Quote:
Originally Posted by rvoll
While I agree with everything you've said, over the last few years, Subaru has de-emphasized "performance" cars. It looks like the next WRX will be fatter and plusher as that is what the majority of customers want. Looking at Subaru's development over the last few years, it sure looks like they are moving away from these performance cars and more towards safe, family, 4 wheel drive vehicles with good resale value. If that is the Subaru image of the future, it does not bode well for any major changes in the BRZ. I just purchased a new 2018 BRZ and I did test both it and the 86. It looked like Subaru wanted to make the BRZ look good and Toyota didn't care and just did the minimal. Remember, Toyota sells more 86's than Subaru sells BRZ's. Therefore, what's important here is what Toyota does with the 86 and not what is done to the BRZ.
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Over the last few years??? Performance cars have never been Subaru’s primary image or concern, just more of a side project just like most non-prestige brands. Neither Toyota nor Subaru sell enough 86s or BRZs (nor did they think they would sell them in numbers anywhere close to their family vehicle models) to make these vehicles very high on their priority list. If Subaru is able to continue to grow and thrive from the sales of their family oriented vehicles, that will only give them more money to potentially invest in future performance vehicle side projects... they will never thrive based on the niche market that buys cars like the BRZ.
While Toyota has sold more 86s than Subaru has sold BRZs, Toyota is a much higher volume seller of ALL of their models of vehicles than Subaru... so I’m fairly certain that the BRZ actually makes up a higher percentage of Subaru’s total sales than the 86 does of Toyota’s total sales. Subaru is growing rapidly but they are still nowhere near the volume of Toyota.