BRZ and FR-S Sales Numbers Thread

[WingsofWar]

Originally Posted by Celica00

not to mention that the Toyota sales guy mentioned right before I drove off the lot "in about 3 months you can go to a Subaru dealership and they'll slap a turbo on it for you for 2 grand" .....

Sometimes future info actually does fall in our lap. If you been following this forum since 09 you see that we had many exclusive info "leaked" here months before official press got wind.

I had heard whispers of an Subaru OEM ECU unit much like "access port" to be released in the future that allowed tuning ECU maps. This was to be part of their race ready plan which included the use of tuning features used in sanctioned races that didn't allow modding, ie Series/Stock Car.

its been nearly a year since iv heard it, so i don't know if its real, cancelled, or still in the works. But so far Toyota and Subaru has released many products that are part of their race ready plan. eg, OEM rollcage, Supercharger, Big Brakes, etc.

[hanabie]

like it or not, you are just driving a 25k car. Expect that everyone can afford it.
You want your car rare, get a Ferrari or something upscale. I even see a lot of GTR on the streets recently.

[rice_classic]

The problem with it being 25k isn't that lots of people can afford them, that's a good thing. The inherent problem with affordability is the "who" in ownership. As more 'youthful' folks can own it, they do more 'youthful' things to it and with it and that can, by unfortunate association, give it a bad perception according to some.

The S2000 was the same way. Once they could be had for under 20k you started seeing a lot more "tuner" items on them and more stupid stuff being done in them. It's just the nature of the beast.

[t.chk]

I love my BRZ completely worth the extra 2k, I am so in love with her

[rice_classic]

Originally Posted by WingsofWar

I had heard whispers of an Subaru OEM ECU unit much like "access port" to be released in the future that allowed tuning ECU maps.

I hope this is the case. It really needs to be.

Originally Posted by rice_classic

The S2000 was the same way. Once they could be had for under 20k you started seeing a lot more "tuner" items on them and more stupid stuff being done in them. It's just the nature of the beast.

I'm quoting myself only to elaborate on resale.

I think the phenomenon of what happens to affordable sports cars, an abundance of modifications, is what's going to help the resale value of those that are "unmolested". Not just he BRZ for it's rarity, but also the FRS. I bet unmolested 86s will hold their value very well because that will be the rare version of this car on the used car market in a few years.

[stockysnail]

Originally Posted by hanabie

like it or not, you are just driving a 25k car. Expect that everyone can afford it.
You want your car rare, get a Ferrari or something upscale. I even see a lot of GTR on the streets recently.

Not everyone has a Lotus Elise and those can be found for 25-30k used in amazing condition.

[hanabie]

Originally Posted by stockysnail

Not everyone has a Lotus Elise and those can be found for 25-30k used in amazing condition.

your back and butt will thank you for not getting a lotus as a DD.
This car is DD friendly and good for tall guys, not lotus. I could barely fit myself in that car.

[stockysnail]

Originally Posted by hanabie

your back and butt will thank you for not getting a lotus as a DD.
This car is DD friendly and good for tall guys, not lotus. I could barely fit myself in that car.

I had a Elise for 2 years and daily drove it. I'm 6'1" but 175lbs and fit fine with room to space. I hated life when I drove to Seattle from Portland so I would say nothing longer than an hour as it starts getting uncomfortable. Aside from that it is an amazing car and may buy another one in the future if I don't buy an Ariel Atom or an electric car to fill the empty garage spot next to the BRZ, when I pay off debt first of course.

[SUB-FT86]

The yearly sales of these cars will fall off rapidly. I just hope Toyota/Subaru has a plan to make it sell well again.

[speedrye]

Originally Posted by SUB-FT86

The yearly sales of these cars will fall off rapidly. I just hope Toyota/Subaru has a plan to make it sell well again.

This is what I'm thinking as well. I look at the sales number of another niche vehicle like my FJ Cruiser, and can't help but wonder what will happen to the twins. The FJ is very dependable and has the highest resale value in the country, but it's being discontinued this year after 8 total years. You can see how quickly sales numbers fell off after the initial few years:

Toyota FJ Cruiser
U.S. Sales

2006

56,225

2007

55,170

2008

28,668

2009

11,941

2010

14,959

2011

13,541

2012

13,656

2013

13,131

[avp1]

Originally Posted by speedrye

This is what I'm thinking as well. I look at the sales number of another niche vehicle like my FJ Cruiser, and can't help but wonder what will happen to the twins. The FJ is very dependable and has the highest resale value in the country, but it's being discontinued this year after 8 total years. You can see how quickly sales numbers fell off after the initial few years:

Toyota FJ Cruiser
U.S. Sales

2006

56,225

2007

55,170

2008

28,668

2009

11,941

2010

14,959

2011

13,541

2012

13,656

2013

13,131

Could it be dependent on actual quality of this truck? Last fall my wife wanted a new truck and FJ was first choice, but we couldn't find one that didn't have steering wheel not shaking at highway speed (actually found ONE, but dealer managed to damage it prior to delivery). We had to get 4Runner insted, even when we liked it less overall.

[speedrye]

Overall quality of the FJ is very good, but it's a niche vehicle with quirks, just like the FR-S. I think a big part of the drop in sales is that Toyota hasn't updated the truck at all to offer anything new. The same will likely happen to the twins if no performance oriented changes are introduced.

[avp1]

Originally Posted by speedrye

Overall quality of the FJ is very good, but it's a niche vehicle with quirks, just like the FR-S. I think a big part of the drop in sales is that Toyota hasn't updated the truck at all to offer anything new. The same will likely happen to the twins if no performance oriented changes are introduced.

I not think that steering weel shaking at 60 mph is a quirk. Toyota knew about this issue for several years, but decided not to fix (I found it afterwards, when I was surprised that all trucks I tried had the same exact issue). We'll see how unstable idle and noisy fuel pump will be fixed in 2014 and beyound versions of FT86.

[brzmaybe]

I think it's important to remember that for both Subaru and Toyota, success was (is) about more than numbers. Subaru got a new engine and full capacity production at a partially used facility. Toyota re-entered the youth/sports car market in a big way and re-energized their Scion brand.

Lots of us got what we wanted, too; a basic sports car that delivers honest driving pleasure right off the showroom floor, with the prospect of as much performance and style as a deepening aftermarket and our own elbow grease can deliver.

My FRS puts a smile on my face very time i drive it.