The 2022 Subaru BRZ has a maximum speed of 140 miles per hour, reaching 60 mph in 6.6 seconds. The BRZ is the only sports car coupe and the only rear-wheel-drive vehicle in Subaru’s lineup. With a starting price of $28,990 and a chart-topping 9.5/10 rating from Car and Driver, the BRZ is the perfect affordable option in the sports car genre.
From the muscular stance to the aerodynamically sculpted fenders, inlets and wings, the second-generation BRZ looks fast even when standing still.
Braking performance in the 2022 Subaru BRZ is at least as impressive as its acceleration. It stopped from 60 mph in 107 feet, an improvement of between 7 and 13 feet—nearly a car length—over the previous car. We lauded the excellent brake pedal, which provides consistent stopping performance and didn’t become mushy after several runs.
The BRZ wants to teach you. Handling-wise, this car will do anything you ask it to. This stiff chassis does come at the expense of ride quality, which is noticeably on the harsh side, especially at highway speeds. It helps that the BRZ is also loud as hell, so you always feel like you’re going faster than you are.
The gauge-cluster shift indicator tends to suggest an early upshift but shifting at 7,000 rpm gave the best time of 5.9 seconds. The result made this the first Subaru BRZ we’ve tested to crack the 6-second barrier. The outgoing manual model, like our former 2016 Series Hyperblue long-term review car, hit 60 mph in between 6.3 and 6.8 seconds.
The 2020 BRZ is powered by an FA20 engine that was developed by Subaru in a joint project with Toyota. Subaru commissioned the engine’s development for use in the sporty Subaru BRZ while Toyota put the engine to use in their Toyota 86 sports car.
How much horsepower does a BRZ have?
Under the hood of the new BRZ is a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter flat-four-cylinder, otherwise known as a “boxer” engine. It generates 228 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque, which are increases of 23 and 28, respectively, over the last generation’s 2.0-liter boxer.
With a new interior design that brings modern tech but preserves its predecessor’s practicality, the 2022 BRZ is prepared to take on the king of affordable sports cars, Mazda MX-5 Miata.
When it comes to driver-assistance technology, Subaru offers its EyeSight system on automatic-equipped models. For more information about the BRZ’s crash-test results, visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ( NHTSA) and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety ( IIHS) websites. Key safety features include:
Prioritizing affordability and lightweight agility over high horsepower and high-priced exclusivity, the 2022 Subaru BRZ continues to be a pure sports car for everyone. The completely redesigned rear-drive-only coupe remains a unique entry in Subaru’s otherwise all-wheel-drive lineup. The same is in store for its mechanical twin, the Toyota 86.
ADVERTISEMENT
