[Kona61]

Japanese press release including the old model one and both manual and auto versions of the new one.

If someone else could translate, that would be great lol!

新型 トヨタ GR 86 & スバル BRZ 【サーキット試乗】 FRスポーツカーとして速さは格段アップ!! その分ワンランク上の存在に!? E-CarLife with 五味やすたか

 

[pngrant54]

The fastest time came in a MT GR86 at 1:19.54. The slowest time was a AT BRZ at 1:20.71. The manual BRZ time was 1:20.10. That's roughly 1/4 of a second between it and the GR86. Due to driver error you have to really call that a wash.
Watching the video's one thing was apparent. In both AT cars the driver was more conservative in his driving style. When he was in both MT cars he was throwing and drifting those cars more. One could say that MT car's were slightly quicker than the AT cars. However, between the BRZ and 86 there just was not enough of a difference where you could say the Toyota was quicker than the BRZ. The times were simply too close between the models. While the driving characteristics may be different between the BRZ and GR86 in this case the lap times really do not reflect one car being quicker than the other.

 

[Tōge]

I prefer driving characteristics of BRZ.

 

[Jeonsa]

I prefer driving characteristics of BRZ.

Seems like the BRZ is more of a sports car, dynamically.

 

[pngrant54]

From what I've read I would have to disagree. From observation both Toyota and Subaru have some different philosophies about vehicle handling. Toyota prefers a bit more oversteer and a more tail out attitude while Subaru prefers a more stable approach to cornering. In theory the fastest way around the track would seem to favor stability. Tail out may be more entertaining. However, with one driver here the GR 86 was a few 10ths of a second quicker than the BRZ. Being that the times are so close you would have to say this is down to the driver. Therefore you have to call it a wash. So comparing models they may both arrive at the same time but have a slightly different approach getting there. As to which car handles better that really gets down to individual taste. An accomplished driver might find the 86 more to their liking where as an average driver might prefer the additional stability of the BRZ. I fall into the BRZ camp. What I am interested to find out on the BRZ is this. Other than the wheel/tire upgrade there does not seem to be any difference in suspension set up between the BRZ Premium and Limited. If you changed out the Michelin Primacy for Michelin Pilot 4 summer tires on the stock 17 inch wheels of the Premium I wonder if there would be any difference in grip between the 2 models.

 

[Jeonsa]

From what I've read I would have to disagree. From observation both Toyota and Subaru have some different philosophies about vehicle handling. Toyota prefers a bit more oversteer and a more tail out attitude while Subaru prefers a more stable approach to cornering. In theory the fastest way around the track would seem to favor stability. Tail out may be more entertaining. However, with one driver here the GR 86 was a few 10ths of a second quicker than the BRZ. Being that the times are so close you would have to say this is down to the driver. Therefore you have to call it a wash. So comparing models they may both arrive at the same time but have a slightly different approach getting there. As to which car handles better that really gets down to individual taste. An accomplished driver might find the 86 more to their liking where as an average driver might prefer the additional stability of the BRZ. I fall into the BRZ camp. What I am interested to find out on the BRZ is this. Other than the wheel/tire upgrade there does not seem to be any difference in suspension set up between the BRZ Premium and Limited. If you changed out the Michelin Primacy for Michelin Pilot 4 summer tires on the stock 17 inch wheels of the Premium I wonder if there would be any difference in grip between the 2 models.

Yeah I see what you mean. At the end of the day though it seems as if people don’t care about that as much as they do the looks. That’s just what I see in these forums and comment sections on YouTube. Appreciate the breakdown