Road Test; 2013 Subaru BRZ

Two days after the official unveiling of the new BRD sports coupe at the Tokyo Motor Show, Subaru invited a small group of select American journalists for a quick test drive of the 2013 Subaru BRZ on the Subaru Kenkyu Center (SKC), two hours north of tokyo.

After showing that the BRZ name stands for Boxer Rear Drive Zenith, and sail with all technical specifications, released PR Subaru us a short course under a high-speed oval, handling twisty track, and part of broken asphalt. We got a few 15-minute stints with two U.S. production models: a high-spec BRZ Limited equipped with the optional six-speed automatic transmission and a base model with standard BRZ premium six-speed manual.

When the start button mounted in front of the selector button is pressed, the BRZ comes to life with a growl that settles into a smooth, burbling exhaust note. But if the car is opened on the banked oval, the note slightly coarser animal. However, it is not the braaap-Braapp wind you would expect from, say, the WRX STI. This is a bit more sedate, but pleasant in the way it resonates in the cockpit. Credit goes to the supplier Mahle for the pipes of the boxer engine note through the bulkhead in a manner similar to what Ford engineers did with the Mustang. At wide open throttle, the pipe brings a pleasant roar, loud enough that you scream to your buddy next to you, "sounds pretty good, right?"

The steering wheel is small, only 14.4 inches in diameter and the smallest of any modern Subaru. But the shape and the diameter is just right - thick enough for the small but oversized and doughy as in recent BMW M vehicles. The steering wheel is clad in black leather with red stitching contrasting with the dark interior to match. A clear Toyota parts-bin cruise control lever depends on the right side of the wheel, and there are no other controls, making the wheel look that plumbing the center console and instrument panel compliments.

Feedback from the tiller immediately and of course, that's a relief because it is an electric power steering (EPAS) system. The feeling is not as light as an MX-5, but offers none of the artificial gravity of the Audi's Dynamic mode (thank goodness). It's just clean and organic feel. It is not as accurate or as a direct handling of the goals (Porsche Cayman), but it's close enough to her boxer brother to be mentioned in one breath. The same can not be said of everything that Subaru says it is competitively set the BRZ's Mini Cooper S, Civic Si, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, MX-5 Miata, and Scion FR-S course.

Outward visibility is excellent, even though the driver sits low in a package not much longer than a Mazda MX-5. The FA20-engine, a 2.0-liter flat-four version of the new Impreza FB family, is mounted as low and as far back as possible in the chassis, everything from the treatment outward sightlines, thanks to the low hood and roof heights improves.

The optional six-speed Aisin-derived automatic transmission is good enough, but surpassed in shift speed and response of two of today's claws. Up-and downshifts are considerably fast for an automatic via steering wheel paddles (metallic painted plastic) or stabbing the gear lever towards you and switch back and forth. But the car will not always be a downshift on demand, instead, a warning beep-beep heard.

Yet the overall sensation through the hands, buttocks, and inner ear is perfect balance. The center of gravity (COG) layer, BRZ engineers put lighter, high-quality steel in the body. Moving the oval to the winding track shows the advantages of both low mass and COG because no brake and accelerator diving and almost zero roll when cornering.

That does not mean that pushing is entirely absent. Apparently, for safety, understeer is the default condition if you are sloppy. It is easy to induce, through early turn-in, causing the front tire to more than whining and unhappy roles as the nose teams.

As a credit to the balance of the BRZ's, upset a breeze so easy to find. Flick the wheel while adding too much gas, and the back end will break into a progressive, predictable way. Yes, BRD will dorifuto, but more on that later.

An early surprise is how aggressive stability control intervenes in the normal driving position. The car was criminally smooth to this point, but when the tail begins to be restless, things get a little rough. In normal mode (all traction and stability control on left), the primary reaction is the fast and noisy applying brake to the inside rear wheel. Dragging this band helps kill the first rotation and brings the car back into line, albeit in a loud, staccato fashion. BRZ engineers say that the secondary throttle response is reduced, but that's harder to feel.

Traction and stability control algorithms are governed by three buttons mounted just behind the shifter in 6AT-equipped BRZs. (Manuals lose the center Sport/Snow button.) With one touch, the left button partial turns off stability control; when held down for 3 seconds, it turns off completely. As you'd expect, the latter is a must for wannabe drifters.

In automatic BRZs, pushing the sport/snow mode rocker switch forward turns on a yellow SPORT light in the instrument panel and sharpens the throttle map and shift algorithm, resulting in quicker shifts and lower gears held to higher RPMs. What sport mode doesn't affect is EPAS or throttle response. Toggling the rocker switch back to snow mode starts the transmission in second gear, reducing wheel slippage in low-grip conditions.

Punching the rightmost button engages Sport VSC mode. This activates a combination of stability/sport indicator lights on the gauge cluster and lets you hang the car's tail out a touch, via steering angle, yaw rate, and lateral G sensors that forecast the vehicle's position. If that future looks too sideways, brake and throttle cut precautions engage. In practice, it's the best mode for spirited road courses like the SKC handling track. This twisty second/third-gear course had several tight low-speed turns and a couple of nasty mid-corner bumps that conspired to unsettle the BRZ. Sport VSC caught it every time, with a more progressive engagement of stability control over the normal mode.

