Advice for a possible purchase

[Kryptonz]

Let me start of by saying I just made this account solely for advice and suggestions before I commit to purchasing a used 2013 MT Scion FR-S.

Some quick info about myself.
I'm 22, I live in Los Angeles and I'm currently living with my parents. I'm working at restaurant earning minimum wage. I don't have my license and I have very little driving experience(0 experience with MT). My current transportation consist of Ubering/Lyft to work, friends, etc.
I have about $9,000 saved up over the past year + stimulus check + some unemployment money(EDD) due to Covid-19 but luckily I got my hours back.

For the past 3 years I've been very interested in the 86 platform. Great looking sports car and somewhat affordable consider my current financial state.

Sunday(6/9/20) I saw a 2013 MT Scion FRS with 42k listed at 14.5k(about 19k with fees and taxes). I called the dealership asking if the car was available. The car was available to view only not test drive since it got traded in on Friday for a truck. Okay cool I'll wait until it passes inspection and smog then I'll go check it out. The person on the phone tells me he doesn't think the car will sit that long considering the modifications done to the car. He proceeds to send me a video explain the mods done to the vehicle.

-"Wide" Michelin tires(He said "wide" wheels in the video)
- After market wheels(not sure the brand or model)
- GT Spoiler
- Aftermarket Strut Bar
- Aftermarket body kit(Unfamiliar with it)
- Aftermarket shift knob
- Airbag Suspension(Owner told the dealership he spent 5k on it)


Those are the mods that I am aware up.

When my dad and I went to the dealership they put me on a 5 day contract to save the car to me. We filled out all the paper work and now the only thing missing is just my $5,000 down payment. Hence why I'm here asking for tips, advice and suggestions.

Like I stated above I have very little driving experience(0 experience with MT) and I don't have a license at the moment. I've been looking into a few other cars but this one caught my attention when the salesman told me it had a few mods and airbag suspension.

I just felt like the car with the mods and price was a pretty good deal, and as much as I want this car I need advice from others before I commit with the car.Let me also mention where I live there a good amount of hills.

Apologize in advance for any grammer, format, wrong section or just something confusing.

TLDR: I'm young, I want a modified sports car but have very little to no experience driving cars especially manual transmission cars also dont have a license yet.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

First off, I'd skip the 2013 years since those are the ones that had the recall issue. You don't want to deal with that. Pass on that car to be safe. More reasons below to pass on that car (and possibly dealership).

Second, that OTD price seems WAAAAY off. General rule of thumb is add 10% to the cost of the car to get the OTD cost that would include taxes and minimal, as in what's really required such as registration and a documentation fee of $80 (doc fees here in Cali shouldn't be more than that, especially if it's at a name brand dealership, not some pot lot used car dealer. So really, that FR-S shouldn't be more than $16k OTD. I'm pretty sure they're ripping you off with some type of service ("warranty") and/or maintenance plan, or some stupid useless "theft prevention" crap (useless etching of body panels and windows. Always ask for the complete breakdown of the OTD cost. Lots of dealerships will entice buyers with some stupid low price, and then tack on a bunch of BS and not disclose it to the buyer in hopes they glance over it and over the actual OTD cost.

Third...dealerships know that "modifications" actually decrease a cars value, not add onto. Also, the part of "not sitting on the lot too long" is complete BS. So they're just using that on you to get you hyped since you're younger. Don't fall for it. Back when I sold cars, cars with mods would either take super long to sell to the point we would have to sell it for less than we bought the cars for, or they get sold off to auction since they sat on the lot for too long.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Fourth...please make sure you can afford buying a car given your finances. Factor in the cost of ownership breakdown compared to what your NET income is. You'll have to consider fuel costs and insurance at the very least. The FR-S requires premium gas (91 octane here in Cali) and depending on your commute and driving habits, may not get good gas mileage. I've gotten 41 mpg on a tank before on mine, so I'm not trying to scare you saying you'll get horrible mpg. However, you did say you live in LA, and stop and go traffic really kills gas mileage. Stop and go traffic will also decrease the longevity of the engine oil, so you'll have to do oil changes more frequently (again, added/increased cost of ownership).

