Unbelievably Interested in FR-S But Know Next to Nothing About Cars Mechanically
 

Hello everyone,

I'm a longtime lurker on these boards, first time poster. I'm unbelievably interested in the FR-S but am curious if there is anyone out there in a similar situation...

... my issue is that I know virtually nothing about cars mechanically in terms of fixing or diagnosing anything myself. I have this nagging feeling that it's sacrilegious for someone who has no idea how to fix anything on an automobile to have a sports car. I feel like the reality police would pull me over, ask me if I know how to perform basic maintenance, hear my answer, and then confiscate the twin :D

My first ever car was a 1981 Celica MT. I loved that car and learned how to drive on it - and for the last 7-8 years I've been dutifully driving a responsible, rational, painfully dependable AT Honda Civic :)

I don't know anything about working on cars, but I can appreciate a beautiful piece of mechanical engineering. I desperately miss a MT, and the FR-S's mantra of balance and driver/car/road connection over raw power (not to mention its shape!!) really, really appeals to me. I'm not a racecar driver and honestly, would never go tracking or even auto cross, but there are a wealth of windy back roads / mountain roads in my area and the older I get the more I find I just flat out enjoy driving. Even in my AT Civic I have a blast on some of these windy roads.

Can anyone relate? Do you feel like your mechanical lack of knowledge surrounding cars guilt trips you into feeling "unworthy" of a car like the twins? Did you still buy one anyways? Any related stories?

I guess with a car like a Civic, there is nothing to feel inadequate or insecure about. I'm a reasonably humble, soft-spoken person who doesn't like to draw any attention to myself. The FR-S would stay in the garage except for joy rides and weekend trips :D

Anyways, just wondering if there are any other people out there who love cars, driving, and back-to-basics auto fun, but know next to nothing about cars mechanically? And if there is no one that can relate - will you at least agree to not stone me to death if I show up at your local FR-S meet up :D

We can meetup right now.

http://oi40.tinypic.com/350ujo0.jpg

I can't relate, but you should still get a FR-S. It's a car for anyone who enjoys driving.

Just get a 100K FACTORY warranty and you won't have to worry about not knowing anything about how the car works mechanically.

This.

all jokes aside, it doesnt matter if you know nothing about the car. as you drive it, youll learn more and more about the car. the car is actually pretty reliable so far. i have a friend thats dogged his car the first day he got it and hes at 28k miles with no problems.

Everyone is there at some point, my first car I got from a junk yard. Had three keys for it one for ignition, one for doors, and one for trunk, all pieced together, painted it and worked on it. If something broke I attempted to fix it, fix didn't work I learned from that mistake and did it again. Never too late or early to start, go for it. Plus working on your car is always fun and gives you a great sense of accomplishment.

I can't build or repair wrist watches but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy wearing a nice one. You don't have to be a wrench to enjoy a good driving experience. Some people turn wrenches because they can't afford not to. Some turn wrenches because they enjoy it. Some don't turn wrenches because they don't have to and some don't turn wrenches because they can't any more. Don't worry about it. Drive the car you want and enjoy it. Hell, I'm at a point in my life now where I don't even wash my own car but that has nothing to do with the pleasure it gives me.

You need to study.

This may sound mean, but start to have interest in cars and study some.

Eventually this will enhance your knowledge in cars and save you whole lot of money on repairing few parts. Overall, only goods for you!

EngineeringExplained on youtube is a good jumping off point to learn about all things ICE.

Get the Clymer manual in hardback. Take it a chapter at a time over a few months.
You'll get an idea of what's involved in every aspect of fixin' shit.

AAA Roadside Assistance is a good place to start though.
Everyone has to start somewhere. First step is a doozy?

OP, I'm the exact same way.

I'd been driving an 13 year old AT Camry for the last five years, and it was finally time to buy a new car. Learned how to drive an MT on my buddy's AE86, took a test drive in his BRZ, and I finally bit the bullet and bought an MT Argento FR-S.

I know how to do the following things:
-check tire pressure and pump them up.
-check the various fluid levels.
-change the oil.

I can't even do that last one because I live in an apartment with a tiny, cramped garage.

