I think if you drive one for yourself, you wont be dissapointed, as long as you dont expect too much performance wise (which it seems you dont). I think alot of people say there slow because their expecting too much, and have either 'beat' one where the owner doesnt know how to get the best from it, or assume there faster than what they are, or are just basing the whole performance on the 9.5 0-60 time.
In my opinion its first gear that makes it look slower than what they are on paper, as its so short and does seem resticted in some way, but once rolling they pick up nicely and smoothly. Obviously if it were 5 speed it would have one less gear change as it could achieve 60 in 2nd, then would probably be in the high 8's to 60, so its a bit of a false figure in my opinion.
They certainly 'look' fast, but some seem to forget they only have 154bhp, and were developed to compete with the 320 BMW, and is in my opinion a MUCH better car than the BMW, in every way. Much better spec, much better looking and drive much better too.