lamboblogging

I purchased my Toyota 86 brand new in Dec 2018 after I got fed up with my 2011 Chevy Cruze's horrible reliability and traded it in. After nearly 7 months and 12k miles, I figured I'd share my experience with it so far.

Other Cars I've Owned

2007 Honda S2000

2008 Honda S2000 CR

2009 Chevy Cobalt SS coupe

2011 Chevy Cruze Eco (yuck... It's weird that I still miss this car, even though ownership of this PoS was stressful. I just get too attached to cars that I own!)

Other Cars I Considered Buying

ND Miata: I couldn't justify owning a two-seater as my commuter.

Mustang Ecoboost: I love the Mustang, but I wanted something a bit more unique. I see Mustangs everywhere every single day. This isn't to say that the 86 is a rare car, but compared to a Mustang, it certainly is. I also decided that I wanted something lightweight, and with the Mustang Ecoboost pushing past 3500 lbs, it just wasn't for me. One more thing I considered was cost of insurance. My 86 costs me $94/month for full coverage insurance through Mercury Insurance. I was quoted $280/mo for full coverage on the Mustang Ecoboost. I didn't even bother getting quotes for the Mustang GT's insurance.

Nissan 370Z: See FD Miata. The fuel economy and curb weight were also not what I desired, although the car has plenty of power to keep a person entertained for years.

Honda S2000: 😥 I want another one so bad, but again, see FD Miata.

BMW 335i: questionable reliability, 3500+ lb curb weight, and expensive maintenance costs drew me away. With insurance also being a major factor, this car wasn't for me.

Honda Civic Type-R: none of the dealerships in SoCal would sell the car for MSRP or anywhere close to it. The cheapest markup was well over $5k. One dealership even quoted me $48k otd for a Type-R. I'm not paying luxury car prices for a Civic, no matter how great the new Type-R is.

Subaru WRX: I was willing to cave on my RWD/curb weight requirements after I test drove a 2016 WRX. I loved it. Then I saw insurance costs of over $300/mo for me (Male - age 29 - two speeding tickets from previous motorcycle ownership) and I decided against it.

Performance

If you're looking for straight line speed, well, this is /r/Cars. You guys already know better.

In my honest opinion, the 86 is as close to a modern S2000 with cargo space as you can get. RWD, <3000 lbs curb weight, built for the twistiest of twisty roads. It's not as rev-happy as an S2000, but it provides an exhilaration I haven't experienced since I sold my S2K back in Dec 2010. It took me 8 years, but I finally found a car I can adore and enjoy as much as I did the S2000 without sacrificing space for work-related and child hauling duties. Just look at my trunk. What the picture isn't showing is a full fridge worth of groceries that I packed further into the trunk.

The Twins handle like street legal go-karts. Turn the steering wheel in any direction and these cars will make you feel like you're driving on rails. It's honestly amazing. I haven't had fun like this since I sold my last sportbike in early 2018.

Styling

I live in SoCal, where it's hard to draw attention from anyone if you're not in an expensive supercar or luxury car. Even the coolest of BMW M cars and Mercedes AMGs get ignored on a daily basis.

However, I still spot people checking my car out constantly. I know some people hate the new front bumper on the 86 compared to the FR-S's front end, but I think the headlights and tail lights more than make up for it. I love the way this car looks. It just screams "Sexy" from a distance, and I constantly find myself turning around to stare at it any time I park and walk away.

The 86 looks tiny until I park next to something like a first-gen Miata, but compared to other modern cars, my 86 is definitely a small car.

Fuel Economy

I average 27 mpg on my daily commute. The highest I've averaged on a full tank was 30.8 mpg, and the lowest I've gotten so far was 25.2 mpg after a long day of hitting local canyon roads and being stuck in SoCal's typical stop-and-go traffic. I hit 300+ miles to a full tank of gas. Unfortunately, I do visit gas stations too often because I average at least 300 miles every 2.5 days! If I had to guess, I think I drive 60% highway/40% city, but as some of you know, even highway in SoCal means being stuck in traffic, so it's not the same highway mileage that a person living in a less populated area will experience.

Reliability

12k miles in, I've only needed an oil change.

I'm going to follow Toyota's recommended maintenance plan. 12k miles isn't a lot until you consider that I've put all of those miles on my car from February until now. In Dec and January, I only put 500 miles on the odometer because I had my wife's old Toyota Matrix to daily. Now I daily my 86 and I've been racking the miles up too quick for comfort.

Long Term Goals

Just as my dad has done with his first brand new vehicle purchase (a 1989 Toyota pickup that he bought in 1988), I plan to keep my car forever. I've even named her Tiana because, like the Disney character, she's my black princess (😅)!

As far as mods go, I think Toyota/Subaru engineers made the car perfect handling-wise, but the torque dip is an annoyance. I intend to get a tune and UEL header in a few months as I hear this combo gets rid of the torque dip as much as possible without going FI. I also want to lower the car just a bit to get rid of the hideous stock wheel gap. Coilovers would be nice, but I will likely just go for the TRD lowering springs since they come with a warranty and keep the amazing stock handling without requiring adjustments.

Sometime in 2020, I want to get the car wrapped to protect the paint + have a unique color.

The longest of long term plans is to supercharge it.

I don't intend to daily this car for too long. I have been looking at cheap beaters, like a Toyota Matrix XRS or older Honda Civic Si, to daily and avoid putting unnecessary miles on my baby.

Closing Thoughts

I know the Twins are one of those cars where, once you drive one, you either really love them or completely hate them. It's all dependent on how you feel about the lack of straight line thrill. I was willing to deal with the slow acceleration based on the 86's attractive appearance, comfort for a sports car, fuel efficiency, low cost of insurance, reliability and the most important factor of all: fun on twisty roads. After owning sportbikes for many years and a couple of S2000's in the past, I couldn't overlook handling. It's cool to accelerate from 0-60 in under 5 seconds, but if the car doesn't have incredible handling, I can't see myself owning it. I have driven some powerful cars, but the best handling ones are beyond my level of affordability. The 86 offers the handling I want, and though it lacks power, it will be added soon enough when I opt for a supercharger. I'm happy with my purchase.

If Toyota and Subaru make the second gen Twins just as fun to drive as the 86, maybe I'll someday own a second gen alongside Tiana, but I don't intend to let my car go for anything. This car rejuvenated my love for driving.

Submitted July 02, 2019 at 09:40AM by Starved-Nutritionist https://ift.tt/2FGIsVp