crflack

I'm an owner of a TC, I was very excited when I heard about the FRS and even more excited when I saw the pics of the prototype. I actually got to test drive one yesterday and I was severely disappointed. First off, the exterior styling, I think is awesome, the interior on the other hand lacked. Where should I start, the seats were made for someone weighing 140LBS, I'm only 6ft and 190 LBS and my back couldn't fit in the drivers seat. The gauges I have to say was kinda cool, but the spedo when up why higher than this car can go, the stereo was lame and would need the upgrade. The center console was nothing special at all and everything felt super cheap. I guess I could live with the interior but what was even worse was this cars power, or lack there of. My TC only has an intake and exhaust and I don't know if it just feels faster than the FRS, but I felt like I could smoke the FRS with my TC. The FRS makes no power until higher RPMs and god forbid you needed to pass anyone when you were in 5th gear let alone if you were in 6th. If you really want to have this car perform you have to beat the hell out of it. I think to get the most out of this car you would need to put at least 5K worth of engine mods into it, and that's a low estimate. It's so unfortunate that this car is such a dog because I was so excited about it. It's billed as a little sports car but it's not!! Sports cars have power, this has none. Shame on you scion, shame on you. I plan on test driving the BRZ to see if Subaru did any better with their version.

Jon

To be honest, it's really not made for people who want an out of the box high performance car. I mean the specs tell you it only makes 200hp at the crank. You couldn't have expected more than 150hp at the wheels. If you did, I suggest you research drivetrain power loss. Also keep in mind the target competition for this car is the Miata and S2000. Neither of which make more than 220hp. And a little more food for thought, the S2k was over $34k new.

Why is the interior cheap? Because it starts at $24k not $27k and only has one trim level. The supposed quickness of your tC in comparison is due to gearing. At most you're putting out 140whp so not as much as the FR-S.

This model, like other Scions were built with the tuner in mind. If you were expecting a car that will keep up with Vettes and GTRs for $24k, I think you may be over reaching just a bit.

crflack

This is definitively a car in need of tuning. But why doesn't scion offer it with a stock turbo option, I just saying by time you put all the money into it, you could go buy a slightly used car that's ready to run and has way better options. I also text drove a BMW 335i X-Drive 2 door coupe, that was priced the same as the FRS, yes it was three years old and had 50k, but in my opinion the power, options and feel of the thing makes it a better driving car. And I don't know about on the track but I'd rather have a car like the BMW I can take to a track day and also be comfortable driving every day. I'd also take my TC over this car driving everyday. Another car you can buy with low miles and only a year old that is really close to the FRS price after modifying it to be a bit faster.... The 5.0 Mustang. Just food for thought.

Jon

Well of course you can buy countless older cars for less that will perform as good as or outperform the FR-S/BRZ. But comparing it to older cars is pointless. It's a new car that hasn't even had time to depreciate yet. Give it 2 years and you'll start seeing used ones for under $20k. It's a reincarnation of the 80s Corolla and should be thought of as such, not some track day superstar. It's built with the driver in mind--affordable, RWD, N/A, lightweight.

And as far as factory boost goes, a TRD S/C is rumored to be in the works. However I'm not holding my breath after the one for the tC was such a let down. Both companies say factory turbo isn't coming, but do I believe them? Not really. If they listened to enthusiasts thus far to even produce this car, they could probably be persuaded to offer a turbo variant.

crflack

hard to say it's build for a driver when one has problems fitting in the front seat LOL I'll give it one more try with the BRZ but I just don't see the value in it. I think it should have been priced closer to 18-20K

Jon

The BRZ has a slightly better interior but costs more and makes the same power. I think the seats are the same. I do think it should have been a 2 seater since most people wouldn't be able to fit in the back. They could have saved some weight there. However, keep in mind that the average male height is only 5'9" worldwide.

crflack

I agree it should have been a two seat car. But I'm not that big of a dude, the front seat should fit me but doesn't. like I said before I was super excited for the FRS and really disappointed after driving it.

user 7208230

iTrader: (1)

It has been dynoed 173whp, think that's a ~12% loss

ScionTCSS

It should have been a 2 seater and less money for the power. I like the way it looks but when I saw the power for $25k I was extremely disappointed.

Jon

On what dyno? I read 150whp initially somewhere.

Slammed_DC

Is that just the fanboy or do you really have no idea what you are talking about? S2000s have 237 BHP, and Miata's weigh way less then the ExcuseRS.




We don't really have to compare it to used cars, brand new V6 Mustangs destroy it.



