First test drive experience
 

After my Fairlady Z was totaled I was on the market for another car and instead of getting another one I was always interested in the FR-S/BRZ. But went for the FR-S because it was cheaper. You become spoiled after driving a sports car for a while and then have a sedan as a rental that steers like a boat. I needed something similar to the 370Z handling wise where the steering is sharp.

Went to the dealer and they had a 2015 AT Halo which they let me test drive. I got it out on the road and there was a little straight away and and i nice curve going onto the on-ramp. On the straight I immediately said to myself why the heck do people call this car slow and I wasn't even in sport mode and then I took the turn to get onto the freeway and smile came over my face and right there and then I knew i was going to proceed with getting one just 30 seconds into the drive.... but the dealer tried to charge me $600+ per month on a lease so I went elsewhere and got a decent deal on a Raven Black. They asked me do you want to test drive it and I said nope already did..what colors do you have in stock? lol

I was actually reluctant on getting the raven black because it's hard to keep it clean and gets dirty easily and very hot in direct sunlight. But I told the sales rep to give me a few minutes and I went out to the parking lot and it was parked against a white fence. I opened the door wide open and got inside and was looking around the interior and touching everything and then boom the door closed on me automatically (and there was no wind blowing that day especially hard enough to force a wide opened door to close). At that point I was like huh? then i got a evil smirk on my face :evil: haha.... and went back to my rep and said I'll take it. Always wanted a black car and liked how the rims matched yet contrasted the paint job.

Almost two years on the lease and I still want to aimlessly drive my car around with no destination in sight just for heck of it because it's so much fun.

Do you guys remember your first test drive experience with the twins?

I pulled into the Subaru lot because I was bored and saw a used BRZ sitting there; I hadn't even known they existed. So I test drove the used one, had a blast, and then sat in the display model while the salesman "talked to the manager." They knew they had me.

Back in July of 2014 I was getting my Lancer (a 2012 so not old) serviced at the Mitsu and had seen my first tC the weekend before so thought I would wander over to the Toyota/Scion dealer next door and take a closer look. Although I had read about the FRS development back in 2011 I hadn't given it any more thought and frankly had forgotten they existed.


As I stepped through the doorway I stopped in my tracks and stood and stared in wide eyed wonder. There in the middle of the showroom was a blazing beacon of lowered, tinted, highly polished orange glory. Frozen in mid step through the door and blocking others from entering the only thing that went through my head was "What the HELL is THAT????".

I made a bee line to it and for the next half hour crawled through, under and around it while all the time caressing every surface (pretty sure I drooled on one or two as well). All the time I spent looking there were 3 salesmen standing over talking with each other and the receptionist. They kept looking over at me but not one of them made any attempt to approach or speak with me.


Once I was ready to start talking I walked over to the desk and asked if I could speak to a sales person. Well these guys all of a sudden decided they wanted to talk but I told them I didn't need them but would wait for the one lady that was actually busy with customers. When she was free (about ten minutes later) I asked her if I could test drive one. She said they didn't have another new one but had just brought a used 13 in for trade and she could have it brought around front.


So, a few minutes later the yard guy shows up in front with a raven 13 MT that I can test drive. I don't think I have ever seen a more beat on, year old car, in my life! The hood and roof had huge dents where it looked like somebody had climbed over it. There were aftermarket wheels that were so badly curb rashed that I was surprised they still held the weight of the car and the tires were so bald that belts were showing. I do not even want to describe what the interior was like. I spent 20 minutes putting that thing through it's paces with the salesperson riding shotgun (pretty sure she peed a little at one on ramp) and we went back in and made the deal.


Then I went home and started researching, found this damned forum and the rest is history.

For my first drive I drove an auto aspahlt fr-s. It was fun hugging corners, but i knew i wanted the manual even though i didn't know how to drive one.

So later at a subaru dealership, My friend test drove my car when we went to buy it on a cold minnesota February day. I had already contacted this dealership before about a BRZ that sold previously so they knew i was going to buy it.

My first test drive was more a shakedown drive to make sure the car I was buying had no issues.


I had been watching the development of the FRS from the very first announcement that Toyota was working on a new, two-door, RWD coupe. To make sure that I would fit, I sat in one at the LA Auto Show when it first debuted. Like a glove. After that, it was just a matter of time before I bought one.


