I put a deposit down on a new car today (BRZ)

[Razi]

I don't think you can say they designed it incorrectly because they're trying to make the door do something useful except open and close.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Okay, let me come at that from the other angle:

The BRZ appears to be a well-engineered car. I find it hard to believe two pieces of stick-on metal are going to make any difference.

If it was a 1976 Monte Carlo, I might see a need for a "door stabilizer."

[TurboSauce]

Look at it like a sun roof, doesn't make MAJOR difference to the car, and is up to the preference of the driver/owner if it's wanted or not. It's not necessary really.

[Razi]

I don't think this is an option though, it comes with the TRD package.

[Eikon]

they may call it a stabilizer, but I think it's mostly cosmetic.

[BusyBadger]

Be sure to budget plenty of money to pick up some parts cars.

You know kids that have been driving Scion's "sporty" tC are going to want to step into the FRS. And going from the oversteering, unflappable tC to the neutral handling FRS will give them a first-hand demo of lift-off oversteer. I wonder what the over-under for totalled FRS's is for the first year?

[Eikon]

There will be a ton of crashed FRS's! Too many young morons thinking they can be Ken Gushi in their neighborhoods..

I'm worried about insurance premiums going sky-high after the first round of owners start squishing their cars.

[2010alticoupe]

Congrats On the BRZ bro
I'm scheduled to get my fr-s on the first of June.

[Jesda]

Fun factoid:

Early 80s Cadillac Eldorados wandered all over the road so badly that dealers were instructed to put heavy steel plates on the undersides of the cars.

Now THOSE were stabilizers.

[Eikon]

Congrats On the BRZ bro
I'm scheduled to get my fr-s on the first of June.

Thanks man! I'm sure you are just as excited as I am.

I'm assuming mine should arrive at my dealership sometime this week. I guess a few were delivered in Indiana yesterday, so they are out on trucks from Chicago and heading out to the other states in the Midwest.

I've also heard they have been delivered to ports on the East and West coasts and are getting ready to deliver all over the country.

I know the Scion models are all over the country sitting in storage yards ready to distribute for a coordinated June 1 release date.

[Eikon]

Still no word on my car coming in. Though I do know that a few have been delivered in MI and Ohio.. so it must be really close.


I'll leave this little nugget for your viewing enjoyment.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ronU4dy ... r_embedded[/youtube]

[bigbadberry3]

Saw them at my subie dealership today. Hope no one is joy riding in yours

[Eikon]

My car better have only a few miles on it when I pick it up.

I got an email from my salesman today.. I guess there is a big logistics jam right now and it seems that they have some cars already overdue and running late. So, bad luck on that front. He thinks it will come on Tuesday since all the truck drivers are off for the three day weekend.

I'm a little unhappy about it.. I've been waiting a while and I was one of the first people to have a VIN assigned, but one of the last to get their cars from the first batch I guess.. Oh well.. I have a ton of work going on over the weekend and early next week.. so I suppose I'll be more productive w/out the distraction of having the new car.

[TurboSauce]

whoops meant for teh learned'd'd''d

[Eikon]

Salesman told me today that my car has arrived at the dealership.

I'm in MI for the week, so I can't pick it up until Friday or Sat. But I should have it in a few more days!

[bigbadberry3]

Salesman told me today that my car has arrived at the dealership.

I'm in MI for the week, so I can't pick it up until Friday or Sat. But I should have it in a few more days!

Want me to help you out

[Eikon]

If you want to drive 5 hours to Cleveland, you're welcome to come visit!

I wish you could have brought the car from Chicago to Cleveland for me almost 2 weeks ago when it arrived at the Railhead and then sat there for no reason for so long.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

I bet hundreds of people will be putting their d!ck beaters all over that thing while it sits at the stealership.

[Eikon]

Thank you James.. that makes me feel sooo much better.


Edit* Got a report from a local guy just now:

"Originally Posted by stevepoz
I saw your car today at Brunswick Subaru... Safely stored in the back lot, but I got to check out the WRB color. My original Sterling Silver showed up today as well, but I changed mine to WRB a few weeks after I ordered and now have to wait until mid-late June for delivery... Car looks sweet! I sat in the Silver one and asked to take it overnight, as they were trying to get me to buy it today instead of waiting for the WRB one I actually ordered but I declined... Can't wait to get mine!

[Eikon]

I believe I'll be picking up the car tonight.

I'll post pictures when I can.. though it may be dark already by the time I get the chance.

[nissangirl74]

Park it under a street light and take a few shots. WE WANT TO SEE IT!!!

[IanS]

So who wants to sponsor me to build one of these into a rally car? I want.

[Eikon]

I picked up my car last night. LOVE IT!!! I can't imagine a better new car for $25k..(paid invoice for it )

So.. what do I think about the BRZ:
I won't try to use dazzling terms and talk about lots of technology.. I'm not expert enough to use those terms properly. I'll leave that to others who are more experienced and qualified. But I'll give my honest opinion and layman's terms..

