In the automotive world, it is a common belief that in order to get a fun, rear drive, two-door sports coupe, the more you money you spend the better the car. If you can’t afford those cars though, you are stuck with the regular, front-wheel drive, hot hatch. That primarily is the solution for those of you on the hot hatch side of the equation have come to. However, if you don’t have the money and want a rear-drive sports coupe, enter the Scion’s FR-S, and it’s twin the Subaru BRZ.
For the price of a Ford Focus ST you can have a 2+2, rear drive sports coupe that has been engineered for the driving enthusiast. It’s a sports car for the people. Ok, yes, The Mazda Miata created this segment back in 1989, and has since sold millions of the things all over the globe but a convertible isn’t always appealing to some people.
The Scion FR-S is the brainchild between Toyota, who owns Scion, and Subaru. It’s fun to find all of the Subaru badges stamped all over the inside of the the body panels. The engine is also from Subaru. It’s a revised version of the 2 liter boxer four cylinder from Subaru’s Impreza, offering 200 horsepower and 151 ft-lbs. of torque. That might not seem like a lot but it does weigh only 2,700 pounds, so will that make up for the lack of power.
It might be lightweight but this thing is not fast. It struggled to even keep up with our camera truck which was twice the weight and had twice the number of cylinders. We got 0-60 miles per hour in 7.6 seconds which is relatively quick but compared to competitors like the Nissan 370Z and the EcoBoost Mustang this thing is slow.
As for handling, this car shines. The steering is very communicative and accurate, and points the nose exactly where you want it. Pair that with the strong grip from the Prius, yes the Toyota Prius (Toyota owns Scion), it feels like you are part of the car and not hanging on for the ride like you are in some sports cars.
When it comes to design, you can tell it was designed for drivers. This means that the overall design is poor with weird lines and complicated fascias in the front and rear, but the driver can see the top of the front wheels due to the arc in the wheel arches for a more accurate vehicle placement in a corner. Inside you have a very driver centric cabin, making everything in perfect reach. couple that with the grippie sport seats, that are comfortable and supportive, just by sitting in it you can tell this car was designed for driving enthusiasts. The overall design is better than it’s twin, the BRZ, which looks like it is wearing a mouthguard and inside is just a copy of the Scion.
All in, the FR-S is a great sports car. It has a low price tag and a chassis that can hang with some of the best sports cars. The FR-S and the BRZ are great options for a true enthusiast. If you do want one though, more power is needed.