It was a little embarrassing at the dealership after I bought the car and was going home, however. I didn't know that reverse was left and up after lifting the lockout collar. I kept pushing and pushing (right and down) and the salesman poked his head in the window and said, "You do know that to get in reverse you have to pull up and to the left, right?" "Uh, oh! I see!" Except he didn't tell me about the lockout collar. So after a few seconds of pulling up on the shifter knob, I found the collar and then found reverse. Oops.

Absolutely! I remember sitting in it and thinking how the seats hugged me and everything was within hands reach. The seat positioning was perfect. When I drove off it felt really tight and composed.

I reach my first stoplight and not realizing how high the engagement point is in combo with a numb clutch, I stall out and cause everyone to miss the light. The guy behind me starts blaring the horn. I just sit in the car and laugh. I get it going at the next light change, but not without bucking it, then a rough 1-2 shift.

Once moving, the car just felt great. It was very communicative and the handling was impressive. I requested a specific color and handled some paperwork. I was dying in anticipation for my delivery. I smile everytime I drive my twin.

I remember mine down to the last detail.

I placed a deposit 3 months before release. When it came in I went to look at it and sit in it. Then I did some paperwork and drove it home. Never even started it until after I owned it.

Mine was more of a FMK deal.

First one I saw was the Hot Lava MT with TRD exhaust sitting at the dealership...that was my F .:drool:

Tried to forget about it and convince myself it wasn't right for me, but I kept going back.

Test drove some 10 Series MT's, alone and with the wife in tow, decided I had to have one.

Ordered a '14 Hot Lava from my local dealer who said it would take 8 weeks...ugh...but I'll wait. 8 weeks came and went, 10 weeks, 12 weeks...screw this. The K was for the salesman who couldn't keep his promise. :paddle:

Searched online and found a Silver BRZ Limited AT in stock at another dealer...bought it sight unseen. That's my M. Happily I might add, but I do make her get some work done from time to time to keep things fresh! :wub:

Went to Ford, they had three cars, 2013FRS. A 350 and a new GT. Only took a second to know I didn't want 600$ car payments the GT would bring. The FRS was next to the 350. I walked around the 350 but the sexy lines of the FRS pulled me in. Test drove shit out of it says yea I love this. It was light tight and nimble. It was also sitting beside a TC. Go in to talk about it. It was listed at 21 told him no it has to many miles. He says 17 and that perked my ears. Manager comes back says I'll let it go for 15. He thought I was talking about the white TC. He even said that and I said want me to take the FRS I'll take it for 15 and it was done. Hardest part was trading my 02 GT for it. That's just a memory now. My GT never moved like my.FRS

Started with a 2016. I was looking over a Raven with red stripes in the showroom and the salesman is just like 'I love these. Let me go get keys to 1 on the lot.' I was like... uhhh, okay.

I had zero intention of driving it. I just wanted to talk price and have something to think about.

First thought: WTF!? I have my right hand in a death-grip around the shifter and I was struggling so hard to get it into 2nd.

Second thought: No torque but at least I hear something and am low to the ground... Oh shit. That SUV looks imposing this low to the ground. Oh shit, oh shi- not that bad I guess.

Third thought: I turn the wheel and it goes. Who knew!?

Forth thought: It really doesn't have any torque...

Fifth thought: I am going to regret trading in my spacious hatch for a 2-door micro-compact when it comes time to move.

Sixth thought: Now that I might be moving for work soon this car is going to make the transition a pain in my ass.

I tested drive when my friend got his brz way back 2013 first batch.
It was fun and excited, and my first impression was the clutch is harsh. lol

Ofcourse I remember! They didn't have a white FR-S at the time but they did have the Release Series 2.0 Lunar Storm color in manual. So I test drove it and immediately I fell inlove haha. I loved how the seats hugged me so comfortably. From the low seat placement to the 2000's style dashboard...I love it! Reminded me that I'm in a sports car haha. Then as I took it for a test drive and a couple turns, I realized and caught myself with the biggest smile. I was so impressed with how precise the 86 handled.... I was sold haha.
So the salesman and I talked and they found me a 2016 Halo in Manual in Los Angeles. A day later, car was delivered and papers were signed. (:

I wasn't even looking for an FR-S, passed it off for being too slow. I was looking for a fun weekend/track toy and had looked at a couple of old 996 911s (I don't know why because I used to own one and the engine grenaded on me), Boxsters, Caymans, and S2000s but nothing struck a chord. Test drove a BMW 135i, loved it but it had issues so I started figuring out how much to offer for it but carried on looking anyway. Also started searching for coupes and a black FR-S popped up. Oh, yeah, I had forgot about those, better test drive it.