You also mentioned you do not have a driver's license. So I can only presume you don't have car insurance history. That, plus your age may make your insurance premiums very high. Get your driver's license first, and then start getting insurance premium quotes from various insurance carriers.

Make a spreadsheet of your average net income (would actually be better to use the lowest amount if your paychecks varies), and general costs for gas, maintenance, and insurance per month. You'll have to do some calculations to break down the maintenance costs per month. Also include any other expenses you may have, such as bills, gf/bf (since dating can be expensive, lol), etc. If the net amount is negative, then I would HIGHLY suggest not getting this particular FR-S (or even FR-S at all given the sales prices). A ballpark idea to get a monthly cost of a car for a 60 month loan is to take the sales price, add 10%, subtract your down payment, and then take the all of the numbers up to the first one after the "," and multiply it by 2. So using $19k as an example...19,000 - 5,000 = 14,000. Take the 140 and multiply by 2. That gets you a roughly $280 payment. That's not taking into consideration really good, or really low credit scores though.


And you mentioned you have little driving experiences...the FR-S is a bit harder to see out of from the sides, so that will only make it worse for you to gain confidence in your driving skills. As for the zero experience with a MT, eh, the FR-S is easy to drive for a MT. But honestly, I'd suggest first finding ways to learn how to drive a MT without actually driving a car. That way, you'll have a better understanding of how to drive one, which would put less wear and tear on the car, and won't discourage you (assuming having a better understanding of how to drive a MT would cause you to stall out less).

[Tcoat]

Stay right away from modified cars. People with experience can deal with the issues that can arise but if you have to pay for repairs then they can become a money pit in a hurry.
I know you said you want a modded car but since you are brand new to them it is a level of risk that most would not find acceptable.
Find a nice inexpensive stock or lightly modded one. This will save you some money up front and you can continue to save as you learn the car.
Once you have had it a while, learned to drive and decided what you like or dislike THEN start to mod it on your own. You can start out with some simple projects and move forward to bigger projects once you gain experience and confidence.
There is a huge difference in satisfaction between buying a modded car and doing it yourself.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna

. As for the zero experience with a MT, eh, the FR-S is easy to drive for a MT. But honestly, I'd suggest first finding ways to learn how to drive a MT without actually driving a car. That way, you'll have a better understanding of how to drive one, which would put less wear and tear on the car, and won't discourage you (assuming having a better understanding of how to drive a MT would cause you to stall out less).

How the HELL do you learn to drive MT without driving a car?
And don't you dare say you say a "simulator".

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

How the HELL do you learn to drive MT without driving a car?
And don't you dare say you say a "simulator".

Kinda like shadow tennis. Haha. Hard to explain, but watch videos first, and sit on a chair and just get comfortable moving both feet. The have someone use their hands or something to give a little resistance to simulate the feel of pedals. That's one way.

I got someone who knew the basics of driving a MT driving a MT within 10 minutes by doing something similar.

I learned that way minus the videos part since there wasn't YouTube at the time, and AOL was the way to the Internet. I just observed people driving stick (in place of my video suggestion). Never drove a stick once before. Then got my first MT car and was out and driving in less than 5 minutes. Got on the highway on my first drive to go to some friend's house. Didn't stall for the first couple of days, then stalled once on a hill at a stop sign. Lol.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Kaotic Lazagna

Kinda like shadow tennis. Haha. Hard to explain, but watch videos first, and sit on a chair and just get comfortable moving both feet. The have someone use their hands or something to give a little resistance to simulate the feel of pedals. That's one way.

I got someone who knew the basics of driving a MT driving a MT within 10 minutes by doing something similar.

