Renting an FR-S Tomorrow

[c0rbin9]

You guys may never see me again, tomorrow I have the opportunity to drive around an FR-S all day - might make me think twice about dailying a 26 year old BMW!

Will update thread with comparison results.

In case anyone is wondering, I'm renting the FR-S from the Turo app, sort of an Uber except with people renting out their private automobiles. Filter by transmission: manual - and bam, a bunch of cool cars for rent for pretty reasonable prices. There was also a 2011 Shelby GT500 available for $20 more, but I'm crazy and would rather try out the FR-S.

[Powling]

Congrats?

I rent a white cargo van every so often for work. Its also rwd, I'll do a comparison too.

[haaken675]

I owned an FR-S for 3 years. Was a great little car. I do miss it every once and a while. Killer handling, decent looking, relatively inexpensive...

[c0rbin9]

I'm joking about the FR-S being able to replace an E30. Still will be an interesting comparison.

[James Crivellone]

I test drove one a few years ago when they came out, the lack of power and awful interior, both in ergonomics and cheap quality really put me off.. in the end its a cheaply made car imho.

[Matt-B]

You guys may never see me again, tomorrow I have the opportunity to drive around an FR-S all day - might make me think twice about dailying a 26 year old BMW!

On behalf of e30s everywhere

sorry to bother you with my friendship and quality built cars

[ELVA164]

I for one am looking forward to the comparison. It's the closest a new car has been to an E30 in a while, so I support supporting it.

[IceWhite]

^Haha. Dude, couldn't you find a bigger pic?

[LateFan]

from the Turo app, sort of an Uber except with people renting out their private automobiles.

wait....people would rent their own cars out to total strangers to rod around in......?

[parkerbink]

I hope you enjoyed it. I would not like lending my Brother my car forget renting to a stranger.

[haaken675]

I hope you enjoyed it. I would not like lending my Brother my car forget renting to a stranger.

Right? I don't even like valeting my car...

[stonea]

wait....people would rent their own cars out to total strangers to rod around in......?

But they charge outrageous rates though. I looked into it to get a car while my e30 was in the shop, but it was cheaper to rent a car through enterprise for 2 weeks than getting a car on Turo for several days. I bet you could buy a brand new 2017 car and make its payments by renting it out on Turo.

[c0rbin9]

First off - this thing ain't replacing the E30, that's for sure. I'll get to those reasons later.

I had a few opportunities to take some curvy roads and my takeaway was that dynamically, the FR-S is very impressive. I'm no pro driver, but I think I know what the motoring journalists mean when they say that the FR-S is "balanced". Even though the grip is good and the limits are relatively high, the way the rear end steps out is totally manageable - and step out it does. However, it is somehow still very confidence inspiring in a way that my E30 isn't. The front and back axles seem to be in harmony somehow - with the E30 sometimes the back has a mind of its own.* Steering feel was good, not as much vibration as the E30, but it's quality over quantity here - what feedback you do get is very informative. Shifter feels totally different - way shorter - than a stock E30 setup.

One thing I didn't like was the clutch. For reasons I do not understand, it isn't linear. It starts off light, gets heavier, and then light again where the friction point is. Makes it difficult to start off perfectly smoothly, at least for me.

Did driving it put a smile on my face? It sure did. It's amazing that Subaru/Toyota has created such a driver's car considering how modern cars are these days.

And that "how modern cars are" - that's the area where I prefer the E30. There are certain disadvantages to modern cars that automotive journalists just don't talk about - presumably because there is no alternative. Most any modern car in comparison to an E30, FR-S included, is going to have worse visibility, less interior room, higher beltline, annoying safety designs, etc. Another thing is the driving feel. Even though the FR-S is apparently one of the best modern cars at doing "feel", it can't compare to something older like an E30. The E30 scintillates with frenetic energy from the moment you turn the key - you can feel it as vibration through the steering wheel, friction in the clutch, tires contacting the road, etc. The FR-S is numb by comparison, though this evaporates somewhat when closer to the limit. Another area where the FR-S doesn't compare is interior quality - switchgear, materials, etc. - doesn't feel as nice as a stock E30 interior.

All in all I enjoyed the FR-S. It seemed to get better the harder I pushed it. Overall, I come away from the experience more thankful to have the car I do.

*Full disclosure: my E30 has worn, stock suspension, which is sure to diminish the handling somewhat, so it's hard to compare driving dynamics.

[c0rbin9]

A few other observations:

-E30 has better throttle response
-The ride quality in the FR-S was great for smooth backroads, but a little tiresome on bad city streets
-E30 feels much smaller despite similar dimensions
-The weight feels further back in the FR-S. E30 feels more front-heavy.

[Stanley Rockafella]

However, it is somehow still very confidence inspiring in a way that my E30 isn't.

*Full disclosure: my E30 has worn, stock suspension, which is sure to diminish the handling somewhat, so it's hard to compare driving dynamics.

bingo

Come back to us when you've sorted out your suspension. Once you do you'll finally see why the e30 is still rated highly after so many years.

Sadly, many owners fail to replace these critical bushings resulting in less than stellar performance.

I also had an opportunity to drive an FRS/BRZ when they first came out and I was selling Toyota/Scion. Maybe because the car was too new, but I didn't find anything appealing. Sure it's small, light, simple and RWD (something most cars lack these days) but it just didn't feel very connected to the road.