- The riddle pf the Toyota GT86- the car for purist drivers.

[Jimmy Recard]

RobM77 said:

Quite a significant number of people are now waiting until their 30s to settle down and have children, that's certainly the case with all of my friends, for example I didn't get married until I was 36 and I met my wife aged 34. I suspect therefore that there are quite a few people in their late twenties and early thirties who can afford a GT86. If I had a bit more disposable income then one of my potentially ideal line ups would be a van/camper and a GT86.

Yes, you're certainly right about people in their late 20s and early 30s. That age group has had the time to settle into a career and build their grown up lives and many can afford that.

It was in response to kambites suggesting that he would have liked one when he was 21 - I would have loved a GT86 (or similar) when I was 21, but I couldn't have put £11k together to buy the cheapest used one.

[Mound Dawg]

otolith said:

I know, it doesn't need to fanny about shifting bits of mass to get that distribution. But it's not uncommon for other cars to do that. A barbell has a 50/50 distribution, but it's got a high moment of inertia. The point is that the raw front to rear mass balance doesn't tell you much about where the mass is actually located, which is arguably more important.

My Alfa 75 has 50/50 weight distribution but this was achieved by sticking the gearbox in the back so the engine overhangs the front axle too. so like the barbell it's got a high moment of inertia. It hangs on beautifully but once you do get the tail going properly you really need to bring your A-Game because it goes very quickly.

[otolith]

Jimmy Recard said:

It was in response to kambites suggesting that he would have liked one when he was 21 - I would have loved a GT86 (or similar) when I was 21, but I couldn't have put £11k together to buy the cheapest used one.

Nor could I, I was a postgrad student, but I'd have thought that there are plenty of people starting decent jobs at 21 with enough income to get a bank loan for a used one or to do the PCP thing.

[Jimmy Recard]

otolith said:

Nor could I, I was a postgrad student, but I'd have thought that there are plenty of people starting decent jobs at 21 with enough income to get a bank loan for a used one or to do the PCP thing.

Hmm, I suppose so. Probably not too hard at all really

[Kitboh]

Jimmy Recard said:

otolith said:

Nor could I, I was a postgrad student, but I'd have thought that there are plenty of people starting decent jobs at 21 with enough income to get a bank loan for a used one or to do the PCP thing.

Hmm, I suppose so. Probably not too hard at all really

A 21 year old with £10k to spend on a fun impractical car can often get better value for money by opting for an MX-5. The fact that MX-5's are more of a known entity, and can get the roof down for less money make them the more desirable option I would've thought. I'm in a similar boat, and don't think I could justify a GT86/BRZ despite being part of what is probably the target market.

[RobM77]

Jimmy Recard said:

RobM77 said:

Quite a significant number of people are now waiting until their 30s to settle down and have children, that's certainly the case with all of my friends, for example I didn't get married until I was 36 and I met my wife aged 34. I suspect therefore that there are quite a few people in their late twenties and early thirties who can afford a GT86. If I had a bit more disposable income then one of my potentially ideal line ups would be a van/camper and a GT86.

Yes, you're certainly right about people in their late 20s and early 30s. That age group has had the time to settle into a career and build their grown up lives and many can afford that.

It was in response to kambites suggesting that he would have liked one when he was 21 - I would have loved a GT86 (or similar) when I was 21, but I couldn't have put £11k together to buy the cheapest used one.

Ahh.. I'd assumed it was because people aged 30 are often seen as parents. Yes, me too; at 21 I could barely afford a £2k hot hatch!

[Flibble]

I'm late 30s, but since I don't have children nor any plans to have them, a GT86 suits me fine.

[mikey P 500]

Flibble said:

I'm late 30s, but since I don't have children nor any plans to have them, a GT86 suits me fine.

I'm early 30s with children and the gt86 suits perfectly (as already high lighted alot, the rear seats are pretty poor for for adults) but young children fit fairly well (helped by me only being 5'7"), I would have liked a Cayman or mx5 but couldn't consider them unless also ran another car for the Nursery/school run.

[RobDickinson]

Not driven a GT86, seems like a decent package, I like the looks.

But bought an MX5, didnt even consider the gt86. Hard top, extra costs etc.

[cymtriks]

Flibble said:

RobM77 said:

I have no idea if this is true or not, but someone on here a while ago said that the Subaru Boxer engine's CofG was actually higher than a typical inline 4. Can anyone confirm or deny this with links to the figures?

I have no idea on numbers, but it seems very unlikely given how lower the engine sits in the bay and how low the COG feels in the car.

The sump is rather deep and the cylinder blocks have to be high enough to fit exhaust manifolds underneath. That uses up a lot of the supposed advantages. You can shorten the sump to permit lowering the engine but the manifolds then become vulnerable (I'm not thinking of its original application here, this is what I've heard from people who have considered it for kitcars). Then the intake and ancillaries get put on top which negates the advantages a bit more. Overall, IIRC, there's not much in it in terms of CoG height but it is still lower overall.

[otolith]

Mound Dawg said:

My Alfa 75 has 50/50 weight distribution but this was achieved by sticking the gearbox in the back so the engine overhangs the front axle too. so like the barbell it's got a high moment of inertia. It hangs on beautifully but once you do get the tail going properly you really need to bring your A-Game because it goes very quickly.

