BRZ comes last in EVO group test - Page 3 - Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community

Capt Canuck · 04-20-2012, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uspspro

I can't believe they wasted their time comparing the automatic.

They were given what they were given by Subaru UK. If they had already planned this feature and sourced the rest of the cars, they did the best they could.

Regardless, Evo generally and Jethro specifically will be contrarian for contrarians sake in some of their pieces. So I think the BRZ was going to have to be super eff-off great to not get beaten by the Megane.

What was more surprising for me, was John Barker's track review. That really was not positive apart from the brakes.

Chenslee · 04-20-2012, 05:42 PM

Also remember that these are press cars with fresh rubber. Even Summer tires wear out and loose their grip after you beat on them over months of use. I've got a set of 235's on my Civic Si worn down to the indicators, they've all but given up up ghost in the traction department.

I wore the Si's stock 215's down to the threads, trust me 150ft-lb of torque will be plenty enough to to keep you busy during the last 25%.

Sport-Tech · 04-20-2012, 05:43 PM

It's interesting that they love the MX-5 because it's really so bad it challenges you to pull it all together, and that is what's fun. And they say much the same about the 370Z. The BRZ is found to be boringly competent on the road given its limited power.

While these comments may seem discouraging, the testing context mollifies my concerns. These guys are far from your average drivers, that is pretty obvious. It's clear that for the typical enthusiast getting near the limit is going to be far safer and more predictable in the BRZ than either of those 2 - and it's probably going to be bloody enjoyable, since most of us won't be nearly as jaded as these reviewers, who have spent countless hours flogging the best cars in the world and have honed their skill levels to the point where anything not incredibly difficult for the average enthusiast is going to bore them to death.

Anyway, they surely would have had had more fun in a manual GT 86 - better gear ratios, more neutral handling and so more amenable to throttle-steer.

prophecy0 · 04-20-2012, 05:49 PM

These EVO articles are a bit disconcerting to me as I have an automatic BRZ pre-ordered. The BRZ will be my first RWD car, so I'm actually glad that it's so easy to maintain control in it. I just don't want to always feel like I'm just short of having enough power to have fun.

OrbitalEllipses · 04-20-2012, 06:04 PM

A lot of this car was hype, evo just blew some of that away. Perhaps this will be a "better" car than my WRX, but if it's less fun...I'm not sure I'll be able to deal with that.

dsgerbc · 04-20-2012, 06:35 PM

Waste of journal space.

brzmaybe · 04-20-2012, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

A lot of this car was hype, evo just blew some of that away.

Months ago we had indications that Subaru had tuned the BRZ suspension for greater stability.

Remember that time attack BRZ/FR-S side-by-side video of a couple of days ago? The BRZ had little understeer... and precious little oversteer, either.

Oops?

stateless · 04-20-2012, 06:41 PM

Next they should review a manual BRZ versus automatics of the other cars, and maybe throw in a 10-speed bicycle for good measure. If an auto is all Subaru would give them, why not review it on its own instead of making a comparison, or compare it with other automatics. They probably still wouldn't like the BRZ but at least it would have some meaning.

Subaruwrxfan · 04-20-2012, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

A lot of this car was hype, evo just blew some of that away. Perhaps this will be a "better" car than my WRX, but if it's less fun...I'm not sure I'll be able to deal with that.

Yeah, same here, the Mustang I was considering (that's kinda in the same camp as the 370Z in the article in regards to driving feel) is starting to look more and more appealing. The spirit of the AE86 was that it was kinda crappy, and that's what made it fun. The way everyone portrayed this car with the skinny prius tires and whatnot, I thought this car would have the same spirit. And all the other reviews have given me reason to believe this. That's why I'm so surprised by this article.

The only solace I can give to us doubters now is that this car will be rare and if we don't like it, we can almost definitely sell it for almost what we paid for it. Normally a test drive would sort all of these things out, but with getting an entirely new car at launch, this is a chance we are taking...

