The Scion FR-S is dead. In its place we get the Toyota 86, which is basically the same car minus some snazzy new badges. For those of you interested in buying the affordable rear driver, perhaps you should hold off for a while as it seems a successor is in the works.
Toyota Europe boss Karl Schlicht confirmed to Autocar that an 86 successor was coming. The British publication suggests the car will arrive on the market around 2019.
Schlicht's comments follow those of Yasuyuki Yoshinaga, the boss of Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries, who in 2014 said a redesigned BRZ would be launched. The current 86 and BRZ are identical save for a few visual tweaks.
It makes sense for the cars to continue on as there are few well-priced, rear-wheel-drive sports cars on the market. Even with the oft-criticized flat-4 under the hood, the cars are still wonderful machine to put through their paces. The only reason that engine is criticized at all really is for what some view as a lack of horsepower.
Interestingly, Toyota is looking to launch two additional rear-wheel-drive sports cars, one positioned above the 86 and another below it. Above it will sit the new sports car everyone is calling the modern-day Supra. And below it will be something along the lines of 2015’s S-FR concept.
