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130 Posts
I traded in a 2016 FRS for a VN. I bought both brand new. The FRS was very modified and had 52000 miles, the VN is still bone stock and just ticked over 1000 miles last weekend.
Synopsis-
The FRS was pure fun and very little practicality. The interior rattled and vibrated. The stereo was awful. But it was usable and I drove it daily. It was cheap to own, cheap to modify and you don't have to break too many laws (it is slow) to have fun driving it.
Fuel economy was a lot better. But to have fun in a FRS is dangerous at times because a lot of the fun is because it has low grip and gets sideways so easy. Read up on the 86 curse, it's a thing. Oh and it had no balls. That torque dip you read about, it's also a thing. But s RWD coupe is a lot of fun, as is bombing around at 7000 RPM with a screaming flat 4 begging for more.
The VN is a lot more practical, a lot more comfortable, safe and fun in a different way. But not as fun as a RWD coupe. WWD (wrong wheel drive) is not as fun as RWD. Let's just get that out of the way. But a turbo is a little bundle of joy all on its own! The VN may not redline as high, but there's so much usable power. And grip.... G forces.... Yeah that's fun too! Better interior, no rattles or vibration, and a kick ass Infinity stereo. The VN is just built better.
More in depth-
The FRS spent maybe 1 month stock. From day 1 it was apparent that changes had to be made. I went on lots of cruises with car clubs and found the car is a great base, but, honestly, it is borderline dangerous at stock. It's made to get sideways and the stock tires (eco tires) are a joke. In the rain I hydroplaned a lot. I ended up with new MPSS, which decreased fuel mileage by 2 MPG (I calculate by hand) but they made the car so much better. I added some aero pieces to give the car some stability and grip at highway speeds. I never hydroplaned after making these changes. But I never made 30 MPG again either. To address the torque dip, I went catless (Florida has no emissions testing 😎) and tuned on E85. No torque dip, but it's not like the engine suddenly made incredible power either. But it was better. Still the power and grip- as modified as it was- was nowhere close to my bone stock VN.
VN, after a month I'm not thinking of modifying anything. Ok, so I added some extra USB ports to charge more stuff. So I lied. BUT THAT'S IT. I don't need to change anything. I flogged it last weekend for the first time in a cruise with a local club. I wasn't near the limit enough to see any understeer, it just took whatever I gave it and loved it. No overheating at all, the brakes were champs (no fade), and grip was awesome. The engine pulls even up steep hills and passing is not a struggle (the FRS.... overtaking was a challenge and you always have to plan in advance). OK, so the VN can't do donuts, kart turns or hang the tail out in a corner. But there's so much else it can do and better.
Overall, I'd rather have the VN for everyday driving. Plus my wife likes it a LOT more (she hated the FRS.... so that may be a vote for the FRS or VN LOL). But when it came to pure fun, the FRS wins. I named that car Homer because it liked donuts that much. But power is fun. Grip is fun and breaking down is not. The FRS engine isn't renown for reliability. It's the weak spot of that car, whereas the engine of the VN is the strong point of this car.
Synopsis-
The FRS was pure fun and very little practicality. The interior rattled and vibrated. The stereo was awful. But it was usable and I drove it daily. It was cheap to own, cheap to modify and you don't have to break too many laws (it is slow) to have fun driving it.
Fuel economy was a lot better. But to have fun in a FRS is dangerous at times because a lot of the fun is because it has low grip and gets sideways so easy. Read up on the 86 curse, it's a thing. Oh and it had no balls. That torque dip you read about, it's also a thing. But s RWD coupe is a lot of fun, as is bombing around at 7000 RPM with a screaming flat 4 begging for more.
The VN is a lot more practical, a lot more comfortable, safe and fun in a different way. But not as fun as a RWD coupe. WWD (wrong wheel drive) is not as fun as RWD. Let's just get that out of the way. But a turbo is a little bundle of joy all on its own! The VN may not redline as high, but there's so much usable power. And grip.... G forces.... Yeah that's fun too! Better interior, no rattles or vibration, and a kick ass Infinity stereo. The VN is just built better.
More in depth-
The FRS spent maybe 1 month stock. From day 1 it was apparent that changes had to be made. I went on lots of cruises with car clubs and found the car is a great base, but, honestly, it is borderline dangerous at stock. It's made to get sideways and the stock tires (eco tires) are a joke. In the rain I hydroplaned a lot. I ended up with new MPSS, which decreased fuel mileage by 2 MPG (I calculate by hand) but they made the car so much better. I added some aero pieces to give the car some stability and grip at highway speeds. I never hydroplaned after making these changes. But I never made 30 MPG again either. To address the torque dip, I went catless (Florida has no emissions testing 😎) and tuned on E85. No torque dip, but it's not like the engine suddenly made incredible power either. But it was better. Still the power and grip- as modified as it was- was nowhere close to my bone stock VN.
VN, after a month I'm not thinking of modifying anything. Ok, so I added some extra USB ports to charge more stuff. So I lied. BUT THAT'S IT. I don't need to change anything. I flogged it last weekend for the first time in a cruise with a local club. I wasn't near the limit enough to see any understeer, it just took whatever I gave it and loved it. No overheating at all, the brakes were champs (no fade), and grip was awesome. The engine pulls even up steep hills and passing is not a struggle (the FRS.... overtaking was a challenge and you always have to plan in advance). OK, so the VN can't do donuts, kart turns or hang the tail out in a corner. But there's so much else it can do and better.
Overall, I'd rather have the VN for everyday driving. Plus my wife likes it a LOT more (she hated the FRS.... so that may be a vote for the FRS or VN LOL). But when it came to pure fun, the FRS wins. I named that car Homer because it liked donuts that much. But power is fun. Grip is fun and breaking down is not. The FRS engine isn't renown for reliability. It's the weak spot of that car, whereas the engine of the VN is the strong point of this car.