This car was born to turn. I've got an idea in my mind to take a photo and add a caption to best explain what the car is like: I'm going to find a yellow road sign warning of curves ahead with a 15mph or 25mph speed warning.. then take a picture of the back end of the BRZ under the sign and add the caption.. "More Please!". I've never driven a car that is so willing to turn.


Subaru/Toyota did a fantastic job putting together an affordable sports car platform. They clearly had monetary constraints as they weren't building another STI or LFA or other supercar.. So you don't get the fire-breathing motor or the supercar technology. But, most of us can't afford that anyway.. So for the price, they presented the best car they could, and they gave us a fantastic value. They clearly put a lot of time and energy into perfecting a platform that will be an instant classic.


The car just lives to turn. For the duration of my hour long maiden voyage I found myself scanning ahead in hopes of seeing those wonderul "curvy road ahead" signs. Each time I saw one, my heart lept with joy. When you come up to a corner in a BRZ, you don't process the normal thoughts of "how much do I need to slow down before I enter the turn and how much speed will scrub off just from the process of making a turn?" In the BRZ, the tighter the turn the better.. Each one is a joy. You visualize the nose of the car turning in, turn the wheel and it instantly obeys your commands. It doesn't nose-dive, load the suspension, scrub the sidewalls and make you just hold on until you get through the turn.. Instead, it just dives in.. level, confident, balanced, and HAPPY to do it. It doesn't scrub off speed or threaten to oversteer.. it just turns. It's a go-kart!


This is certainly a change of pace from the prototypical sports car.. We're used to a product design that starts with engine power and adapts the rest of the car to work around that feature as well as it can. Some manufacturers are better at this than others of course.. With the BRZ, it seems like the engine was picked more for it's physical characteristics than it's power output. This has some benefits and some drawbacks of course. In case you didn't know already.. this car was born to turn. The lightweight, low to the ground boxer motor helps immensely in this goal. So if you find your joy in turning the wheel and carving through corners, this motor certainly helps put a smile on your face. If you find joy in that "push your head back" forward acceleration, you will be dissapointed with this motor. It's just not fast. Through very narrow gearing, it manages to feal peppy and just powerful enough to get you to the next set of corners, but it's not going to give you much fun in those straights. I'm a little dissapointed by the motor.. I have to admit. Though, I will also admit that I have been "breaking it in" easily. I'm still keeping it under 4k RPMS, so I know I haven't unlocked the "loves to rev" feature that others have bragged about. Still, I can tell by the feel of the 1k to 4k RPM range that this will not be a fast car in a straight line. At least not yet..


If you like to row gears, this car is for you! I believe Toyota had most of the influence on the clutch and transmission so I'll give them high praise and a little bit of a hard time. I've driven a lot of manual transmission cars in the past and I've needed to do "short-shifter" modifications in some prior cars I've owned in order to clean up the throws. This car needs no short shifter kit.. any shorter and you would be using the trackball on a laptop computer to select gears. In stock form the throw from gear to gear seems little more than moving a mouse from the top of your screen to the bottom. It's fantastic! The gates are clear and defined with little concern for missing a gear. The motions are fluid from 2-3 and 4-5 and vice versa so you don't feel like you are hunting to find the right gate. I'm still getting used to the position and throws and I'm sure this will only continue to get better. The clutch is great.. very light. I can see adding power in the future and adding a heavier clutch to harness it.. but for the 150ft lbs in oem form.. the clutch feel is great. Engagement is a little high on the pedal, but then you get to it quicker, so that's a time saving feature as well and should lend to better performance driving.


Despite all the positives on the trans/clutch/shifter.. I do have a compaint. Again this is my personal feeling, and may not be a very valid "technical" or "expert" opinion. I think the gearing is much too short. I understand that short gearing can compensate for a less powerful engine.. I get that.. It's true that the engine is weak, and longer gearing would make that feel a little worse.. But I'd prefer it that way.. I've already resigned myself to the idea that this car is no mustang in the straights. For normal driving, you just have to shift too often. I suspect I'll start the habit of skipping gears for certain times in daily driving. I haven't driven it faster than 60 so far.. no highway cruising yet.. so I can't say first had that it winds up too high for highway driving.. But I can say that it has more than enough usable torque to drive in the 50mph range in 6th gear.. What that means to me is that 6th gear is wasted.. Make it an old fashioned "overdrive".. A gear that has a low enough ratio that you can cruise on the highway at 65 to 75 mph in the lowest usable revs. I have no problem down shifting to pass or if I'm heading up a steep grade. I see no reason why the motor couldn't sustain 2400 rpms at 70mph.. why does it need to be over 3000? I know I didn't buy a Prius.. so I'm not expecting 45 mpg.. but still.. I'll never use 6th gear on the racetrack, so I see no need to keep the consistently short gear ratios all the way through to 6th.. make it more efficient! From what I've read recently, it sounds like it may be possible to direct swap a 3.7 rear end in place of the current 4.1. That might be an excellent cure! Not only will it make the car more fuel efficient for now, but as we increase engine power, the short gearing issue will only compound my frustration.. having more power will lesson the need to make the car seam fast through gearing.. longer gears will then make it more usable. I think this may be a very good fix. http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7190


