Sportivo/T-Sport or Type R?

[HmGLuCaS]

i own a fn2r and ive raced a sportivo, which one is faster? i can tell u from first hand experience, the fn2r is faster i raced my mates sportivo, second gear drop and off the line, the fn2r comes out on top. All this racing was done on private roads ;D nothing illegal ;D

as for handling and easier to live with? go test drive them both and see what u like, at the end of the day it is gonna be ur car.

[Beechy]

it comes down to what you like i have a k20a eg civic,( also have owned b18 type rs and a few civic b16s) and have a sportivo rolla as a daily stock apart from air intake the rolla is fun and nice car to drive i have raced type r's before and won against 2 dc5s won by atlest a car length(raced them both twice) and my mates dc2 neck and neck from a dig but on a roll on start just before i come on lift i have him he has spoon exhaust cold air intake and of cause the dc2s are lighter, the only diffrence is that lift takes longer to kick in and it feels like the dc2 has more bottom end power, i have ran my sportivo at the creek a few times and have got 14.6 to 14.8 consistent but i mean with cams to help it come onto lift quicker it would be a wepon! and it is still now a competitor for the type r stock to stock the sportivos are underestimated. but nothing compares to a worked k20 but i mean comes down to your budget.

[fillit]

Not entirely true bro, Lift comes on at 6000rpm in the Sportivo and it cuts the fuel at 8300rpm, so yes, my EP3R has more 'happy zone' but only cause it revs to 9000rpm if I make it . . . funnily enough it doesn't keep making power over 8500rpm, so the power bands are very very similar. The aftermarket for them (2ZZGE) has grown considerably as they have become more affordable for the P Plate market. Having said that, you will find 100 times the goodies on the aftermarket for a K20 than you will for a 2ZZGE.

Country of make? Every Corolla Sportivo from 2003-2005 (which is when they made them) was made in South Africa, none were made elsewhere, there may be some confusion given that the other Corolla models of the time were built in Japan. I sourced pads and rotors from my local ABS, didn't have an issue at all.

I'm not going to comment on an FN2 as I haven't owned one, but I feel well qualified to comment on the Sportivo and the EP3R (I've owned, driven and modified both for a decent period of time now) Comparing them is really not a very fair fight. The Corolla punches above it's weight . . . for what it is. What it is, is a 4 door car produced in massive numbers that has had leather, an engine and gearbox and a body kit thrown at it. The EP3R is a proper performance hatch. Proper = Engine and Box, Suspension, Seats, etc etc etc.

To give you an idea, my Sportivo + $15k = My EP3 Stock Standard. As with any comparison, it all comes down to what you want from the car. What is it that you want from the car? Do you want to throw 4 mates in it? Do you need boot space? Do you like being able to walk into your local dealer and have them know what you are talking about? Etc Etc Etc. The list goes on.

If you are really keen on the Corolla, I suggest spending some time on the au.toyotaownersclub.com/forum site, if you want some tips on how to make one go faster, PM me. Otherwise, everything you need to know about the Honda's is right here.

Edit: Almost forgot, as far as overall driving experience and awesomeness factor . . . buy an EP3.

Fair call on the powerband, although in my friends car which i've been in/driven numerously I don't feel the power kicking in until 7k rpm. Although the Sportivos have become more affordable, parts are still quite limited, I'm a regular on TOCAU and parts rarely come up. Other than strut bars, lip kits occasional intakes and lowered springs, most of the parts would take a long time to find in the second hand market.

Yes all Sportivos are built in SA, however the problem is that the Jap ones are spec'd differently, e.g. rotor and caliper sizes, so sometimes finding the correct parts become annoying.

If you want to know what can be done to a sportivo, check out Xooms turbo one, alternatively the second one is my mates (ignore the car colour) but his mods are pretty spot on for the car.

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forum...-2zz-sportivo/

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forum...s-rice-rocket/

[-JC-]

Fair call on the powerband, although in my friends car which i've been in/driven numerously I don't feel the power kicking in until 7k rpm. Although the Sportivos have become more affordable, parts are still quite limited, I'm a regular on TOCAU and parts rarely come up. Other than strut bars, lip kits occasional intakes and lowered springs, most of the parts would take a long time to find in the second hand market.

Yes all Sportivos are built in SA, however the problem is that the Jap ones are spec'd differently, e.g. rotor and caliper sizes, so sometimes finding the correct parts become annoying.

If you want to know what can be done to a sportivo, check out Xooms turbo one, alternatively the second one is my mates (ignore the car colour) but his mods are pretty spot on for the car.

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forum...-2zz-sportivo/

http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forum...s-rice-rocket/

Agreed.

And LOL, I've known Bill (xoom) since about 2004, very nice guy, picked us up from the airport and took us to IMG to collect my EP3 . . . that car is FAST. And by FAST, I mean, makes your ass pucker up when he stands on the throttle FAST.

[fillit]

Agreed.

And LOL, I've known Bill (xoom) since about 2004, very nice guy, picked us up from the airport and took us to IMG to collect my EP3 . . . that car is FAST. And by FAST, I mean, makes your ass pucker up when he stands on the throttle FAST.

You must be a Sydney boy? I've seen his car/met him at TOCAU annual (I used to be a toyota guy, but now moved on, still keep in touch with them because they are nice bunch to hang around). Yes, I was definitely impressed at what he managed to fit into that engine bay (FYI working on it was an absolute b!tch, can I say that unless you run an oil catch can the plenum can get quite oily and cleaning it requires removing the front half of the bay). Although I am a little disappointed that he only runs 12s as he put ALOT of effort into it and top quality parts. I'm not sure if he has taken it to the track yet, as I would been keen what he could do around Wakefield to give a proper yard stick.

Can I also comment on how I dislike how high you ride in the Sportivo and from memory if you run BC coilovers you have to remove the rear trim to adjust the dampers.

However, it is a damn side practical compared to the FN2R, 4 doors and heaps of boot space, also you don't get every hoon trying to run you at the lights, totally stealth.

For the records, my friend did a 1.46.X at winton with the above mentioned Sportivo with semis.. an FN2R could do that with just semi's.. Mark's FN2R from TPNM got pretty close, I think he was around the 1.47 - 1.49 range with stock car and KU31s.

[K20_Z]

Thank you guys so much for your feedback! I was confused, and got the response I was looking for from you guys! My mind is now set on an FN2. I'm a Honda boy, and no VVT-LI will deter me from that I agree about the powerband. The XRS in the US only has 1000 rpm of real power. Just mixed messages screwing with me, but I'm glad I got mature answers from all of you

[baby_phantom]

Ep3 FTW!

[NightKids]

I'm so glad that OP decided to get a EP3R, great decision! You won't regret it...

[stevo1210]

I've worked a lot on sportivos, I'd say get the honda as there is more aftermarket support and is cheaper (mod wise).

THIS STATEMENT IS TRUE . I moved from a 2003 ZZE Corolla to a 2010 FD Civic (considered to buy another Corolla at that stage as well), but then I remembered I used to like modding my cars.
I added a few bits here and there to my Corolla but as fillit said, mods and parts are harder to come by... there's not a lot of generic after market stuff whereas with Honda there's plenty.
Only problem was that when I got my Civic, I was in my early 20's... so I felt kinda old and didn't end up modding my FD1 and left it stock even till now.

[JOhnnyFD]

u can never be too old to mod stevo

[kurtiz]

type r all day long ...but those sportivos move for what they are.....

[JDM DC2R]

Corolla sportivo and the Celcia. They got the same power . But they weigh more. The tranny doesn't keep you in the power range. And the suspension soft and flobby. compared to the Dc2R!