Why Scion FR-S Sales Have Plunged

[dnieves]

Originally Posted by gzpermadi

Also I hope that they discontinue this car in 2017, so at least we can recover the purchase price from the exclusivity. LOL.

I think that only works if the car is featured in a movie and you wait 30+ years... like a certain stainless steel clad turtle from Back To The Future.

[Tromatic]

2016 and done.

[DAEMANO]

A second iteration of the car has already been confirmed. My we have short memories here.

http://www.automobilemag.com/feature...en-scion-fr-s/

This thread is so far off the deep end it's kinda sad.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by DAEMANO

A second iteration of the car has already been confirmed. My we have short memories here.

http://www.automobilemag.com/feature...en-scion-fr-s/

This thread is so far off the deep end it's kinda sad.

Far from confirmed imo, you're quoting one European sales executive pandering to a blog, not an official statement from the people responsible for engineering and designing the car. Not to mention it's from the ever click-baity Australians who love to hype up hybrids or four doors or dropping the boxer altogether for the Toyobaru.

http://www.motoring.com.au/news/2014...-live-on-46760

Speaking with motoring.com.au during the 2014 Paris motor show, Toyota of Europe's Executive Vice President, Karl Schlicht, acknowledged the 86's business case is not ideal but said the Japanese giant was committed to the model and that Toyota would retain its partnership with Subaru for the time being.

"The GT 86 as you know has been enthusiastically received by the motoring press, but the market's not huge around the world for those kind of cars and they also have a bit of a lifecycle. So as a business it's tougher to justify.

"But we are pretty serious about keeping the GT 86 pure and keeping a car like that in our line-up. Because in the past we dropped cars like the Celicas and fun cars, and we don’t want to lose that again," said Schlicht, adding that through the late 2000s the lack of sports cars in Toyota's range wasn't ideal.

"It hurts the image over time," said the Toyota executive. "We want to keep some fun cars in our line-up".

Does that mean a second-generation Toyota 86 is being planned? "It's down the road," he said. "The GT 86 has to go through normal lifecycle," stated Schlicht.

However, Schlicht would not comment on the question of whether Toyota's entry-level $30K sports coupe will remain a collaboration with Subaru for the next generation, leaving question marks over the BRZ's future.

[jamies31]

Every car is going to have atleast a five year run without any huge exterior, interior and mainly powertrain. It's been like this for every car since the start of time.
When I hear people complain about no huge changes on only its 3rd time around makes me smile, Guess what we probably wont see a huge change in the vehicle until atleast 2017-18. Even corolla, camry, sienna all Toyotas best selling car all atleast get 5 years with the same chasis, powertrain, interior etc with only modest changes.
The one thing I love about the scion brand is......YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR CAR AND UPGRADE IT YOURSELF, That's what I love about this brand instead of getting tired of the car and trading it in add a modification! you just saved 25-30k and still have the car you love.
Just me .2 as always

[Sideways&Smiling]

Multiple Subaru/Scion/Toyota representatives have said there will be a 2nd generation of the car.

As for a future version of the car having a completely different, non-boxer engine, this is something that was bluntly said to be a possibility by Tada back around release time.... He said he would like to make
an engine upgrade at least once during the lifecycle of the car and that it could get an entirely different engine.

I think we will see a mild update/refresh this year or next, and, then, in the future, the platform will evolve into something different with a different engine altogether... but may not still be marketed as the same car at all. just based on the same platform.

[funwheeldrive]

Originally Posted by Sideways&Smiling

Multiple Subaru/Scion/Toyota representatives have said there will be a 2nd generation of the car.

As for a future version of the car having a completely different, non-boxer engine, this is something that was bluntly said to be a possibility by Tada back around release time.... He said he would like to make
an engine upgrade at least once during the lifecycle of the car and that it could get an entirely different engine.

I think we will see a mild update/refresh this year or next, and, then, in the future, the platform will evolve into something different with a different engine altogether... but may not still be marketed as the same car at all. just based on the same platform.

I don't think when Tada said that he meant changing out the engine for a non-boxer unit. I think that's very unlikely.

