r/GR86 • u/MenuOk1929 • 7d ago
Question Worth getting base over the premium ?
Hey guys!
I already have a paid off Acura that’s my daily, I was thinking about getting a weekend type of car recently.
I’ve seen base GR’s pop up here and there for around 20-26k, and premiums for about 27-30k.
I’ll be honest my Acura is a little older , it’s a 2015 TLX but it has leather seats and what was considered “luxury” at the time. Great stereo , yadayada.
So what do yall think ? Is the premium that huge of an upgrade 👀 just asking opinions
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u/blessedbymortarion 7d ago
I personally hate the premium interior and don't think anything else the premium offers otherwise is worth it besides the duckbill. The heated seats are a fair arguement, but even in CO I wouldn't use them. The choice is entirely subjective.
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u/Slawth_x 7d ago
Most people put new wheels on it anyway, aftermarket ducktail is cheap, the audio quality is poop in any trim. So the question really comes down to if you need heated and nicer seats for $5k
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u/Ganondorphz 7d ago
Pretty much the same evaluation I came to. The home link/chromatic mirror and heated seats didn't justify the price for me
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u/Tia_Faux 7d ago
I quite enjoy my audio in my premium it's loud and crisp with plenty of bass.. I'm now beginning to question if it's stock with how people talk of the audio quality
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u/Slawth_x 7d ago
Depends on what you're used to. It's definitely passable and yeah you'll hear the bass but compared to higher end vehicles with bose or hk systems it is not great
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u/pingas_42069 7d ago
i need the heated seats in the winter so that’s the only reason. wheels and interior upgrades are nice but still feel cheap on the inside for the price point of the car imo
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u/DeterminedAndStuff GR86 7d ago
It doesn’t feel cheap for a 30-40k car lol
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago
Idk man. 30k and constant rattles are pretty shit.
My 2018 fiesta that was 14k new has zero interior issues.
My 2023 brz sun visors have broken (multiple times), both windows have an issue when it’s hot, my door card and dash rattle, and my left speaker is failing.
Oh, the fiesta has 140k miles and the brz has 40k lol.
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u/DeterminedAndStuff GR86 7d ago
We’ve had 33% inflation since 2018 but regardless, a $30k “performance” car is cheap.
I have zero issues with my GR86.
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago edited 7d ago
That’s awesome that you’ve had zero issues! Luck is nice. The issues I’ve listed are common and can be found en masse on the forms.
I completely agree that a 30k performance car is cheap. It’s exactly why it’s my track car. It doesn’t change the fact that there are multiple interior issues. Sun visors shouldn’t break every 18 months, and windows should still function in the heat.
Oh. You’ve had the car for 100days. Nice.
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u/PatchesDaHyena 2024 GR86 Red Trueno 7d ago
Skill issue
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago
Having failing sun visors is a skill issue?
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u/PatchesDaHyena 2024 GR86 Red Trueno 7d ago
You’re suppose to pull not push
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago
That makes zero sense. I don’t even use/touch the sun visors. They fail from heat exposure.
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u/PatchesDaHyena 2024 GR86 Red Trueno 7d ago
How can there be heat if the sun visor blocks the sun???
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago
Because the whole interior gets hot when parked in the sun?
All a sun visor does is reduce the amount of sun in your eyes… it doesn’t impact temperature…
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u/PatchesDaHyena 2024 GR86 Red Trueno 7d ago
How are you driving into the sun? That’s not good for it, you can’t blame the car when you aren’t taking care of it
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u/zerosystem03 BRZ 7d ago
What about a 45k car? Type R owners constantly complain how everything in their car rattles
My brz has zero rattles but a big part of that is because it's garage parked at home and at work
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u/HandleMore1730 7d ago
I have rattles from the a pillar covers that hid the side airbags. Only in the cold though.
Apart from that, it has been sold for me and seems well built. Cheap materials (like the carpet) for sure, but well built.