This doesn't concern me though, because there's always a way. Get in good with a local, reliable mechanic and of course, make sure you have that warranty.

Also, I don't regret a moment of it. I love my car.

Going to meets and asking questions is a great way to learn more about cars. Don't be afraid to check them out.

Honestly you sound like a perfect fit for the car.

Just don't keep it locked away. Ignore what other people say. If they find the car too flashy, that is their problem. :happy0180:

If you don't have the desire to learn and can't figure out how a teeter totter works, the car is still certainly worth owning because it sounds like you'll appreciate it. I also recommend getting the extended warranty or service plan to help ensure the car will be maintained.

On the other hand, if you DO want to learn more about the car and have a more fulfilling experience, the only thing you need is the desire to learn. Take any given mechanism or part, and just investigate it and research it. The best learning tool is your own curiosity.

Personally, I say screw your inner guilt or anxiety and jump in with both feet. The community is here for support if you should need it. Meet up with a few other 86 owners and do a track day with an instructor in a rookie group. If you're the type to simply enjoy driving a good car, you will be genuinely surprised by the experience, and you'll have so much fun you won't know what to do with yourself. I've talked to so many people who aren't into racing at all, and don't have a competitive bone in their body, and they absolutely loved scooting around the track and said it was nothing like what they expected. Or, follow a DIY here on the forum and do your own basic maintenance, install a simple mod or two, and just have fun with it. It's only a car after all, and what fun is life if we only wonder "what if"?

The DIY section is benificial.

That's an extreme understatement by the way.

Welcome!

With a new car warranty you have plenty of time before you need to know anything mechanically.

You can learn slowly...everyone started at zero.

For the most part, if you use premium gas at fillups and have required maintenance (like oil changes) done at the scheduled intervals you'll be fine.

Read the owner's manual learn what the lights on the dash mean, look at the part labels and diagrams.

Then start small, open up the hood of your car and look around, see what you can identify from the manual, and what connects to what...let the car run while you watch the engine bay as well.

Go to a few meets and you will learn in no time!

@G.I.Choe brings up a good point. There are basic items that every driver should know regardless what car they drive. Driver's Education courses used to teach these things. Tires, fluids, proper mirror placement, etc.

I was late in the game also, I didn't start fixing my own car till after college but here is how I started

1. Get a FSM (factory service manual) learn how to read it, the symbols and what are tools needed/special tools

2. Buy your own tools hydraulic jack, jack stands, wrenches & sockets set...don't need to be mac tools, snap on or craftsman a harbor fright tools as long as its life time warranties apply get it.

3. Go to local meets for your car, meets are not just to show off your car its also good to make friends, friends who know how to wrench and has experience on same car or other cars. you can pick up tips on how to do stuff on your car.

4. If your friends needed help to installing parts for their car run and help its a good way to learn without doing it to your car, its also a good way if you want that part on your own car.

5. Finally pass it forward help a new guy just remember you started like that also

I'm the same way but learning little by little in the DIY section (:

Cool!

Good choice; consider the Subaru BRZ as well. Depending on how sales are going in your area, you might be able to get a better discount on the Subaru “version” of this car than the Toyota, especially around winter time. In some areas one can purchase a “more luxurious” BRZ Limited for a price close to the FR-S, when the BRZs are being heavily discounted. Depends on your area dealers, but I suggest that you consider it before buying. They’re essentially the same car.


So?

Nonsense.

I understand.

There are THOSE who will say you don’t deserve a sportscar. As the youngsters like to say, “Haters will hate.”

Now you know something important about THEM. So what?

I reckon THEY don’t count. Why would you permit THEM to judge you and influence your choices of what fine car to buy, drive, and enjoy?

As you progress along the road to adulthood, you’ll note their belligerent, badgering, and bullying ELITISM, dismiss them, and go your OWN way, enjoying your OWN choices, free from the constraints of fear of disapproval by THEM.

You will then be on the path to becoming a free and independent adult, your own man (or woman).

Find like-minded people, and engage those, rather than the ones you’re fearful of.

