[DeeezNuuuts83]

I've worked in insurance for years, have direct appointments with a variety of carriers (i.e. Progressive, Safeco, Farmers, Dairyland, Unitrin, etc.) along with numerous state insurance licenses, so I think I can provide some insight that is hopefully helpful.

Right off the bat, I'm leaning toward a BRZ more so than an FR-S for the same reason some people have mentioned in this thread -- despite the similarities between them, the rates for the Scion variant will likely be higher due to the demographic that will likely purchase the car along with the incidents (i.e. tickets, accidents and claims) that are statistically linked to that demographic.

Things like that are the reason why rates are so lopsided. For example, I have an Evo IX SE, and for a while, it had higher rates than a lot of cars I would quote myself with for fun, such as various BMW M cars, GT-Rs, Corvettes, etc., all cars that not only cost more money but also have more firepower in stock form. The reason for that is because of what people have done in these cars. A lot of "adventurous" people have accumulated tickets and/or gotten into accidents which is why the rates rose so much throughout the past several years (in addition to the side-impact crash ratings not having been so great). For those of you who remember some of the forum discussions on WRX/STI/Evo forums back in 2003, the rates of the Evo were actually lower at first, likely due to the STI having 300 hp (to the Evo's 271) when they both launched. But once the driving records and claims histories come into play, things turned around. Which brings me to my next point...

After being in my industry, I've learned that rates can change drastically after the first year of release, so outside of the bugs and kinks that need to be worked out anyway, it's risky to obligate yourself to a new vehicle when it's entirely possible for its rates to spike drastically. I know some of you have stated that you've contacted your carriers regarding the car. Some weren't able to provide rates, and some were, based on your descriptions of the car, which were likely very accurate. The drawback is that the numbers they gave you weren't.

In the insurance world, when rating a new car that hasn't had official rates released (which I've done), you have to enter a lot of things in manually, from the name of the car (year, make, model, etc.) to the symbol (based on a variety of factors, most notably price) and performance designation (which is typically one of several letters following the numerical symbol). After that, we put in other pieces of information, like the engine cylinder count, door count, etc., then out comes a number, one that isn't likely to stick, unless ZERO claims are made with that vehicle. I did that for a 2006 IS350 when they first came out (since I was considering one, though at the time I didn't work in insurance and was doing this through my carrier), and the rates were wildly different from what they ended up adjusting to. That was the same case with the Subaru WRX when it first launched in 2002... Subaru wasn't exactly a maker of performance cars (at least when considering their U.S. lineup at the time) before that, and insurance companies didn't really know what the car was. I read that a lot of carriers just based the rates on the Mazda Protege, which was pretty similar in size, so the rates were low in the beginning. But oh, how those rates increased shortly afterward.

But again, not to generalize one type of driver going for one car, but realistically speaking, the FR-S's (slightly) lower starting price and Scion badge already attract a certain buyer, one that may not care for navigation (and will likely use their cell phone's navigation as a substitute, likely while driving). While the BRZ's starting price isn't that far north, it's probably enough to sway some people away from it (since they have the mentality of it being 99% the same car but for less money) while keeping the buyers that could care less about the price difference or can at least justify spending the extra dough. This crowd that can make that decision is going to be less likely to engage in behavior that leads to tickets, accidents and/or claims than the other crowd.

And as a side note, a lot of other cars are being used as starting points to gauge the FR-S/BRZ rates... they are certainly starting points, but I'd recommend NOT using the S2000 for that purpose. Oddly (though I understand why), Hondas are generally more expensive to insure than its counterparts from other companies, such as the Accord compared to the Camry, for whatever reason (though it's likely the theft rates).