I learned that way minus the videos part since there wasn't YouTube at the time, and AOL was the way to the Internet. I just observed people driving stick (in place of my video suggestion). Never drove a stick once before. Then got my first MT car and was out and driving in less than 5 minutes. Got on the highway on my first drive to go to some friend's house. Didn't stall for the first couple of days, then stalled once on a hill at a stop sign. Lol.

Or...
Get in a MT car.
Don't start the engine.
Run through the process a couple of time.
Start the engine.
Stall a couple of times.
Drive away.

[Yoshoobaroo]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Or...
Get in a MT car.
Don't start the engine.
Run through the process a couple of time.
Start the engine.
Stall a couple of times.
Drive away.

It’s far more effective to get yourself an old heavy Saab convertible with an unforgiving clutch and a laggy turbo that won’t help you in neutral, fill the car to the brim with luggage and 4 people, get yourself stuck at an uphill left hand turn at a red light with a school bus behind you, and have your dad yell at the top of his lungs that the clutch is on the left you fucking moron while you stall 4 times and the light turns red again. For the second time.

Works wayyyy better.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Yoshoobaroo

It’s far more effective to get yourself an old heavy Saab convertible with an unforgiving clutch and a laggy turbo that won’t help you in neutral, fill the car to the brim with luggage and 4 people, get yourself stuck at an uphill left hand turn at a red light with a school bus behind you, and have your dad yell at the top of his lungs that the clutch is on the left you fucking moron while you stall 4 times and the light turns red again. For the second time.

Works wayyyy better.

Or these.


Syncros? Syncros? We don't need no stinkin' syncros!

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by Yoshoobaroo

It’s far more effective to get yourself an old heavy Saab convertible

I learned to drive a clutch on one of these bad boys. Also learned how to pop wheelies the same day...actually probably did that first.

[Dave-ROR]

OP, like the others said, stay away from that car. Look around for a 2014 or newer. After owning it a bit mod it to fix what you don't like about it.

[alphasaur]

As others have stated I would avoid a modified car UNLESS you're buying directly from owner and they are well educated on the car/have performed longevity mods.

People will only trade their car in with mods if
a. they are impatient and don't want to get more money by parting out, also because they are uneducated on the car and the mods are shitty/won't sell

b. something is wrong with the car and they are trying to get rid of it as fast as possible

19k out the door is WAY too much for a 13 frs. For comparison, I was 19 otd for a 17' with 19k miles.

Also, I would SERIOUSLY consider an NA miata. I would guess you can get a clean one for 3-5k. Convertible is great since you're in cali and they're a blast to drive and easy to learn how to drive with great visibility.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

I learned to drive a clutch on one of these bad boys. Also learned how to pop wheelies the same day...actually probably did that first.

My earliest MT experiences were on a slightly older version of that.
I was 8 and had to bolt wood blocks to the pedals.
Had the exact same loader set up as below so wheelies were difficult. Not impossible though!

[Spuds]

OP: +1 doesn't seem like the car for you. I suggest passing on it, there will be more.

-Step 1: Get drivers license using AT cars.

-Step 2: Drive around for a year or so in a car that is easy to see out of, it really does make a difference. I suggest a cheap (MT) hatchback of some sort. The FRS is great to drive when you are moving on a road, but can be a bit of a pain in places like parking lots and intersections due to it being low and having a set back driving position.

-Step 3: Start looking for a car you actually want, if that is a FRS/BRZ/86, great! I suggest light to no mods when you buy it.

-Step 4: Mods if you still want them.

Originally Posted by Yoshoobaroo

It’s far more effective to get yourself an old heavy Saab convertible with an unforgiving clutch and a laggy turbo that won’t help you in neutral, fill the car to the brim with luggage and 4 people, get yourself stuck at an uphill left hand turn at a red light with a school bus behind you, and have your dad yell at the top of his lungs that the clutch is on the left you fucking moron while you stall 4 times and the light turns red again. For the second time.

Works wayyyy better.

My first MT was a Saab...