Factory TRD Parts Worth It?
 

Hey guys, I just got through the break-in period on my new 2016, and was thinking of adding a TRD exhaust and sway bar kit to the car. My question is whether they are worth the price? I think the estimate was around $1,400 for the parts. Has anyone gotten the TRD exhaust that could give me an idea of the difference in sound between it and the stock?

I'm still under warranty and know the TRD parts won't void that- especially if the dealer orders and installs them on the first service. I also know that the TRD upgrades on my MR2 have become a bit rare, and anticipate that this may be the case for the FRS in the future- not that it really matters to me, but the availability now may not last.

Thanks in advance

I have the TRD exhaust and em loving it so far no complaints and happy I got it. I've parked it beside a few stock ones to hear the difference and it's much better sounding. Down side is its only a cat back so no performance bump , purely sound. Also I think at that price range there's lots of after market options available as well. But all in all I'm happy I got it.

There are plenty of socal meets you can attend to see/hear the exhaust in person. Not to mention you can always go back to your dealership and test drive one with a TRD exhaust...I did when I bought my FRS and my salesman knew I had no intentions of buying the exhaust from them. I bought mine off the used market. I don't think anything TRD is ever worth MSRP, considering how ridiculously overpriced everything is. $200 for window visors, aka 2 plastic strips?! Gtfo Toyota...

Definately not worth the $1400 for trd sways and exhaust. You can get a much better and higher quality exhaust and sway bar for cheaper. Just do your research and look around this forum. Lots of information at hand on this site. Might as well use it right?

Exactly this. I only ended up with them for free because of haggling the hell out of the sales rep.

Having had Hotchkis sways on my previous FRS I will happily say that they're 1000 times better than the thin TRD ones. The exhaust is nice, though; just not it's current price-point nice. You're better off finding a cheaper, nicer, and better flowing alternative.

It's good quality but you really pay for the name. Like others said there is better for the dollar. I love my TRD "D" tips. If I ever change it I will keep the tips

overpriced/rebranded products in which you can find the equivalent for cheaper.

Heres a better way to spend $1400

Cusco front and rear sway bars
Header
OFT
K&n Drop in.

You'll ACTUALLY make more power and some sound as well. You can also get front and rear sway bars for a decent price and then get some quality strut bars as well.

TRD parts may be expensive, but if you have the dealer do the work there often isn't any issue with warranty coverage when having the car serviced at a dealer.

As is the case w/ most auto makers and their tuning parts, you pay for a name and "ease of upgrade". For the rest of us, it will be labeled as "overpriced" and "not worth it", but you need to educate yourself on what makes it "overpriced".

Overpriced factory performance upgrades usually pass OEM quality inspection and testing. Many aftermarket parts don't give two shits about these things.

-alex

I was waiting for that- though I figured I'd get recommendations by asking here instead.


Sounds pretty much unanimous on that one. I figured the TRD stuff would cost a few extra dollars(Same thing as my 951- add the "P" word to a part and the price doubles) but I was hoping that the quality would be great enough to make up for it a bit.

I guess I'll think about it a bit more. I was planning on holding off on the sway bars until I tear into the suspension down the road anyway

That's my draw to the factory stuff. I like keeping the warranty full intact, and since I don't plan on modding the car to any great extent, it seems like a nice simple upgrade.

My main concern was not knowing how the TRD parts are now, as far as quality- the TRD parts for my MR2 are great and, even though they were not cheap, I thought they were very well worth it.

TRD is the Apple of car modification, conservative, expensive, and for the most part quality driven.

Here's a useful thread from four weeks ago almost to the day:
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93544

TRD is overpriced.

Unless JDM, YO

It's hard to get a review on something like an exhaust as you are trusting someone else's ears instead of yours. If there is any way to hear it like find someone on here who has it and is local to you. You really can't go by videos as the sound is never authentically duplicated. But as far as price I got a TRD system off of the classifieds here used and local to me for $300 with 4k miles on it. As long as it's not all banged up it is a quality product and high quality stainless steel. But do try to hear it in person. Good Luck!

Which is even more expensive.

Personally I think all of them are worth it. But you've got to bite the pillow, son, TRD is going in dry.

TRD in general uses several different OEM manufacturers for their parts. As an example, Eibach NA used to produce springs for Nismo and other OEM performance parts. To meet OEM standards, it's a lot of extra testing up front that adds to product cost.

Does it make a huge difference to the end user? Aside from name and quality, there isn't going to be any performance difference. The key is that if a dealer offers it as a performance upgrade, they are less likely to give you shit when there is a warranty case to be worked on.

Will it guarantee zero warranty issues? No. But as is the case with many business transactions, you need to know where your own liability starts and stops.

-alex

I have the TRD exhaust and it sounds amazing, subtle, yet noticeable. I get lots of compliments. But IMO, if it didn't come with my car (got a big discount from the dealer), I probably would have opted for another option. Resale value thus far at the moment, is pretty low too. I've seen people selling them used for around $500.

There are instances where TRD is worth the money. Some of them have been mentioned in this thread.

-Very good quality
-Great fit
-Maintain vehicle warranty and covered by warranty if dealer installed.
-Not too extreme for most people (exhaust pleasant rumble not too loud, suspension stiffer but not uncomfortably so)
-Legal in street classes if you are going to autox the car (suspension)
- May add instead of lower resale value on car

Many cheaper (and some not cheap) aftermarket alternatives miss on one or more of the above points.

$1,400.00 is over priced shop around on the internet.

http://www.trdsparks.com/displaypart...&parts_id=4427


^ Agree 100%.

TRD parts warranty after the purchase of a new Toyota/Scion.

Link: http://www.trdsparks.com/warranty1.htm

TRD parts look OEM and for that reason I think they're great.

Most aftermarket will end up corroding or have some design flaw that makes it look less than stellar after a year in the elements.

TRD seems to have been well thought out; with the caveat that it's much more expensive.

My suggestion is to buy used TRD parts :)

Do Dealers also do the TRD performance brake pads? I am highly considering doing the TRDSparks route and having the local dealer install it if it will save me a few $$$ and at the same time keep it under warranty, but I'll first try to haggle the dealer to get it for a good sweet price.

Brake pads are a wear item and generally subject to only the parts warranty on the pads themselves. Not really anything that impacts your overall base warranty nor drivetrain.

-alex

I'll buy TRD for certain parts (mainly drive-train and vehicle specific related items, but not suspension or brake related components. Quality is definitely good on the parts, but for the price there are better aftermarket pieces for suspension and brake systems.) TRD lightweight flywheel is high on my want list...as is the wedging door latches.

my used car came with trd exhaust and intake. I like it for DD use. not too loud but enough burble to let you know its there. I do like how when you hold a steady rpm its very quiet... its only when you floor it or let off the throttle it starts making noises.

Yes they do. Most smaller dealers may not keep them in stock for every vehicle so you may have to order them, but its no different than your dealer putting OEM pads on.

Also for the re branded product of TRD it made to Toyota specification as in spring rate, stiffness of bar, exhaust noise, and etc

The TRD exhaust cost me $1100, retail at the time, minus the discount off msrp, because it came with it when I bought the car new. I also negotiated the TRD intake, free install, because they drilled the front bumper AFTER I asked them not too. They were very apologetic, thus the free intake, actually paid for it at their cost, free install, plus more. Now my warranty is good, and I will pass CARB here in California. But as others have said, you can get better power gains spending elsewhere but you risk your warranty and passing smog. Planning on keeping this car for awhile, and don't want any headaches down the road.