Experts reveal how to make a first-gen BRZ faster

Whether you know it as a Subaru BRZ, Scion FR-S or Toyota 86, the little coupe has become a favorite in the paddock, with more people discovering it all the time. 

What’s needed to take one from the street to the track? Fortunately, that’s not an untraveled road. Here’s some practical advice from three people with experience: Dan Hurwitz of …

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That covers most of it. Oil cooler is a MUST for track work. 

Enkei made a specific RPF1 for the 1st Gen. 18x9.5 ET38 with 255/35 200TW tires will fit without having to do anything to the fenders. That's what I ran on my BRZ with Star Specs. So anything around that size and offset fits without a problem. Some guys ran 18x10s with 265s, just have to trim the rear bumper area a tad. 

A catless header and E85 will get you 25-30whp and a fix most of the midrange dip. 

The coil pack overheating issue seems to have been fixed with the revised coil packs on the 2017+ models, swapping them onto earlier models is one option for a fix but you need to get the connectors from a junkyard. If getting into reliability mods, your top priorities with this car need to be oil supply and oil cooling though, see also: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/how-to-get-started-modifying-a/192574/page1/

Interesting that aero mods are recommended before power mods, I already have some power mods so maybe it's time for aero

The only time I've driven a BRZ was at DirtFish, so I was disappointed not to see Hoosier rally tires on the list. :)

When you find that the turbo or super chargers don't really work on track, then there's always a V8 swap. The LS aluminum V8 looks at home between the enormously wide 86 front frame horns!

We came out with a swap kit in 2015, but there are cheaper alternatives to Vorshlag for this swap (but they all have issues - hey, what do you expect me to say!). We build our 86 LS swap kit around the Tremec T56 Magnum XL, which tends to weed out the budget minded swappers straight away.

There's a lot of reasons why we use this transmission - and it ain't because its cheap. This direct shifted, 700 ft-lb of torque rated 6 speed manual is bulletproof and fits the 86 chassis perfectly. Shifter pops up right where the stock one goes (see below). We've seen the monkey-motion remote shifted messes that other V8 swap kits use - nothing shifts like a direct shfited T56.

Of course this V8 swap is not for the faint of heart or weak of wallet, but if you want real RELIABLE track usable power in the 86 chassis, there's no cheaper way - dollar for hp. Adding boost to a high compression 2.0L Subaru FA20 engine only adds massive problems.

I was gonna say Vorshlag fixed this already, but . . .

Sell it and buy a C5?  That would certainly be a step in all the right directions.

93gsxturbo said:

Sell it and buy a C5?  That would certainly be a step in all the right directions.

If you want to V8-swap a Toyobaru that would make a whole lot of sense, but if you want something with more Miata-like running costs and accept that this comes with power limitations then there's a lot of money to be saved vs. a C5 and its running costs.

Edit: To get into detail, there are a lot of mistakes that could be made with a turbo setup, or a failure to address the oiling issues the engine came with before you even get into boosting it, but regardless of how you increase the engine's power, the FA20's bottom end will lunch itself at about 300ft-lbs (that's at the crank, not the wheels, and I suspect the FA24D will be the same), so consider that a hard ceiling for a stock-bottom-end Toyobaru. You can throw cubic dollars at the bottom end to increase its torque capacity, but at that point you're getting into the budget range for parts and consumables...consumption where a V8 swap or just getting a Corvette instead would make sense.

GameboyRMH said:

93gsxturbo said:

Sell it and buy a C5?  That would certainly be a step in all the right directions.

If you want to V8-swap a Toyobaru that would make a whole lot of sense, but if you want something with more Miata-like running costs and accept that this comes with power limitations then there's a lot of money to be saved vs. a C5 and its running costs.

