I was lucky and able to buy a
2025 GR86 Hakone edition brand new last year, with a manual transmission. Love it. It's my daily driver that replaced my old daily driver - a 30 year old Honda Del Sol. Zero regrets. It's such a fun car.
COMMENTS
- I have a 2025 BRZtS. It is my only car. I’m 70 years old. I’m retired and I don’t have a family. I love the BRZ. I recently got a AWE catback exhaust. It has transformed the car. It sounds absolutely epic. I’m kind of a cliche with my gray hair and a sports car in my old age. I’m thrilled to drive it every day.
- What are you waiting for? Are you someone that likes to drive, but just bored in that vanilla, ubiquitous sport utility? The Brz is my daily and every mile, commuting, getting groceries going 30 or 80, is a joy. Went from bored and annoyed to fun.
- I bought a 26 limited for the softer suspension, because where I live the roads are not greatest. It constantly gives me the urge to drive it just for fun, kind of like a motorcycle does. We don't know how many more years cars like this will be available or even legal. Life is too short to drive around in a soulless SUV or truck if you don't really need one. Let the masses do that. They don't seem to know what they're missing.
- I just traded in my Honda accord for a 2026 brz ts in grey (I’m not planning on having kids). I did my part lol, I have no regrets. It such a fun daily driver, the CVT in the accord was so boring
- I have a 2013 Scion FRS in Firestorm red that I bought new off the showroom floor and have driven daily ever since here just outside of Buffalo New York. I have over 125,000 miles on it now and I still get up every weekday morning thinking that I can't wait to drive that car to work and back. lol Most fun car I've ever had.
- Mazda is actively developing a new rotary sports car, heavily inspired by the stunning Mazda Iconic SP concept unveiled at the Japan Mobility Show. It will feature an innovative rotary-hybrid range-extender powertrain that uses a twin-rotor engine to generate electricity for an electric motor, producing 365 horsepower. I'll be waiting for that one.
- I own a BRZ Limited, I also travel through-out the U.S. imho, it definitely boils down to location demographics. My friends in the south don’t even know what a Subaru is.. I think there are 4-6 dealers in the whole state of Tennessee! But if you happen to be in Seattle…I’m not exaggerating, you will see one one every single trip out of your house you make! I once counted 7 in 12 miles! I was in Vegas, and saw one…Atlanta 0. Memphis 1. Etc..
- My '22 GR86 is my only car and has 113k miles on it. I drive it in New England winters on snow tires (good up to a poorly maintained curvy road at 20+% grade) and even tow a utility trailer with it (can't put kayaks on the roof). I find it less frustrating in traffic than regular daily-beater type CUVs and it even has a better ride than some of them (I run 17" wheels) and, of course, a lot more fun when the traffic clears. I still even get thumbs up and stares of surprise from random people in a car I paid less for than the most basic Honda Civic hatch I could get with a stick at the time. Yeah, it's not a rocket and the torque delivery makes it feel slower than it is, but I'm not racing people (though I did eat a new WRX that was annoying me, a bit to my surprise). I couldn't care less about numbers, I want to enjoy driving without being a sociopath and the cops tracking me with helicopters, and this meets that. I even average a little over 30 mpg. It's a bit lacking in utility for me (though it's amazing how much crap can fit in it, the trunk opening makes it more of a challenge than it needs to be), but a big selling feature was the lack of active "safety" (spy, track, and control) garbage and the unobtrusive infotainment with minimal need to use the touchscreen. My biggest complaints are the throttle calibration (BRZ is supposedly better and I think they changed it to make it more linear, anyway), the stock clutch feel (easily fixed with a different pedal spring), the stock brake pads were mediocre at best (easy fix), stock base tires complete trash (another easy one), and the seats needed a little modification (cut some of the bottom side bolsters out—made for super skinny guys that apparently get thrown around easily, I guess, and I'm only a 31" waist myself—and added lumbar support with a pair of blood pressure cuffs hidden between the cushion and springs with the inflation bulb like an '80s sports car routed near the seatbelt anchor). It gets more tiring than regular cars on 3+ hour drives, but that's the nature of this type of car.
- Like Brian below I have a 2025 BRZ tS, 6 speed manual. I'm near Brian's age. I feel less enthusiastic about my BRZ although I do like the esthetics both outside and inside the car. Before I bought it I had a Mini Cooper S 2 door hardtop with manual transmission. It felt so much more nimble like a go-kart experience and the powerband was so much wider that you could let the rpms drop low and still it would launch you. The BRZ should be at least as spirited as it actually has a better power to weight ratio than the Mini but it never feels that way. I feel that the BRZ could use at least another 75hp. In general I would call the driving experience acceptable but I've learned that to enjoy it I can't let the rpms drop much below 2500-3500 rpm range unless I'm just cruising at highway speeds. That wasn't my experience with the Mini. Anyone have thoughts on this?
- Best luck with your choice! For fun, and if you can find one, you might try the 2014-2017 Forester XT with its first gen 2.0 FA turbo. They can be peppy, but the CVT is not all that refined (manuals are rare for that model) and the 2.0 engine had valve and spark plug issues along with incredibly sooty tailpipes.
- It's not really a mystery why they don't sell more - I am between two large metro areas and within a reasonable distance of a third, and there are only 8 total new BRZ's listed for sale within a 250 mile radius, and all but 2 are over 40 grand. I think these cars are sellable when someone gets away from the specs and actually gets to drive one, and you can't just have optioned up models sitting on your lot.
I seriously considered one but bought a new WRX for 32.5k this week, with several options somewhat close by, undercutting the cheapest BRZ by 6k (I understand and realize that they are not the same vehicles but I was cross shopping them). They will always be niche if they can't get them on the lots at least.
