A Tight Race at the Top in the Scion FR-S Tuner Challenge

SCION CANADA - It's down to the wire for the three Canadian teams competing in the 2012-2013 Scion FR-S Tuner Challenge. The teams – Swag Racing, Top Tuner and VCMC – have completed nine of 11 challenges in the competition, which puts each team's customized Scion FR-S vehicles through rigorous performance tests. With only two challenges left, the fight will be hotter than ever as each team vies to win the challenge and drive away with their Scion FR-S.

After nine challenges, Team Top Tuner leads the standings with 72 points. But with 69 points, Team VCMC is a very close second and within striking distance of victory. Team Swag Racing is third, with 48 points. Canadian tuner fans can follow all the action at www.tunerchallenge.ca

Scion Canada is an active supporter of passion in motorsports, and the Tuner Challenge program brings together some of Canada's top talent to compete and to show off their skills. The final two challenges are:

· Endurance – a test of the overall performance, reliability and staying power of each car. The teams will compete in three events – Drifting, Time Attack and Drag Racing – all held on the same day at Toronto Motorsport Park.

· People's Choice – an ongoing challenge in which Canadian tuner enthusiasts vote for their favourite among the three team's customized Scion FR-S vehicles, at the tuner challenge website.

Completed challenges include: Autocross, Driving Skills, Drifting, Gymkhana, Ice Racing, Time Attack, Drag, Show and Shine, and performance testing by three Canadian automotive journalists (the Media Challenge). Full details of each team's performance can be found on www.tunerchallenge.ca

The Scion FR-S Tuner Challenge brings together three teams from across Canada:

· Representing the Québec region, team Swag Racing is led by Dany Bernier, also known as "Babu". Dany is a well-known Québec personality and the morning man on CHOI 98.1 Radio-X in Québec City. Babu has a long history in motorsports as a Touring Car driver and a professional drifter in the DMCC drifting series.

· Representing Ontario, team Top Tuner is led by Edmund Manasan. Edmund's team is well known on the car show circuit. For years, Top Tuner has put out some of the most respected show cars in the country. To tackle the performance aspect of the Tuner Challenge, the team relies on the services of Can-Jam motorsports to prepare the car and of Sasha Anis, a successful CTCC Touring Car driver, the pilot of the car.

· Representing the West Coast, team VCMC is led by Richard Basford. Richard is a long time grassroots motorsports enthusiast. As an experienced autocross driver in the VCMC autocross series and a performance driving coach, Richard brings a calculated approach the competition.