Facts you may or may not know about your GT86/BRZ/FR-s
 

Some of us have watched every detail about the GT86/BRZ/FR-S twins from the FT-86 Concept to production, for others they may not know much other than it looks cool and is fun to drive.

I have compiled a list of some of the design features I found interesting that you may or may not know about your GT86/BRZ/FR-S. Facts are not listed in any particular order. For those of you who may have already known this, don't troll, as there may be members of the community who did not know and find it interesting.

All of these facts were taken from video & documentation on the twins.

1. GT86, BRZ, & FR-S are all produced at the same factory in Gunma Prefecture, Japan (Subaru Assembly Plant).
Subaru manufactures each vehicle, although they produce more GT86/FR-S's than BRZ as the Toyota/Subaru partnership is for 1 BRZ for every 10 GT86/FR-S.
http://www.tune86.com/sites/default/...ction-line.jpg

2. Exterior Overall Design & Side Windows are based off the Toyota 2000 GT.
The long front end with aggressive fenders and side-window shape which designers refer to as the DLO (Daylight Opening) pay homage to 2000 GT.
http://www.autoguide.com/gallery/d/5...2000-GT-13.JPG

3. Interior Dash also based off Toyota 2000 GT
The "double-bubble" as designers call it is a design cue taken from the 2000 GT.
http://www.2000gt.net/Photos/Mavoiture/0073.jpg

4. Shift Surround is designed to resemble a connection rod between the piston and crank shaft.
This same design element was extended to the rear taillights as well, with a circle connected to a rectangular shape.
http://driverblogs.com/en/media/2/12..._Shifter_p.jpg

5. JDM Exhaust Tips are 86mm wide
Same size as the bore & stroke of the boxer engine, and the same number as the chassis code AE86 which the GT86/BRZ/FR-S are based off.
http://stwot.motortrend.com/files/20...w-1024x640.jpg

6. "Kill-switch" Push-Button Start Location
Typical push-button starts now a days are location on the dash next to the steering wheel. Designers asked circuit drivers where they would recommend putting a push-button, and their answer was to put it similar to a kill-switch location for race cars.
http://www.cars101.com/subaru/brz/br...tecontrol1.jpg

7. Side sills are wider than most average vehicles
Designers wanted to lower the car and center of gravity as much as possible while keeping 13mm minimum road clearance for passenger vehicles. Thicker side sills ensure adequate rigidity.
http://www.cars101.com/subaru/brz/brz13-doorsill1.jpg

8. Smallest HVAC controls possible for dual-climate control.
Designers looked for the smallest HVAC control possible in order to ensure having enough controls for dual-zone climate control that didn't interfere with low dash. They ended up with airplane style switch buttons.
http://ichitaka05.files.wordpress.co...04281759_o.jpg

9. Smallest steering wheel fitted to a Toyota at 14.4"
And Subaru as well?
http://www.cars101.com/subaru/brz/br...ringwheel1.jpg

10. Uses the same Michelin Primacy HP 215/45R17 stock tires as a Prius.
Designed to be thin, low-resistant, and let the back end slip out for extra fun and lower speeds.
http://bycarinfo.com/wp-content/uplo...ing-Wheels.jpg
11. T-Shapes found all over.
Designers hid plenty of T's into the GT86/FR-S just in case you forgot you were driving a Toyota Sports car. Located in the front grill mesh, instrument cluster, faux-carbon fiber dash panel, window control cluster, HVAC cluster, and even the rear fog-light is shaped as a T.
http://0.tqn.com/d/cars/1/0/i/j/2/ag_13frs_gauges.JPG


12. 86 Piston Logo
This one is probably well known within the community, but there is likely some out there that are not aware, especially FR-S owners because the vehicle is not called a GT86. The fender logo of 86 with pistons symbolizes the horizontally opposed boxer engine with 86 in the center paying homage to the JDM version GT86, spiritual successor AE86, bore & stroke size, and the 86 even forms the shape of the wheels of the car while drifting.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.n...78947992_n.jpg

Thanks for the read!

Dear Lord ... We must find the... "T"s !!!

Great post and really enjoyed the little details !!

Thanks for the writeup!

Pretty cool

Cool stuff. Might add the T's represent the old Toyota logo for those that didn't know.

http://board.marlincrawler.com/index...ch=79978;image

not really hating... but im pretty sure all of these details are well known by the community by now.

No...
This is redundant but There will always be new people joining the community.

Love the write-up. As someone who didn't follow as closely as some members here, I loved all those little details :) Thanks for the writeup!

#10
 

Minor nit-pick, but I don't think #10 is correct. I don' believe the 215/45R17 are stock tires on a Prius (I believe stock rims on a Prius are 15"). However, I thonk there is some performance package you can buy for a Prius that does upgrade to that.

The size is different, but they're made of the exact same compound. Same tire, different size.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk 4 Beta

I know. Some of these I didn't even know about like the sill size, connection rod motif, & exhaust tip size. I thought I knew every little detail. I think everyone who knows everything about these cars has got one already, it is the newer members to the community who are looking to purchase, or recently purchased that I wrote this for. It is always interesting to here from the designers to see just exactly why something was designed the way it was, adds more character to the vehicle :)

You are correct, I was referring to the Prius performance package with 17" wheels. They are hybrid wheels on a sports car is probably better description hehe.

