This is Still a Thing: Spotted at Los Angeles Auto Show
Yes, the Scion FR-S…err, Toyota GT86 lives! I was on hand at the Los Angeles auto show covering the scene when I happened upon the Toyota booth, with a few remnants of Scion’s past in attendance.
If you’re a regular visitor to ScionLife, you know the scoop on the 2017 refresh for “the twins,” namely that you can expect a 5 horsepower and 5 lb-ft of torque power bump thanks to revised intake and exhaust manifolds, and internal engine components that reduce friction, increasingly efficiency. In what seems to be a tradition, like almost every other model year prior, minor changes to the springs, dampers and roll bars account for suspension and chassis updates. Until we can drive one of the 2017+ models, we’ll assume it drives similarly to the pre-refresh models we’ve experienced: nimble and athletic chassis, paired with an unfortunate and reluctant powertrain.
This picture is interesting because I waited next to the GT86 for a few minutes, twiddling my thumbs waiting. Why, you ask? To see if any of the other “media” people in attendance would stop and look. The GT86, nee FR-S, is old news at this point, meaning that 5 horsepower and new bumper covers aren’t enough to catch the eye of most people, but look! Eventually, TWO people glanced at the GT86, even if it was only briefly before immediately leaving. IT STILL COUNTS.
Here’s hoping that generation two, if there is a generation two, is a car worth lusting after, and that it makes it’s AE86 forebear proud.