[DAEMANO]

There's more to suggest that there WILL be a next generation car, than that there won't be one. As @Sideways&Smiling said multiple sources from within Toyota, Scion & Subaru have confirmed this. I'm not going to go digging for all of the quotes but they've been posted on this board.

If an opinion piece an auto journalist is enough for people to confirm their bias then so be it. Cry wolf more.

[Tromatic]

LOL at "multiple representatives". Quote one who has any say at all where the suits live.

[FirestormFRS]

Originally Posted by Rampage

Toyota will likely keep the line alive for 6 years even with declining sales (which was predictable as most here have mentioned). Look at their most recent sports and sporty car models for evidence. I am sure that with the initial success of the twins they have long since surpassed the break even point on the R&D on the car so everything since then is profit. The majority of drivers today are more concerned with gadgets, gizmos, big power and comfort. The twins buck all those trends so there is not going to be mass appeal for them. Most buyers will think the twins are overpriced for what you are getting because of the lack of gadgets, gizmos, big power and comfort. Hell. many of the post on this forum show that a lot of FT86 buyers agree with them. It takes a special breed to appreciate these cars for what they do offer that other vehicles do not. Unfortunately, for the longevity of true sports cars, the number of those type of drivers is very limited.

You have no idea what it costs to R&D a car from idea to production. With R&D, tooling up a plant, certification, training people to build it and marketing they're not even close to break even yet. Cars cost asstons of money to develop. There isn't that much margin on a new car, especially a cheap sports car.

[Rampage]

Originally Posted by DAEMANO

A second iteration of the car has already been confirmed. My we have short memories here.

http://www.automobilemag.com/feature...en-scion-fr-s/

This thread is so far off the deep end it's kinda sad.

Those same Australian outlets have been incredibly inaccurate and in the past quoted various sources as saying a vert was coming then no it is not and a turbo was in the works then no it is not and we are disappointed with sales then no we are happy with sales numbers.

I will believe that there will be a major update when we get an official Toyota news release or reveal. I will believe there will be a second Generation when we get an official Toyota news release or a reveal. I hope both happen but I would not be surprised at all if Toyota once again repeated what they have historically done with sports cars and kill the car off when the initial sales drop off and the production run nears its end which for them is 6 years.

Originally Posted by FirestormFRS

You have no idea what it costs to R&D a car from idea to production. With R&D, tooling up a plant, certification, training people to build it and marketing they're not even close to break even yet. Cars cost asstons of money to develop. There isn't that much margin on a new car, especially a cheap sports car.

Here is your chance to enlighten me. How much did it cost to develop and produce the FT86 line?

[tahdizzle]

Just because the twins get axed, does not mean R&D is wasted. Like Sideways said, there will probably be another car based on the same platform.

And I think that most of the quotes allude to having a "sports car" in the line up, and not necissarily an twin.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by Sideways&Smiling

Multiple Subaru/Scion/Toyota representatives have said there will be a 2nd generation of the car.

As for a future version of the car having a completely different, non-boxer engine, this is something that was bluntly said to be a possibility by Tada back around release time.... He said he would like to make
an engine upgrade at least once during the lifecycle of the car and that it could get an entirely different engine.

Until I see multiple saying "yes absolutely" I will continue to call bullshit.

I've got one salesman saying 'of course, we would love to' and an engineering manager saying 'I want'. Do I really have to explain that that isn't confirmation?

Those people are in front of the press making statements because they are good at not getting themselves in trouble, I will gladly concede when I see a true confirmation.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by DAEMANO

There's more to suggest that there WILL be a next generation car, than that there won't be one. As @Sideways&Smiling said multiple sources from within Toyota, Scion & Subaru have confirmed this. I'm not going to go digging for all of the quotes but they've been posted on this board.

If an opinion piece an auto journalist is enough for people to confirm their bias then so be it. Cry wolf more.

I disagree.
There have been multiple websites (some of very dubious journalistic credibility) stating "a source" or "an insider" said this, that and the other thing. Then there are the websites that used those statements to do their own thing all over again.
Don't need to do a pile of digging because there has not been one single official statement made.
All the misquotes, out of context statements and out right fabrications mean absolutely nothing unless backed by a formal Toyota/Subaru statement made in a formal manner.
This of course applies to both sides of the argument as there is no official statement they are not carrying on as well.