Opinions: Chance to Own a Series.Blue

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Sorry, I can't read Japanese, I don't see a BRZ STI on that site, mind directing me to the page you want me to see?

I clearly see a link to the BRZ tS I believe you and I agree exists as a "trim level", but nothing like a WRX STI based on a BRZ.
http://www.sti.jp/product/brzts2015/index.html

I mean, I know they did a CONCEPT STI, which yeah you can build, but if the whole point is that you want reliable factory power, why copy a concept car that doesn't have to live up to factory reliability?
http://www.fhi.co.jp/english/contents/pdf_en_115189.pdf

And what's the second one that isn't the concept above or the TS?

I think you got this the other way around. The tS is not a trim level, but a tuned version by STI themselves based on a car available from Subaru. Think of STI as a separate entity from FHI.

To me, a WRX STI is a trim level of an Impreza from Subaru (and from there comes the variations like Spec-C, A-line, etc). A tuned version of that from STI as a separate entity would be a WRX STI tS or a S201/2/3/4/6 or R205 or RA-R.

Even in Japan there is no "STI" trim level for the rest of the Subaru model line-up other than the Impreza WRX.

Those "concepts" of a "BRZ STI" is just done to mess with the public by marketing. I don't think they ever had the intention of doing one, unless some competition homologation is required for a production based race car (like the E30 M3). So I wouldn't hold my breath.

Would I want a Series.Blue? That depends on if I dig the blue interior bits, everything else that the car comes with are readily available from the dealer parts counter or online.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by krayzie

I think you got this the other way around. The tS is not a trim level, but a tuned version by STI themselves based on a car available from Subaru. Think of STI as a separate entity from FHI.

To me, a WRX STI is a trim level of an Impreza from Subaru (and from there comes the variations like Spec-C, A-line, etc). A tuned version of that from STI as a separate entity would be a WRX STI tS or a S201/2/3/4/6 or R205 or RA-R.

Yes we are flipped in terms of our terminology and intentions and we can agree on what currently exists.

I do not consider the tS to be in line with what most people want when they say "BRZ STI" as usually it is implied that the primary purpose of said vehicle would be a significant power increase over the 'base' model.

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Yes we are flipped in terms of our terminology and intentions and we can agree on what currently exists.

I do not consider the tS to be in line with what most people want when they say "BRZ STI" as usually it is implied that the primary purpose of said vehicle would be a significant power increase over the 'base' model.

Yea it's like there was never a Type R version of the S2000. Something's holding them back in offering a higher output variation (emissions, packaging, market segmentation, or just simply cost of development / technology).

I just don't understand why marketing has to keep doing these outrageous concepts that'll never happen. They should do a concept of a modern Alcyone / SVX instead.

[Si_Chris]

So an update to this.

I jumped through several hoops to figure out the extent of the damage this Series.Blue had in the rear end accident listed on the Carfax.

I was able to obtain an accident/police report filed the day of the accident. It turns out the BRZ was rear ended by a pickup truck at about 10 MPH. The police report said an estimated $4,000 worth of damages occurred to the rear of the car.

The police report was not enough for me as it vaguely described what happened so I ended up calling the dealer where the car was originally sold. It turns out they have a collision center so I gave it a shot to see if it was repaired there. After being put on hold and passed through three different sales staff, I finally got in contact with the collision center and gave them the VIN of the car.

It turned out the car was indeed repaired there and actually had $5,000 worth of damages which included: a new trunk lid, rear spoiler, both rear tail lights, rear bumper, and rear bumper bracket or support (not sure if the collision shop guy meant the crash beam or some sort of bumper bracket/support the car has). Along with that, a three stage paint job. The shop manager said there was no frame pulling or welding involved.

With that said, the car would suffer from diminished value no matter what. So taking into account diminished value at about an estimated 10%-15% loss, I made an offer of $22.5 + TTL and the dealer selling the car refused the offer! The car was listed at $25.8 and the dealer would not budge at all.

So in all, a 2015 Series.Blue with less than 10K miles, an accident on record with $5,000 in damages, would suffer from diminished value. Also, a scratched up front STI lip, and minor dents on the driver door, was my offer of $22.5 + TTL too low of an offer?

BTW, the car is now sold.

[Stang70Fastback]

I bought a BRAND NEW Series.Blue for $27,350 + TTL.
That dealership's price is ridiculous, and whoever did end up buying the car for ~$26k paid way too much IMHO.

[why?]

Originally Posted by Si_Chris

So an update to this.