The ride is nice for a sports car.. It doesn't seem to make the same trade-off as many sports cars.. You normally need an ultra-firm suspension to make a car handle like this.. The BRZ somehow doesn't. It's no Lexus or Cadillac to be sure. You feel the bumps.. It's not going to be a relaxing cruiser that gobbles up the miles in serenity and peace and quiet. But that's not what I bought the car for.. It's comfortable enough that I don't dread driving on rough city streets. I bought the car for fun.. I can daily drive this car.


The size of this car is surprising to me. I've seen at car shows a few times and I've seen the comparisons to other vehicles (ie.. miata, gen coupe, etc..). From the outside, it seems smaller in person than what I was expecting.. but it doesn't strangely small either. It's a nice tight little package. From the inside, it's surprisingly spacious in the front seats. I was shocked at how much lateral space there is in the cabin. Unlike a miata.. I have a ton of space between myself and the door. Plenty of head room.. no worry there. They really perfected the seating position within the ****pit. It's perfect. You wear the car like a glove, but don't feel like you need a shoehorn to fit inside. The front seats are really well bolstered. I'm a big guy (nearly 275lbs), but I fit in the seats just fine. If I were much shorter than 6', I would probably find them uncomfortable, but I'm tall enough that they seats widen out around my shoulders and really do fit be very well. I think the only complaint I might have with the seats is that my left leg feels a little tight with the thigh bolsters on the seat bottom. It's not bad though. The back seat on the other hand... smaller than I expected and I have seen a lot of pictures, so I thought I was prepared for it. Still, my 3 year old and 6 year old boys will fit in there and I don't think they will complain. The trunk is wide and long, and the seats fold down nicely. However, it's still a very small trunk.. mostly due to height.. it's just not a tall trunk at all.


I'm pleased with the quality of the interior. I opted for the premium because I didn't feel that alcantera, heated seats, spoiler, and auto-climate control and keyless start were worth the upgrades for my taste. I think the cloth seats are fantastic.. they do not feel cheap at all. I like the manual climate controls.. I hate how auto-controls seem to always want to have the a/c compressor on. Manual is best for me personally. The Nav system seems more responsive than the demo video I saw in another thread. It's not as quick as my touchscreen phone of course.. but I didn't find it to be frustratingly slow to respond. I was relieved of that. I haven't messed around with the blu-tooth sync yet or anything really regarding the audio setting, etc.. So I'll report back on that later.


So what do I think of the overall package.. It's fanstic!!! For $25k, I can't imagine a much better product.. Sure, I'd like more torque and taller gears, but those are my only real complaints thus far. It's a great package.. a perfect platform. I've said this before, but I'll say it once more here.. I bought the car for the platform. I think it's the best thing out there under $30k. I think with another $10k in performance mods it will be the best thing out there for under $40k.. and perhaps even under $50k. If you buy a $50k car with a bad platform, you'll never really get anywhere with it. If you buy a $30k car with a fantastic platform, you can turn it into something really special. I look forward to that journey.



I'll edit this thread with pics and more details in the future.

Upcoming plans: Test fit some 18 x 9.5 wheels with adaptors.. I'm sure they won't fit, but it should be interesting to see what they look like anyway.
Exhaust.. I believe i'll be getting a prototype exhaust from BRM. I'm excited to see how that turns out.
Window tint.. probably just a light tint.. 50% maybe?

[AppleBonker]

Excellent preliminary review. I will have to find a way to drive one some day. Glad you're happy so far though. Now get back out there and drive some more!

[PapaSmurf2k3]

NICE. What's the ETA on the exhaust? I want to hear that boxer purr!

And how long are you going to nancy it under 4k?

[Eikon]

Not sure on the exhaust yet. I gather the test fit at BRM will be done on Monday, but it could take them a while to complete a jig and start building them... so it's hard to say.

I'll nancy it until at least 500 miles.. so sometime tomorrow. j/k. I have 150 miles on in a day though.

[bigbadberry3]

[nissangirl74]

Congrats!!! I fully expect to see this thing on the track at Carlisle next year!

[Bubba1]

Congrats!!! I fully expect to see this thing on the track at Carlisle next year!

+1

[Eikon]

Congrats!!! I fully expect to see this thing on the track at Carlisle next year!

For sure!

Coming today! I haven't seen the sun since I got the car. Today I will get some pics for sure.