Allch Chcar · 04-20-2012, 06:44 PM

They certainly did a good job of downplaying the good parts about the BRZ. So it has better steering and brake feedback than the MX-5? Sweet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by prophecy0

These EVO articles are a bit disconcerting to me as I have an automatic BRZ pre-ordered. The BRZ will be my first RWD car, so I'm actually glad that it's so easy to maintain control in it. I just don't want to always feel like I'm just short of having enough power to have fun.

The low power is going to be more noticeable with the auto's wider gears. Definitely test drive before you pull the trigger.

bneale · 04-20-2012, 06:45 PM

I honestly think they reviewed the wrong car! I mean that in a good way.

I wonder what they would have said if they actually got to drive a manual GT86 instead. After all Chris Harris writes and drives for EVO mag and he flew all the way to Japan just to drive it for 20 minutes and loved it!

If they had reviewd an GT86 instead, I'm sure the softer springs would have given them the "tail out drama" they were missing from the BRZ.

Also, comparing the BRZ to the Trophy Megane is sort of not a 1:1 comparison on the track in my opinion. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Trophy edition of the Megane sort of like equivlent to a STI version of a WRX? It has like 70+ HP on the BRZ in the first place plus its FWD. So there's less loss of power in the Megane when talking about drivetrains.

I don't understand where they got the idea a 370Z is even closely comparable to a BRZ as well. It's got a way bigger engine and I'm guessing the price is the real reason why it was considered. But if thats the case, its totally out of proportions in the first place. For example, the MX-5 in Canada is more money then a BRZ / FR-S. A base MX-5 is $28,995 where a FRS is $25990 and BRZ is $27,295.

I like EVO mag and all, but I think they got some of the priorities slightly wrong with this article. It still doesn't stop me from buying the FR-S I really want.

bneale

Capt Canuck · 04-20-2012, 06:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dsgerbc

Waste of journal space.

Because...?

Subaruwrxfan · 04-20-2012, 06:46 PM

Also, I have no idea why Subaru would give seasoned road testers an automatic BRZ. Especially for comparison tests. They were setting up for failure from the start.

Jeff_DML · 04-20-2012, 06:57 PM

ouch those reviews hurt but ok with me since I have not preordered one. I agree with the automatic complaints, based on the differences in the EPA gas mileages the slushy is geared badly for performance.

Anyways my wallet is happy with it, more confirmation that I made the right decision in buying something for the nearterm and have the luxury to wait to test drive one and see if a STI/higher horsepower version comes out.

04-20-2012, 06:46 PM	#41
Subaruwrxfan Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Drives: 2015 Mustang EcoBoost Location: Pittsburgh Posts: 796 Thanks: 274 Thanked 195 Times in 89 Posts Mentioned: 8 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Also, I have no idea why Subaru would give seasoned road testers an automatic BRZ. Especially for comparison tests. They were setting up for failure from the start. __________________ Check out my BRZ videos on my YouTube page: youtube.com/subaruwrxfan

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04-20-2012, 05:42 PM	#30
Chenslee Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Drives: 2015 Halo FR-S Location: Greensboro, NC Posts: 67 Thanks: 36 Thanked 22 Times in 15 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Also remember that these are press cars with fresh rubber. Even Summer tires wear out and loose their grip after you beat on them over months of use. I've got a set of 235's on my Civic Si worn down to the indicators, they've all but given up up ghost in the traction department. I wore the Si's stock 215's down to the threads, trust me 150ft-lb of torque will be plenty enough to to keep you busy during the last 25%.

04-20-2012, 05:43 PM	#31
Sport-Tech Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Drives: TBD Location: Toronto Posts: 2,583 Thanks: 665 Thanked 685 Times in 386 Posts Mentioned: 2 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	It's interesting that they love the MX-5 because it's really so bad it challenges you to pull it all together, and that is what's fun. And they say much the same about the 370Z. The BRZ is found to be boringly competent on the road given its limited power. While these comments may seem discouraging, the testing context mollifies my concerns. These guys are far from your average drivers, that is pretty obvious. It's clear that for the typical enthusiast getting near the limit is going to be far safer and more predictable in the BRZ than either of those 2 - and it's probably going to be bloody enjoyable, since most of us won't be nearly as jaded as these reviewers, who have spent countless hours flogging the best cars in the world and have honed their skill levels to the point where anything not incredibly difficult for the average enthusiast is going to bore them to death. Anyway, they surely would have had had more fun in a manual GT 86 - better gear ratios, more neutral handling and so more amenable to throttle-steer.