My wife knows more than most people about cars, but she wouldn’t attempt to repair a car. She’s not interested. She’s content to let me do that. She loves to listen to “Click & Clack, the Tappett Brothers” on National Public Radio (NPR) on the weekends. She loves that show. Try it, you might like it, and you’ll learn a lot. It’s very entertaining, one of NPRs most popular programs. :)

She can pick a skilled driver out of a traffic jam of amateurs on a race track, some quick, too, at an historic car race. A couple years ago, after only a few laps of watching Klaus Graf driving an old 911 amidst a crowd of other historic cars, she singled him out as clearly superior, clearly talented. (So did I.) We had no idea who was in the car at the time, and did not recognize his name when we did learn it. The following year, Klaus got a drive in a LeMans car in the ALMS series. The Porsche Klaus drove at that historic event was unremarkable, save for his driving, which stood out to the trained eye. My wife spotted him in a jiffy; I doubt many people standing at that corner did (or could) do the same. The following year, Klaus was making headlines.

But she cannot diagnose and repair a car. So what?

We all enjoy things in our own way, as best we can. There’s simply not the TIME to be an expert in everything.

My wife was choosing between a Boss 302 or the BRZ for our next car. She loves cars and driving, yet cannot repair one. So what? That doesn’t diminish one iota her pleasure and joy in fun cars and driving.

Must you be a hotdog programmer or electronics tech to employ and enjoy modern contrivances like our computers, hi-fi’s, microwaves, TVs, etc.? Don’t be silly… You don’t need to know a thing about cars to own, use, and enjoy them either.

I would recommend learning to drive properly, though, if only to avoid inflicting "benign abuse" on your nice car.

Most people don’t enjoy cars the way I do. I’m more skilled than them, quicker than them, but nowhere near as quick as, say, Stirling Moss was or Ayrton Senna. So what? Others are not as good as me, and I’m not as good as Senna. So what? What's that got to do with anything?

We’re all having a good time. Regardless of our level of knowledge and skill...

Although, there is a certain TYPE that loves to disparage others for not embracing the activity as THEY do.

THEY don’t count. Not for me, they don’t, and I suggest they shouldn’t count for YOU, either.

There’s no need to apologize for any “lack” of mechanical knowledge, skills, and abilities. We have only so much time in a day. If it interests you, pursue it if you can balance it with the other interests and demands in your life. If not … well then, DON’T.

No need to apologize, not for this or for any other thing related to fine cars. Find your own way to enjoy it … and just do it. :)

Those who would hold this against you … don’t count. Don’t hang around people who want to “stone you.” ;)

“Easier said than done,” you say.

Yeah, I know; I’m old. But with a little luck and some effort, you’ll get here, too. Sooner rather than later, hopefully. ;)

It’s your money, your time, your life...

Now get out there, kiddo, and buy the cool car of your dreams, and enjoy it any ol’ way YOU like! :)


P.S. "Car Talk" is the name of that radio show on cars and repairs.


********************************

“And what is good, Phaedrus,
And what is not good—
Need we ask anyone to tell us these things?”
–Plato (Symposium)

Couldn't agree more. Also it's nice to learn to work on cars on a new car. Lot more approachable. Might sound crazy but it's so much nicer when everything's clean.

Even if all you're doing is inspections until you're out of warranty! this car is surprisingly simple mechanically for a modern car. The suspension and brake systems are simple, solid and out of the way, the bonnet's nice to work under (Not looking forward to plugs, however!) and everything's in a sensible spot.

Go get one! Enjoy the drive then learn the rest.

same here.
I do however still know how to do basic maintenance. But that's all.
I am not very good at tools and neither I have plenty of time to do it.
That is why I got this car new, so I don't have to worry for the next 5 years.

lots of us dont know, especially boxer engines. Ive got a good understanding of maintenance but that's what the warranty is for. just lay off modding until warranty is up.

Im in the same boat as you :) when you start wanting to mod your car, whatever it is you will do a hefty amount of research before your make a purchase and you learn a lot in the process. You got to start somewhere right? I too have yet to go to a car meet and i do feel a lil nervous since my car is basically stock except for the lights and tint.

I've always thought of working on cars as just about everything else. Take something apart, put it back together in reverse order.

If you aren't sure about something, search the forums and you'll more than likely find a DIY that's thorough enough to help you out step by step.