The ad said 'never smoked in' but the car smelled like someone had emptied their entire collection of detailing smelly stuff in it, it was overpowering and the trunk smelled like wet dog, I guess they forgot about that. Anywho, on the test drive I had a smile on my face the entire time, something none of the other cars had managed; it felt like the car had been made for me and I'd been driving it for years. Sales person asked me if I raced cars for a living, I told her I just drove like I did ;). That car wasn't for me, it didn't feel like it was a good match and I was convinced it was an ex-smoker's car so I passed. But, the tide had turned, I was going to own a slow car!

Went to look at another black car but it sold that daright before I arrived, but they had a white one I could look at for $3K more and it's white. I already own a white car :/. Test drove it, it drove better than the other car and I knew I had to have it. Lowballed them, left the dealership and spent the next few days chewing my nails waiting for them to call. Anyway, the rest is history :).

I lost my 2014 Lancer ES 5-speed to a deer on Christmas night. Rnadomly decided to look for the twins and found one an hour away. The dealership takes a $500 deposit for a two-day test drive. I let them keep my deposit and ended up keeping the car.

Test drove it on a Saturday afternoon. Since my son works at the local Toyota dealer, I had him as "the sales guy" in the car. Drove it around town for a little while, really drive, since there wasn't a real sales guy in the car breathing down our neck. When I got it back to dealer, told them I have to go check out another car, Dodge Challenger. After that, decided on the FR-S. They put a SOLD tag on it and I went back Monday and bought it.

Later that evening, my son told my wife I had this huge grin on my face, I looked like a little kid

I leased my long gone 2013 when there was only a few delivered cars in Arizona. There was a BRZ at a dealership. I sat in the car and was convinced this was the car for me. I didn't have time for a test drive.

I've owned a lot of high powered NA and turbocharged cars. When I saw the FR-S concept ... I was sold. It was time to experience a small nimble sports car.

I wasn't in a hurry (other car was coming off lease in a few months) so went down and ordered a new Firestorm red manual FR-S.

Recall that I've never driven the car before. 4 months later .... the dealership called and I went down to pick the car up. The salesperson with me in the passenger seat drove to a Chevron to put premium in it. The car had like 6 miles on it.

We got back and it was my turn to drive it off the lot. Like @MrDinkleman ... I didn't know how to put it in reverse. Got it figured out. Drove away with the biggest smile on my face. Loved the revvy 4 banger. I was johnny racer oversteering on every corner (safely of course). Had the car for 3 years. Enjoyed every minute.

Damn. $500 for a twin? Thats the best deal ever

Oh god I hope you know you have to pay more than the deposit!!!

Well now, don't we think alike!

The funniest part for me was not the test drive, but the interaction with the salesmen. I drove onto the lot in a well beaten Jeep Cherokee and asked to drive a BRZ. I don't think they took my interest all that seriously, because they assigned their brand new rookie salesman to me. I probably just looked like I was shopping.

They had six automatics and one manual on the lot, and the manual was buried out back behind a bunch of other cars. The salesman was almost successful in hiding his annoyance at having to get people to move all those cars so I could drive the manual. During the drive, he made a few comments about how little power the car had, especially compared to the WRX.

When we got back to the lot, I took him by surprise by saying, "Okay, I'm interested in ordering one. What do we need to do next." He stammered a little and then went to get the sales manager to take over. I suspect he hadn't actually sold any cars yet and didn't know what to do.

The sales manager was also taken off guard, because suddenly he had what appeared to be a sale dropped in his lap without any of his normal lead up. So we quickly went through the whole "no I'm not interested in driving a WRX" thing, followed by the whole "no I don't want an automatic" thing, and finally "no the one I drove is a Premium, and I want a Limited, so we'll need to order one."

Then we got to financing. What none of these people knew when I walked in was that I already had credit union financing in place, and they couldn't even come close to matching the interest rate.

