Flashmn said:
Haha, what a crock of shit. Hondas have been ALOT more flexy than corollas of same age. And sure as hell my corolla weighs 200kg less stock vs stock than a 90's civic.
Flexy, is a subjective issue. I'd say you're on the odd side of the argument because it doesn't take a genius to figure out why the Civic is generally recognized as a better "driver's car" then the Corolla, especially as the car's get newer. If you're refering to the body sheetmetal work, then Honda's are famous for being paper thin, but thats only the exterior bodywork and it was done to reduce weight.
Take apart the Corolla and the Civic chassis, and look at them, the answer sticks out like a sore thumb. Lets use the car's made in the 90's as an example since you own a 1990 Corolla. The Corolla's front upper frame is an open box, compared to the Civic which is a closed box design with twice the thickness. The area between the fender shoulder and the door pillar is weak to say the least, major area of flex during load when cornering. Meanwhile the Civic's fender shoulder is much better braced to the door pillar, from the closed box shoulder straight to the door pillar.
As for weight the figures vary too much, but I am certain the 90's Civics are still lighter than the Corolla. Civic has the tinny exterior sheetmetal, and the aluminum block. AE92 Corollas on average (between the regions) are 2200-2400 lbs, whereas the Civics are closer to 2100-2200 lbs. CRX even lighter.
Anyway I'm just speaking from experience from the AE86s, 92s, EF Civic, and the EG Civic that I owned. I notice many hate Hondas with a passion, and Corolla vs Civic subjects always lead to opinions. If you ask me they're both econobox P.O.S.
Flashmn said:
Not to mention a toyota did have independent rear suspension, not a "semi-independent" rear suspension, wtf guys. Why dont you learn a bit before you open your pie hole. Torsion bars ARE independent, its just that the bar is a spring, each wheel has its own bar. The reason why toyotas dont need those parts is because the part where the control arms connect is narrow and relatively stiff, compared to the pressed sheetmetal in a civic which is much wider. Just like the rear seat section of the sedan makes a rear strut bar as is, no need to buy one.
Relax, cpqaim is refering to the new Corollas. They feature a torsion, or I-beam in the rear suspension. Technically torsion beam suspension are classed as semi-independent.
Maybe you're getting torsion BAR and BEAM mixed up, the BEAM used on new Corollas is the center axle connecting the 2 rear wheels together. There is only one. Then there are coil springs mounted on each side of the wheel, on top of the torsion beam. Looks similar to the live-axle housing found on AE86s, with the 2 spring perches on each side.
The reason why Toyotas don't have those aftermarket parts is because its not a Civic, aftermarket demand is not high. Nothing to do with how the arms are connected/mounted. Both the Corolla and Civic arms bolt up to the center raised "crossmember". You can see this on the first picture posted, I have a picture of the AE92 rear end as well if you need the visual reference.
On a further note, the reason why the Civic in the picture has aftermarket arms is because he can ditch his factory cast arm, and use those billet aluminum replacements. As you can see there are also holes drilled throughout the arm to reduce unsprung weight. Again its not NEEDED, the Civic isn't going to fall apart, but people upgrade because the option is there, unlike the FWD Corollas. I have a catelogue with tons of suspension goodies for the AE92 FF Corollas, but they're all hard to find Japanese namebrands, definately not as easy to access compared to a Civic.
