Hands on with a BRZ

[markitect]

Visited my local Subaru Dealer today because they had the BRZ on hand. The car is making its way around the midwest with someone from Subaru to brief dealers about the car. It was a BRZ limited, I didn't take any pictures there are plenty around.


My impression of the car is it is that the engineering is VERY detailed. Of course I couldn't drive it, but from what I can tell they have spent a lot of time making sure everything about this car is top of the line quality. This is the limited version and not final so I can't guarantee anything, but here are some things that haven't really been talked about.

The Hood & Underneath
I couldn't believe how light the hood feels. I know its aluminum, etc etc, but once you unlatch it it you will be amazed. I was lifting it with my pinky finger just for fun, it rivals the front service flat on my smart car. The down side of this is that it flexes a lot, but I trust that the bracing in side makes this a non-issue.
Along the front of the car where the hood lands there is a nice rubber seal, there should be no air getting under the hood that way. There are also rubber strips along the side that make for a nice solid latch when the hood is down. It also gives it a nice landing, but doesn't give it significant resistance when closing.
Under the hood, the air box, and noise re-director sit over a fair sized gap before you get to any real engine. Around the Engine is a Steel structure, which I'm guessing compensates for Hood flex, and includes the strut towers. There is however very little room (as speculated) next to the engine. Only a few Inches, and I think spark plugs through the wheel well is probably the only possibility.
Underneath the front there is a lot of access. I think a under-panel might be a good aftermarket part.

The rest of the Body
The Doors are good and solid, but not heavy, good movement, lots of space to enter(even the back seat). Aluminum door sil accents are nice. Also the windows drop when the door is open, so it should be a good seal while driving around.
The trunk is impressive. It can be opened from a button inside, a button on the trunk itself, and there is a key hole on the underside so it is a nice clean look. The trunk uses a trapezoidal hinge system so it moves up in addition to flipping up, also the hinges are completely external to the trunk. This gives it very impressive trunk space. Folding down the rear seats is accomplished from inside the trunk(which is a little odd), also there is a switch that appears to disable the front button, but as they keys were not available we didn't mess with it.
Visibility is really good for a sports car. The side view mirrors are more then sufficient and blind sports will be minimal when adjusted properly.

Inside
The seats have excellent side bolsters, and lumbar support I think they will be very comfortable for long road trips, and at the track. The adjustability is nice, and the leather like with suede like centers feel extremely nice. My only criticism is the headrests angle forward as is popular now, but I was able to move them up and they were very comfortable. I will say that I wonder if larger(horizontally) will be comfortable. I'm 180 lbs, 6ft, and they hugged me perfectly.
The controls were all easily accessible, it has a 12v jack behind the shifter, but the aux, and usb are by the radio head unit. Aluminum pedals(including dead pedal area) really work well with the aluminum buttons to make a very refined feel.
The clutch is really easy to push, but give enough feedback. The shifter throw is nice and short, with great feel in 1-4. There is a little more distance to get over to 5-6(at least it feels that way). In addition to the lock ring to allow reverse, it is further left then the entire sideways movement of the rest of the gears. Other notable things inside are that there is a button to switch the mph/kph for the digital readout and a small lever for opening the gas tank(it is smooth on the outside). In addition to things like the heated seat controls, traction control button, and all the usual switches and knobs.

Getting up close has made me love this car even more, and I think Scion would have to do something really drastic to make the interior anything but amazing.

[tranzformer]

Wrong forum. You should post here: http://www.ft86club.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=23

[slizoth]

Excellent info, thanks, I'm super excited too. I know I just put my pre order in for a Premium but if the price difference is small I might switch it to the limited.

[fistpoint]

Originally Posted by markitect

The rest of the Body
Also the windows drop when the door is open, so it should be a good seal while driving around.

Every time you open the door the window rolls down? Even with the car off? If so, that's the first part that's going to be replaced due to excess wear. I don't like that at all.

Closing the door with the window partially down is also the number one cause of the glue breaking on Honda's window clips(an infamous RSX issue). Drilling a hole in the window or molding one in the window making process and using a rubber grommet would be a 100% solution fix...

[eikond]

What dealership in MI? Any idea if it will be there tomorrow?

I wanna sit in a BRZ!!!!


Nice review by the way..

[Future]

@fistpoint ^^^ do a how to when you get it!.... We get around -20F temps here in winter... Don't want the windows to seize or anything...

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by fistpoint

Every time you open the door the window rolls down? Even with the car off? If so, that's the first part that's going to be replaced due to excess wear. I don't like that at all.

My wife's daily driver ('05 Mustang Pony Conv.) does this and we've had no issues with it. I did some quick math. Because of her job she drives short distances but is on/out of the car on avg 10 times per business day. In 5 years x 5 days a week, that's a conservative 10,000 cycles of the window with no issues allowing for variations.

Her's does it to clear the rag-top. Not sure why the FRS does it, maybe to avoid pressure?

[Scottyscooter]

I doubt that the window thing is going to cause any problems in the long run. Its not like having the windows index to get a better window seal is some swanky new experimental FRS/BRZ technology; its pretty common for cars to do this now days.

[Scottyscooter]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

Her's does it to clear the rag-top. Not sure why the FRS does it, maybe to avoid pressure?

Its pretty standard to see this on any new car that doesn't have a frame around the window glass. Rolling the window up into the seal will provide a better seal than closing the glass against it. My wife's 2004 MINI cooper does this. The 5th gen Camaro does this. The new mustang does it. Its no use continuing to list examples because now days, just about any car with a door like that is going to have indexing windows.

[Ryephile]

Here's the thread I added my pictures and comments from today's dealership BRZ visit:

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3992

Cheers,
Ryan

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by Scottyscooter

Its pretty standard to see this on any new car that doesn't have a frame around the window glass...

Works for me. Guess I hadn't looked close enough to realize it didn't have a frame.

[Mitch]

Originally Posted by fistpoint

Every time you open the door the window rolls down? Even with the car off? If so, that's the first part that's going to be replaced due to excess wear. I don't like that at all.

Closing the door with the window partially down is also the number one cause of the glue breaking on Honda's window clips(an infamous RSX issue). Drilling a hole in the window or molding one in the window making process and using a rubber grommet would be a 100% solution fix...

My 1995 M3 does the 1/4" down/up thing, and it's holding out like a champ. And that's from the era of BMWs where a glovebox that doesn't sag is something you brag about.

[fistpoint]

Your responses give me hope. Apparently the vehicles in your examples don't use a silly system similar to Honda with the glue...or they use better glue itself.

[Lordharding]

The 350z worked that way also if I remember with no problems