LIKES
- Agile handling
- Always engaging
- Choice of sticky or slippery tires
- Good outward visibility
DISLIKES
- Interior hard plastics
- Unusable back seat
- Still no turbo
- We’d like to see a convertible
BUYING TIP
Additional power ramps up the fun, and now buyers can opt for a 2022 Subaru BRZ that drifts or sticks to the pavement.
What kind of car is the 2022 Subaru BRZ? What does it compare to?
A small two-door sports coupe that’s low on power but high on fun, the Subaru BRZ competes against the Toyota 86, Mazda MX-5 Miata, and Hyundai Veloster N, as well as larger American iron like the Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang.
Is the 2022 Subaru BRZ a good car?
The BRZ is made for enthusiasts who enjoy driving. It’s fun and engaging every time you get behind the wheel, and limited power makes much of its performance envelope usable on the street. We rate it a 6.0 out of 10 overall.
What's new for the 2022 Subaru BRZ?
Subaru and Toyota update the BRZ and 86 twins for 2022. The new BRZ features a revised design, a tweaked suspension, a stiffer structure, a choice of sticky or slippery tires, a small lineup of Premium and Limited models, and, most importantly, more power from a larger 2.4-liter flat-4.
The design is an evolution of the last model but with more character and detail. The low-set grille has much the same shape, but it’s now flanked by taller air intakes. New functional side air vents behind the front wheels channel air from under the hood, and that air runs along more pronounced side sills that flow from the vents. The front and rear fenders continue with wide haunches, and the fastback-style roof resolves into an integrated duckbill spoiler.
Inside, the BRZ features a simple dashboard with an 8.0-inch touchscreen. Sporty touches include the small-diameter steering wheel, aluminum pedals, and well-bolstered sport seats with available synthetic suede inserts.
Sports car fans have asked for a turbocharged engine since the BRZ was released for the 2013 model year. The 2022 model doesn’t deliver on that request, but its flat-4 grows from 2.0 to 2.4 liters, adding 23 hp and 25 lb-ft of torque for totals of 228 hp and 184 lb-ft. Manual and automatic transmissions return, both 6-speeds, and both route the power to the rear wheels.
The BRZ’s chassis has 50% more torsional rigidity thanks to the use of adhesives instead of welds, thicker front frame crossmembers, strengthened damper and steering box mounts, and a stabilizer bar mounted to the body instead of the rear subframe. Subaru also loosens up the rear suspension to help it stick better, and now offers 18-inch Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires that provide better grip than the base 17-inch Michelin Primacy HP tires.
At less than 2,900 lb and with a very low center of gravity, the BRZ has waterbug moves and manages to be fairly quick in a straight line despite modest power. The quick steering provides great feedback, the ride is firm but comfortable, and drivers have fun every time they get behind the wheel. Fuel economy is just OK, topping out at 21 mpg city, 30 highway 25 combined with the automatic transmission. We’d expect better given the car’s limited power and low weight.
While the BRZ is a four-seater, it’s best for two as the rear seats are fit for neither man nor beast. A small trunk also has limited space, though the rear seats fold down to give it usable cargo room.
How much does the 2022 Subaru BRZ cost?
Pricing runs up to $33,255 for the BRZ Limited model with the automatic transmission.
The BRZ is largely devoid of standard safety features in its base Premium model with the manual transmission, but the Limited model adds adaptive headlights, blind-spot monitors, and rear cross traffic alerts, and Limited buyers who choose the automatic also get automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, reverse automatic braking, and lane-departure warnings.
Where is the Subaru BRZ made?
In Japan.
Styling
The Subaru BRZ is an attractive but not seductive sports car.
Is the Subaru BRZ a good-looking car?
A classic sports car shape hints at fun behind the wheel, but the BRZ doesn’t have the sensuous lines of a Jaguar or the iconic shape of a Porsche 911. Still, we like the low, wheels-to the corners stance and fastback profile enough to give the BRZ a 6 out of 10 here.
The traditional sports car cues are all there on the BRZ: a short hood and long deck,
Inside, the BRZ embraces simplicity more than beauty. The horizontal dash is dominated by an 8.0-inch touchscreen within a rectangular housing. The small steering wheel, sport buckets, and aluminum pedals provide a sporty feel. We like the straightforward gauges that provide pertinent information at a glance and sit within a housing shaped like the BRZ’s boxer engine.
Performance
Low-set and light, the BRZ is agile in any form and buyers can choose between tires that grip or tires that allow controlled slides.
The 2022 Subaru BRZ extols the virtues of light-weight design. It’s quick with relatively little power, agile, and always engaging. We rate it a 9 out of 10 for performance for those strengths and its comfortable ride.
Is the Subaru BRZ AWD?
No, it comes only with all-wheel drive like the sports car gods intended.
