Saturn Redline VS. Scion tC

[OliverThomas]

Well, I just got back from the saturn dealer, and testdriving the redline... I was impressed, but didnt really get a chance to drive it hard with a salesguy in the car (an old one at that). They approved me and everything, and were very sad to see me walk out the door saying in wanted a night to sleep on it before i signed anything... the main reason i didnt sign then and there is because of the Scion tC. I went and looked at one a few weeks ago, and have to tell you, they look nice. Very nice. For the price, you get comparatively way more options/assec.... The pana. sunroof is a huge plus for me, and the fact that scion is behind TRD aftermarket parts, and will cover them in the waranty. I am going to go testdrive the Scion tomarrow, i know that the power isnt' going to match the Redline, but scion is coming out with the supercharger soon (if not already) for the tC that will boost it to ~200hp, the same ballpark as the redline. I dont know what kind of bias I'll get posting on a Redline board about making the choice between the two, but I hope i'll get some good feedback. Did anyone here check out the tC before choosing the Redline? Why?

Oliver Thomas

[dL_RL]

Originally Posted by OliverThomas

Well, I just got back from the saturn dealer, and testdriving the redline... I was impressed, but didnt really get a chance to drive it hard with a salesguy in the car (an old one at that). They approved me and everything, and were very sad to see me walk out the door saying in wanted a night to sleep on it before i signed anything... the main reason i didnt sign then and there is because of the Scion tC. I went and looked at one a few weeks ago, and have to tell you, they look nice. Very nice. For the price, you get comparatively way more options/assec.... The pana. sunroof is a huge plus for me, and the fact that scion is behind TRD aftermarket parts, and will cover them in the waranty. I am going to go testdrive the Scion tomarrow, i know that the power isnt' going to match the Redline, but scion is coming out with the supercharger soon (if not already) for the tC that will boost it to ~200hp, the same ballpark as the redline. I dont know what kind of bias I'll get posting on a Redline board about making the choice between the two, but I hope i'll get some good feedback. Did anyone here check out the tC before choosing the Redline? Why?

Oliver Thomas

I did check out the TC and I came across the same question as you. Performance matters more to me than looks and features. tC interior does not feel as cheap and the car I THINK looks better. Guys send me hate mail here thats just my given opinion. But in a performance minded car consumer.

Redline:
205hp AT THE WHEELS the car is underrated from the factory.
around 187lbs of torque to the wheels!
FORGED aluminum wheels
Great suspension, Neutral handling
Forged rods,pistons.
Oil Squirters for the pistons ( i forgot the technical name for it )
Great bottom end.
Dunlop SP9000 tires
Recaro blue/black seats
Our motor has been proven to take boost reliably

There is alot of pro's for the RL over TC.

Remember redline is built for BOOST. TC is a 4 banger grocery getter and with the TRD supercharger you have a weaker motor with a supercharger. I'm not saying the TC wont handle it well, but i'm sure if you try to go way above stock boost on the TRD supercharger you will need to do internal work.

Note, i've raced 2 TC's through the windies and i've killed both. I actually made them spin out becuase they couldnt hang with the RL. Driver does matter in those situations, but i'm just pointing it out.


Oh yeah, I hate this comparison because it's like comparing our cars to a souped up Corolla. My 2 cents thanks!

[Steviepc7]

dood when i test drove the rl i was with a sales guy that had a vagina so i went slow i was dissappointed my first time out and thought the redline sucked ..i went back the next day and got a guy to say dood step on it so i did....i tihnk i bought it like 2 hours later...the tC is like a celica....slow and i bet anything in a ayear those things will be seen on every street corner ....the rl is totally unique and u will love
the looks u get while ur rolling around town in it....no can can handle the thought of a boosted saturn

[saturnd00d]

Yes the tC looks good, but will be another civic type car. It's great it will have backing by TRD, but that only mans everyone will have the same mods as you will. Redlines may not be as well-refined, but I sure do love them.

[IeatRice]

In my opinion, there is no competition between the Redline and the tC. It's obvious that the Redline performs better and has more power potential, but I also think that it looks better than the tC. I saw a tC this morning, and just thought of it as a modern sedan. The Redline appears sporty, and while it may not have as many amenities, that's not what it was built for.

Besides, I still love the feeling of blowing the doors off of a car that's twice as expensive as my Redline. Try doing that with a tC; you'll get laughed at when you lose.

[Sp00ner]

One of the guys I work with was looking at a Scion tC, if performance comes second to you, it's a hard choice. If performance is your first concern, then there really is no choice. Yes, the supercharger will be offered on the Scion, but you have to think about two things. Is it intercooled in any way? I have no idea, anyone else? Second, like some people have already said, the 2.0 Ecotec in the Redline and the Cobalt, was built from the ground up to be supercharged or turbocharged, and is capable of making around 400 hp on the stock internals. That's not anyone's opinion, that's fact, you can find alot about it from the various GM info on the net. The Scion's engine is from the Camry...

There both nice cars, really, also think about the Cobalt. It's the same power package as the Redline, but with a different interior and exterior styling.

[clownhair]

I am a big fan of Toyotas so I can be very objective about this. I also looked into the TC before getting my redline. I like the fact that the redline has the supercharger from the factory and is built with that in mind. I felt that if I added a supercharger to the TC later that I would be just about out of modding options at that point. If I were you I would just drive the scion and see how it suits you. Don't buy either car that day and go home and just think about it for a couple days. Most likely one of the two cars will keep coming the forefront of you choices.

[unknownsuperhero]

I also looked at the Scion, but for me, to make the car even comparable (not performance wise) , I wanted the body kit, spoiler, and the trd exhaust. That was around $2,500 more, ultimately having the price be around $19,450 Also I would have been waiting for the S/C which if it is anything like the price of the one for the Tacoma, it was $2,500 or so more. . . and when I got my redline for around $15,00 and I like it stock, well it was a no brainer

[SatredL]

I did'nt even know about the redline, I took the wife's L200 in for service, looked at the RL & said "what's that?". The salesman said drive it. I did, 1 day later it was in my driveway. My third saturn.

[OliverThomas]

Thanks alot guys, this helps a bunch. I'm hitting the test drive of the tC with all this in mind, I think I'm going to go testdrive the Redline again too, open it up a bit.

..."and when I got my redline for around $15,00 and I like it stock, well it was a no brainer"...

15,000? Dealer is selling the car to me, an 05 redline for about 22000 out the door. I looked the redline pricing up on saturns website, and ~21,000 was what it said, am I being taken...? or was that a typo? Or a used one....?

Oliver Thomas

Ps- Should I spring for the competition package? Is it worth the limited slip?