2023 Subaru BRZ Coupe

　　

2023 Subaru BRZ Review

byRyan ZumMallenContributor

　　Ryan ZumMallen has worked in the automotive industry since 2012. He has written thousands of car-related articles and tested and reviewed hundreds of vehicles over the course of his career. Ryan has also contributed to Road & Track, Autoweek, Trucks.com and more. In 2019, Ryan published his first book, Slow Car Fast, on the millennial generation and its unique take on modern car culture.

　　, rating written byRyan ZumMallenSenior Vehicle Test Editor

　　Kurt Niebuhr has worked in the automotive industry since 2005. A automotive photographer by trade, Kurt is now one of zzdcar' high-performance test drivers. He's driven and photographed hundreds, if not thousands, of vehicles all over the world, so Kurt's library of automotive experiences would certainly make for a good book. When not dreaming about getting his racing license or trying to buy out-of-date film for his cameras, Kurt can usually be found cursing at his 1966 Mustang.

　　There are very few vehicles left that seemingly exist only to create joy. The 2023 Subaru BRZ is one such car, and it enters the second year of its latest generation. Along with its fraternal twin, the Toyota GR86, BRZ harkens back to a simpler time, when all you needed to have fun was a spunky four-cylinder engine, rear-wheel drive and three pedals on the floor. Yet buyers will still find the technology and comfort we expect from a modern car. If you want to Marie Kondo your driving life, the BRZ is a fairly cost-effective way to do it.

　　Given that it was fully redesigned last year, it's not a surprise that the BRZ steps into 2023 unchanged. We don't consider that a bad thing at all — in fact, we named the BRZ our zzdcar Top Rated Sports Car for 2022. Read our test team's Expert Rating below to get our full report on the BRZ's pros and cons.

　　

What’s it like to live with?

zzdcar' car experts are evaluating a manual-equipped BRZ as part of their long-term test program. Read our zzdcar Top Rated Sports Car for 2022 to learn all about their experiences over the course of a year and 20,000 miles.

　　zzdcar Expert Rating

　　Our VerdictThe zzdcar Vehicle Testing Team evaluates a fresh batch of vehicles every week, pairing objective assessments at our test track with real-world driving on city streets, freeways and winding roads. The data we gather results in our Expert Ratings. They’re based on 30-plus scores that cover every aspect of the automotive experience.

　　Great

　　8.3

　　out of 10

　　zzdcar TESTED

　　Rated for you by America's best test team.

　　

Performance

9.0/10

　　How does the BRZ drive? The BRZ's steering and handling are sublime. The quick and highly accurate steering allows you to place the car exactly where you want it through a turn, and the well-tuned suspension and overall balance are great for any kind of driving. Feeling brave and want a little playful tail-out behavior? The BRZ is happy to do it. Or what if you want to carry a mild drift all the way through a corner on a racetrack? No problem here either. The BRZ is light, but not overly so, and fun and grippy when you want it to be.

　　The brakes would likely benefit from more aggressive pads for prolonged hard use — like at a track day event — but otherwise they provide solid stopping power. Our BRZ Limited test car with high-performance summer tires stopped from 60 mph in 106 feet, which is a respectably short distance. The brakes are easy to use around town too, stopping smoothly in day-to-day traffic.

　　The larger engine in this generation BRZ pays dividends from idle all the way to redline. There's no slump of power at midrange rpm like there was in the previous-generation car. At our test track, our manual-equipped BRZ Limited sprinted to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds. That's almost a second quicker than the previous version and similar to the acceleration of the latest Golf GTI (5.9 seconds) and Mazda Miata (6.0 seconds).

　　The six-speed manual transmission's shifter feels positive and precise in your hand as you move through the gates. Opting for the automatic transmission results in slower acceleration (6.9 seconds) but it's easier to live with in heavy traffic. It also comes with paddle shifters and provides quick downshifts when you select Track mode.

　　

Comfort

8.0/10

　　How comfortable is the BRZ? The BRZ has a somewhat firm ride but with good compliance and it's able to soak up most road imperfections, especially at higher speeds. This is a car built for the back road and the open highway. Simple manually adjustable seats feature improve bolstering for your upper back and manage to hold you in place without being restrictive. Dual-zone climate control for such a small car seems like overkill, but it does the job.

　　Unfortunately, the BRZ is a bit on the noisy side. Road and tire noise is near constant and very loud. And engine noise, never a strength for the BRZ, is more annoying than evocative.

　　Continue reading zzdcar Expert Rating below