2012 Yaris + Tanabe RnD Pics

[zackt69]

In February I purchased a 2012 Toyota Yaris and was lucky enough to be asked by Tanabe USA if they could use it for research and development later in the year. Well the spring RnD session started and I dropped off the car at their headquarters in Torrance CA this past Monday. I picked it up yesterday, and they left on the front strut bar, Tanabe Sustec Pro S-0C, and the Tanabe Medalion Touring Exhaust

Here are my initial impressions after driving the car for a couple of days. The exhaust has a great sound to it, it's much deeper sounding (there are videos below). The coilovers/strut bar definitely offer a much firmer ride, but not jarring or harsh. Overall, the car feels tighter... and I'm very happy with the changes!

The fit and finish of everything is great, and the quality of the products look to be top notch. Here are the pics and results they posted on the Tanabe-USA site, they tested their catalog of parts on the car. I'd like to thank Danh, James and the crew over at Tanabe for selecting my car and giving me an opportunity to be part of the RnD!




Tanabe Front Underbrace
"First up to bat is the 2012 Toyota Yaris! Here are some pictures of the front underbrace we tested, this part fits great and will will with strengthening the chassis! The front subframe needs to be dropped for this installation!"



Tanabe Front Strut Tower Bar
"And we also tested a strut tower bar for the Yaris and this bar also fit great! This bar will help reduce flex in the upper chassis around the strut towers! The nice thing about our tower bars is that you can adjust the preload!"




Tanabe Front Sway Bar
"And here are the Swaybar pictures! The front subframe needed to be dropped to install this but this is a great way of reducing body roll with having a minimal effect on the ride quality."



"We're also testing some suspension for the yaris. Let's take a look at the stock height first."




Tanabe Sustec Z40 Coilovers
"Now let's take a look at the Yaris on SUSTEC Z40 coilovers."





"And here are the Z40 at the highest setting"




Tanabe Sustec Pro S-0C Coilovers
"Now let us take a look at the Tanabe Sustec Pro S-0C coilovers on the 2012 Yaris"





Tanabe NF210 Springs




Tanabe Medalion Touring Exhaust
"We have tested the Medalion Touring exhaust system on the 2012 Toyota Yaris."



Exhaust sound clips -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=bsXfNjOUsW4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8JYG...layer_embedded

Tanabe Concept G Exhaust
"We fitted the Concept G exhaust system for the 2012 Yaris."



Exhaust sound clips -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=MeXTWGL8nmg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K2pj...layer_embedded

[12 yaris]

Sign me up,if they wanna modify one on the east coast......

[TPA5]

Ohhh man. Looks so hot. I want those Z40's. It also motivates me to get my car detailed, you're undercarriage looks so nice and clean.

[yPod09]

Lucky man! How did you get asked to do that?! I'll take that gig!

Just putting this out there. ANYONE can do ANYTHING to my car for "research" of it means getting great photos taken and some free performance parts left on my car!

Very very cool! Congrats!

[zackt69]

Thanks guys! They occasionally have R&D schedules for different cars, it was just lucky that I got a car that was on the list for the spring schedule.

http://www.tanabe-usa.com/rnd/page/S...-Schedule.aspx

[cali yaris]

^ That looks great. I stock all of those parts, and the coilovers are a great choice for a street car!

[TrashCan Monster]

car looks good dropped!

[muffin_top]

Does the OP know if these are the same part numbers for second gen Yaris?

The drop on the NF springs looks just right!!

[cali yaris]

I believe the part number is the same, TNF121

[TrashCan Monster]

OP, how are you liking the parts so far?

[Shroomster]

can't wait to install the strut tower bar. I started to do it today then realized it will be easier to remove the cowl instead of fighting with it....wish I had a mini lift too...

[1.5]

Originally Posted by Shroomster

can't wait to install the strut tower bar. I started to do it today then realized it will be easier to remove the cowl instead of fighting with it....wish I had a mini lift too...

We need those shops that allow you to go in and use their lifts for a small fee

[Shroomster]

Originally Posted by 1.5

We need those shops that allow you to go in and use their lifts for a small fee

believe it or not, I had thought of opening a chain of D.I.Y garages (like I had the money pfft). You would rent the bay with/without a lift, and rent the tools or place a deposit down on it all. Unfortunately someone beat me to it here in Orlando....

[1.5]

yea that is the exact thing im talking about, i did not know there were any in our area why dont you use them they shouldnt charge a lot to rent a bay

[Shroomster]

Originally Posted by 1.5

yea that is the exact thing im talking about, i did not know there were any in our area why dont you use them they shouldnt charge a lot to rent a bay

I should have it installed in an hour or so after work, I needed to bring home some tools....