I jumped through several hoops to figure out the extent of the damage this Series.Blue had in the rear end accident listed on the Carfax.

I was able to obtain an accident/police report filed the day of the accident. It turns out the BRZ was rear ended by a pickup truck at about 10 MPH. The police report said an estimated $4,000 worth of damages occurred to the rear of the car.

The police report was not enough for me as it vaguely described what happened so I ended up calling the dealer where the car was originally sold. It turns out they have a collision center so I gave it a shot to see if it was repaired there. After being put on hold and passed through three different sales staff, I finally got in contact with the collision center and gave them the VIN of the car.

It turned out the car was indeed repaired there and actually had $5,000 worth of damages which included: a new trunk lid, rear spoiler, both rear tail lights, rear bumper, and rear bumper bracket or support (not sure if the collision shop guy meant the crash beam or some sort of bumper bracket/support the car has). Along with that, a three stage paint job. The shop manager said there was no frame pulling or welding involved.

With that said, the car would suffer from diminished value no matter what. So taking into account diminished value at about an estimated 10%-15% loss, I made an offer of $22.5 + TTL and the dealer selling the car refused the offer! The car was listed at $25.8 and the dealer would not budge at all.

So in all, a 2015 Series.Blue with less than 10K miles, an accident on record with $5,000 in damages, would suffer from diminished value. Also, a scratched up front STI lip, and minor dents on the driver door, was my offer of $22.5 + TTL too low of an offer?

BTW, the car is now sold.

These cars sell fast if they are priced reasonably, and if there was no frame damage there really won't be any diminished value. This car just isn't like normal cars when it comes to the value, they are just too new and too rare. The only ones that sit on lots are with imbecilic dealers that have them priced above $27k.

[pinski]

Originally Posted by Si_Chris

So an update to this.

I jumped through several hoops to figure out the extent of the damage this Series.Blue had in the rear end accident listed on the Carfax.

I was able to obtain an accident/police report filed the day of the accident. It turns out the BRZ was rear ended by a pickup truck at about 10 MPH. The police report said an estimated $4,000 worth of damages occurred to the rear of the car.

The police report was not enough for me as it vaguely described what happened so I ended up calling the dealer where the car was originally sold. It turns out they have a collision center so I gave it a shot to see if it was repaired there. After being put on hold and passed through three different sales staff, I finally got in contact with the collision center and gave them the VIN of the car.

It turned out the car was indeed repaired there and actually had $5,000 worth of damages which included: a new trunk lid, rear spoiler, both rear tail lights, rear bumper, and rear bumper bracket or support (not sure if the collision shop guy meant the crash beam or some sort of bumper bracket/support the car has). Along with that, a three stage paint job. The shop manager said there was no frame pulling or welding involved.

With that said, the car would suffer from diminished value no matter what. So taking into account diminished value at about an estimated 10%-15% loss, I made an offer of $22.5 + TTL and the dealer selling the car refused the offer! The car was listed at $25.8 and the dealer would not budge at all.

So in all, a 2015 Series.Blue with less than 10K miles, an accident on record with $5,000 in damages, would suffer from diminished value. Also, a scratched up front STI lip, and minor dents on the driver door, was my offer of $22.5 + TTL too low of an offer?

BTW, the car is now sold.

I think your offer was fair. If someone here bought it, I hope they did their due diligence like you did. There are plenty of BRZs available and they're only going down in value.

[echo419]

I wouldn't buy a wrecked car for almost the same price as a brand new one with zero issues what so ever.

as far as the series blue goes. you can get the body kit from a couple of vendors here for next to nothing. I got mine from Jon Motoring. and personally I like being able to program my home link to work on my garage door opener. the Blue has the frameless mirror. so basically you're paying all that extra cash for wheels(though I do like them better than the regular ones) and some colored stitching. no thanks jeff. hell I bought a set of Gram lights(57xtremes) from Maximal Performance and if you add that to the body kit I'm still out less than if I had gotten the Blue.

[spicyricecake]

The car will be worth whatever people are willing to pay. I'm confident I can turn around and sell mine for 27k if I listed it long enough (~12k miles).

While I agree a car that's been through an accident should not be asking for that much, and OP offered a fair price, the fact that it sold means there is a market for this car above the price you were expecting.

Everyone needs to remember that Economy is controlled by supply and demand. The car will be priced higher if the demand is high. A different example would be the older WRX STIs that sell for 20k+ even though these are 5+ years old. I know 2007 STIs sell for 22~24k with 60-70k miles on it.