With a larger flat-4 engine, the 2022 BRZ adds an element of quickness that was lacking in the first-generation model. The 2.4-liter engine makes 228 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque, up from 205 hp and 159 lb-ft. That’s good for a 0-60 mph sprint of 6.5 seconds with the manual transmission and 7.0 seconds with the automatic. That’s reasonably quick, and it’s made possible by its featherweight 2,884-lb curb weight. The powertrain satisfies, too, as the larger engine still revs willingly, and the 6-speed manual gearbox has short, positive throws.
Buyers have a choice to make when choosing their BRZs. The Premium mode comes with 17-inch Michelin Primacy HP tires, which are the brand’s lowest-traction summer tires. Limited buyers get Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires, which are much stickier and come with 18-inch wheels. The Primacy HPs fit the BRZ’s original mission: to let go of traction easily enough for a low-powered sports car to drift. The Pilot Sport 4 tires provide the grip needed for quicker times on a track or autocross. Drifting is fun, but we prefer better traction for more confident cornering. It’s still possible to drift with the Sport 4s, but it’s harder to control and requires more effort to induce the drift.
No matter the tires, the BRZ is a blast from behind the wheel. The steering provides quick responses and far better feedback than most electric-assist systems. Neutral handling lets drivers carve precise corners, and the light weight and low center of gravity make it very agile. It’s an ideal car for an autocross, especially with the stickier tires. Small brakes with 2-piston front and single-piston rear calipers offer a ready and predictable stopping power for the street, but those who want to take their BRZs to the racetrack will need performance pads and/or bigger brake rotors.
Comfort & Quality
A great driver’s seat is offset by a tight backseat and a small cargo hold.
A small coupe with 2+2 seating, the BRZ is best at carrying two, and it’s light on cargo space as well. We rate it a 4 out of 10 for quality and comfort by taking away two points for its unusable rear seat and tight trunk space and adding a point for its sporty and supportive front seats.
The BRZ focuses on the relationship between car and driver, not car and passengers. Front seat occupants have plenty of space on comfortable seats that keep them in place during cornering, but the back seat lacks leg room for anyone with legs and also has tight head room.
The cargo area has just 6.9 cubic feet of space, but Subaru touts that folding down the rear seat gives the cargo hold enough room to fit a set of wheels and tires plus assorted tools for a track day. That way, the BRZ becomes its own trailer and the rear seat serves a purpose.
Safety
The Subaru BRZ doesn’t have crash-test ratings yet, and it gets automatic emergency braking only at the top of the lineup.
How safe is the Subaru BRZ?
That’s undetermined. It doesn’t have crash-test ratings yet, though the last-generation model tested fairly well. It offers a decent set of safety features, but we’re disappointed that automatic emergency braking isn’t standard.
The base Premium model with the manual transmission comes with a driver’s knee airbag, but none of today’s active safety features. Go for the Limited model and you get adaptive headlights, blind-spot monitors, and rear cross traffic alerts, and the Limited with the automatic adds automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, reverse automatic braking, and lane-departure warnings.
Features
A sports car value, the 2022 Subaru BRZ comes well equipped and ready for fun.
The Subaru BRZ is a great starter sports car with value pricing and a small model lineup that includes just two models. We rate it a 7, adding points for its value, strong base features, and infotainment, but docking it a point for its limited options.
Subaru offers the BRZ in two models, base Premium and stickier Limited, each with a standard manual transmission or an optional automatic.
The $28,955 BRZ Premium comes standard with cloth upholstery, aluminum pedals, a 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster, an 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite radio, keyless access and starting, LED headlights, a Torsen limited-slip rear differential, and Michelin Primacy HP tires on 17-inch alloy wheels.
A sports car should stick to the pavement so it can carve turns, so we would choose the Limited model with the manual transmission for $31,455. It gets Premium equipment, plus heated front seats, leather bucket seats with synthetic suede inserts, synthetic leather trim, Subaru’s Starlink connected services, adaptive headlights, blind-spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alerts, and, most importantly, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tires on 18-inch wheels.
How much is a fully loaded 2022 Subaru BRZ?
Opt for the Limited model with the automatic transmission and the price increases to $33,255. It also gets reverse automatic braking, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, and lane-departure warnings.
Fuel Economy
The Subaru BRZ may be light, but it’s not especially efficient.
Is the Subaru BRZ good on gas?
It’s not bad, but it’s not good either. The BRZ weighs less than 3,000 lb and uses a 4-cylinder engine, but it isn’t particularly efficient. We rate it a 4 out of 10 based on its 21 mpg city, 30 highway, 25 combined ratings with the 6-speed automatic transmission.
Opt for the 6-speed manual and the ratings fall to 20/27/22 mpg. There is no difference in efficiency between the Premium and Limited models.
0 comments:
Post a Comment