I had a corvette between the ages of 19 and 23 and the impracticalities of having it as my only vehicle really limited the appeal of driving a corvette convertible in my youth. Aside from the lack of space, it didn’t really even handle rain well, let alone snow. Just not worth the fun. Plus people attacked it just out of cruelty.
My husband’s daily driver is a scion frs. We live in rural Maine, and he drove it most of the winter, with stock tires (his commute is 30 miles each way.) We love that little car! You can squeeze an adult in the back if you must, so for the 1% of the time you would need it, it will work.
The BRZ is the Subaru version of the FRS. Good to hear you like yours.
Here’s hoping I can make the numbers work and purchase one.
Resistance is useless. Some people enjoy driving, other people buy nondescript boxes with 4 wheels and an adequate (sometimes) motor because they’re into something else.
Buy the car, enjoy yourself. My first (new) vehicle was a 2-seater pickup I bought in 1989. Know how often I used the 4WD or the box part of the truck? Not nearly often enough to have made it a better choice than a supercharged 1st generation MR2. It was a great truck, but I truly regret opting for practicality.
There are several (okay, a shit load of) things available to an unmarried and/or childless couple that won’t be an option later because of kids, professional responsibilities, declining faculties, etc. If you have any desire to experience these, do them while you’re young and enjoy every minute of it.
Aren’t they both technically Toyotas with Subaru engines and slightly different cosmetics/badging (kinda like 80’s-90’s Firebird/Camaro)?
Mini Cooper hatchback. Strictly a two-seater.
Yes and no. I think the Scion is a bit more sport oriented, with a slightly different suspension tune (I think).
They do supposedly have slightly different spring rates and shock dampening, but I’ve read some reviews and people can’t seem tell a difference. The Subaru comes standard with navigation, HIDs, LED driving lights, and some nicer interior trim, which explains the more expensive price and why they’re billing it as a more mature version. All the greasy bits are the same, though. Subaru did the bulk of the engineering; it started out life as an Impreza, was converted to RWD, and Toyota bolted their direct injection system onto the motor in order to get it up to 200hp while still meeting emissions standards. Toyota, aside from the DI system, brought their designers, their vision, and most importantly, a large wad of cash to the table. But all of the engineering credit should go to Subaru. Here’s some horrifying pictures of one of their development mules, which is still mostly Impreza at that point. Yuck.
Anyway, I got to drive a BR-Z a few weeks ago and thought it was a great car. As for two-seaters, if you regularly go out to lunch with 3 other guys, you’re never going to drive again, and they may resent you for that. Other than that scenario, I’ve never had a problem with 2 seats (until I had kids).
My previous vehicle was a 1996 Nissan Hardbody pickup. It had one bench seat, supposedly three could fit, but it was a five speed manual transmission, so that middle seat was pretty much useless due to the presence of the gear shifter. I, like you, enjoy driving, but most of my driving is either alone, or with only one other person. I say, if you like the car, go for it. It’s not your duty to chauffeur others around, anyway.
Thanks for the replies everyone. I decided to go for it last night.
BTW, what a fun little car!
Congrats!!!
Sweet! I briefly tried to convince my SO that the BR-Z would be a very practical commuter since everyone knows how good Subarus are in the snow. 
I really think it will do well with snow tires. The car is really responsive and I really feel completely in control when driving it (which is an incredible feeling).
I think you’re right, but it’s funny that for years now Subaru has been selling nothing but AWD cars that are amazing in the snow and now they come out with this light, powerful, RWD donut-spinning machine.
What the Hell? A Subaru without AWD???
Subaru made a lot of front-wheel drive cars. 1996 was the first year they had a 100% AWD lineup, so less than 20 years ago you could buy a FWD Impreza. And that’s just in North America; in the rest of the world, Subaru isn’t synonymous with AWD.
This is, of course, the first RWD Subaru in a long time; probably since the 360 went out of production in (checks wiki) 1971.
It’s funny, my first two Impreza models (1997 base and 2001 2.5RS) were quite easy to spin out with in the snow when taking off. Having said that, they were easy to correct with steering input and letting all the tires find grip, but it took a while to get good at it.
However, in normal snow driving, they were incredible. There were quite a few cases where I made it down unplowed roads, as if I was in a snowmobile.
My last Impreza (2008 2.5i) had traction control. I could do whatever I wanted with that car in the snow. Literally just stomp the gas and let the traction control sort things out. That was fun on empty roads!
I have trouble believing any RWD car can handle snow very well. I’ve driven older RWD cars that could get stuck on a patch of ice. The only exception were the massive Mercedes diesels I occasionally drove that belonged to the partners at a law firm I worked for in the 80’s.
Since then, I’ve always had FWD Honda’s and those can handle almost any situation. Of course you sacrifice balance and some handling as a result, but I’m more than happy with the trade off.
I’ve owned three 2-seaters in 23 years of driving, starting with my first car when I was 15. They were all the same make/model, Honda CRX, but different model years- first was an '85, then '90 and '91 models. Only the first one, the '85, was my primary (only) vehicle. I bought the '90 and '91 models (in '02 and '98, respectively) as commuter vehicles, but I also had a larger vehicle at the same time. In reality, the only time I used those larger cars (both Accords) was for road trips and that was about it!
But most 2-seaters today are comfortable enough to drive anywhere. Creature comforts were NOT something the CRX was known for…the only thing ‘power’ was the brakes, not even power steering…I take that back, two of them had a power sunroof, but no power windows, mirrors, locks, etc. They were a blast to drive, the seats were rock hard, but somewhat supportive and even the high-performance Si versions that I preferred could hit 40mpg+ easily on the highway. I’d hate to see them in a crash test, though…
I took a test drive last year in the Honda CR-Z, which is a 2-seat hybrid. I was impressed with the ride and handling and even the level of comfort. But it had the least attractive characteristics of a hybrid, (SLLLLOOOOWWWW acceleration) without the primary benefit (the fuel economy sucked for a hybrid, even a regular Mazda3 gets better mpg)! If Honda would scrap the half-hearted attempt at making a ‘sporty’ hybrid and put a proper, high-revving VTEC screamer under the hood, I’d be first in line to buy one!
So I think buying something like a Subaru BRZ as a daily driver is very practical! FAR more practical than all the people I KNOW who are single with no children but still drive mid/full-size SUVs!!! The BRZ (and Scion FR-S twin) have also performed VERY well in crash tests! So they’re a safe choice!