Some cars just hold value better than others.

[why?]

Exactly, and the series.blue is selling at about $25,900 or so in a few days for dealers. In this day and age the only real killer is frame damage, the rest can be repaired to be just as good or better than new. Maybe in a few years stuff like minor accidents will matter, but right now it just doesn't for the series.blue.

And normal BRZ's are still all high priced as well. You are just starting to see BRZ's priced in the $23k range, and that is all 2013's.

[Stang70Fastback]

Originally Posted by echo419

so basically you're paying all that extra cash for wheels (though I do like them better than the regular ones) and some colored stitching.

As a Series.Blue owner, I feel the need to come to the defense of it, because you're not really being fair with that statement, lol. I think the price you pay for the Series.Blue is justified by what you get. I shall list ALL of the difference here, not just two or three of them :P

- STi Wheels
- Floor undercover insulator
- Frameless rear view mirror
- Floor Mats with BRZ logo and blue trim
- Front lip, side skirts, rear spats.
- Full underbody aero-tray package (reduces Cd from 0.28 to 0.27)
- Red painted brake calipers.
- Silver embroidered BRZ logo on front seatback
- Blue leather accents on seats and steering wheel.
- Blue stitching everywhere instead of red stitching.
- Shiny red push-start button with STI logo.
- Different carbon fiber pattern for dash panel.
- I *think* the knee pads in the Series.Blue do not come on the other models.
- I might be missing one or two more things.

[Si_Chris]

Originally Posted by why?

Exactly, and the series.blue is selling at about $25,900 or so in a few days for dealers. In this day and age the only real killer is frame damage, the rest can be repaired to be just as good or better than new. Maybe in a few years stuff like minor accidents will matter, but right now it just doesn't for the series.blue.

And normal BRZ's are still all high priced as well. You are just starting to see BRZ's priced in the $23k range, and that is all 2013's.

Aside from frame damage, I think having an accident on the Carfax regardless will definitely hurt the resale value if you decide the sell the car privately, or trade it in a dealer. The loss will be there.

Anyhow, I found a CWP Series.Blue on Carmax for 25,998 with 22K miles. Clean history report from Carmax.

It kinda sucks that the car is halfway across the nation from me. I could pay Carmax a non-refundable $849 to ship it to my nearest Carmax, not sure if it's worth spending close to an extra 1K just to see the car in person.

[pinski]

Originally Posted by Si_Chris

Aside from frame damage, I think having an accident on the Carfax regardless will definitely hurt the resale value if you decide the sell the car privately, or trade it in a dealer. The loss will be there.

Anyhow, I found a CWP Series.Blue on Carmax for 25,998 with 22K miles. Clean history report from Carmax.

It kinda sucks that the car is halfway across the nation from me. I could pay Carmax a non-refundable $849 to ship it to my nearest Carmax, not sure if it's worth spending close to an extra 1K just to see the car in person.

We're all different and want different things, which is why I've never understood the premium that the Series.Blue commands with some people. These used ones you're looking at are new BRZ money. Knowing how I, and many others here, drive these cars, I wouldn't have ever bought one used.

That said, I personally don't see the justification of a $3k+ premium over this 2015 Limited with lower miles, or the even greater savings with a 2014 or 2013 model, maybe $6-7k. Like I said, everybody has their own priorities, so maybe this used Series.Blue will suit you for $25k.

The car you want will come along, you will just have to be patient if you are limiting your criteria to a Series. Blue.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Si_Chris

Aside from frame damage, I think having an accident on the Carfax regardless will definitely hurt the resale value if you decide the sell the car privately, or trade it in a dealer. The loss will be there.

Anyhow, I found a CWP Series.Blue on Carmax for 25,998 with 22K miles. Clean history report from Carmax.

It kinda sucks that the car is halfway across the nation from me. I could pay Carmax a non-refundable $849 to ship it to my nearest Carmax, not sure if it's worth spending close to an extra 1K just to see the car in person.

Unless planning on flipping the vehicle in the next year or so I would not give resale a lot of weight. We are years away from the resale values on these cars leveling out and to base any buying decision on what may or may not happen could lead to disappointment.
Yes, a damaged vehicle will have les value from the start but the condition it is in when you go to resell will play a huge factor as well. So if you plan to actually drive it, put loads of miles on it or otherwise create any wear and tear then the value drops anyway.
So if you put a few tens of thousands of miles on it over several years then does it really matter if resale is $5,000 instead of $5,200?