You werent the only one with stock boost at the EVO day Chris, plus I had my shitty compliance tyres as well , mind u I only managed 20th but it was my first track event of any kind so I loved it. I seem to be going in the other direction to u it would seem, I've had my share of more savage/harsher (The DR, an FJ powered 1600 etc etc) cars and wanted something a bit more refined which would perform well straight out of the box, which I have got with my VII. I guess it's all what u want out of a car I suppose and it's intended purpose, while my DR is a ton of tail happy fun to drive it just wasn't practical as a regular driver with it's HD clutch and GT35/40-screamer etc. Whatever u decide to do I hope u continue to do some spirited driving as u have some real skills as opposed to the "cheque book" racers that where quite apparent at the EVO day.
Cheers, Vaughan.