2013 Subaru BRZ

The 2013 Subaru BRZ is the second FR car from Subaru, after the Subaru 1500. "BRZ" stands for Boxer engine, Rear-wheel drive and Z being the ultimate letter.
Subaru has announced a new version of the BRZ sports car for Japanese market which features a number of performance upgrades and some necessary safety equipment including specially designed air ducts for the new ventilated disc brakes, a new engine oil cooler, and Torsen limited slip differential.

Design

Subaru BRZ (Germany)

The Toyota 86 was designed around a front-mounted boxer engine, rear-wheel drive configuration. The flat architecture of the boxer engine allows it to be mounted low, dropping the center of gravity down, resulting in sporty handling characteristics. The exterior design of the 86 was inspired by the Toyota 2000GT's extremely low-to-the-ground profile and long, sleek hood. The total concept of the car was most inspired by the Toyota AE86 which originally utilized lightweight design combined with modest engine power along with the front-engine, rear-wheel drive design that the FR-S will have. According to the 86's designers,  The goal was to create an authentic rear-wheel drive sports car with compelling style, exceptionally balanced performance and handling, flexible utility and surprising MPG. The car's design was inspired by previous Toyota sports cars including the Toyota Sports 800, Toyota 2000GT, and Toyota AE86. When asked about the TRD version of the car, the lead engineer Mr. Tada said "There is definitely going to be a more TRD oriented variant down the line. However any of the parts that would be standard on the TRD model will fit on your current Toyota 86 so there is no need to wait."

Engineering

The Toyota-designated 4U-GSE engine is a naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine that uses Subaru's horizontally opposed boxer engine as well as Toyota's D-4S injection system which uses both direct and port injection. The engine has a 12.5:1 compression ratio and a bore and stroke of 86 mm (3.4 in) that results in 200 horsepower (149 kW; 203 PS) at 7,000 rpm for the FR-S and BRZ, and 197 horsepower (147 kW; 200 PS) for the Toyota variant, and 151 lb·ft (205 N·m) of torque at 6,000 rpm for all three vehicles. As part of the 86's low-weight design, the car utilizes an aluminum hood, a solid roof, and a trunk design as opposed to a hatchback.
The FR-S, 86 and BRZ are offered with two 6-speed transmissions built by Aisin, a manual gearbox and modified automatic transmission from the Lexus IS-F, minus two gears. The automatic uses a traditional wet torque converter design, but its software has been engineered to mimic the response of a dual-clutch gearbox. The automatic transmission uses three different modes, Sport, Snow, and Normal.
When questioned about differences between the Subaru BRZ and the Scion FR-S, Scion hinted at the FR-S being tuned more for sport, meaning the Subaru could have a softer ride than its Scion counterpart.
The boxer engine sits as far back and as low as possible in the engine bay for a weight distribution of 53% in front and 47% in the rear. The low-sitting engine provides a lower center of gravity, allowing the engine to sit lower than the Nissan GTR and just 0.6 inches higher than the Lexus LFA.
The vehicles use 17 in (43 cm) diameter wheels, 7 in (18 cm) wide. The wheels are lightweight and wrapped in Michelin tyres (similar to those that are found on an upgraded Toyota Prius) but different diameter and width of 215/45. All three cars feature ventilated disc brakes at all four corners with two piston-opposed calipers in the front and single caliper design in the rear, and are equipped with MacPherson suspension in the front and double wishbones in the rear.

Interior

The interior features a 2+2 seating configuration, which utilizes low mounted front seats. The rear seats fold down enabling increased storage space for larger items. The BRZ has two available interiors, one identical to the FR-S but with silver dash highlights (instead of the faux carbon), a red stitched e-brake boot, the red seat inserts are skipped, black gauge faces instead of white and a touch-screen navigation head unit; the second option upgrades to leather & alcantra heated seats, automatic HVAC controls, and a push-button start.

Performance

• Top speed: 145 mph (233 km/h)
• Acceleration:
  • 0-60 mph (97 km/h): 6.0-6.2 s
  • Standing 1/4 Mile: 14.7-14-9s