I wouldn't buy a used one unless it was clearly a cream puff. The break in period for a Subaru, not lugging them, and not driving them hard cold, is just too important.
LISTEN ORGINAL NEWS
- I have a 2025 BRZtS. It is my only car. I’m 70 years old. I’m retired and I don’t have a family. I love the BRZ. I recently got a AWE catback exhaust. It has transformed the car. It sounds absolutely epic. I’m kind of a cliche with my gray hair and a sports car in my old age. I’m thrilled to drive it every day.
- What are you waiting for? Are you someone that likes to drive, but just bored in that vanilla, ubiquitous sport utility? The Brz is my daily and every mile, commuting, getting groceries going 30 or 80, is a joy. Went from bored and annoyed to fun.
- I bought a 26 limited for the softer suspension, because where I live the roads are not greatest. It constantly gives me the urge to drive it just for fun, kind of like a motorcycle does. We don't know how many more years cars like this will be available or even legal. Life is too short to drive around in a soulless SUV or truck if you don't really need one. Let the masses do that. They don't seem to know what they're missing.
- I just traded in my Honda accord for a 2026 brz ts in grey (I’m not planning on having kids). I did my part lol, I have no regrets. It such a fun daily driver, the CVT in the accord was so boring
- I have a 2013 Scion FRS in Firestorm red that I bought new off the showroom floor and have driven daily ever since here just outside of Buffalo New York. I have over 125,000 miles on it now and I still get up every weekday morning thinking that I can't wait to drive that car to work and back. lol Most fun car I've ever had.
- Mazda is actively developing a new rotary sports car, heavily inspired by the stunning Mazda Iconic SP concept unveiled at the Japan Mobility Show. It will feature an innovative rotary-hybrid range-extender powertrain that uses a twin-rotor engine to generate electricity for an electric motor, producing 365 horsepower. I'll be waiting for that one.
- I own a BRZ Limited, I also travel through-out the U.S. imho, it definitely boils down to location demographics. My friends in the south don’t even know what a Subaru is.. I think there are 4-6 dealers in the whole state of Tennessee! But if you happen to be in Seattle…I’m not exaggerating, you will see one one every single trip out of your house you make! I once counted 7 in 12 miles! I was in Vegas, and saw one…Atlanta 0. Memphis 1. Etc..
- My '22 GR86 is my only car and has 113k miles on it. I drive it in New England winters on snow tires (good up to a poorly maintained curvy road at 20+% grade) and even tow a utility trailer with it (can't put kayaks on the roof). I find it less frustrating in traffic than regular daily-beater type CUVs and it even has a better ride than some of them (I run 17" wheels) and, of course, a lot more fun when the traffic clears. I still even get thumbs up and stares of surprise from random people in a car I paid less for than the most basic Honda Civic hatch I could get with a stick at the time. Yeah, it's not a rocket and the torque delivery makes it feel slower than it is, but I'm not racing people (though I did eat a new WRX that was annoying me, a bit to my surprise). I couldn't care less about numbers, I want to enjoy driving without being a sociopath and the cops tracking me with helicopters, and this meets that. I even average a little over 30 mpg. It's a bit lacking in utility for me (though it's amazing how much crap can fit in it, the trunk opening makes it more of a challenge than it needs to be), but a big selling feature was the lack of active "safety" (spy, track, and control) garbage and the unobtrusive infotainment with minimal need to use the touchscreen. My biggest complaints are the throttle calibration (BRZ is supposedly better and I think they changed it to make it more linear, anyway), the stock clutch feel (easily fixed with a different pedal spring), the stock brake pads were mediocre at best (easy fix), stock base tires complete trash (another easy one), and the seats needed a little modification (cut some of the bottom side bolsters out—made for super skinny guys that apparently get thrown around easily, I guess, and I'm only a 31" waist myself—and added lumbar support with a pair of blood pressure cuffs hidden between the cushion and springs with the inflation bulb like an '80s sports car routed near the seatbelt anchor). It gets more tiring than regular cars on 3+ hour drives, but that's the nature of this type of car.
- Like Brian below I have a 2025 BRZ tS, 6 speed manual. I'm near Brian's age. I feel less enthusiastic about my BRZ although I do like the esthetics both outside and inside the car. Before I bought it I had a Mini Cooper S 2 door hardtop with manual transmission. It felt so much more nimble like a go-kart experience and the powerband was so much wider that you could let the rpms drop low and still it would launch you. The BRZ should be at least as spirited as it actually has a better power to weight ratio than the Mini but it never feels that way. I feel that the BRZ could use at least another 75hp. In general I would call the driving experience acceptable but I've learned that to enjoy it I can't let the rpms drop much below 2500-3500 rpm range unless I'm just cruising at highway speeds. That wasn't my experience with the Mini. Anyone have thoughts on this?
- Best luck with your choice! For fun, and if you can find one, you might try the 2014-2017 Forester XT with its first gen 2.0 FA turbo. They can be peppy, but the CVT is not all that refined (manuals are rare for that model) and the 2.0 engine had valve and spark plug issues along with incredibly sooty tailpipes.
- It's not really a mystery why they don't sell more - I am between two large metro areas and within a reasonable distance of a third, and there are only 8 total new BRZ's listed for sale within a 250 mile radius, and all but 2 are over 40 grand. I think these cars are sellable when someone gets away from the specs and actually gets to drive one, and you can't just have optioned up models sitting on your lot.
I seriously considered one but bought a new WRX for 32.5k this week, with several options somewhat close by, undercutting the cheapest BRZ by 6k (I understand and realize that they are not the same vehicles but I was cross shopping them). They will always be niche if they can't get them on the lots at least.
I wouldn't buy a used one unless it was clearly a cream puff. The break in period for a Subaru, not lugging them, and not driving them hard cold, is just too important.
Posts
0 Comments