04-20-2012, 05:49 PM	#32
prophecy0 Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Drives: 2012 VW GTI (Stage II) Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 33 Thanks: 2 Thanked 2 Times in 1 Post Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	These EVO articles are a bit disconcerting to me as I have an automatic BRZ pre-ordered. The BRZ will be my first RWD car, so I'm actually glad that it's so easy to maintain control in it. I just don't want to always feel like I'm just short of having enough power to have fun.

04-20-2012, 06:04 PM	#33
OrbitalEllipses Banned Join Date: Jan 2012 Drives: Attitude Location: MD Posts: 10,046 Thanks: 884 Thanked 4,889 Times in 2,902 Posts Mentioned: 123 Post(s) Tagged: 4 Thread(s)	A lot of this car was hype, evo just blew some of that away. Perhaps this will be a "better" car than my WRX, but if it's less fun...I'm not sure I'll be able to deal with that.

04-20-2012, 06:35 PM	#34
dsgerbc Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Drives: BRZ(sold), STI Location: A2, MI Posts: 1,915 Thanks: 176 Thanked 419 Times in 241 Posts Mentioned: 11 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Waste of journal space.

04-20-2012, 06:41 PM	#36
stateless Double Dragon Join Date: Mar 2012 Drives: 2013 6MT BRZ Limited Location: Calgary Posts: 288 Thanks: 66 Thanked 40 Times in 21 Posts Mentioned: 4 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	Next they should review a manual BRZ versus automatics of the other cars, and maybe throw in a 10-speed bicycle for good measure. If an auto is all Subaru would give them, why not review it on its own instead of making a comparison, or compare it with other automatics. They probably still wouldn't like the BRZ but at least it would have some meaning.

04-20-2012, 06:45 PM	#39
bneale Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Drives: Scion FR-S Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 555 Thanks: 1 Thanked 58 Times in 37 Posts Mentioned: 4 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	I honestly think they reviewed the wrong car! I mean that in a good way. I wonder what they would have said if they actually got to drive a manual GT86 instead. After all Chris Harris writes and drives for EVO mag and he flew all the way to Japan just to drive it for 20 minutes and loved it! If they had reviewd an GT86 instead, I'm sure the softer springs would have given them the "tail out drama" they were missing from the BRZ. Also, comparing the BRZ to the Trophy Megane is sort of not a 1:1 comparison on the track in my opinion. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Trophy edition of the Megane sort of like equivlent to a STI version of a WRX? It has like 70+ HP on the BRZ in the first place plus its FWD. So there's less loss of power in the Megane when talking about drivetrains. I don't understand where they got the idea a 370Z is even closely comparable to a BRZ as well. It's got a way bigger engine and I'm guessing the price is the real reason why it was considered. But if thats the case, its totally out of proportions in the first place. For example, the MX-5 in Canada is more money then a BRZ / FR-S. A base MX-5 is $28,995 where a FRS is $25990 and BRZ is $27,295. I like EVO mag and all, but I think they got some of the priorities slightly wrong with this article. It still doesn't stop me from buying the FR-S I really want. bneale

04-20-2012, 06:57 PM	#42
Jeff_DML Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Drives: 2008 M3 Sedan(last motor vehicle) Location: San Diego Posts: 31 Thanks: 4 Thanked 5 Times in 4 Posts Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Tagged: 0 Thread(s)	ouch those reviews hurt but ok with me since I have not preordered one. I agree with the automatic complaints, based on the differences in the EPA gas mileages the slushy is geared badly for performance. Anyways my wallet is happy with it, more confirmation that I made the right decision in buying something for the nearterm and have the luxury to wait to test drive one and see if a STI/higher horsepower version comes out.

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