The mustang was a beast. The s/c on the stang was pretty much silent so people never knew what to expect. I didn't test drive either of the Subaru's even though that probably would have been a good idea. I always liked the STI but that was another 15K to the price tag. The speed can be a bit much to handle under hard acceleration in 1st and 2nd because you are putting so much HP/TQ to the front wheels but nothing that isn't managable. The car is a beast in 3rd/4th/5th/6th. I have no problem passing in traffic in 6th gear. The handling is very tight and even going around corners at high speeds the car stays flat and feels very stable. I brought the speed because it was cheap (through someone I know I got it for $21,500), limited production run (call me vain), dub as the fastest FWD production car (call me vain again), its pretty much a sleeper (if you don't know what to look for you will mistake it for a regular 3 hatch) and because I giggled like a school girl when I test drove it. I will be honest with you, I have had the car for about a month now and it is still nothing but a blast to drive. The interior feels like a much more expensive car. I actually look for excuses to go drive it.