Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ (2017 minor change)

The Toyota 86 and the Subaru BRZ, two rear-wheel drive sports cars that signalled the collaboration between Toyota and Subaru, have been around for about four years since its 2012 debut and continues to win the hearts of many car enthusiasts who wanted a proper Japanese sportscar that handles and drives just the way the speedo boys want. For Toyota fans, the 86 considered to be a revival to the company's fun-to-drive mantra that has experienced from its past machines including the AE86 Sprinter Trueno/Corolla Levin. For the Subarists, the BRZ is just nothing more of a sacrilege to Subaru's four-wheel drive tradition because of its rear-wheel drive layout but either way, these sportscars remain popular among speedo boys looking for a JDM sportscar that loves to do things sideways just the way they want.

2017 Toyota 86
2017 Subaru BRZ

For the 2017 Model Year, the Toyobaru twin sportscars that reignited the sports car empire has been upgraded with a small power increase and improved dynamics that will keep these two cars coming back for more but upgrades aside, choosing between the 86 or the BRZ is still a hard choice because those who wanted to own an 86 are the kind of drivers who believe that cars are better than people when it comes to overall enthusiasm but they love to drive as much as they want while for those who deserve the BRZ are the kind of people who like to keep their driving style in a calm and collected manner, those who like to keep their cool at all times. Remind you of something?

2017 Toyota 86 interior
2017 Subaru BRZ interior

Yep, the revised design of these two speak for themselves and as for the interior, you will notice the new dashboard, new steering wheel design, and a new, high-tech instrumental panel packed with something that monitors your track day progress such as lap times, distribution, G-force, and so on. That all sounds business for the drivers but if they want to have these cars talk about what's on their mind, let's focus more on the improved performance.

2017 Toyota 86
2017 Subaru BRZ

Using their motorsports knowhow, both of these models now come with improved springs and dampers as well as increased spot welding points on the rear pillars, allowing for better steering response and ride comfort and if anyone goes for an optional Sachs dampers, handling can be slightly improved. Under the hood, the FA20 D-4S two-litre 4-cylinder engine adds 7 more PS to its engine output, resulting to 207PS of power and 212Nm of torque output. Sounds good but only the manual transmission variants are welcomed by this power increase because models with 6-speed automatic gearbox still offers the same previous output as the pre-facelift model.

For those who called themselves Team 86, the 2017 Toyota 86 starts from 2,623,320 to 3,250,800 Yen while for those "Team BRZ", it's yours starting from 2,430,000 to 3,375,000 Japanese Yen. As a key reminder, those who wanted to own an 86 are the kind of drivers who believe that cars are better than people when it comes to overall enthusiasm but they love to drive as much as they want while for those who deserve the BRZ are the kind of people who like to keep their driving style in a calm and collected manner. If you are among one of these sides, you have surrendered your fate in one of these machines in terms of behavior, value for money, and overall enthusiasm, as said at the back of your pants. The 86 is all about behavior with an act of valor while the BRZ is just plain mystic in every single detail but differences aside, these new updates will keep them coming back for more.

Photo: Toyota Motor Corporation /Fuji Heavy Industries

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