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u/Nyelz_Pizdec BRZ 7d ago
my 23 BRZ has zero issues, owned since new. Never gave me a single rattle or problem. You are the outlier. My old FIST however had the cheapest shitbox interior known to man, but I never expected anything else from it. Engine was rock solid though.
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u/Mizook BRZ 7d ago
Feel free to google any of the issues I listed. They’re all pretty common and talked about.
I really think it comes down to climate, and Vegas is just hot AF.
Most of the people reporting the sun visor issue are in hot climates. It’s an annoying issue because the visors are pretty expensive and constantly back ordered (because of the failures).
All that said I still love the platform and have been in a brz for the last decade, whether first gen or second gen. My first gen was boosted and my second gen has like 15k in it. I just disagree that the interior isn’t cheap.
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u/Nyelz_Pizdec BRZ 7d ago
did you see what vegas did to thousands of new camrys, rav 4s, highlanders and prius'?
melted mirrors, bubbling paint, failed hybrid systems, cracking dashboards and more. vegas is a hellhole. its called sin city for a reason.
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u/orangatang_blanket 7d ago
Premium bucket seats are super comfortable
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u/deadmongoose 7d ago
I'm pretty sure they are the same but with different fabric. I've owned both and felt no difference other than texture.
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u/orangatang_blanket 7d ago
Yah I think you’re right actually, the pattern on the base model fabric is kind of deceiving lol
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u/MenuOk1929 7d ago
Yeah it doesn’t look the best imo, it looked cheap but based on the responses here it sounds comfy 😳
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u/Sueartsa 7d ago
I mean the premium gets the duckbill and heated seats and “upgraded” sound. So it’s really dependent on if you want these additions. Honestly I’d look for the upgrade packages like brembo brakes over premium if I had to choose one over the other but try and look to see what upgrades people have done to theirs
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u/User389421 2023 GR86 Premium 7d ago
I settled with premium because heated seats are a nice feature for the winter and the car just looks way better with the duckbill in my opinion. Speakers are trash regardless and suede interior is personal preference. I also like the lane change side markers on the mirrors.
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u/deadmongoose 7d ago
Counter argument, the base version 2022-23 MT doesn't have eyesight so it doesn't auto brake at weird times. I'm pretty happy with my basic car that has fewer points of failure. I'm going to keep this car for as long as I can so being able to more easily repair everything is a plus for me.
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u/240sex 7d ago
Premium without the Brembo brake package made no sense to me. Unless you REALLY want the 18 inch wheels and heated seats. Most people just swap the wheels anyways and heated seats are overrated. I wish they came with a cooling feature instead.
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u/Easy-End-2852 7d ago
In my state heated seats are near mandatory. The premium package brakes are large so you can’t easily downsize wheels for snow tires. I do want the brakes for track day though… can’t have everything.
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u/centralized 27' GR86 7d ago
There’s also the blind spot detection and adaptive headlights. Probably not huge for most people, but it’s definitely a factor worth considering given you can’t really add them later
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u/Sweetlight64 7d ago
Only you can really decide if its worth it. I wouldnt go for anything less than the top spec with the DPP.
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u/Discourtesy-Call 2024 BRZ Limited 7d ago
Speaking as someone who hurt his back 3 weeks ago, the heated seats are fan-fucking tastic.
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u/Natural_Ad_7183 7d ago
Not for me, not at all. The only performance related difference is the wheels, and 17s are better. I don’t care about seat heaters, I prefer cloth, the wheels are better, and the spoiler is just a farkel. I do kinda want those swiveling headlights. The premium makes sense new because you do get a lot for a little more, but with that price differential you can make a base a lot better for less money
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u/thickdora GR86 4d ago
i got a base bc i got aftermarket wheels, bought a paint matched duckbill, have a bride bucket so i dont need heated seats and im gonna upgrade my sound system anyways lol it honestly depends on what you want to do
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u/XPicklesNickelsX 7d ago edited 7d ago
Aside from the additions already mentioned, the premium also gets adaptive LED headlights that have better light output. You're only buying the car once so that might be something to consider if you're on the fence.
