I am in love with the Subaru BRZ, but sometimes I feel like I might be the only one. The car won me over two years ago with its laser-precise handling and truly driver-focused cabin. More recently, I fell in love all over again behind the wheel of the 2015 Subaru BRZ Series Blue edition. From the ground up, the coupe just feels like a car that was built with enthusiasts in mind and sporty driving at its core.
But whenever I discuss the coupe with the enthusiasts around me, the response is usually the same: "It's kind of over-hyped, don't you think?"
Driver and driving focused
The BRZ starts with classic sports car proportions, sitting low to the ground and with a wide stance within its compact footprint. The sheet metal almost appears to be poured over the wheels, the arches bulging slightly over the fenders. Everywhere I went, the BRZ elicited, "Wow, that's a Subaru?" from passersby, over and over again.
But there's a function to this form. Beneath the looks is a lightweight and stiff chassis that forms the basis of the BRZ's excellent driving dynamics. The low-slung construction keeps the coupe's center of gravity low and gives the suspension a good platform from which to work. So the BRZ's ride, while stiff, doesn't have to be punishing. In fact, the 2015 model year sees a revision to the BRZ's suspension setup aimed at improving grip by smoothing out the suspension's travel over uneven pavement.
The purposeful design continues in the cabin where the seating position is nearly perfect. The pedals are well spaced for easy heel-and-toe downshifting and the wheel and shift lever fell into my hands as if the car were tailored to my frame. There's an efficiency and a simplicity to the BRZ's cabin that I found appealing. The steering wheel, for example, doesn't have any buttons on its face; there aren't a half-dozen buttons for complex driving modes; and even the central mirror is constructed using what looks like the absolute minimum amount of material in an attempt to keep weight low.
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Powered by Boxer
Beneath the low-slung hood, the BRZ is powered by a 200-horsepower, 2.0-liter Boxer four-cylinder engine. It sends 151 pound-feet of torque to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transmission and a standard Torsen limited-slip differential. Here again, Subaru's engineers kept the handling in mind by mounting the power plant as low in the bay as possible, and as far back, which contributes to the coupe's low center of mass and nearly 50/50 front/rear weight distribution.
And so we come to the BRZ's most cited "weakness." It's lacking in the power, particularly low-end torque. Subaru and Toyota didn't set out to build a drag racer; they built a corner carver, so stoplight hole shots are a bit outside of the scope of this car. But enthusiasts like gobs and gobs of power, so most love affairs with the BRZ end at the test drive when the low-slung coupe gets smoked by a soccer mom in a Honda Odyssey or Toyota Camry. How embarrassing.
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What the Boxer engine lacks in low-end grunt, however, it more than makes up for with its playfulness at the mid-to-top swing of the power band. The four-banger has a unique and satisfying sound at full bore and feels like a good match for the lightweight BRZ and its six-speed manual transmission. During my testing, the BRZ never felt underpowered when it counted, but that's mostly because it's so easy to maintain speed through a bend rather than power out of one.
Telepathic handling
From the driver's seat, the BRZ's relentless focus on handling, balance and low weight manifests as almost telepathic performance. The BRZ boasts fantastic fingertip and seat of the pants feedback and excellent responsiveness. The coupe felt like an extension of my body, as familiar after just a few hours behind the wheel as a car that I'd owned for years.
Like the Mazda Miata, the Subaru is a car that delivers thrills at any speed. The characteristics emphasize "driving joy" over "red mist." Dancing lightly through city traffic at 25 mph can be just as satisfying as a 65 mph highway on-ramp blast. And any speed on a twisty back road had me giggling like a madman.
The 2015 Subaru BRZ is an outstanding sports coupe for drivers who value handling prowess over outright power, but for the money there are so many
Car Tech - 2015 Subaru BRZ - YouTube
http://cnet.co/1EEYwfD Now that the hype surrounding the BRZ has died down, we're left with a very pure, but pricey, sports coupe.
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The 2015 Subaru BRZ is an outstanding sports coupe for drivers who value handling prowess over outright power, but for the money there are so many Get the latest
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Safety. Standard safety equipment on the 2015 Subaru BRZ includes antilock brakes, traction and stability control (with selectable levels of calibration), front side
