Toyota 86 Gets a Price Bump for 2017, as More Manuals Disappear From Our Streets

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Toyota has released 2017 prices for some of its small cars, and it looks like a name change (and modest power increase) tacked a slight premium onto the Toyota 86, formerly the Scion FR-S.

A sign of our automated times, it looks like the manual transmission’s days could be numbered in the Corolla lineup.

The rear-drive 86 sport coupe benefits from a mid-cycle restyle in addition to its name change, while its engine adds five horsepower and five pound-feet of torque, for an output of 205 hp and 156 lb-ft. Pricing starts at $26,255, an increase of $950 over 2016 models. At $26,975, automatic transmission versions see a $570 price bump over last year.

The Corolla lineup sees a significantly higher base price, thanks to a standard continuously variable transmission on the base L trim line. With an MSRP of $18,500, the base L is $600 more than a comparatively equipped 2016 model, and $1,200 more than a 2016 L with a 6-speed manual transmission.

So, the base stick-shift Corolla will soon be a thing of the past. While it appeared on the L, S, and SE models in 2016, in 2017 the manual tranny is only offered on a single model, the sport-oriented SE. The price of that model doesn’t change, while others (with the exception of the new XLE and XSE trim lines) rise. The S model will disappear from the lineup.

All Corollas gain a freshened face with new grille and LED headlamps, as well as audio and connectivity upgrades. The higher base price of the L model includes a standard backup camera.

The Corolla iM, formerly the Scion iM, sees an inflationary price bump for both manual and automatic variants. A manual iM carries an MSRP of $18,750, a $290 increase compared to 2016, while the automatic version sees an identical price bump to $19,490.

iM models gain Toyota’s TSS-C safety package for 2017, containing a lane-departure warning system, automatic high beams and a pre-collision system. The automaker claims the rebadged iM offers a broader torque curve, thanks to continuously variable valve timing technology.

[Image: Toyota]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Kit4 Kit4 on Aug 22, 2016

    It's amazing how many people failed to read the part that the Corolla will infact continue to offer a manual transmission. Reading comprehension went right out the window in the race to see who could crap on Toyota first.

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    • JohnTaurus JohnTaurus on Aug 23, 2016

      Its amazing how you rush to defend Toyota, yet can only throw a temper tantrum and offer 0 reasons why we are wrong. Go stomp your feet and hold your breath now, Toyota's cars will still be milquetoast at best when you've had your nap and have calmed down.

  • Craigcars Craigcars on Sep 28, 2016

    People will spend money to tinker with their cars to gain a few horsepower , then beat the crap out of it, do time checks, look for mutual ding-dongs to race at lights, and spend more money fixing broken parts. I guess having a hatch back makes it easier to put boxes of parts and energy drinks in the trunk. Wow. What fun! Sleeper cars that resemble soccer mom grocery shoppers with front drive turbo toys. We don't need another Fiesta ST , Focus ST, or any other Fred Flintstone looking hatch. So yeah, Toyota did a fine job with the 86. Front end finally looks like a make believe Vette rather than that "black tounged bumper" that the BRZ still has the last I checked. Other than that, I guess people don't realize what insurance costs when you get much more than 200hp in a small car. Oh! Wait! Money is no object, right? We choose cars under 30k (hopefully-depending on extras) because we just like not being to incredible on the street even though we're loaded. Sure. As far as I'm concerned, they should make ALL so called sports cars for the masses as roadsters with hardtops. Unless having back seats is required for non single men to convince their signifigant other of the practical nature of buying a sporty car. I wonder how many buyers actually drive these cars for what they were intended instead of just going to work and tinkering under the hood on weekends? Wow. But, great job Toyota. Looks great inside and out.

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