Subaru BRZ tS 2015 Review

Now you may ask how these two events are connected. Firstly, STI is a company that develops and builds high-performance components for road-going cars, having first pushed them to the limit in races like the Nurburgring 24-hour and rallying.

The new BRZ tS inherits strategic suspension parts and chassis upgrades using feedback from the company’s race development program.  And no, the tS does not get more power; more on that later.

But here’s where the story gets interesting. The BRZ tS we drove on the roads around the base of Mt Fuji is the first production car to employ parts that will ultimately be offered by Subaru in Australia. This development is supported by a major push to lift STI awareness levels in the US, Subaru’s main market.

That’s right, STI wants to strengthen its overseas presence and create a performance brand that's as recognisable in Australia as BMW’s M or Mercedes’ AMG brands are today. Subaru attempted to convey that message in the STI Concept car at the New York Auto Show earlier this year.

But don't expect Subaru to turn up with an export-model BRZ tS anytime soon. STI will first launch its parts catalogue, streamlining and reinforcing the Subaru Performance Tuning parts business in the process. Complete cars, as STI calls them -- cars like the BRZ tS that employ unique STI parts -- could appear in Australia within the next 18 months.

That brings us back to the BRZ tS coupe, which was developed to show what STI can do to enhance handling performance, not engine performance. It retains the same Subaru-built 2.0-litre four-cylinder boxer engine as seen in the standard BRZ, with which it shares its 147kW/209Nm outputs.

Our STI contact in Japan would not rule out the possibility of a full-blown turbocharged BRZ STI in the next two to four years, but for now the tS takes an already great handling car and improves on it.

On the outside, everything with the tS is subtle. The coupe does not look all that different from stock apart from larger wheels and tyres, a bespoke lip spoiler, twin sports exhaust outlets, STI’s cherry-red coloured accents around the front air-dam and rear diffuser, and tS badging.

A quick glance under the bonnet and you'll find a new 'flexible V-bar set-up', comprising two braces in an inverted V-shape between the strut tower and bulkhead, which work to improve front-end rigidity and steering response. There are also flexible underbody stiffeners that link the underside of the floor and the side rails of the frame to add more initial turn-in response.

Combined with tuned inverted Bilstein dampers, the V-bar and stiffeners reduce body roll while absorbing minor road imperfections, allowing all four tyres to maintain a larger contact patch on the road.

The BRZ tS is shod with larger 18-inch Michelin Pilot Super Sport 225-series rubber that's wider and grippier than the BRZ's standard 215 tyres. They combine with four-piston Brembo brake callipers and drilled rotors on the front to shorten braking distances significantly. At the same time, the chassis revisions reduce pitching and brake dive under hard braking, enhancing driver confidence.

This translates into a coupe that can enter a corner faster and brake later, yet retain a flatter attitude through the corner, and then exit bends with less understeer than the stock BRZ. The tS tracks superbly and permits easier mid-corner corrections.

Interestingly, STI has fitted larger exhaust outlets that generate a beefier exhaust note, especially over 4000 rpm. But to enhance interior comfort, it also incorporated sound-absorbing materials in the dashboard and wheel-housings, which reduces road and engine noise entering the cabin.

If you’re a fan of the WRX STI interior then you’ll like the BRZ tS’s cockpit. Boasting bespoke two-tone red and black Recaro sports bucket seats, special STI gauges and a leather-clad steering wheel and gearshifter with cherry-red stitching, the tS cabin is an aesthetic step above the stock BRZ.

Limited to just 300 units and available in Japan only – for the time being – the BRZ tS starts at 3.99 million yen ($A42,500) for the six-speed manual and 4.07 million yen ($A43,300) for the six-speed automatic – just a few thousand dollars more than the standard BRZ (from $37,150 drive-away Down Under).

The momentum has started. STI's home base in Japan is looking to lift awareness levels overseas and offer factory parts and complete cars, while Subaru of America and Australia are returning the higher level of enthusiasm in kind. Look out for STI parts in your part of the world by the end of 2016.

2015 Subaru BRZ tS pricing and specifications:
Price: From $42,500 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder boxer petrol
Output: 147kW/209Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Fuel: TBC
CO2: TBC
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP

What we liked:
>> Sublime cornering
>> Subtle but sporty exterior
>> Comfortable sporty interior

Not so much:
>> No power upgrade
>> Needs a rear wing
>> Only available in Japan