About the Subaru BRZ
Edward purchased this Subaru BRZ new for $43,000 (including all on-road costs). Edward would buy this car again because: “Absolutely, I feel like this car has reinvigorated the enjoyment of driving for me. Any drive, even a drive down to the shops is fun and I just love taking it for a drive at any opportunity. It feels like I am 18 again and freshly licensed.”
How reliable has your car been? Tell us about any issues.
I’ve driven the car approximately 3000km since new and it has performed without fault. One of the biggest appeals of the car is the simplicity.
There are no overly fancy driving modes, adaptive dampers, driver assists or touch screen controlled HVAC systems to go wrong. Given the simplicity of the whole package I do’nt doubt the BRZ will be a very reliable car for many years.
What do you think of the ownership experience with your car?
I have personally loved the ownership experience so far. Initially, I purchased this car as a weekend toy but I’ve loved driving it so much I’ve ditched the daily car and now use the BRZ for everything.
Despite the impractical appearance of the car it’s quite adaptable for most everyday tasks.
The back seats fold down which has allowed me to go shopping at IKEA and Bunnings and load it up with all sorts of furniture, hardware and plants.
How has the purchase and aftercare experience been with your car?
The purchase experience from Subaru was really excellent and pleasant which was the polar opposite experience compared to the Toyota dealer.
Initially, I wanted to buy the Toyota GR86 version but the Toyota dealership were seemingly against that idea. Toyota was not able to provide any info, let me take the demo out, take an order or even put me on a list.
After trying and failing to buy a GR86, I visited Subaru who let me demo the car, they were able to provide me with info about the car and were happy to take an order. They were able provide a build date and give an estimated shipping date. The car ended up being delivered a whole month early (only three month wait).
Aftercare has been excellent too. I had a question about one of the functions after picking up the car and the dealer was more than happy to investigate for me and come back with the answer. The first service was also super easy and quick.
Are you happy with the price and features of your car?
Given the current market the BRZ is quite well priced at around $43k drive-away. There are not many cars out there, including hot hatches (that are meant to be budget friendly) that are affordable and fun.
For the price the BRZ has a decent array of features for a base model car. Compared to the more expensive S model it only lacks heated Alcantara seats.
However, it is missing some of the more modern basic safety features that come standard in most cars, such as lane keeping and auto brake functions. I don’t miss these features and personally prefer to not have them but they are still glaring omissions for a modern car. The stereo isn’t the greatest either.
A surprising and welcome feature is a full sized spare alloy wheel in the boot.
What do you think of the performance and economy of your car?
The 2.4L naturally aspirated boxer is a surprising gem of a motor. I’ve never driven the previous 2.0L 86/BRZ but it was well known for being slow with a serious torque dip in its mid-end power delivery.
The 2.4 however has a lovely amount of torque below 4500rpm with a nice rush of power above 5000rpm. You can’t say its a fast car but its fast enough to have fun.
The fuel economy is reasonable but having to put in 98 RON hurts the wallet a little bit. A mix of mostly urban driving sees an average of around 9.0L/100KM.
What do you think of the technology in your car?
The technology is fine for the intended purpose of this car. This car is a designed foremost as a fun economical sports car. So you do miss out on some of the tech that most other cars get.
I see a lot of criticism of the centre infotainment screen but it’s perfectly okay and does the job but it’s certainly not an iPad level of sophistication.
I love that the only driving mode (track) only serves to turn off traction control. The simplicity is great but for people wanting to adjust steering response, dampers and exhaust volume will be disappointed.
What do you think of the ride comfort and handling of your car?
Without question the jewel in the BRZ’s crown is the handling of the car. This is my first sports car but what strikes me is the wonderfully planted feeling the car has, it feels suckered down on the road and sticks though the corners like you wouldn’t believe.
The steering is direct and deadly accurate with an immense amount of feedback from all corners of the car. You are never in any doubt what the car is doing and it does feel like an extension of you.
Overall, the car is simply fun to drive. Its fast enough that its great fun to drive and in combination of the flickable handling and the cheeky back end RWD characteristics there are times where I am smiling or giggling as I drive.