Kind of sad though that after all these years Toyota still hasn't caught up with the real cars.

crflack

@150 HP it's almost as low as you get with a fiat 500 abrath, and that's still over 5K cheaper.

Brichard0625

Yea i just test drove one yesterday too! I got to drive a white frs(man) and i have to say it was a mixed bag of feelings for me too but i knew what i was expecting from a 200hp/150tq vehicle.. Exterior was amazing and i see lots of opportunity to enhance the looks even more. Interior i was feelings the same. Im 5'7 160lbs and the seats grabbed me perfectly and the driving position was way more comfortable than my tc2. The dash i loved and im happy that the speedo goes to 160 because im sure people will be modding and we'll need that extra room when power is added. The center console reminded me of my tc2 and was very cheap and boring as well as the radio but looks easy to take apart and i can see ways to improve the look. The back seats were useless like i said im 5'7 160lbs and i cant fit back there. I had fresh sneakers on and i told the salesman dont bother pushing the seat back because my feet cant feet under the seat and im not about to f*** kickz up! As far driving experience i was pretty content, i kept the car at about 3000k-3500k when shifting and i had enough passing power and when i got to open her up a little i wasnt like wow but i was like okay! unless u fix the drop around 2k-3k u gonna have to waste some gas and shift a little higher so when u switch gears u pass that dead spot! Overall i liked that car and yes it cud use more power and better interior but like stated before this car is tuner and that was the intent of this car.. This car is whatever u want it to be..If u want a drifter you can dominate, if u want redlight greenlight car it can be, or u just want an a&b car that can still put a smile on your face want u can have that too..im really looking foward to what ppl do to it and theres def potential in this car!

crflack

I just wish they offered tuning from scion, then I might have bought one, considering aftermarket voids the factory warentee. We'll have to see what they come up with a year from now. Until then I'll stick with my 05 TC with 150K on it that for me feels much more responsive and quicker and I know I'm not pushing 200BHP lol

Jon

I'm glad you know how to use Wikipedia. Did you also see it only makes 150lb/ft of torque? I know comprehension is a long shot for you, but that's only 3lb more than the FR-S.



If you think 1 second with the addition of a $3k track package is "destroying," then you're more inept than I thought.

AnotherDude

iTrader: (1)

if you're looking for a car to take to the drag strip, this car is NOT for you. Toyota has repeatedly stated that this car is about RWD and perfect balance. That means this car was designed with drifting and autocrossing in mind. It's too easy to make a car that has a 300+ hp engine block in it. Sure you can drop a v6 or a v8 into a chassis, slap a higher price tag on it, and market it for people who love to go straight and smash the gas, but where's the fun in that?

If you read the car reviews, this car is praised for its handling and being a generally fun car to drive. You don't buy a Mazda Miata to take it to the drag strip. You don't buy a Corvette to take it autocrossing either.

crflack

I wasn't expecting a drag strip car when I drove this, but I was expecting one that had power throughout the RPMs and this didn't. The powerband I felt was inadequate and below scion standards. Great looking car, its just a shame.

torqueTc

iTrader: (11)

Jon - the S2k makes 240. Your only off by 20hp, but thats a lot in this segment, its 20% more than the FRS in total. I would recommend everyone who is considering the FRS to drive a good used s2k, and the miata. I personally love the s2k, and I would say the low tq figure is a different story in that car. Just like everyone is saying you have to drive the FRS to understand how it feels, the S2K is no slouch. There are not a lot of stock cars that produce an almost 9k redline, and the ones that do it, are intoxicating.

What I am anxious for, is to see how much the factory ECU can be unlocked and wake the car up. I am hoping at some point it will be flashable, unlike the tC. For a lot of cars, reflash unleashes a good solid 20hp/15tq at least. And no, I am not talking about piggy backs. If the FRS unlocked another 20/15, it would be an amazing little car.

My other concern would be how well does it respond to modifications. For example, the integra type R - is one of those cars that when certain aftermarket mods were installed, it LOST power. That is because the amount of R&D honda did, just could not be touched in most aspects (ie: intakes/exhaust/header). It was a true factory tuned car. If the FRS is this way, certain things may "sound" faster, but they detract from the real potential of the car. Other parts, like cams ect would most likely work, but with any car you have to find a good working combination. In the integra type R, it was already done from the factory.

ScionTCSS

It's just not impressive power for a $25k car.

Jon

My mistake, I'm not a Honda aficionado by any means. However, if you'd pay 10 grand more for 37hp (if it was still in production), then by all means go ahead. At that point, I wouldn't even be looking in this segment anymore.