Concerning thoughts...FR-S the new Civic?

[DeeezNuuuts83]

Originally Posted by denverizzles

I am going to love my FR-S when it arrives, but I am worried that the FR-S maybe the new Civic. Obviously, they are two completely different cars, but does anyone know how many FR-S' are being built? I remember late 90's every other car was a freaking Civic, does the FR-S have the potential be just like that?

I would REALLY HATE to see the FR-S being bought by everyone and it then being considered the new Civic.

Your thoughts?

Like other people have said, this is unlikely to be the case. The two cars in discussion have production numbers that are so far apart while appealing to two very different ranges of crowds. With the Civic, there have been a variety of bodystyles and trim levels that were catered toward different demographics and their wants/needs, while the FR-S/BRZ won't appeal to people who need four doors to transport their family or to people who would certain benefit from consistently achieving 35-40 mpg highway while paying minimal amounts of maintenance/running costs.

First of all, the FR-S/BRZ is quite affordable to most adults, but not nearly as accessible to the general public price-wise as the entire Civic lineup is. Part of why the Civic lineup got really popular just within the enthusiast crowd was because you could buy the least expensive model possible (which was attainable by a broader crowd), do stuff to it and have your very own rice rocket. So maybe you didn't have DOHC VTEC, but only keen observers would know, especially if you threw on noise-making mods that realistically added maybe 10-15 hp altogether and threw a body kit on, which was the cool thing to do 10-15 years ago when the import scene really blew up, so you could at least play the part visually and aurally. That made it accessible to more of the teenage crowd, since it was a car that a lot of parents would consider for their kids anyway due to its dependability and value, for those lucky enough to get new cars but not necessarily the trust fund kind of kids.

And with that many Civics on the road due to it being produced in such large numbers and made available to nearly anyone, it resulted in huge aftermarket support. The FR-S/BRZ will have aftermarket support due to it just being a sporty car, but with projected annual sales between them being under 30,000 for 2013, it's not as if every company is going to invest in that, plus the parts will be more expensive since it's not as if they will be able to sell a ton of those parts to recoup their costs.

But it is very likely to be the successor of the Civic Si, just like this guy said:

Originally Posted by Lytheum

maybe the new civic si....but not just the new civic. not sure what the sales numbers are for the si. I would have to say only 1 in 10 i see are an si.

Personally, I see a ton of Civic Sis on the road (though I'm not sure what the proportion is of Civic Sis to Civics), but considering the demographic they are targeting along with the price range, practicality and performance, the two will be cross-shopped a lot, even though they may not have been intended to go head-to-head since their layouts are different (FF vs. FR) while the FR-S/BRZ is definitely more catered toward the enthusiast crowd, despite having an automatic transmission as an option.

A few people have said that the FR-S/BRZ is the new S2000, which I understand, but I still wouldn't go that far, considering how much more expensive it was along with the difference in power. But it's a reasonable comparison, especially since there wasn't really a void that it filled since there really wasn't anything really like it on our shores. Everything else was either FWD (Civic Si, RSX Type-S), more powerful but still a similar-yet-different bodystyle (S2000, RX-8), a lot more powerful yet noticeably heavier (350Z, 370Z) or German but simply multiples more expensive (328Ci, Boxter/Cayman).

Originally Posted by Razz

The new Civic SI is 24,845


Same price range
more HP
more torque
better interior quality
working navigation
reliable engine



It is very comparable and is a much better deal for most people


So the FRS and BRZ can become the new civic

New Civic? No. No-brainer car of choice instead of a Civic Si Coupe if you have an extra thousand or two budgeted for a car? YES.

[ozzykhan16]

Originally Posted by bambbrose

This will be the new S2000

Or the new Miata.

Civics have mass appeal.

It will not be the new S2000 or even Miata. S2K is quite different aside from being a drop top, and no back seat. The total production in a span of just around 11 years was 66 thousand in the US. So about 6k a year. The FRS will be twice as much if not more. I will still buy one, but I'll be keeping my S2K.

[Skyhound]

The Civic is a car that teenagers use to trick their parents into buying for them so they can rice them out later on. It is the only reason any of my Honda friends said they got a Civic. The salesperson does the work of convincing the parents and the kid himself can nudge them over to the Si as a "compromise". Meanwhile the kid has some money put away to instantly turn it into a race car. Since the parents already paid for it, they can't exactly object.

The FRS/BRZ looks sporty/dangerous right off. Both the salespeople at Subaru AND Scion made sure that they called it a "sports car". They both even asked me when I first asked about it if "I've ever driven a sports car before". The only parents who would even consider buying this car for their child probably have the money to scoff at the Scion/Subaru badge and just buy a BMW 3 series or something.

[chrisoflo]

The new Civic? No. The Civic is everywhere because it's practical and affordable to a wide range of people. I really think that MOST of the people buying a FR-S/BRZ are going to be enthusiasts. Will you get the usual single chick buy one in auto? Yeah, of course. But most will be the type who already have practical but want, and love, to DRIVE. People mature enough to realize that sheer power makes not the car. If someone wants horsepower, then there are plenty of options. But BALANCE, is what one gets with an Eighty-Six

[#87]

If you compare it to anything it has to be the civic si, and how often do you see the si? I don't see them every day but I see regular civic at every other stop light.