2 Sept 2013

Subaru BRZ first impressions and gallery

The Subaru BRZ was delivered on Friday.  I dropped the man from Subaru at the station and took the long way home.

After 5 miles I was hooked.  The stories are true.  The legend is real.  It is a fantastic machine.
Subaru BRZ in Blue Mica

I then drove it another 100 miles on motorway, A-road and single tracked barely surfaced roads.  I had a ball.

If this wasn't such a fantastic car to drive I'd whinge about the quality of some of the interior materials, the aftermarket look to some details in the cabin.  But I won't.  Because it is THE true, modern sports car for the people.

The BRZ costs £24,995 but the one I'm testing is an SE Lux and costs £26,495.  For the extra £2.5k you get heated Alcantara and leather seats and, erm....nothing else that I can find.  They're very good seats though.

The BRZ has a 2 litre, flat-4 boxer engine which produces 200bhp and does 0-60mph in 7.6 seconds.  That doesn't sound much but believe me, it is enough to generate lots of thrills.

The engine doesn't have a turbocharger so has a lovely flat power band with a red line at a screaming 7500rpm.  And it does scream.  A marvellous sound which only a boxer engine can make.

The test car comes with an optional satnav which works almost as well as a TomTom (praise indeed from me) and Bluetooth which, after a bit of a faff to connect, seamlessly streams calls and music from your smartphone.  This is good because it doesn't have digital radio - a major let-down.

The driving experience is fantastically sporty.  The BRZ has the lowest centre of mass of any car on the market (thanks to Budda for that info) which aids such a sweet handling experience.  The suspension is quite soft when compared to similarly priced hot hatches, which rely on hard-as-nails damping to overcome the inherent deficiency of being based on a humdrum hatchback.

The engine's only weak point is it's lack of torque - 151 lb ft.  This is only an issue when overtaking on the go.  You need to chuck it down a few gears to get it to hurry up.  The immensely short-throw gearbox is a peach though.

I've got the BRZ for 5 days.  Speedmonkey will publish a full review soon.
Subaru BRZ in Blue Mica

Subaru BRZ engine

Subaru BRZ in Blue Mica

Subaru BRZ in Blue Mica

Subaru BRZ boot space


Subaru BRZ front lights

Subaru BRZ rear lights

Subaru BRZ rear lights

Subaru BRZ dash

Subaru BRZ centre console


Article by Matt Hubbard