Edit: To get into detail, there are a lot of mistakes that could be made with a turbo setup, or a failure to address the oiling issues the engine came with before you even get into boosting it, but regardless of how you increase the engine's power, the FA20's bottom end will lunch itself at about 300ft-lbs (that's at the crank, not the wheels, and I suspect the FA24D will be the same), so consider that a hard ceiling for a stock-bottom-end Toyobaru. You can throw cubic dollars at the bottom end to increase its torque capacity, but at that point you're getting into the budget range for parts and consumables...consumption where a V8 swap or just getting a Corvette instead would make sense.

Are the differences in running costs really that significant?  Gas mileage is similar, C5 brake pads and rotors are readily available and not crazy expensive, tires are a bit more but not double or anything like that.  And you don't have to deal with things like oiling issues.  For other spares, Corvettes outsold  BRZs between 7:1 and 10:1 depending on the year, so logic would dictate that there are 10x more Corvettes getting salvaged out.

Seems to be the smiles per dollar would definitely favor a C5.  Sorry not sorry the BRZ FRS is a turd.

Yeah they're significant...any parts that don't need to come from a junkyard are more expensive for the Corvette, on highway MPG the C5 may actually have an advantage but the city and track MPG are much lower, the tires and brakes are going to disappear a lot faster due to the much higher power and higher weight, and you're trading oiling issues for wheel bearing and cooling system issues (and if you get a base C5, still some oiling issues).

It's hard for me to imagine by what metric the Toyobaru is a turd. If you want something like an ND that's more practical, put a grand of oiling fixes into a Toyobaru and you're good to go.

If we wanted a Corvette,  we would have bought a C5. But we wanted an 86, so we bought an 86. If your only goal is track use, there are many cars that are light years ahead on consumables and or power delivery. 

My biggest concern with a V8 swap would be emissions compliance. While it might not be 100% EO compliant, I would absolutely have to have my V8 FRS pass Illinois' test.

93gsxturbo said:

Sell it and buy a C5?  That would certainly be a step in all the right directions.

I'm not sure a c5 is a step in the right direction from much of anything. Sell it and buy a new gr86 is probably the right answer. Maybe a c6z06.

In reply to 93gsxturbo :

FRS will have better power to weight with same motor being about 400lbs less than C5 and has better aerodynamics (smaller cross sectional area + better flow over body...) along with a beautiful chassis setup that is much stiffer. Stock FA20 & transmisson is fairly heavy, not too much of weight increase going to a SBC swap setup.

The one motor setup I think is most ideal for the 86 chassis is the Synergy 3.0L V8... double the stock power, drops noticeable weight, lowers CG, and revs to ~11k QUICK because of low MOI of the motor... Very expensive though, and high maintenance requirement because its a track/race motor...

A custom motor setup I've seen put in an 86 which I think is really cool is a race built Nissan Titan VK 56 that revs to 9k, makes ~ 4x stock power, and sounds better than any LS I've heard...

The 4L UZ-FE line of Lexus motors are pretty popular budget V8 swaps as well for the 86. Sound absolutely sweet when race built to rev to 9k rpm.

I think just about every modern engine has been swapped into an 86.... It's an absolute stellar chassis that can take any motor.

One thing I'd add for tracking an 86 is getting the heat out of the VERY sealed engine bay... venting the hood is a very important thing you can do for it, right up there with getting an oil cooler installed.

In reply to Vracer111 :

Michael Pickens put one of those in a midget for the Chili Bowl years ago. 

I saved the magazine this article was in, for reasons.  Now I have a digital version that takes up less room.  (Also, the turbo in mine plus IRP short-shifter & Eibachs make me happy.)

I had a coworker who tracked one with a Kraftwerks turbo setup. He bought it and installed it; no big pulleys, no outrageous boost. Kept breaking transmissions. I'll pass, thank you.

Yeah the stock gearbox is only rated for 250ft-lbs of torque, some people have had them survive close to 300ft-lbs but they're guaranteed to break quickly beyond that (although at that point the stock diff or a stock axle have an equal chance of letting go), so that's another limiting factor to how much power you can get out of these...so again if you want a big-power RWD car, that's not what a Toyobaru is and that's when just buying a Corvette in the first place makes sense.