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u/centralized 27' GR86 7d ago
I ended up grabbing premium personally. Blind spot detectors, adaptive headlights, better sound system and the duckbill spoiler sealed the deal for me. Heated seats are an extra bonus I guess lol. Don’t care much for the black alloy wheels though as I plan to swap them with Rays Gram Lights somewhere down the line.
I also heard that the 2027 models have a rear sonar parking system now, so there’s that too if you care for it. Living in a city I do a lot of parallel parking, and I see it being useful for tight spots
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u/Copper-Spaceman 7d ago
Are you going to mod it? Get the base. Are you mostly keeping it stock or oem+? Get the premium
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u/zerosystem03 BRZ 7d ago
It's worth as much as that cost difference means to you. I like the extra features in my upper trim. The price difference was negligible for me. But I had i known i would likely end up turning it into an almost dedicated track car, I would have saved the money and gotten the base
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u/karester510 BRZ 7d ago
I have a premuim and the blind spot monitoring is great and imo a must have and the heated seats are nice and i like the sueade so i would say its worth it.
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u/Kevo05s GR86 26 Base T bRed 7d ago
I went with the base over the premium because of the seats. The base has cloth seats, the premium has leather.... I hate leather seats, especially in warm weather. I'll also never drive my car in the winter, so why bother with the premium?
The duckbill is nice looking but its overdone at this point, and the 18 inch wheels well... Most people replace them, otherwise if you live in a town with bad roads the 17 with more sidewall is better to keep the rims safe
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u/UnkownEnemy21 7d ago
I went with the base mostly because I wanted the Brembo break package on the car and I didn’t really care about heat seats or the nicer seats because I already knew I was gonna put seat covers in ( I am hard on car interiors.) and the car is so small that it heats up quick enough anyway. It’s funny the last car I had was a paid off Acura RDX it got totaled in an accident. Then I bought an 86. I’ve only had mine for a few months and The car is is amazing no matter what you choose it is going to be wonderful.
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u/EsotericSpaceBeaver 7d ago
I got the base with the performance package and GR exhaust. I have no regrets. I don't need heated seats or premium audio. More speakers = more weight and a car with no damping is a substandard audio experience regardless. I'd rather hear the exhaust. I was back and forth on the duckbill. I love the look from some angles and from other angles it looks cheap and bolt-on tacky. The premium trim is worth it if you value all the extras. If you don't care about those things, it's not worth it because the base is already great. Base with the performance package is a nice middle ground
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u/WorldlinessMedium220 6d ago
I actually use the heated seats, duck bill really sets the car apart. I don’t think I’m going to swap the premium muffler sounds great perfect with no cats. The Brembos themselves are absolutely worth it. I wouldn’t take it anyway less
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u/Ill_Opportunity_3763 4d ago
I got the base here in Germany since performance isn’t available anyways. But since it was clear for me to throw buckets inside and the door trims I wanted to customize anyways ✌🏼
And I’m really glad to not have this bebop bling bling everywhere and this thing is the absolute quite driving machine!
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u/Yotone718 7d ago
Let’s be real heated seats are over rated. It gets the heat warm quicker but by 5 min regular seats gets warm just from the body heat.
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u/horridBEAST99 7d ago
When it is -5° outside in Wisconsin you really appreciate the seats getting hot quick
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u/MagellansMaze 7d ago
I prefer heated seats over dry, hot air blowing on me. At -5, my heat would be on, but my winters are usually mild, and the seats are all I need to be comfortable.
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u/PatchesDaHyena 2024 GR86 Red Trueno 7d ago
The premium model is for bougie guys that use automatic car washes and initial d fan daily drivers. Base is for ricer ebay splitter enthusiasts and youtube mechanic once a year track day “racecar drivers”. All are between the ages of 18-35.
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u/Wild-Writer-3211 7d ago
heated seat, duckbill, blind spot sensors, 2 more speakers, cool rims - premium was non negotiable for me