Then we got to trade. "I'm keeping my Jeep," I said. That was the end of that.

So in the end we just had to negotiate a price, which I already had in mind from having researched it before I walked in. He gave me a number. I countered. We agreed. I probably could have gotten it for less. I was willing to pay more. I still got it for less than what the FR-S was selling for, just because the Subaru dealer was able to negotiate. Then we went through the computer forms to set up the order.

Three months later I had the car.

One more stupid/funny end note to the story. I took delivery on a Thursday and put a hundred miles on it over the weekend. Then, that Monday, I had a four hour business trip. I got to my destination and realized that I was so excited about getting to drive the car that I had run out of the house without my laptop and couldn't do a lick of work.

Since I had gotten an early start, I had just enough time to drive back home, get my laptop and return, using the back roads and varying the RPM the entire time to avoid cruise control and long periods of running the engine at the same RPM during the break-in period. Since I mostly work alone in client offices, none of my colleagues were the wiser. I passed the 1000 mile mark on the way back from that trip. I suspect that was probably among the quickest break-ins of anybody on this board.

Yep. Get it over with. I drove mine around for no reason just to hit 1000 miles. Took two days.

I thought I mentioned for a two day test drive. They dropped off the twin at my place which was an hour away from their dealership location. The $500 deposit was for the "free" two-day test drive and would have been refunded if I didn't want the car.

LOL ya we got that. Just your phrasing was humorous was all. It implied that you forfeited the deposit and just kept the car. We were just joking.


"I let them keep my deposit and ended up keeping the car"

^what he said

I suck at explaining/phrasing things, lmao.

My 'test drive' was driving my car home from the dealership. I had followed the development of the car for a while (lurking on this forum and reading as much as i could) and I was in the market for a new car, and had decided that the BRZ would be it. I contacted the owner of the subaru dealership where we bought our Outback from and told her i was looking for a limited DGM BRZ. they had one on the way so i bought it, sight unseen. i had never seen the DGM colour in person before - on dealers had any at that time. picked it up when it arrived 3 weeks later and drove it home.

The day I brought her home (3/3/13), window sticker and all:
http://i1254.photobucket.com/albums/...psb2f2f82f.jpg

Then, i joined this forum as an owner.

My father had a little toyota truck he bought in 85 and I learned to drive on that truck and I have been a Toyota fan ever since. Living up north and working around cars, I became a fan of Subaru quality and the flat-4 sound even though I never owned a Subie. When I heard about the Toyobaru and say the first reviews, I started to watch the development of the 86 and have wanted one for a while.

My first test drive was really just to see if there was anything that would prevent me from buying it. I knew it was the car for me once I realized that my kids will fit in the back seat (barely). The salesman was trying to show me how to drive a standard LOL it turned out I was a lot better at it that him and he mentioned that he felt a little dumb patronizing my driving skills. I didn't know enough to disable the SC and TC, but I managed to get a it a little sideways (the SC light came on) and scare the salesman a little bit ;-)

I love this car a little more every day.

My first time test driving was...

Test drove in figure 8 and go side ways. Checking to see how it feels to get the rear out.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...64ab3fa577.jpg

Ken made it look easy, but it's not as easy as AWD snow drift (which I'm used to)
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a5fbb5a593.jpg

Testing in Autocross to see how this car handles in the tight corners. See the car's stabilities and balance.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...6e5e5ebf6f.jpg

Moto-san show how's properly done (both grip & drift)
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...6399010bf3.jpg

Testing out in the track to see how much FRS can handle it at the hot sunny day at the track. Slide here and there have little fun.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...604930f5f3.jpg

Meeting some legends for some Q&A and some story of making the car. (Left is Moto-san from Club4AG. Right is CE Peoject FT-86 Tada-san)
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...ff78244668.jpg

See other awesome cars.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...9142b427f0.jpg

No biggie lol


Sent from my mind

My first "test drive" was at the track, shortly after they hit the market, so I was sold on the first run. -Prius tires and all.

I only recently bought one because, although my wife totally supports my autocrossing addiction and was not picky about which car I used for the sport, she did ask that I only have one track car. Up until last month, that was my 350Z. (which I bought new in 2004) But a friend went over the side of the mountain with it at ZdayZ and totaled it. (he's lucky to be alive) The twins were already on my short-list and, after double checking the SCCA rule book to see how the different car's on my list were classed, I bought an FR-S.

