The GT86 Doesn't Need To Be Faster

"PS9" (PS9)
12/01/2014 at 15:05 • Filed to: None

It needs to be cheaper. Autotrader listings reveal an average of $28k ( !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! ). The deals are definitely there for those with the willingness to look and the privilege of opportunity, but for the average buyer the rent is too damn high, especially given the competition. A power boost might not be in the cards, but maybe a price drop should be instead.

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DISCUSSION (20)

Michael Maguire > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:15

I would be scared how many corner would need to be cut in order to get the price at 22-23K...

It is a great car, but at 28K, there are many other good options to choose from.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:18

I hear complaints on the FT86 forum all the time from non-U.S. residents, mainly Australians and Canadians, about the high cost of the car. I think the FR-S pricing in the U.S. is right about where it should be. Most of the people I know who have an FR-S are within 2-3 years of my age (26) and bought them as their first nicer car purchase. The pricing in other countries is insanely higher, although this is more a case of laws and not just Toyota's pricing; as it holds true for all pricing on new cars.

I got my '13 w/ 4,100 miles for $23.5k OTD, which was a fair price; although I likely could have gotten it for a bit less if I'd been more deliberate in my negotiations. I'm still happy though.

As for that RS 1.0 in PR, that is an insane price. Then again, I can't imagine that all that many of the 1,500 RS 1.0's ended up in PR; there's a decent chance that's the only one there. So supply and demand could easily account for that ridiculous price. I bet someone will buy it for that much, simply to have one of the only (if not the only) RS 1.0 in PR.

RazoE > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:26

It's a Scion. A Scion is supposed to be a 16 year old kid's first car. IT DOES NOT NEED MORE POWER. There. The end.

PS9 > RazoE
12/01/2014 at 15:28

A 16 year old kid's first car *that they are buying with mommy and daddy's money

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow
12/01/2014 at 15:28

A new FR-S (in the U.S.) should easily be obtainable for $26-27k OTD, and there are even better deals out there on used models.

RazoE > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:30

Exactly. I don't want my kid driving a turbo charged monster. I want them to think they're cool and still get dusted by mini-vans.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:33

This!

I want one soooooo baaaaaaaddddddddd to replace my 2002 SVT Focus from DD duties. But 28k is far too much for what you are actually getting.

I would be quite happy to have one without the damn touch-screen NAV system. Just give me a BT stereo, I already have a smart phone. That should knock $2k off the price.

A BRZ Premium with the normal seats, but with heat, non-Nav should be $26k. I'd be all over that.

JustWaitingForAMate > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow
12/01/2014 at 15:34

The GT flavour is a few dollars shy of $40k.

JustWaitingForAMate > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:36

The GT86 Doesn't Need To Be Faster

Yes it does.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > JustWaitingForAMate
12/01/2014 at 15:39

Yeah, so I've heard. I agree that that is too much, but again it isn't really due to Toyota's pricing structure. Many cars are more expensive in non-U.S. countries, it has to do with laws and regulations. Score one for #Murica! lol

It's a trade off though, since the rest of the world gets many awesome cars that never grace the U.S. with their presence. Now please excuse me while I go stare at pictures of RS2 Avants, R32/34 Skylines, diesel Hiluxes, and Focus RS's.

JustWaitingForAMate > Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow
12/01/2014 at 15:44

Actually over here, it is due to their pricing structure. Yes there are taxes and so on in place, but when the analysis is done, taking into account all extra costs of shipping and setting up a support network in this country, the price is still too high. We see it across cars, IT, clothes, food.

Their only argument to why cars are so expensive here is 'because we can charge that much'.

Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow > JustWaitingForAMate
12/01/2014 at 15:46

Well that sucks. :/

djmt1 > PS9
12/01/2014 at 15:58

I agree.

In the UK they started at Ł25,000 and no one bought one. Then both Toyota and Subaru reduced the price to Ł22,500 and still no one bought one.

Why?

Kinja'd!!!

The UK is Hot Hatch land. You can get a 300HP Focus ST for less than a BRZ/GT86. Also it doesn't help that past RWD cars like the MX-5 and S2000 were priced under Ł20,000.

Sweet Trav > PS9
12/01/2014 at 16:05

Wrong.

The price is right, the power is wrong. The car is fundamentally flawed in that that they did not account for the same turbo packaging as the WRX.

Not to mention the laughable torque curve.

Anyone who buys this over a WRX is a fool.

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > PS9
12/01/2014 at 16:08

Let me float this idea: Increase power and decrease price.

qbeezy > PS9
12/01/2014 at 16:14

I feel like with what it offers, it needs to be 5-6k less. Just not enough bang for the buck whuch is rarely said in reviews. Still got that shiny new protected armor.

Blunion05 drives a pink S2000 (USER WAS BANNED FOR THIS POST) > PS9
12/01/2014 at 16:40

The backseat needs to be removed, tighter engine bay, shorter wheelbase from implementing both of those nets a lighter car, less material, cheaper car.

NJAnon > PS9
12/01/2014 at 18:17

I believe that different laws and regulations can factor price. As in dealerships know the price has no ceiling/limit when "going up"! There is always a way for a car to be stacked with bloatware to make you pay even $15,000 over MSRP.

Yes that means a Nissan Versa could cost more than a FR-S or BRZ AFTER taxes.

aquila121 > PS9
12/01/2014 at 18:42

This is supposed to be an homage to the AE86 rear-wheel drive Corolla that a niche holds in very high esteem, right? To fill a void that in the car world—a lack of basic, RWD, gutless, small, fun cars that seat 2+2 and are cheap . That's what the AE86 was to the masses. That's what the golden age Honda Civics were, only front-wheel drive. Cheap, practical, decently built, basic transportation that managed to be fun.

It was never seen as a racecar when stock—the modifying community did that on their own. Toyota got the size, the layout, the balance, the visceral fun-factor without going apeshit on power. That's fine. But I agree that they dropped the ball by having to price it even (or near) other cars with "fun" in the mix [i.e. Fiesta/Focus ST, base V6 Mustangs, Hyundai Genesis, etc.] because those cars offer similar feelings of thrills behind the wheel with significantly more power.

People are saying a power upgrade would make it competitive against the aforementioned machines—I'm not arguing that—but I think the car would find more happy users willing to purchase if it were simply a cheap coupe that happened to be a blast to drive. Is that possible with the development cost involved in this model? I'm not an accountant, I just want one, but don't want to drop 26K on this thing. Twenty thousand, new, and I'd seriously look into one.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > Sweet Trav
12/05/2014 at 23:07

Not everyone cares about measuring their dick against everyone else's.

That's all a power number is; a quantification of how big your dick is represented as a number.

If you feel like the Toyobaru Twins are under powered, then by all means buy something else. But the driving experience of the WRX is absolutely NOTHING like that of the BRZ.

Those who would choose to buy the BRZ over a WRX are not idiots. They probably want a car that drives the way the BRZ does.

Power isn't everything.