Main Street Rides

History has shown us that the Japanese are not lacking in the ability to build world class sports cars.  However, whatever the reason, several of the manufactures have fallen off the map so to speak.  Nissan is still pressing forward with it’s GT-R and Z, the ralley car bad boys of Subaru and Mitsubishi still jockey for the top position, and of course Mazda still continues with the winning formula of the lightweight Miata, although it is phasing out the RX-8.

Honda and Toyota both have a platinum record in motor sports and sports cars but both recently became barren in the fun car arena.  Honda still has the Civic Si but if one is looking for a true sports car, they’ll have to go back a couple of years and buy an S2000, which is stellar by the way.  Toyota had the homely MR2 spyder a few years ago but sales were weak and they discontinued it only after a few years and the youth targeted sub brand Scion‘s Tc isn’t much of sports car at all.

Toyota fortunately made a good move and entered into a joint venture with Subaru to bring the sports cars back.  Toyota will still be ever boring here in the states as they’ll be selling it as a scion but the brain child of Subaru/Toyota will be a Toyota back home.  The Scion FR-S or the BRZ if you go with Subaru has been the talk of the town for months now as hype has been built up over the fact that Toyota is finally going to build another sports car and Subaru will be adding to it’s sports car line.  These two cars while built from the same blue print will have their differences.  The suspensions will be tuned according the respective manufacturers preferences and styling cues are slightly different but still very similar.  The FR-S will come in only one trim level with the only option consisting of Automatic or 6-speed manual, while the BRZ will have several different levels of trim, consisting mostly of interior choices.

Both cars will be powered by the Subaru derived 2.0L flat four, producing a robust 200 horsepower.  Properly following the sports car mantra, power will be through the rear wheels.  As far as affordable sports cars are concerned, the Mazda Miata is considered by many to be the best choice for driving enthusiasts that need it on the cheap.  The Miata hasn’t had much competition over the years as most other cars with similar layouts have been much more powerful and of course expensive.  Expected to weigh around 2,500 pounds these two terrors will likely cut into the Miata market that has been untouched for the most part for several years.  I’ve always been a fan of the Miata but live in a very convertible unfriendly climate and the styling of the Miata isn’t for everyone.  The Miata and BRZ are great alternatives for those that want Miata budget driving pleasure with a fixed roof.  Pricing has been listed for the two cars will be in the low $20,000 range.

For those that are big on being first, Scion is having an early release of 86 Scion FR-S’s for real enthusiasts that understand the cars roots.  The inspiration behind the FR-S is the Toyota Corolla AE86 that has become quite popular in the drifting and nostalgic japanese car clubs.  If you want to be one of the first 86 to have an FR-S, sign up here.

[Source: Motor Trend]