The sports compact scene without the lifestyle BS

This magazine isn't a fashion show about the new youth culture and it doesn't pander to people like some of the car shows on TNN. It stays focused on the cars and doesn't stray to the "lifestyle" aspect of the sport. This is a real magazine for real car guys. I was impressed by the detailed technical sections and by the understandable explanations about how various parts do (and more importantly don't) help your car perform better in the real world. The head to head tests are excellent. There are lots of pictures and features about cool cars, but they haven't pushed the substantive sections of the magazine out - its a very nice combination.

Well Written, Informative, and not Boy Racer Friendly

I am a loyal subscriber to SCC, and I must say that it is by far the most well written and technologically informative and up to date automotive magazine in print. One of the things that impresses me about the mag is the fact that they use real horsepower ratings. They measure the amount the car actually puts out to the wheels and not to the flywheel. They also actually know what they are talking about in terms of suspension dynamics and well thought out engine mods. The fact that they focus on more than just the Honda "scene" is also a breath of fresh air. SCC, as its title emphsizes, does cover a niche market, but they are always accurate in their reviews of new cars. These guys are hardcore, and they could care less if the newest import to hit the market has cup holders or not. All they care about is how the car performs, which frankly, is what a technically minded, all go, no show guy or gals wants anyway. The only other mag that can hold a candle to SCC is perhaps Grassroots Motorsports.

Best Car Magazine.. front to back.

First of all, you might find the price a little steep compared to the big 4 magazines (Road&Track, Car&Driver, Motor Trend, and Automobile) but when you start reading it you immediately understand why... It's thick.. it's loaded with great articles and some profoundly interesting editorials from guys who like to drive fast cars while saving a little $$$. Ever since I first fell in love with cars I've read those big 4 magazines previously mentioned, rarely spending a month with a subscription to less than 2 of them.. until I found SCC. Now when I read the big 4 (C&D is the worst) and read review after review by journalists who don't understand cars, or what makes them tick. I've yet to read a C&D in the past 6 months that hasn't stated that bigger wheels = more grip.., c'mon Car & Driver!! Send your reviewers back to high school physics!!

Sport Compact Car is full of ads trying to sell you gargantuan fiberglass wings, body graphics, clear acrylic hoods, neon kits and other all-show-no-go items, but you will notice that the guys at SCC never put any of that [stuff] on their project cars. Every once in a while a few small pictures of girls in bikinis find their way onto the pages (so don't fret guys) but they're never the focus.

If you like magazines that try their best not to bias themselves against cars made on certain continents, or magazines that tell you why stuff works, or magazines that get down to actually making cars faster and showing you how without making it boring, this is your stop. If you happen to enjoy some biases, check out European Car, their sister magazine, where you'll enjoy most of the same technical articles, but as the name says, european cars only.

Something else you may find interesting.. SCC doesn't review new cars as often as the big 4, but they do cover every interesting new compact. They declared earlier this year that they were committed to actually testing every single new car that they review on a dynomometer because of many discrepancies between manufacturers claims and actual output at the wheels (yes, they factor in drivetrain loss).

Lately SCC has been publishing their new car reviews a month before the big 4 can get their hands on them... mostly because the car manufacturers have heard about the buzz... it's about time you did too.