Manufacturers make incremental changes all the time without advertising them; that's why it's usually best to buy the last of a generation rather than the first. There is definitely more sound deadening panels, pads and treatment in the '14. I have pulled some trim to spoon out a small ding in the rear 1/4 and can see that. The
suspension tuning feels different, The '12 had virtually no rebound damping but the '14 is better controlled in this area, despite the springs and bars looking the same (both BBP).The two cars have different tires stock (
Pirelli P Zero summer on the '12 and Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercars on the '14) so tire performance isn't totally a fair comparo but, the '14 turns in better, has less understeer and rides nicer, stock for stock.
Now, a lot of the smoothness and quality feel is created by the automatic and the driveline not banging and bucking around like it does with the stick. That makes sense but it doesn't explain the other things.
The '12 was bought new and the '14 used with ~12,000 miles, one owner, company car. Both were completely unmodified at purchase so, I think the comparison is fair.
I am going to throw a tune on the '14 because I'm curious how the auto will react. That's probably about it for a good while. I'm in no hurry to duplicate the circumstances that led to the demise of my previous car and, I was starting to think maybe I'd gone too far with the '12, compromising daily utility and road trip reliability in pursuit of all that power.
I'm going to circle back to the subject of this thread now: I took the '12 on a 6k road trip last Christmas through 6 states. Did parts of Route 66, Zion in Utah, Arizona, Vegas, PCH up through Cali, Napa Valley, Oregon, Washington, etc. The 2012 car didn't miss a beat and that was one of the best experiences I've ever had in a vehicle. Road tripping and wondering if you were going to chuck a blower belt or pop a boost tube off in the middle of nowhere would sap the pleasure for me, I think.