Subaru BRZ 70% manual take rate

[Squint]

This is what I saw:

Why get a CTS-V and a CTS-V when you can have the CTS-V??? The CTS-V comes to CTS-V

And cow is right CTS-V. Why have a CTS-V when you can't enjoy it? I would be driving my CTS-V every time the CTS-V is more than a CTS-V's-throw away.

You CTS-Vs must be sick of CTS-V by now. CTS-V.

[DKaz]

Thanks for translating that, Squint, makes perfect sense now.

[bk7794]

Why get a weekend-car and a daily-grind car when you can have the best of both worlds??? The CTS-V comes to mind

And cow is right. Why have a car when you can't enjoy it? I would be driving my CTS-V every time something is more than a stone's-throw away.

You guys must be sick of me by now. .

I see where you are getting at with the why buy it if you can't enjoy it. But as Shadow said, you enjoy it on the weekend. It's something to push you through the week, something to look forward to.

Also what about ruining the car with either Salt (I live in the rust belt, my car speaks for itself), parking it in the sun, being risked by careless employees, ruining the suspension going over the crappy roads in some cities, and possibly getting it stolen if you don't work in a great area of town.

[ashowofhands]

I think a big part of the reason for the high take rate is that the automatic transmission on the FR-S/BRZ sucks.

I hardly think the kind of person who would buy a so-called "sports car" with an automatic transmission would concern themselves with how well one transmission performs over another, they wouldn't know enough about the inner workings, or driving in general, to notice a difference.

A friend of mine recently had his 2012 Impreza in for service. When it came to negotiating a loaner car, he was really pushing for something with a manual (I've never heard of dealers giving out manual loaner cars), and apparently he was offered a BRZ. To which he naturally said yes. Turns out, the BRZ was an automatic. He asked them "why would you order a BRZ with an automatic?", to which the guy at the dealer replied "that's why it's the rental, nobody wanted to buy it".

[Shadow]

I hardly think the kind of person who would buy a so-called "sports car" with an automatic transmission would concern themselves with how well one transmission performs over another, they wouldn't know enough about the inner workings, or driving in general, to notice a difference.

I disagree. If the automatic version of those cars were quicker than the manual version (which is becoming common these days), then I think there would be a lot more automatics sold. People would feel good in supporting their decision to buy the automatic because it's the "faster" version of the car. Of course die-hard stick shift drivers like us wouldn't care if the slushbox is faster or not, but I'm talking about the average FR-S/BRZ buyer, not people like us. As it is now, the manual version of the car is significantly faster than the slush, so it's a win-win for stick shift fans.

[six]

CTS-V

I see where you are getting at with the why buy it if you can't enjoy it. But as Shadow said, you enjoy it on the weekend. It's something to push you through the week, something to look forward to.

Also what about ruining the car with either Salt (I live in the rust belt, my car speaks for itself), parking it in the sun, being risked by careless employees, ruining the suspension going over the crappy roads in some cities, and possibly getting it stolen if you don't work in a great area of town.

You bring up a valid point, but aside from having it stolen, I really don't care much about everything else. Salt? I live in California. Parking in the sun? That's fine. Being risked by careless employess? I'm assuming it's an autocorrected "nicked," to which I don't care about nicks, scratches, etc. If I wanted the car to remain perfect, I wouldn't be driving it. Ruining the suspension? The suspension can handle it; I'd more worry about bent rims and blowouts.

Cosmetic things don't worry me much. I don't care if the car is scratched up like it went through a car wash with belt-sanders, as long as the integrity of the body is intact and the performance remains, that's all that matters (just as long as there isn't any obscene or profane things scratched into it, aka "defaced"). I know people who couldn't sleep at night when their new car gets its first scratch. I really don't understand that behavior. Whether it's a 1996 Civic DX or a 2012 Ferrari 458 Italia, I really don't care. The Civic is cheap, don't care. I would buy the Ferrari for its performance, not because it doesn't have scratches. I understand I'm in the minority here. . If this outrages you, I apologize. I buy cars for their performance and features, not to keep it scratch and dent free.

