 Si for about 2 months now ( got it June 22nd) and on my way home from work last night, it got me thinking about the driving characteristics between my old 05 RSX Type S and my Si. Here they are. Enjoy.
The RSX is more responsive than my Si. Seems like the Si is tuned differently than the RSX. When driving, the RSX has instaneous response whereas the Si has a slightly delayed response. Is it b/c of their differing throttle responses? one drive by wire right? and the other electronic? I don't know. Ask a mechanic that question. All I know is when driving my RSX, I could immediately feel the car responding. In my Si, its more subdued.
The Si is by far and away, a more civil, easier car to commute to work in. Its A LOT quieter, driving with the windows down. You don't think about that when thinking about cars but you notice it. My RSX's stereo SUCKED. the 6 in dash cd was convenient but the Si's is by far A LOT better. The engine is quieter also. The doors shut with a more solid "thunk" similar to german made cars unlike my RSX which was just typical japanese. not that was all that bad but you notice these things.
The RSX would probably win an out and out race against an Si. My RSX had the AEM V2 intake so the comparison with my Si isn't fair yet b/c i haven't gotten the AEM CAI ( which I am plannin on buying very soon ). I think b/c of the RSX's slightly quicker responses, it would have the edge. If I had a twin and he was driving my RSX and I was driving my Si, I know my RSX twin would win the race. ( so before all Si owners here on this forum start sending me emails saying their Si would win against an RSX, listen.--if you haven't owned BOTH cars, don't think you know what the differences between owning both cars. That means if you think you know what its like owning an RSX simply by driving your friends' RSX, you're absolutely clueless and wrong. And likewise, if some RSX owner thinks he knows what its like to own an Si simply by driving a friends' Si, he's wrong and clueless too. You have to own BOTH cars to know the differences. slight differences.)
Commuting to work every day on I-95, the Si is a lot easier to drive and live with. Its interior is incredibly comfortable. Both cars have excellent manual transmissions and are typical Honda excellent overall. The RSX's leather interior was nice and I never had any problems with it but it just didn't have that much storage bins and being leather, whatever you put on the passenger seat, always slipped off. If you are over 6' tall, however, you might find the RSX confining. I'm 6'1" and even when I had the RSX's driver seat all the way back, it was still not enough. The Si was built to accomadate short and tall drivers like myself. I've mentioned this before but the Si's interior is basically an evolution of the RSX's in terms of making everything just more user friendly ( the audio and ALL the cruise control buttons on the steering wheel; the roof mounted one touch sunroof button are perfect examples ).
When driving, which car attracted more attention, was in my opinion, the RSX. My RSX Type S was the dark grey color and I had a nice medium tint done. I can't count how many times I've had other cars want to race on the road and how many times I've received complements on how good the car looked.. My nbp Si doesn't seem to attract that much unwanted attention thank god.
Every day I drive my Si and I'm happy that I chose to buy it and would in second do it again. Do I miss my RSX? sometimes. It was a great car and I never had any mechanical problems with it. I loved it and would have been happy owning it a few more years. ( had I not gotten my Si, I probably would have traded my RSX in for the new 08 Accord coupe ) The principle reason for trading it in was it made economic sense. For the same amount of money per month ( car payments and car insurance ), I could own a brand new 07 Si rather than my 05 Acura. And when you factor in that the Si's interior was 100x better than the Acura's, it made practical sense to get it.
Which car would I recommend? easy. The Si. If you are into racing and are more aggressive ( and stupid in other words ), buy an 05/06 RSX Type S and enjoy it. If you do a lot of driving and are in traffic alot, the Si is easier to live with so opt for that. If you are into modding your car, the RSX has a slight edge but the Si is still in production so its going to pass the RSX soon if not already.

[Zeuceone]

its getting late

[Burrcold]

Good comparo...I've actually been wanting to hear a "real" comparison, from an owner of both.

[kpSTI]

Decent comparo! By the way, Drive by wire and electronic throttle are the same thing.. Drive by wire isn't a mechanical cable attached to the gas pedal and then to the throttle body. It is a pedal position sensor on the gas pedal that sends the pedal position electronically to the throttle body to tell it how much to open. Oh and by the way AEM CAI supposedly aren't that great for our cars... Injen CAI seems to be a better choice.

[pezones]

i had an 04 rsx-s, my si sedan is a definate improvement from the rsx- it feels nothing like it.

[sdimicko]

I think I read that the k20 in the rsx was tuned to 210 hp stock. Which makes what you are saying sound right. So when you get the reflash I would be interested in how the si compares as far as throttle response. It's good to hear from someone who owned the rsx type s and how they compare.

[2000civic]

Originally Posted by sdimicko

I think I read that the k20 in the rsx was tuned to 210 hp stock. Which makes what you are saying sound right. So when you get the reflash I would be interested in how the si compares as far as throttle response. It's good to hear from someone who owned the rsx type s and how they compare.

That was from the old standards. In 06 the type-s had 201hp, 4 more than the Si. I have heard mixed reviews, some say the Si is faster, some the type-s, and some say they are equal. Idk, Im gonna stick with its a drivers race.

[AXIS]

paragraphs are your friend. haha. good comparison though

[shutter13]

Originally Posted by 2000civic

That was from the old standards. In 06 the type-s had 201hp, 4 more than the Si. I have heard mixed reviews, some say the Si is faster, some the type-s, and some say they are equal. Idk, Im gonna stick with its a drivers race.

drivers race!

[nese005]

nice comparison ! any pics of the si?

[nastynogales]

BTW - in the Type S, are you able to hit 60mph in second gear? what do you top out at in second?

I hate how the Si only gets upto 57...

[Zeuceone]

in a 05 corolla xrs you can do 60 in secind aswell.

[pokapreak]

Originally Posted by shutter13

drivers race!

agree

[AllShowNoGo]

I absolutely LOVE my Si, but the one thing I believe that the RSX has on our Si's is the fact that the RSX were 100% made in Japan.

[Leonard1818]

Thanks for the comparison...

I'm glad I'm not the only one who is thinking of (or has done) this...

Except I have an 02 type S....

I don't see why one wouldn't do the switch!

[rmfa]

I had to stop reading because the wall of words really hurts my head. Try making some paragraphs so we can follow along.

[jeremy0203]

i had an 03 type s and i loved that car but i do like my si better

[nayilsi]

Originally Posted by nastynogales

BTW - in the Type S, are you able to hit 60mph in second gear? what do you top out at in second?

I hate how the Si only gets upto 57...

i did 59 on mine.

[RAI]

Originally Posted by shutter13

drivers race!

Definitely.

I raced a Type S with headers and exhaust, and I actually came out on top by about half a car.

I run a stock sedan.

I threw away all my slips, so I can't tell you how fast I ran.

[Undispu7ed]

Your comparison might have been a tad bit better of you put your posts in paragraphs and what not. With that being said, my personal experience with my old 05 Type-S and my current 08 Si, I would say the Si is overall a more solid car.

Si pros:
- Much more innovative interior
- LSD
- Type R style stitching
- Better audio system
- Stock to stock, Si sounds nicer
- More room in back seats

Type-S pros:
- Heated side mirrors
- Much more scratch resistant interior than the Si
- Rear windshield wipers
- Larger engine bay (more room for mods)
- More tuning options (That's because it's a little older than the Si, but this will change soon)

Everything else is subjective. Some prefer cloth over leather or leather over cloth, some like the looks of the Type-S better, prefer regular trunk as opposed to hatchback, vice versa.

That's all I can think of for now.