What the 2012 FR-S Really Means for Scion |
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Article Date: Wed, June 8, 2011
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When the new rear-wheel drive 2012 Scion FR-S hits showrooms it will send wide ranging ripples throughout the sport compact scene. The first rear-wheel drive sports car with serious performance potential to wear the Scion badge, the FR-S will bring new energy and customers to the brand.
While models like the Scion tC have been popular, very few people looking for a high performance car have sought them out. Scion has been the “youth brand”, selling hip cars to first time buyers who are on a shoestring budget. The FR-S will be a new halo car for the Scion showroom, an aspiration car who’s image will help sell other models next to them.
But there is a lot more to it than that. The FR-S and its Subaru cousin will be the first credible low-priced entry into the rear-wheel drive sports car realm from Japan in many years. When you stop and think about what that means to the import sport compact scene which has been in a coast down in the past few years, it becomes a sea change.
When you consider the next closest thing to buyers is the now defunct the Honda S2000, the much more pricey Nissan 370Z or the decidedly girly Mazda MX-5 you have a magic weapon boy racer that will steal all the limelight. Thy Hyundai Genesis Coupe is a close contender, but more of a grand tourer than sports car.
Because the new FR-S will be shared between both a Subaru and Scion model, the aftermarket will be motivated and able to offer an infinite cavalcade of engine and suspension parts to really make it fly. Because the FR-S will use proven Subaru powertrains that already have huge aftermarket support, the selection of power adders will be there almost the day the car lands in showrooms.
Aftermarket companies who often make their choices to offer products for a car based on economies of scale will have a lot of confidence in developing a lot of items they might not have if this was only a car of low volume.
And the parts we will be getting will be well beyond the poseur parts that make up most of what you can get for the Scion xB, xD, and tC. No offense to TRD and the manufacturers who make all the cool stuff for the current Scion range, but when it comes to adding major performance to the cars, the palette of parts available is very thin and limited to one or two brands.
Enter Formula Drift. With its rear-wheel drive configuration and low price tag, the FR-S becomes a perfect fit for professional and amateur drifters alike. Scion and Subaru both will likely campaign big team money into the sport with their cars. Subaru at least will likely have a turbo-charged variant on the showrooms for their car. Whether Scion will offer a high-zoot FR-S is unknown. But you can bet owners will be adding them and getting slideways at track events around the country.
Scion will be able to put Tanner Foust behind the wheel of an FR-S for their drift racing program instead of a rear-wheel NASCAR one-off race-built machine with a FWD tC body around it. That will be worth some marketing credibility points and showrooms sales alone.
It looks to be an exciting time for Scion in the coming years. We can’t wait to see the first waves of parts at the first SEMA Show after the FR-S arrives. You can bet we will be at the H&R Springs, Koni, Eibach, Greddy, AEM, Seibon, Garrett, Turbonetics, Whiteline and TRD booths hanging out like flies.
http://sciclonic.com/2011/05/what-the-2012-fr-s-really-means-for-scion/ |
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