Poor Sales of Toyota GT86/Scion FR-S Likely To Rule Out New Variants

[carbonBLUE]

Originally Posted by DarkSunrise

If I remember correctly, the January 2014 sales numbers were down 50% vs. the January 2013 numbers. I think we're already startingt to see the decline.

yeah but with all the snow this winter vs last... could you imagine how scary all the test drives were this year on the stock tires... If you ask me im not going to go out in negative temps and buy a car ever any car that is....

im pretty sure car sales were down for all brands this winter, especially with the way the economy was last quarter... people aren't so sure about investing in anything right at this moment

[brzr]

Originally Posted by N1rve

Imagine Toyota discontinues our car.... that would be nice haha Increase in resale value

this doesn't make any difference to me

i don't plan on selling my car........ever

[N1rve]

Originally Posted by brzr

this doesn't make any difference to me

i don't plan on selling my car........ever

But you'll know you own a piece of history.

[SillySaxon]

I think it's lack of marketing. I've seen exactly 1 commercial for this car.

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

[Jegan_V]

Well...autoblog contacted Scion and Subaru of America

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/02/21/t...ing-worldwide/

I don't think its surprising the car is doing much worse in Europe. However it appears the North American operation is satisfied with the sales performance.

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

This is very true.
We don't get the ridiculous "100%" tariffs/duties/levies that HKers face for buying cars.

Not to mention fuel, parking and insurance are also ridiculous in HK.

The point is, I get the sense the story isn't nearly as glum as the headline paints it (at least ex-Europe)

Hong Kong isn't a particularly viable place to buy a car as its treated as a luxury good both as a revenue generator but also as a way of reducing demand. Let's be honest, Hong Kong roads are already congested even with a 95% public transit usage. However the tax is actually not the highest in the world, you'd have to top Singapore.

As to the info I got from HK car drivers, the biggest issue is parking. Paying for parking and even finding a spot to park is the biggest challenge. Insurance though...if you're in Ontario...we actually get hosed more than HKers especially with older cars. 3rd party auto insurance in HK is actually really cheap, significantly cheaper than anything any Ontario auto insurance company offers. A HK driver's license is cheaper too...I would know because I got one.

[DAEMANO]

Originally Posted by Jegan_V

Well...autoblog contacted Scion and Subaru of America

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/02/21/t...ing-worldwide/

I don't think its surprising the car is doing much worse in Europe. However it appears the North American operation is satisfied with the sales performance.

From the article

Okay, folks – it appears we've got a problem. The Toyota GT86, Europe's counterpart to our own beloved Subaru BRZ and Scion FR-S coupes, is apparently not selling too well. This, according to Toyota's European Vice President of Research and Development, Gerald Killman, is what's limiting plans for additional variants of the rear-drive coupe.

"A faster version of that car would be at the top of most people's wish lists, but like the cabriolet, it is hard to justify a business case to push either model into production based on the current sales," Killman told AutoExpress. "Personally, I think that engine could use a little bit more," he added.

More troubling is that slow sales aren't limited to the Euro-spec car, with Killman claiming that the GT86 have been missing sales targets in major markets around the globe. It may not be that the US is one of those major markets, though. Scion's Vice President, Doug Murtha, tells Autoblog that his brand is happy with the sales of its version of the GT86, the FR-S. 18,000 units were sold last year, which Murtha says is "generally in line with original expectations for the car."

"We can only comment on the sales success of the FR-S and not its variants in other markets, in the US, Scion deems the FR-S successful. Considering the FR-S sales performance and the sports car's brand impact, the FR-S is fulfilling its mission for the Scion brand," he went on to say. "Given its success in the US, Scion continues to study ways to enhance and improve the FR-S' appeal in the market as this sports car's lifecycle matures."

We contacted Subaru for comment, and found them to be of a similar opinion: "We're happy with our sales of the BRZ," said Subaru spokesman Dominick Infante, who also pointed that the 8,587 units Subaru moved in the BRZ's first year on sale were "in line with expectations," while January's year-over-year sales were up 27 percent.

1. Indeed the AutoExpress U.K. blogger" had Gerald Killman's title grossly inflated from Toyota's European Vice President of R&D to Toyota's European R&D boss.

2. Both Scion and Subaru are happy with U.S. sales. There is no indication that Scion or Subaru are seriously exploring BMW diesel's to replace the Toyobaru powerplant in the U.S.

3. Both Killman and the blogger projected feelings about European sales performance globally. The AutoExpress U.K. article was would have been information and factual had they left out speculation about the '86's future outside of possible European powerplants, and even that was vague at best. Then again, had AutoExpress done that, there wouldn't have been pages of posts and page views that came from the story.

I seriously don't know why so many people fall for this same rouse EVERY SINGLE TIME.

[ClifraJones]

Originally Posted by carbonBLUE

yeah but with all the snow this winter vs last... could you imagine how scary all the test drives were this year on the stock tires... If you ask me im not going to go out in negative temps and buy a car ever any car that is....

im pretty sure car sales were down for all brands this winter, especially with the way the economy was last quarter... people aren't so sure about investing in anything right at this moment

Damn right! If I'd have waited a month to buy my FRS I'd probably still be driving my Corolla until April. And I live in Atlanta!

[BadMoon]

Originally Posted by BadMoon

I think these cars sell better in warmer climates. Here in PA people aren't buying many of them. You can find just about any one you want right now.

Case in point. I traded my FRS in for my BRZ. They still can't sell it. Even for less than they gave me trade in.

http://applesubaru.com/Used-2013-Sci...PA/vd/18490807

If this was the west coast this car would have been gobbled up.

[NickFRS]

Yall over here winning about power and i'm over here drifting my car every day boosted with a huge smile on my face.

~Good day.

[Kids Heart]

Originally Posted by BadMoon

Case in point. I traded my FRS in for my BRZ. They still can't sell it. Even for less than they gave me trade in.

http://applesubaru.com/Used-2013-Sci...PA/vd/18490807

If this was the west coast this car would have been gobbled up.

Aren't you guys getting buckets of snow?

[mugen79]

toyota is unsure why this car isn't selling well?
i mean i own this car and i love it.
but for the general public, 200hp with almost no back seats, almost no cargo space is hard to justify with $25000 price tag.

[racecat]

Originally Posted by mugen79

toyota is unsure why this car isn't selling well?
i mean i own this car and i love it.
but for the general public, 200hp with almost no back seats, almost no cargo space is hard to justify with $25000 price tag.

Not to mention the lack of "creature comforts" expected by the general public these days. Unfortunately, a lot of people just don't appreciate the driving experience...they want fancy trims and electronics.

I guess coming from a '99 Toyota with manual everything, this car seems pretty fancy to me.

[brzr]

Originally Posted by racecat

Not to mention the lack of "creature comforts" expected by the general public these days. Unfortunately, a lot of people just don't appreciate the driving experience...they want fancy trims and electronics.:

Exactly this

[hybrid35]

So would it have been a better plan for the companies in general to make a new car that was suitable for more people but still had the same BRZ/FRS platform, then later, make the BRZ/FRS out of it?

e.g. start with a more luxury optioned sport hatch/wagon version for 3-4 years, then make a coupe version for 4 model years, then make a TRD/STI version?

This way they can milk the platform without adding too much R&D, and if the sales of the coupe/performance version was horrible, they at least have a fall back to continue their sales of that platform and not call it an entire waste of resources. The only problem I see with this is sales cannibalization of their other models like Impreza hatchback and possibly taking too long to adjust for the market.