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I was finally able to test drive the FRS today. Personally I found it a very attractive car on the outside and I think the BRZ will look just as nice if not slightly better. It has nice sculpted lines which aren't as obvious in pictures as they are in person. I think it strikes the perfect balance between being sculpted and styled without being overstyled. I think it is one of the better looking cars on the road today for sure. I think the Genesis Coupe looks slightly better from the outside (just my opinion! but I also think the FRS is a more practical package overall all things considered).
The first thing you notice when you sit inside is the seats are very low to the ground and fit pretty tightly (my favourite part after the looks were the seats). I am 6ft and I could fit in the back with my 6ft friend in the front passenger seat albeit my legs were pretty cramped but it would work for 20 or so minutes no prob. It was way roomier than the Genesis Coupe where I couldn't even come close to fitting with headroom on par with the G37 and Mustang but the legroom would be the limiting factor. Also, I doubt I could have fit behind a 6ft driver. Interior materials were alright but the climate controls were kind of economy feeling and the T-pattern plastic bit felt pretty cheap but nothing too bad. Seat material felt alright. Comfortable and soft but not premium feeling (because it isn't which is totally fine for a car like this and at this price). Overall, for a car like this, I found the interior to be quite nice and the back seat is actually usable for at least one borderline large person which is great for such a tiny car.
The car handles very well with no body lean even in tight cornering. Nobody will argue that the car handles very well and feels great to drive. Super responsive. However, I did feel it needed a few more hp. Just an extra 20-30 horsepower would have made a world of difference. It feels like it is just on the borderline of almost feeling quick but its not quite there. I never had any sensation of acceleration to any degree of excitement which really disappointed me. Really the horsepower at lower revs noticeably low. I remember looking at inside lines dyno superposition for the FRS and GTI with differences of about 70hp in most of the rev range and you can really feel the difference (I drove a GLI last weekend and it felt quite fast). At the end of the day, in daily driving I personally think the handling characteristics of the FRS are great but overkill, and extra power is something you could really use everyday if it were there. I thought I would be the last person in the world to care about the lack of power but at the end of the day it really does impact the driving experience on the road.
I think this car is great as a fun car to tackle twisties and take to the track or autocross it, but as a daily driver I just can't justify the compromises and the lack of power is slightly disappointing. On a track or somewhere where you can really push the car I think the powertrain characteristics are great and would be lots of fun, but it's just shy of being truly satisfy for me as a road machine. If someone is also willing to add some mods and tweaks here and there to add a little power I think it would make a dramatic improvement to the cars performance in all respects and in all environments. It is a beautiful, fun car that is a bit more practical than it would seem, ultimately for me it was just missing that special something to make me truly excited while driving it on the road.
I wish everyone who ends up with the FRS or BRZ the best of luck. I am sure it will be a great car for you guys that is great fun for many years. I personally will be pulling my deposits on the FRS and BRZ because I personally found it just shy of my expectations as an overall package. The above is simply my opinion and I am sure many of you will disagree as we all look for and focus on different things in cars but I thought I would share my thoughts and I hope you enjoyed it.
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