We did test drive one at the dealer where we ordered/bought ours, but the sales lady didn't seem to understand what she was selling. The first thing she showed us on the car was how much trunk space the car had, and how the back seat folds down. lol

I was growing very bored of my current vehicle, a 2004 Explorer, and being in an SUV for 13 years really wanted something a little sportier. I was looking towards a Mustang, however a friend convinced me to take a closer look at the twins.

Stopped at our only local dealership and started talking to a sales guy about the FRS. Was honestly expecting them to give me some trouble about driving one with all the stories I had already read about dealers being difficult with test drives. I told him I wasn't looking to buy anything that day, and only wanted info on the car and to possibly drive it. He grabbed the keys and we were on the way. It took all of about 30 seconds to fall in love with the car. :burnrubber: I didn't want to take a chance on breaking or wrecking it so I was being over cautious, but after some prodding from the sales guy we went and had a bit of fun on the nearby cloverleaf interchange. I was sold on the car.

Unfortunately things took a turn for the worse once we got back to the dealership.

They knew I wasn't looking to buy, but his manager came over and asked if they could take a look at my Explorer so they could make me an insane offer for it. Still buzzing from the drive, and curious as to this insane offer, I said go for it. Started going over pricing and finance options for the car and they came back with an insane offer all right - they were at about half of what it was worth... I told them no way and asked for my keys. I rejected their next 3 proposals (increased trade value by $500 each time, but said they couldn't adjust the price on the car due to Scion's pure pricing or whatever it's called) so the sales manager took over. An hour later, and after some super high pressure tactics, I saw my keys sitting on their silly finance island thing so I got up without saying anything grabbed them and left. The sales manager followed me out, actually yelling at me about being an idiot for not taking the deal, and telling me my truck would never be worth more than it was right then.

Luckily my friend found my BRZ online reasonably close, so I emailed that dealer about the car. They still had it, was $7k below current value, and gave me a much more fair trade in value. Called my bank, set up the financing and drove up that weekend to get it. Took a grand total of 30 minutes to complete everything associated with the deal (not including drive time to Sioux City ;)). :happyanim:

So my uncle who works at a dealership called me and said we got them in.

I didn't even go for a test drive. I sat in one, and I knew right away. I hadn't felt like that since I sat in a 1994 Rx-7.:thumbup:

Two weeks later my car came in and I got one.

I went online to look and there was only one frs in the whole city in raven black MT. It was sitting there because the person canceled their order at the last minute. This is when these cars took 3+ months wait to get. I've followed the car since the concept and the guy tried giving me a lecture about what the cars about... before he could finish I told him let's do it. With no manual transmission experience, I got in there and drove it all the way home with no regrets. :)


http://oi66.tinypic.com/287ps2d.jpg

You also prove that you can go body kit and aggressive tires without making the car look like it broke all it's axles. Nice.

Probabaly the cleanest rocket bunny FRS I've seen to date.

My wife surprised me. Had it sitting in our driveway ready for me to test drive it after I got home from work.

My first reaction was of disappointment. I'm not a power freak and the old beater that I owned at the time had an utterly smooth-as-silk I-4. If old beetle engines were diesels they would sound like the fa20. I had barely pulled out of the driveway when I looked over at my wife and sighed, "It's a bucket of bolts."

A week later the sales guy called her to ask if we were still interested. I said we'd give it another go. After the second try I really took my time, listened carefully, and put my foot in it a little. When I realized just where the car's comfort zone was, I was hooked. It's an imperfect little masterpiece and I love it.

1) show off

2) Ken couldn't have made it look that easy if he spun out a couple times lol (according to Moto)


Na, that was great haha. Keep it up. We just like having fun around here.

1. I need to make sure some noobs won't think, I'm some kind fat Japanese bum that speak Engrish and like to make things up. :lol:

2. IDK... In my memory, Moto-san spun out more than Ken did (but don't let him know that ;) )

Wait! Your not? Damn it now I have to create a whole new mental image.

This is the closest pic of me lmao

I can post more. How about some of you having dinner last nig... Oh... I mean ... ya that is close.