The second half of the Toyobaru debuts

That's right, the Subaru BRZ Concept STi has arrived:

No word on engine output or curb weight, though this particular concept is normally aspirated. No magic snails... for now

I like the look of it. Well, except for that pep-boys-looking wing.

still won't be giving up my AWD or my snail for it though....

Without AWD or a turbo is there anything substantive to differentiate this from the Scion?

Wheels need to be 1-2 inches smaller, wing needs to go bye bye.

MG_Bryan wrote: Without AWD or a turbo is there anything substantive to differentiate this from the Scion?

It's Blue? Sorry, that's the only difference they've told us about so far.

Blue vs red

not bad.. but yes.. a but too "boy racer" looking for me.

Agree with mtn and mad_machine

mmmm I can't wait to start doing pdi's on those things=]

I don't mind the wing and I like the lines along the sides and rear flank. Not a fan of the nose, but I know, it's the European pedestrian safety standards.

I doubt the wing and rear diffuser is purely aesthetic

MG_Bryan wrote: Without AWD or a turbo is there anything substantive to differentiate this from the Scion?

Initially: No.

IIRC, Toyota doesn't have a facility where they can build the FT-86/FR-S. Now that Toyota and Fuji Heavy Industries are bestest buddies, Toyota was able to use one of the Subaru plants to build the FR-S and essentially said that Subaru can make its own variant of the FR-S. The idea is, Subaru builds all variants (Toyota, Scion, Subaru) and they will be mostly badge-engineered first, but Toyota/Scion and Subaru are free to develop their cars as they see fit. For example, we may end up with one car leaning towards the GT side of the scale and the other being sportier , plus there are rumors that Subaru is interested in building a convertible version of the BRZ.

I totally don't get this car. Not only is it a totally 90's USDM thing to do, rebadge the same car and hope the lemmings don't figure it out (I still remember people arguing about how much better engineered an F body or LH car is than another F body or LH) but Subaru has a sport compact powered by a Subaru flat 4...

I'm actually digging the boy racer looks. I'm imagining with a stripped out interior in race trim.

Drool.

I like it. A lot.

I'll wait until I see some production-version weight and power specs before rendering judgement.

There's already a glut of medium-ish, RWD cars out there - most of them with more power than an N/A boxer is going to make. How will this compete with the Genesis and Mustangs of the world?

I personally would have liked to see it stick with what makes a subaru a subaru: AWD. An AWD, N/A 2-seater would:

1. be pretty much in a class of its own
2. be able to be marketed as a 4-season sportscar anywhere in the country, especially in areas where Subaru sales are already strong.
3. recall the original GC-bodied 2.5RS: AWD, N/A, awesome.

As for buying, I'm not much interested in a rebadged Scion - even if they boost it. I doubt it will out-handle the WRX/STi by any appreciable margin, and it won't be nearly as fast.

I like the statement "I'll wait...before rendering judgment" followed by judgment

I'm okay with Subaru making a RWD car. Heck, it's not that long since they decided to go all AWD, all the time. So ditching that rule when they introduce a car that's nothing like they've done before is fine with me.

I can understand there being two versions of the thing if two companies really were involved in putting it together - Toyota doing chassis and Subaru doing drivetrain, for example. I haven't followed this thing too closely during the enormously public protracted development to know exactly how it's split up, but it makes more sense than two faces of the same company selling two versions of the same car a la F-body.

We're looking at the "tuned" version here, so the wing and big wheels shouldn't be a surprise. I'm digging the looks myself, other than the fact that the taillights don't really fit into their intended area for some reason - horizontal lines in a region where everything else is not.

pretty....I may pick one up in 15 years when the depreciation curve makes that reasonable for me

honestly.. how hard do you think it would be for subaru to make an AWD version? It seems like all the parts are there except for a centre diff and front axle shafts

Where are the wing mirrors??!

I see tiny stubs..so either ripped off in transit.. or cameras

In reply to mith612:

They are tiny, but they are there.

In reply to mad_machine:

I think the transmission sits too far behind the rear axle for Subaru to make the BRZ AWD.

In reply to RexSeven:

Oh, no I saw them, was just hoping everyone else did as well. I hope that the cameras are just for show and that standard mirrors are going to be, well, standard.

And I hope you mean trans. behind the front axle ...

Honestly, how is it possible for this thing to not be good?

There's too much time, money, and opportunistic value into this product to produce something second rate.

From what I have read, this car is all about balance. All other small cars have been basically econo-boxes that have been beefed up for sport duty. This thing was designed from the stem to stern to handle. Low weight, perfect weight distribution, low CG, ideal polar moment of inertia, etc. Even the non-turbo versions are supposed to be a whole new experience in this class. The turbos will be amazing. Imagine the standard car dominating H Stock and the turbo dominating A Stock. (or whatever classes they will fall into these days)