Quote:
Originally Posted by alluringreality
It's highly unlikely that this car costs thousands more to build than an Impreza. The companies are certainly making a profit on each sale.
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Impreza is sold at a much higher volume in the US. They probably build as many Imprezas in 2 or 3 months as the yearly FR-S/BRZ production. I believe that the BRZ/FR-S are built on an Impreza line, right? In that case, the Impreza is likely subsidizing a lot of the assembly cost of the BRZ/FR-S by getting full utilization of the machinery.
Quote:
Originally Posted by alluringreality
I agree that both cars reek of cost cutting. Since there are not many inexpensive low-profile vehicles currently for sale, the cars are still at the top of my shopping list.
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I wouldn't call that cost cutting. It is just a way to reduce the impacts of inventory, lead time, and such to the overall costs of selling a vehicle. (Looking at it from a TPS perspective... you're more likely to match a customer to a car if their only choices are color and transmission, thus you need less inventory to satisfy that customer, less inventory = less cost.)
I thought the vehicle felt completely fine as far as build quality and materials for $25k considering all the nice mechanical bits you get. It isn't soft touch like the GTI, but RWD, 300lbs lighter, LSD, and that sexy shape go a long way to counteract the nicer interior materials.