[theholycow]

Every time I've acquired a brand new or like-new vehicle, I'd be all freaked out about it for a while, and of course it's not long before something happens...a scratch, a door ding in a parking lot, whatever. I feel like I should just whack it with a hammer the day I get it home so that I can relax immediately.

Salt isn't THAT scary. Half-assed care will prevent any severe damage, and putting actual love into the car will keep it as close to perfect as it needs to be. Look, wasn't it the 1970s and 1980s when American cars were built badly? Yet, my 1980 Buick, driven by my grandmother in RI winters and not washed for 30 years, is pretty decent. Flare nuts are seized to their steel lines but everything else is pretty cooperative. It was undercoated; you could get your potential garage queen undercoated too.

The aforementioned issues of practicality, for some really unpleasant cars, are a little more important IMO...but with a car like that I think I'd rather just go all the way and trailer a race car to a track than take an unpleasantly stiff ride to nowhere important in a fast car on slow roads with uncomfortable seats once a week for 3 months out of the year.

[Shadow]

I've seen lots of cars that have been severely damaged by salt....and I'm not just talking about body damage or cosmetic damage. As someone who works on cars, corrosion from salt is by far the biggest headache when doing any kind of underbody or suspension work.

I'll have to take a picture of my 4Runner's undercarriage and post it up. The body looks 100% perfect. Not so much as a light scratch or a ding in any panel. But from underneath, it looks like hell. Of course it has been through 8 New York winters, so it has had plenty of salt exposure over the years. Still though, I've always tried to be diligent about keeping the undercarriage clean. And every spring, I pull out the powerwasher and spend a lot of time spraying every crack and crevice underneath the vehicle.

Years ago, I remember my father had to junk his Blazer because the frame rot rendered it unsafe. I think it was about 10 years old at the time. It was a real shame because it was in great shape other than the rotting frame.

[Squint]

Cow, first time I nicked something on the Fiesta, I felt terrible. For like a couple of days. Then I was fine again.

Under the front bumper, there is a plastic cover that's maybe a foot deep from front to back. It's held on by 4-6 plastic push pins and I'm fairly certain it is there to give a tiny improvement to fuel economy/prevent little things from bouncing up into the front of the car. We were getting ready to leave for the first long trip from the apartment where we lived in WV, and the parking spots were sloped forward, toward the curb and drain. I pushed in the clutch without being on the brake enough and the car rolled forward and clipped the curb. It was at the perfect height to pop out 2 or 3 of the plastic push pins which caused the cover to drop down. I picked up a couple of the pins, pushed them back in and then we left.

Then I realized, s*@# happens and nothing bad happened besides a little scrape to the plastic thing on the bottom of the car.

[theholycow]

Squint, that thing may be there to control air flow to the radiator for proper cooling as well as for fuel economy.

[bk7794]

I guess its a car. They are outside and things are going to happen to them. As long as your not deliberately beating the crap out of it then its ok.

[Squint]

I guess its a car. They are outside and things are going to happen to them. As long as your not deliberately beating the crap out of it then its ok.

This is roughly how I look at it. Yes, I want to protect it. But it is just a giant, very useful, very expensive tool. And when you use tools, eventually stuff happens. So if you get a nick or scratch here or there, it's fine.

[AHTOXA]

So far, not a single nick or scratch or dent on the Sonic. I don't park in populated areas much, which helps. I know I'm going to get a few though, it's just a matter of time.

[Squint]

So far, not a single nick or scratch or dent on the Sonic. I don't park in populated areas much, which helps. I know I'm going to get a few though, it's just a matter of time.

Who here is in Texas? And wants to be the first to scratch a Sonic??

[fr4n]

my car is in showroom condition. i made it that way after hours and hours and hours of detailing.

the car is the most expensive piece of vanity i possess, i cant risk it being hit or ruined in anyway, cos my wallet will tear my asshole apart in revenge for the repair costs.

it also has extremely stiff suspension, cant get into ecertain parking lots and has a ceramic clutch, making it un bearable at times