Scion FR-S Convertible Rumors Re-Surface, Could Enter the Market by 2014

While Scion has no current plans to offer a turbocharged version of the FR-S sports coupe, the word on the street is that Toyota's North American subsidiary is preparing a 2+2 convertible or a pure two-seater roadster version of its rear-wheel drive model. Keep in mind, the images you see here are from Cartel's 2012 FR-S Speedster Concept.

The story comes courtesy of the team over at Car&Driver that claims to have confirmed rumors about the development of a soft-top Scion FR-S. The news follows a recent statement from the Toyota 86's chief engineer, Tetsuya Tada, who told a German magazine, "The GT 86 was designed from the outset to be built as a convertible."

Read more »

Buy a Scion iQ, get a Sony PlayStation Vita for Free

It would have definitely been of much greater interest if you could buy a PS Vita and get a Scion iQ for free, but unfortunately, it's the other way around.

As part of a new promotion that runs from May 1 through July 31, 2012, and with the note "while supplies last", those that buy a new Scion iQ in the States will receive a PlayStation Vita for free.

Read more »

New Photo Gallery of Scion FR-S Plus Videos that Details the Development of the Subaru BRZ

As the two North American versions of the Toyota 86 rear-wheel drive sports coupe, the 2013 Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ, begin arriving in dealerships across the States, both automakers had something new to share with us this week.

On its behalf, Scion dropped a fresh gallery of high-resolution photos of the FR-S, which starts at $24,200, while Subaru released a pair of videos that explain the work that went behind the scenes to develop the BRZ that is priced from $25,495 in the U.S.

You can check out both the extensive picture gallery of the FR-S and the two Japanese videos with English subtitles of the BRZ right after the break.

Read more »

2013 Scion FR-S Rolls on to the Dyno to Prove its Worth

Toyota, Subaru and Scion all tell us that their co-developed trio of rear-wheel drive sports coupes, namely the 86/GT86, BRZ and FR-S, are powered by the same 2.0-liter flat-four that produces 200 horsepower and 151 lb-ft (205Nm) at the flywheel.

As is common these days with any newly launched model, independent testers, in this case, the folks over at Edmund's Insideline, strapped the North American market 2013 Scion FR-S on the dyno to see what kind of numbers it would produce.

Read more »

Canada's SR Auto Gives the Scion iQ Some Attitude

According to Canadian design house SR Auto Group, just because the Scion-ized Toyota iQ is the world's smallest four seater, doesn't mean it shouldn't look the part as well. With this in mind, it gave birth to the Project Pryzm.

"This iQ was titled with the name Project Pryzm because of its sharp and boxy exterior," says SR Auto. "The objective behind Project Pryzm was to create a car that would leave you speechless."

The tuner started out with the iQ's exterior that gains a comprehensive styling kit from Japan's Premier 4509, which you may remember from the Bentley-faced Toyota Supra tune.

Read more »

Five-Axis Announces New Aero Package for the 2013 Scion FR-S [Video]

The tuning industry is wasting no time getting ready for the U.S. market launch of the 2013 Scion FR-S sports coupe.

Not long after Scion announced pricing for its first rear-wheel drive model, Five Axis via its production arm named FIVE:AD (Five Axis Design) has presented a new styling package that will be soon available through Scion dealerships.

Read more »

Scion FR-S Speedster is a Concept Car Created by Cartel Customs

As it turns out, we were right to assume that the open-top 2013 Scion FR-S spotted at this past weekend's Formula Drift event in Long Beach, California, was a tuning concept.

The speedster version of the Scion FR-S was created by Cartel Customs, a California-based company headed by Jeremy Lookofsky, which specializes in the design and manufacturing of custom display vehicles and motorcycles.

While the name may not ring a bell, you've probably seen some of Cartel's work at previous SEMA shows such as last year's Scion iQ Pit Bull, the 2010 Scion xB Stretch Limousine and the 2009 Scion tC Low Rider concepts.

The company's new Scion FR-S Speedster drops the coupe's top and most of the interior appointments gaining a two-seat configuration with a mid-mounted instrument panel.

Read more »

Scion FR-S Speedster Appears at Formula Drift Event in Long Beach

A chopped version of the just launched in the States Scion FR-S made a special appearance at the 2012 Long Beach Formula Drift even in California this past weekend and was snagged on camera by a forum member over at the FT86Club.

While there's no official information on the speedster model, evidently it's some sort of racing concept based on the production FR-S, possibly one we'll see at this year's SEMA Show in Las Vegas.

Read more »

Toyota Reveals New Strategy, will Roll Out Three Global FWD Platforms

It's time for a strategic change over at Toyota as the Japanese automaker today announced a new framework for vehicle development that will affect all brands within the group with the aim of lowering costs, reducing launch times as well as making its vehicles more appealing both in terms of styling and handling.

A core element of the firm's new strategy is the development of new global vehicle architectures that are to be shared across the world, a move that Toyota claims will ultimately help in the creation of better cars.

"Cooperation between planning and design divisions will result in a revised vehicle body structure with which new platforms will feature a lower center of gravity and bolder styling," said Toyota in a statement. "This will help to realize the development of cars with never-before-seen emotional designs and superb handling."

Read more »