Yes, 2008 STR was better than that year’s RBR.
Not a bad car and of course the Monza drive was very good. But let him win the title without a Newey car, then we can talk about greatness.
Thats not the point tho.
The ppl. who would call Fernandos 2012 ferrari a "shitbox" are the same ones who would say the 2008 Toro Rosso was a "good car". when its clear as day that the toro rosso was nowhere near as competitive with its contemporaries as the 2012 ferrari was.
Vettel has plenty of flaws alright, but being slow or unable to extract the best out of his machinery in a race are not one of them.