I'd lean toward the Spec Twin class, to not only sell magazines and help the cars.
But embarrass a Cayman at a track day? Can I get a shipment of what you're ingesting? :)
Do you want to drive the latest “It” car, but can’t quite afford to buy one used from a dealer? Barring an amazing Craigslist deal, there’s really only one other avenue: Hit up an insurance salvage auction and hope you can find a car that’s easily repairable but not overpriced. We’ve written extensively about that before–check out Ran When Wrecked–so we won’t bore you by rehashing that tale.
We will tell you about our daily driver, though: A 2015 Scion FR-S. We badly wanted a BRZ/FR-S/Toyota 86 back in 2016, but couldn’t stomach the prices we saw on dealer lots. Instead, we bought this lightly damaged example from a Copart auction. Including the taxes and fees, we scored this one-year-old car for $13,718. It had 21,000 miles and some very minor damage. After replacing the right-rear hub and airbag module, we had a nearly perfect FR-S to drive to work. We didn’t do any body work, so aside from the rebuilt title the only signs our car was ever on a Copart lot are two small paint blemishes: One on the left rear wheel arch, and another on the rocker near the driver’s door. Why was our car on Copart? Part of the fun (and the risk) is that we’ll never really know the full story. Our best guess is that the insurance company declined the repair after weighing the risk of hidden damage against the relatively high auction value of our barely-damaged car. It’s also helpful to look at the damage the way a body shop would: We see a scuff on the front bumper cover as a minor issue, while they see repairing and repainting the entire piece. Because the accident gave our car four damaged panels by our count, it was most likely facing quite a bill at the body shop.
So where has our Scion been for the past two years? Driving, of course. We’ve put 35,000 additional miles on the car, adding only fuel and a set of 17x9” XXR wheels along the way. But now we’re ready for more: This won’t be a full-on GRM Project Car series, but rather a mission limited in time and scope: Without missing a single daily commute, can we turn our FR-S’s knobs to 11 on track? We’re betting that with some simple modifications (and a turbo), we’ll have the best of both worlds: A perfectly streetable daily driver that can embarrass a Porsche Cayman at a track day.
I'd lean toward the Spec Twin class, to not only sell magazines and help the cars.
But embarrass a Cayman at a track day? Can I get a shipment of what you're ingesting? :)
Nice score!
z31maniac - You may be underestimating the emotional investment Porsche owners can sometimes make buying the car and then taking it to a track day. A Cayman pilot could be embarrassed if any car that isn't a Porsche or doesn't have double the power is able to hang with their chariot of choice at a track day. Not all P-car drivers are this way. It often depends on the amount of Porsche kool-aid they've ingested or how much of their manhood is represented by this upscale purchase.
Unless you are a real hot shoe, you will be embarrassed on track day.
Nicely prepared SCCA racers will tell you. One friend was passed by an instructor. Left him in the dust. The instructor was driving his stock Suburban. Heh!
This car is one of many I have been looking at as my next car. Prices and (relative) rarity makes the used price a tad bit steep on low mileage examples. For some reason, the Subaru version is more expensive than the Toyota version.
But, at least there is a fair amount of info on the internet about them and the cars themselves are attractive for no other reason than they aren't all grey or silver on dealer's lots.
I have six years on my FRS and can vouch for them being a good driver's car; just rolling tends to improve my mood.
My inclination based on what I have gleaned on the net is that I would not ask the Subaru engine to provide any more HP than what it left the factory with. The minimalist weight requirement includes the engine internals, and while they are up to the job for a DD, do not ask them to do more than that unless you like buying engines.
By the way, Boxer engines are almost dumb enough to make me want a rotary! Is there actually a rationale or mitigating reasoning for the boxer design?
Pete
I recently traded in my 2016 MX-5 Club (soft top) for a new ride. I strongly considered the improved 2019 MX-5 RF, but ultimately decided on a 2018 Subaru BRZ with about 2,500 miles on it. I have always been interested and involved in cars and trucks and aftermarket improvements to them. That's another story - my current plan for the BRZ includes sourcing a relatively new FA24 turbocharged boxer engine from a totaled 2019 Subaru Ascent. I am relatively sure that engine will not be limited to the Ascent for too much longer.
Catless header + E85 tune is worth 25-30whp and a bunch of midrange. The engine is not a problem.
Edelbrock will even do a 3/36k warranty with their supercharger. on the drivetrain. The 2013-2014 cars have different valve retainers, so don't raise the redline. And the transmissions don't like much more than 250wtq with hard use.
Turbo engines from other Subaru's don't fit without entirely new exhaust setups. JDL and Full Race make the best options available for FI on these cars.
You can also stuff 265/35/18s under the stock fenders.
I dig your style dude.
I've had mine since late January. It's a 2015 FR-S, had 46k on the clock at time of purchase and it's up to like 63.5k now. So far just routine maintenance, although the car is currently overdue for plugs since I have been procrastinating on that job. Bone stock aside from the Sparco winter wheels seen above and Rally Armor mudflaps.
I love it as a four season daily, does fine in the snow with Blizzaks. Not the quietest inside in terms of road noise, but it rides well and the ergonomics are just about perfect for me. Handling is great, it's the quickest I've ever been able to get comfortable with driving a car fast. I've autocrossed it twice so far and turned times on all seasons embarassingly close to what my RX7 primary auto x rig would run. It's just much more forgiving to drive, though to be fair the Mazda still needs sorting.
My only serious complaint isn't so much the power, or suppossed lack thereof, but more so the way it is delivered (of course more never hurts.) The torque dip is well known, and it is super annoying. I pretty much just find myself winding it out to 5k+ all the time. Some day I'll do a tune and headers, and that help in the midrange should make it a much more enjoyable powertrain, I think.
I did a similar thing for a track toy...picked up a 2013 BRZ with only 25,000 miles for $3,500, put $5,000 into it (doing all the work but paint myself) to get it safe, street legal and titled in Florida. Then came the modifications (brakes, coilovers, safety equipment, full exhaust and a ECUtek tune) and now it is a super reliable and quick track car. Definitely the best way to go, much better financially than buying one the regular way. Currently has almost 30,000 miles and spends most of it's time buzzing around Sebring, AMP and Road Atlanta. I'd highly recommend going this route for those who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty. Full blog including the rebuild and track adventures (and some misadventures) is here: http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120916
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