Exactly!

[Samjeev]

RobM77 said:

Jimmy Recard said:

RobM77 said:

Quite a significant number of people are now waiting until their 30s to settle down and have children, that's certainly the case with all of my friends, for example I didn't get married until I was 36 and I met my wife aged 34. I suspect therefore that there are quite a few people in their late twenties and early thirties who can afford a GT86. If I had a bit more disposable income then one of my potentially ideal line ups would be a van/camper and a GT86.

Yes, you're certainly right about people in their late 20s and early 30s. That age group has had the time to settle into a career and build their grown up lives and many can afford that.

It was in response to kambites suggesting that he would have liked one when he was 21 - I would have loved a GT86 (or similar) when I was 21, but I couldn't have put £11k together to buy the cheapest used one.

Ahh.. I'd assumed it was because people aged 30 are often seen as parents. Yes, me too; at 21 I could barely afford a £2k hot hatch!

At 21 I dropped 12500 on a nearly new 2013 Fiesta.
At 21 your problem isn't buying the car, its insuring it but then again GT86's also weren't 11k 3.5 years ago

[MarshPhantom]

Jimmy Recard said:

kambites said:

If I was 21 (and in the same position I was in when I was 21) now, I could imagine myself buying one. Now I'm in my 30s with a family and we need two cars anyway, I might as well run a proper sports car without the inherent driving limitations provided by adding two extra seats and a decent boot.

Edited by kambites on Friday 13th January 12:47

I'm just reading through this thread.

The cheapest GT86 I found on Autotrader is £10,950. the cheapest manual GT86 I found on Autotrader is £11,495.

That seems an awful lot of money for a young man to find at 21, especially with a couple of grand of insurance on top

I'm just thinking that men in their early 20s would be the target market, but I doubt they can afford them.

When I was 21 I wanted a car I could get 2,3 or even 4 of my mates in the back seat.

[ORD]

I would never consider a GT86 because it has a mundane engine. If you want an impractical car with a mundane engine, why not go for a 2-seater? It doesn't make a great deal of sense to me.

[Ahbefive]

ORD said:

I would never consider a GT86 because it has a mundane engine. If you want an impractical car with a mundane engine, why not go for a 2-seater? It doesn't make a great deal of sense to me.

Confused. It is a 2seater.

[MarshPhantom]

Jimmy Recard said:

kambites said:

If I was 21 (and in the same position I was in when I was 21) now, I could imagine myself buying one. Now I'm in my 30s with a family and we need two cars anyway, I might as well run a proper sports car without the inherent driving limitations provided by adding two extra seats and a decent boot.

Edited by kambites on Friday 13th January 12:47

I'm just reading through this thread.

The cheapest GT86 I found on Autotrader is £10,950. the cheapest manual GT86 I found on Autotrader is £11,495.

That seems an awful lot of money for a young man to find at 21, especially with a couple of grand of insurance on top

I'm just thinking that men in their early 20s would be the target market, but I doubt they can afford them.

No idea why you'd spend that much on a GT86 when you get a perfectly decent MK3 MR2 for £2-3k. Unpopular cars tend to be prone to heavy depreciation.

Ours cost £2600 about a year ago. 60k, great condition, hardtop, leather, aircon. Hasn't missed a beat in the time the we've had it.

[Jimmy Recard]

MarshPhantom said:

No idea why you'd spend that much on a GT86 when you get a perfectly decent MK3 MR2 for £2-3k. Unpopular cars tend to be prone to heavy depreciation.

Ours cost £2600 about a year ago. 60k, great condition, hardtop, leather, aircon. Hasn't missed a beat in the time the we've had it.

What's the relevance of that to a Gt86 buyer?

[MarshPhantom]

Jimmy Recard said:

MarshPhantom said:

No idea why you'd spend that much on a GT86 when you get a perfectly decent MK3 MR2 for £2-3k. Unpopular cars tend to be prone to heavy depreciation.

Ours cost £2600 about a year ago. 60k, great condition, hardtop, leather, aircon. Hasn't missed a beat in the time the we've had it.

What's the relevance of that to a Gt86 buyer?

Kambites is saying if he was 21 he'd spunk 11 grand on a GT86, I wouldn't. This is what I'd do instead.

[ian2144]

MarshPhantom said:

No idea why you'd spend that much on a GT86 when you get a perfectly decent MK3 MR2 for £2-3k. Unpopular cars tend to be prone to heavy depreciation.

Ours cost £2600 about a year ago. 60k, great condition, hardtop, leather, aircon. Hasn't missed a beat in the time the we've had it.

It would be a strange world if we all had the same ideas and thoughts. For me, it's a new car with 5 years warranty and free service for two, all I have to do is enjoy it for what it is, a fun RWD Coupe.

[Jimmy Recard]

MarshPhantom said:

Kambites is saying if he was 21 he'd spunk 11 grand on a GT86, I wouldn't. This is what I'd do instead.

And that's where I'm with you. It's a lot of money, not only for a 21 year old. If 21 year olds were rich, we'd see more Gt86s!