Learn as you go. Have a friend who is knowledgeable with cars walk you through things as you want to do them. Have him help you with oil change, tire rotation etc. After doing it once or twice, you'll be able to do those things on your own.

Just ideas.

It's not bad to not know. What's bad is when you don't know and you have no care or interest in learning. So long as you are willing to take the help that is given, you should be able to learn quick and easy

Do you really think that guys who drive Ferrari's and have them valet parked in front of boutiques know about mechanics? Probably about 5% of them do.

what wing is this!!
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/data:...EBkoIECg+qgQA7

Ever seen this movie? :P

http://www.impawards.com/1990/poster...of_thunder.jpg

I couldn't even do my own oil change two years ago. You will learn a lot about the car just by reading and doing, breaking stuff, and hurting yourself

I'm not sure if you're asking because you feel as though you would either be judged by others for not knowing enough or if you would judge yourself and deem yourself unqualified to own the car.

For the former, if anyone were to look down on you for owning any type of sporty car and not knowing how every single component works, they're just presumptuously pedantic and not the type of car crowd you'd want to associate with anyway (there are people like this in every field, so it happens).

If you feel as though you would look down on yourself and the "reality" police would issue a citation to you, then you just have to realize that everyone's got to start somewhere. It doesn't matter what kind of car you learn to work on - sport or not - and you don't have to learn the mechanics of a basic economy car before moving up to a sportier car.

And if you choose to never learn about the mechanics anyway, then you should respect your own decisions. There's no car god that's going to shun you out of existence or anything for driving a car and not knowing exactly how it works. If that were the case, 99% of drivers should be laughed at.

Granted, from a safety and practical standpoint, basic maintenance should be known. Not to justify the type of car you own, but just so you know how things are done if you ever have an incident or mishap with your car, especially while stranded somewhere.

Hell, I learned how to do my first oil change with this car, adjust the clutch, etc. and I plan on installing my own coilovers. It's gratifying figuring out how to finally do something or learn how something works. Nothing to be ashamed of if you don't know something. Everything you don't know is just another opportunity to learn, rather than an opportunity to look down on yourself.

^This.
I knew very little about car maintence, modding, etc..before I purchased this car.
Not only has buying this car been one of the best decisions from a pure driving experience, but the knowledge I have gained from the helpful folks on this forum to help me step out of my comfort zone to make modifications, try AutoX for the first time, and meeting other car enthusiasts has been truly rewarding.

I'm completely overwhelmed by all the positive replies - thank you to each and every one of you!! I definitely am interested in learning about cars - just a bit intimidated and unsure where to begin - but there have been so many helpful posts in this thread alone that it's incredibly encouraging. I do genuinely enjoy winding roads and driving in general and have always wanted to learn more about cars so every day that passes my buying temperature for the twins increases. I'll stay in touch and let everyone know if my right-side brain can finally win an inner argument :D

You don't need anybody's permission to live. Stop asking for it.

Is it crazy for me to just want this for a daily commuter? Might get a second one down the line if I must :)

No. It's a great commuter car. Personally, if I'm gonna be spending 15 hours a week commuting, I'm doing it in a fun car. :burnrubber:

Cheers to that.

I assume you have already driven one and enjoyed it. Who cares if you can't preform your own maintenance, you bought it because you like driving it, not because you enjoy doing maintenance. All of my cars have gone to a shop for maintenance when needed, there's no shame in it. I'm mechanically inclined but I do not have the area to perform basic maintenance. Forums usually have at least a couple locals willing to help you if your looking to be more DIY.

It's your money, buy what you want. Life is to short to drive something you don't like.

I bought mine for the purpose of commuting and making my commute more fun (and blah blah something about MPG to convince the haters). The only way it doesn't excel on the commute is in when you're stuck in traffic but really want to go swoosh! through the next big curve.
:burnrubber:

Everyone has said what needs to be said.

Look stuff up and don't get pressured into doing things by other people (just because everyone says you should get an intake or exhaust doesn't mean you should, or choose those springs over another set), do tons of research. Wikipedia is great for basic info (how engines work, suspension types) and if you want something more in depth and focused:

http://www.autozine.org/technical_sc...ech_index.html