FT-86 focus group

[mokinbird87]

so... long story short, i was part of the focus group when toyota was doing research on the ft86. this was about two years ago in atlanta ga.




you may blame me and the other subaru guy for the boxer engine in place of the ft86, but i swear they already had their mind made up even before asking us

i will elaborate more if you guys wish to find out more.


the research (now that i think about it) was mainly to see how well the ft86 would be approved as a scion in the states. there were 6 guys: 1.me (wrx) 2.another guy with sti modded to hell 3.saturn ion redline guy 4.scion tc guy (crazy into stereo) 5. cobalt guy and 6.civic si guy. all of them were generally ok with the scion as a brand, but me and the sti guys were the ones that protested like hell (had we had more of you guys we could`ve had it as a toyota here i feel like).

the most interesting question was when the moderator asked what if scion was a person, at a party, what kind of person would it be? and my answer was: a very loud obnoxious person It was clear that the subaru guys were hating on scion and thought that it was a 'fake' tuners car because it didnt offer enough performance (at least for subaru guy standards) but EVERYONE else at the research were VERY fond of what scion had to offer, even if it may be just purely cosmetic parts. that's when he asked us, what if this 'new scion' sports car had a boxer motor in it? and that's when the sti guy and I completely froze and the moderator had a good laugh.

I will try to remember more details but it's been a while haha

[tranzformer]

Yes, please go on.

I for one love the boxer engine.

[PuGZoR]

Continue.

[mokinbird87]

the research (now that i think about it) was mainly to see how well the ft86 would be approved as a scion in the states. there were 6 guys: 1.me (wrx) 2.another guy with sti modded to hell 3.saturn ion redline guy 4.scion tc guy (crazy into stereo) 5. cobalt guy and 6.civic si guy. all of them were generally ok with the scion as a brand, but me and the sti guys were the ones that protested like hell (had we had more of you guys we could`ve had it as a toyota here i feel like).

the most interesting question was when the moderator asked what if scion was a person, at a party, what kind of person would it be? and my answer was: a very loud obnoxious person It was clear that the subaru guys were hating on scion and thought that it was a 'fake' tuners car because it didnt offer enough performance (at least for subaru guy standards) but EVERYONE else at the research were VERY fond of what scion had to offer, even if it may be just purely cosmetic parts. that's when he asked us, what if this 'new scion' sports car had a boxer motor in it? and that's when the sti guy and I completely froze and the moderator had a good laugh.

I will try to remember more details but it's been a while haha

[KaliKev]

You are practically asking if we want to see boobs. OFCOARSE! Please continue

[mokinbird87]

although i made sure to let the moderator and the people behind the glass know just how much i despise scion as a brand, i think i lost the fight because of the other 5 guys that were there.

[tranzformer]

So how did they pick you guys? Found you guys on a Friday night at an empty shopping center parking lot with a bunch of other car guys?

[mokinbird87]

Originally Posted by tranzformer

So how did they pick you guys? Found you guys on a Friday night at an empty shopping center parking lot with a bunch of other car guys?

believe it or not... facebook lol.

aparently i was one out of 1000s of people.

[tranzformer]

So this was more market research rather than anything else? Was it more questions to get your opinion about the Scion brand, or did they tip their hand regarding what they were thinking about the car (besides boxer engine)?

[Allch Chcar]

Originally Posted by mokinbird87

the research (now that i think about it) was mainly to see how well the ft86 would be approved as a scion in the states. there were 6 guys: 1.me (wrx) 2.another guy with sti modded to hell 3.saturn ion redline guy 4.scion tc guy (crazy into stereo) 5. cobalt guy and 6.civic si guy. all of them were generally ok with the scion as a brand, but me and the sti guys were the ones that protested like hell (had we had more of you guys we could`ve had it as a toyota here i feel like).

the most interesting question was when the moderator asked what if scion was a person, at a party, what kind of person would it be? and my answer was: a very loud obnoxious person It was clear that the subaru guys were hating on scion and thought that it was a 'fake' tuners car because it didnt offer enough performance (at least for subaru guy standards) but EVERYONE else at the research were VERY fond of what scion had to offer, even if it may be just purely cosmetic parts. that's when he asked us, what if this 'new scion' sports car had a boxer motor in it? and that's when the sti guy and I completely froze and the moderator had a good laugh.

I will try to remember more details but it's been a while haha

That's very interesting how you and the Subie guy were anti-scion and the other guys weren't negative. I'm imagining your faces when the moderator asked if you would like it more if it had a boxer.

[mokinbird87]

Originally Posted by tranzformer

So this was more market research rather than anything else? Was it more questions to get your opinion about the Scion brand, or did they tip their hand regarding what they were thinking about the car (besides boxer engine)?

yes. it was ALL about scion.

[mokinbird87]

Originally Posted by Allch Chcar

That's very interesting how you and the Subie guy were anti-scion and the other guys weren't negative. I'm imagining your faces when the moderator asked if you would like it more if it had a boxer.

we were fighting so damn hard for real test-proven performance parts being a must, and then the moderator just gently dropped the question lol.

[Snoopyalien24]

Whoa, very lucky indeed. Continue... lol

[mokinbird87]

Originally Posted by Snoopyalien24

Whoa, very lucky indeed. Continue... lol

struggling to remember haha. I got paid $200 and the research took about 2-3 hours. I had to fill out a survey on facebook answersing questions regarding what things i have done to my car, what i look for in a car, etc