17" is standard on the Prius 5 package.

http://priuschat.com/threads/4-vs-5-...ckages.105285/

I love the fact that our cars are built in gunma, hometown of takumi fujiwara from initial d for those who like that show, must be fate...
And fujiwara/fuji heavy industries weird coincidence from a 15 year old show

Might I add that the FR-S comes with 4 wheels (and a spare if you got one)

Dont forget the Bore X Stroke, 86 X 86 MM

Sent from a hamburger

truly beautiful car, every time I see it next to the 2000gt I realize the beauty of this car, I feel like I take it for granted sometimes.

fantastic thread...

just because you know it, does not mean anyone else does. I learned from this thread, I learn from this forum every day:)

Don't forget those tires are also used on other slow eco brands like Audi and BMW.

What about the hidden mickeys??

Tetsuya Tada had a 2000GT brought into the room where the designers were working..

Also the the bulges on the roof are designed that way for strength and leaves more room inside for when helmets are worn..

The head rests are designed to be reversible,also to accommodate helmets.

The design of the number 86 on the badge also represents 4 wheels drifting.

Great for my carbon schuberth :)

I don't think that's that's entirely true, the U.S. spec Prius' don't use Michelin from what I remember, I think this is for the Euro and JDM spec prius' with a performance package

*shrug*

I'm ashamed to admit that my dad drives a prius, and it's the same tire compound. Not performance package. In any case, I think we can all agree that as far as track/trap numbers go, the stock tires suck.

Thanks for clearing that up, wasn't sure, but at least from what I test drove it doesn't feel bad at road speeds. Maybe if doing a track day or autocross it becomes a huge hindrance.

can someone explain that...

Very minor nit-pick, but I keep reading "JDM this" and "JDM that".

Actually, the car is named 86 in Japan, GT86 in Europe and Australia, so it's only the Americans that may don't know about the fender logo with "86".

Also, the European GT86 has the 86mm exhaust too like the JDM. Again, the American Scion is different here.

But overall, I liked this post.

The 4 square/rectangle are like the tires or contact patches on the road i think

Correct, and they are tilted to one side making the circle seem like it's rotating or doing donuts. Which also works as the crankshaft for the pistons and rods.

All the little things that makes you appreciate this car THAT much more.

Don't forget the T's on the sun visors!

I wouldn't really say they're a hindrance.. if you're out there for fun, they're probably a big plus. Makes it really easy to slide the back end out, and this car is incredibly easy to control in a drift.

That is true, in fact that's the reason they are on there so you can reach the limits easier. But the advantages if you do track days and autocross kind of show up, I have seen track times in magazines charts etc. where the driver was able to drop 2 seconds or more with stickier tires.

Just some clarification on the "Prius tires" thing because there is a lot of confusion floating around the entire interweb.

The Prius Five (top trim level...NOT the "Prius V" which is the wagon) comes with 17x7" wheels and Michelin Primacy HP 215/45/17 tires. These are the EXACT SAME tires as the 86!

However, the other Prii come with 15" wheels (and usually Goodyear Assurance/Integrity, Bridgestone Ecopia, or Yokohama Avid S33D in 195/65/15) and while the "PLUS Performance Pack" does come with 215/45/17's, it doesn't come with Michelin Primacy HP--it's either the Bridgestone Turanza or Toyo Proxes A20.

Some people haven't been getting Primacy HP's on their new FR-S/BRZ (US market) which I find a little odd.

What have those "some people" been getting as tires? I know one reason for the primacy choice was the easy ability to get the tail out on the car from Toyota, and the fact its a cheap tire. But maybe also because of the low rolling resistance, to help EPA fuel estimates? I don't know, but the main engineer in this video:[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHVhaTNRk8E"]2013 Scion FR-S/Toyota 86 Chief Engineer Tetsuya Tada Interview - YouTube[/ame]
mentioned the tires, at around 6:49

Lol, the video you linked, which many of us have seen many times, has Tada-san saying the tires are NOT cheap. If you look up their price, they are in fact rather pricey. More so than Conti Extremes, Hankook Ventus, BF Goodies. About on par w/ Michelin Pilot Sports and Bridgestone REs. If you think $120/tire is cheap you can have my set and I'll take your cash for some real rubber.

I think the choice was smart apart from CAFE standards. They built the chassis around the lowest common denominator and the easiest and most significant part to upgrade. If they had tuned the chassis around some special R-compound, the minute people replaced them w/ cheap stuff the car would have turned to shit and people probably would be crashing them all over the place. These almost force you to learn to drive properly if you turn the nannies off. Consider them training wheels. People w/ Porsches and Ferraris have no problem buying the correct compound for their cars ($$$). Scion owners? Not sure about that. I reckon it won't be long before people start putting General tires on them or some no name brands. Toyota's reasoning seems sound to me.

Some kind of Bridgestone Turanzas, I think. Check out this thread: http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31237

That seems pretty weird, the factories must have been like "F*** it" we can't find the Michelins just put the bridgestones on they won't notice it"

Not really that weird for them to switch out summer tires (Michelins) for all season tires (Bridgestones) if they sell the car during winter/rainy season. Must be a safety/liability thing. Bought mine in Dec and it came with all seasons.

Not so. I've been a member of this community for a long time. I've had my car for 10 months. The OP mentioned a few things I didn't know and I'm grateful to him for doing that.

However our community is well aware of your comment as we've seen it so many times.:thumbdown: