Scion FR-S VS Lexus SC430

[vh_supra26]

I know this is an apple to orange comparison. But the SO will be looking for a new daily soon. And sorry if this is in the wrong section.

So my question is FR-S or SC430. Again, just a daily. I know the earlier FR-S had some issues. Where they fixed on the later models?

Both cars can be had for around the same price. (2002-2004 SC430 with 50k or under go for $17k-$22k all the time).

Since it will be a daily, quality and reliability will be number one.

Photo Comparison

[husker741]

This comparison is perfect for me to give some info. I had an SC430 right before I bought my FR-S.

For a daily, I would say SC430. I miss having a convertible, with all the little creature comforts. It was a great car for me, and did great in the snow also with snow tires. The V8 is very nice and while the car weighs a lot, it beat it's fair share of cars such as 350z's, Mustang GT's, etc. I also got about 20mpg in the city.

I know some will knock it for being ugly, but I did just a few things to make mine better. Again, it was an awesome DAILY. I would take my FR-S over it any day for a track car, obviously. The SC430 is just more solid and well built. It better be for a $70k car.

I had no problems in owning it, and it has Lexus luxury and of course reliability. It's comfy, quiet, and a very nice overall car. The people that knock on it just have never owned or driven one. Mine had 130k miles and it still looked and felt brand new.

[Birquah]

If you're looking to have literally no fun, go with the SC. They're reliable and from my experience, quite boring to drive. It suffers from a crazy amount of wind and tire noise, top up and down and for being "small" it is huge. The motor feels weak for close to 300hp and there is lots of pedal play. However, if you plan to keep it past 80k or so, they start to have normal car problems which get expensive as it is a Lexus.

[speargunsandracecars]

The SC430 is Top Gear's Worst Car in the World. The Twins don't really have any issues. The biggest 'issue' are the 'crickets' which supposedly come from the HP fuel pump. Many owners believe it could possibly be the quality of fuel or the ethanol content, but as far as I know, the actual reason hasn't been disclosed by Subaru or Toyota. Subaru and Scion have released an ECU reflash for the 1st year cars, and I believe the 2014 models already have them. I have a 2014 BRZ with 3800 miles. No crickets, no issues. Just as reliable as my old NC MX5. Even with the 'crickets' it doesn't seem to affect performance or reliability.

[husker741]

[ame]http://youtu.be/yJnYzwYFSOk[/ame]

There's a video of my exhaust I had and here are some pics.

[husker741]

Originally Posted by speargunsandracecars

The SC430 is Top Gear's Worst Car in the World.

No, no it is not. They said it was the "worst car from a company that should've known better."

Far from the worst car in the world.

[speargunsandracecars]

Originally Posted by husker741

No, no it is not. They said it was the "worst car from a company that should've known better."

Far from the worst car in the world.

We all know it isn't the worst car in the world. Certainly more cars out there that are worse. Take what they say with a grain of salt, but it's all in good fun.

By the way, it's, and I quote, "The worst car in the history of the world." According to Top Gear.

[vh_supra26]

Originally Posted by speargunsandracecars

The SC430 is Top Gear's Worst Car in the World. The Twins don't really have any issues. The biggest 'issue' are the 'crickets' which supposedly come from the HP fuel pump. Many owners believe it could possibly be the quality of fuel or the ethanol content, but as far as I know, the actual reason hasn't been disclosed by Subaru or Toyota. Subaru and Scion have released an ECU reflash for the 1st year cars, and I believe the 2014 models already have them. I have a 2014 BRZ with 3800 miles. No crickets, no issues. Just as reliable as my old NC MX5. Even with the 'crickets' it doesn't seem to affect performance or reliability.

If we are talking about luxury roadster, than I think that honor goes the Cadillac XLR :p

Some of the issues with the twins I was told were:

Taillights fogging up
Something about 2nd gear
Engine nose

[speargunsandracecars]

Originally Posted by vh_supra26

If we are talking about luxury roadster, than I think that honor goes the Cadillac XLR :p

Some of the issues with the twins I was told were:

Taillights fogging up
Something about 2nd gear
Engine nose

Some cars have issues with fogging tail lights. Mine don't. If it fogs, warranty will replace.

2nd gear is hard to get in to when it's cold. Like many, many, many manual cars. Once warm, no issues.

Crickets. See my first post.

[vh_supra26]

Originally Posted by Birquah

If you're looking to have literally no fun, go with the SC. They're reliable and from my experience, quite boring to drive. It suffers from a crazy amount of wind and tire noise, top up and down and for being "small" it is huge. The motor feels weak for close to 300hp and there is lots of pedal play. However, if you plan to keep it past 80k or so, they start to have normal car problems which get expensive as it is a Lexus.

Well it will be a daily, so not looking to go drifting or anything like that.

Being drawn to the FR-S because its newer and sleeker in design. Most likely lower cost of ownership as well.

SC430 looks like to be a better built car, and a bit more comfortable daily. You have a drop top and that interior looks pretty nice. But than you have repair and maintenance cost.

[dan_k]

The SC430 is a very quiet and reliable car. The drawbacks are that service and parts are pretty pricey. A good thing to this drawback is that I had my 2003 SC430 serviced at a Toyota dealership as the parts are exactly the same. If you need any parts, just go to a Toyota dealership and order the parts through them.

I no longer have the SC430 and yes, I do miss the convertible aspect and I really miss the quality of the interior of the car but not much else. The seats are barcaloungers compared to the BRZ I now have and with very nice leather. The suspension is just there to support the car and give a nice ride. When the road turns, the car reacts very slowly. I spent thousands on the suspension and it is no where close to the BRZ.

One other thing is that the SC430 is build VERY well. No creaks, groans, or any problems whatsoever. It is a very reliable car. The rear seats are a bit more useful than the BRZ but the trunk space is less; and it becomes much less when you want to put the top down. The engine of the SC is very smooth and quiet but you will not get the mileage of our cars.

I bought the BRZ because I wanted another reliable commuter car that I could still have fun with on the weekends. Just my 2 cents.

(I had to look around a bit but here's a picture of the SC I had)

[Twin4Life]

Originally Posted by husker741

The V8 is very nice and while the car weighs a lot, it beat it's fair share of cars such as 350z's, Mustang GT's, etc. I also got about 20mpg in the city.

OMG, now thats HILARIOUS!!! Yours must have the the super speed, quad turbo, supercharged v12 edition factory freak!!

[Dave-ROR]

Originally Posted by Twin4Life

OMG, now thats HILARIOUS!!! Yours must have the the super speed, quad turbo, supercharged v12 edition factory freak!!

The z and sc get to 60 half a second apart based on google averages so thats within driver variance to beat a z on the street. Depending on which generation mustang it's not that hard to beat those..... Only s197 mustangs would be quicker fr more modern mustangs (80s to current)

[Twin4Life]

Originally Posted by Dave-ROR

The z and sc get to 60 half a second apart based on google averages so thats within driver variance to beat a z on the street. Depending on which generation mustang it's not that hard to beat those..... Only s197 mustangs would be quicker fr more modern mustangs (80s to current)

Maybe the heaviest, drop top, auto grand touring version in 2006 Z, maybe. Maybe. And any 2005+ Mustang will destroy it.