As good as the BRZ auto is (and it's very impressive), I'm glad I drove it first, because the Premium model with the standard six-speed manual is the purist's delight.

But purists check your preconceptions at the door, because this is not a stripper model. Perhaps as a nod to the Scion content blocks technique, all the BRD models come standard with a limited-slip differential, cruise control, eight-speaker audio system with navigation and XM radio, leather-wrapped steering wheel, shift knob and e-brake treat soft-touch dashboard trim and black fabric. Step up to the basic spec for Premium Limited, and you get leather / Alcantara seats and surfaces, 17-inch wheels with summer tires (instead of 16 with all-seasons), ventilated front disc brakes and 11.6-inch ventilated 11.5 inch at the rear.

But back to how it drives. Ergonomics plays a larger role in the manual if your right hand must often leave the wheel to the six-speed trans process. Shifter position and feel is excellent, yet lighter tighter and less rubbery than the WRX STI hand-built gearbox (the two parts of the gear knob and lever arm). To be honest, the last built for the abuse of a much heavier, 300-horsepower rally racer. In terms of weight and crispness, the BRZ is mighty impressive, although I have the Mazda MX-5 still give the NSS in terms of near-perfect positioning.

Why do we still love manuals so much? Because the direct control of the transmission, the driver can really ring the RPMs and the cabin filled with BRD may be the best outlet Subaru has ever produced. It is loud and not very smooth, but totally enchanting and perhaps the classiest beef sounding 200 hp four-cylinder engine notes around.

Manuals also encourage drag launches and other hooliganism. With VSC Sport on, one-two shifts near the 7400 RPM redline will loudly chirp rear tires. The two-three shift gives only the faintest pip, and not all the time (remember, there are only 150 lb-ft of torque). Wring it out all the way through sixth gear and you can enter SKC's 43-degree banking over 120 mph. At that speed, the BRZ feels stable and planted -- perhaps due to the number of aerodynamic doodads (rear diffuser, double bubble roof, deck wing [Limited only]) that help the car achieve a 0.27 coefficient of drag. We didn't attempt VMAX, but Subaru engineer say a 7450-rpm fuel cutoff limits top speed to 220 kmh -- which is approximately 136.7 mph. To be honest, that seems a bit low.

On the handling course, you can drive the manual BRZ differently than the auto -- upshifting and rev-match downshifting at will -- but you don't have to. Though relatively low on torque, the FA20 is quick to rev and pulls the 2800-pound chassis around with no real flat spots in acceleration. I left it in third gear for two laps of the road course and never felt the need to downshift, except for the tightest of hairpin corners. Staying in second meant bouncing off the 7400-rpm rev limit or repeatedly snicking the fantastic transmission.

Just before I headed out to track for my second stint in the 6MT, a BRZ engineer let slip that the lateral acceleration target is 1.0g I tried to validate this claim on a giant circular skidpad using my patented belly fat accelerometer, but gave up after about 90 degrees in favor of practicing my best Keiichi Tsuchiya impersonations.

As I said earlier, yes, the BRZ will drift, and it is a beautiful thing. The combination of low mass, low center of gravity, and rear-wheel drive creates a neutral-handling vehicle that needs only to be flicked into a corner to get the rear tires breaking sideways (no clutch kicking or other abuse needed). With just enough torque available low in the rev range, and a reasonably high redline, BRZ can keep its tires spinning while the exploratory "dabs of oppo" can be dialed in. This very different from the Miata/MX-5, which is only beginning to break sideways at the top of its rev range before you must shift and kill any sideways momentum.

But it's not quite ready for Formula D just yet. While it has the snap to transition quickly from side-to-side and drift-to-drift, the BRZ needs more power to sustain the kind of high-speed drifts that win head-to-head battles. However, it would make a killer track day or autocross racer right off the lot with just a stickier set of tires (and Subaru says you can do that by folding down the rear seats and stuffing the 6.9-cubic-foot trunk with spares and tools. Try that in your Miata.)

The BRZ delivers as promised. Handling is as sweet as Orange Tang, but far less artificial-tasting. Power is not neck-snapping, but the car has just enough to make it exceptionally responsive. My frequent Mazda MX-5/Miata references are no mistake; the BRZ is definitely in that Zoom Zoom category of vehicles that deliver grins from pinning occupants to the side bolsters rather than seatbacks. The low mass, low center of gravity, and lack of dive and roll combine with direct steering and excellent outward visibility to create an exceptionally focused and pleasurable driving experience. With the BRZ, instead of adding speed with the gas pedal, you can refrain from subtracting speed with the brakes. The car is about carrying speed and momentum, and will surely be snapped up by auto crossers and track day enthusiasts alike. Our drive was brief, but the takeaway message is that the BRZ is a scalpel in the current rear-drive knife fight.

The 2013 Subaru BRZ will be available in seven colors (black, pearl white, silver, dark grey, dark blue, world rally blue, and red) when it goes on sale in May 2012. Expected volume for the BRZ is in the neighborhood of 3600-4000 per year and the cars will be built alongside the Toyota GT86 and Scion FR-S at Subaru's Gunma Main Plant. Prices are said to be "very close to the WRX" for base model (Premium), so expect $24,000 for Premium models and roughly $27,000 for the BRZ Limited. As precision surgical instruments go, that's a pretty good deal.