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BRZ -v- FT86
BRZ –v- FT86
Had the opportunity to test drive the Subaru BRZ several days after driving the Toyota FT86 GTS. The same Boat Shed – Royal National Park route was driven by both vehicles, with a bit of around Sutherland town and freeway thrown in for good measure. The test drive was a reasonably short, but offering a variety of roadway types and texture.
I immediately felt the firmer damping esp. in the front of the BRZ. The first 1km showed that the BRZ offer terser damping and high spring rate with greater control and vertical movement at slow speed around town. This does detract from ride comfort in the BRZ –v- FT86, with the FT86 offering front end ride comfort comparative to a standard Camry or Aurion around town. The difference in ride comfort and control between the BRZ and FT86 is like going from standard Golf GTI spring to aftermarket genuine Volkswagen Driver Gear Sport springs on my Golf GTI (DG Sport are about 10% stiffer & 10mm lower than stock GTI springs).
In addition to the taunt and terse ride of the BRZ over the FT86, the BRZ offered addition front end control out on the Princes Freeway just south of Sutherland – Cronulla. The BRZ steering felt a tad heavier, appeared to have less on centre slack relative to chassis movement, but did not telegraph as much information as the lighter steering in the Toyota FT86. The BRZ filters out that bit more roadway steering feel, trading it for a smoothness and a touch more directness. The BRZ steering wanted to self centre to a greater extent with the stiffer front suspension inducing a touch more added understeer at freeway speeds.
In contrast, the FT86 front end on the freeway felt more wayward and wondering like a boat at sea. The front of the FT86 wafted over the vertical compression and vertical control was sluggish compared to the BRZ, which offers damping/spring rate combination that brings the handling/ride control about half-way toward the stiffer aftermarket Koni/Bilstein/Tein damping/control range. The softer front end of the FT86 does inhibit driver confidence at higher speeds or when leaning on the FT86 a with some vigour.
Once into the Royal National Park (RNP) entry roadway, the BRZ definitely rode with less comfort, but greater vertical control than the FT86 Toyota. The FT86 dispatched with the peaks, troughs, pot-holes and scarred sections of the RNP B-grade roadway with tangibly greater ride comfort than is almost like standard Camry level of comfort/control. The FT86 floatiness seemed a bit odd when keeping in mind the purpose of this Sport Coupe. The BRZ offered shorter & faster body movement quickly dispensing with roadway irregularities. The BRZ is about half way between the Toyota FT86 and my DCC equipped DG Sport sprung Golf GTI for ride comfort ... although the BRZ kills the Golf for bump control. The FT86 is the pick for ride comfort. The BRZ for outright chassis control.
Traversing the Boat Shed bends down into the valley had the FT86 offering sharper initial chassis movement on turn into corners. This required less initial steering effort, but slight corrections once the FT86 Toyota changes direction as the front end initially leans lower and deeper, but bounces back slower without truly settling for long periods of time. This in combination with slightly lighter steering weight, required greater effort and attention by the driver to control the weight movement of the FT86 chassis and corner balance for a smooth arc around the tight twisties.
Negotiating a corner in the FT86 requires a series of small adjustments that keeps the FT86 driver on their toes right way through the corner, heightening the driver feedback sensations and putting greater emphasis on being graceful with the steering and throttle controls. The FT86 conjures up a dance between the front and rear ends in terms of grip & slip keeping the driver on their toes at public roadway speeds. The FT86 is the more challenging for the driver and the difference is akin to a DCC equipped Golf GTI –v- Standard Sprung (non-DCC) Golf GTI.
The BRZ in contrast dished up a greater amount of understeer on corner entry due to the less adjustability of the stiffer front end. Corner entries required a heavier hand to steer the BRZ into a tight bend. The driver has to be more aggressive to tip the Subaru BRZ’s weight onto the outside front tyre. The BRZ was less adjustable mid corner on both the steering and throttle control, but offered a greater chassis balance with less driver effort from initial turn-in onwards around the whole trajectory of a corner.
The Subaru BRZ offer a sharper more go-kart handling response, which makes it much easier to put around the tight twisties. The FT86 requires a lot more from the driver to achieve the same result when negotiating a hill climb with chassis responses being a lot more regard compared to the secure race car like BRZ that is set up closer to what you average AWD Subaru (Golf R Awd) would expect.
The FT86 chassis tune felt like it did not need any additional power as the chassis is set-up to provide less balance than the BRZ. The BRZ, offering greater balance and secure handling, felt like it was underpowered and could do well with added power. The FT86 Toyota had the rear limited slip diff (LSD) feeling a little too tight, despite the rear diff being a torsen, rather than mechanical diff. The BRZ was the opposite in that the stiffer front aids in the improvement in rear end grip, suggesting that the torsen LSD could be a little tighter (esp. for track). You could dive into a corner harder and get on the power earlier and harder in the BRZ with the BRZ still feeling like it was the slower car of the FT86/BRZ pair due to the greater chassis balance and control over the FT86 Toyota.
The stiffer BRZ is definitely leaning the rear end harder, utilising the rear end grip to a greater degree, pushing the Michelin Primacy tyres harder into the roadway. The FT86 Toyota rotates around its central axis faster, but the BRZ felt that it could corner harder and faster when pressing on. The Toyota FT86 gains time in initial turn-in into bends, the Subaru makes up time at corner apex and on corner exit.
On the uphill drive, I found the softer front end of the Toyota FT86 to be annoying at times. When on the power out of corners, the softer front of the FT86 would lift, pushing the trajectory of the FT86 wide, causing the driver to lift off or maintain a steady-state throttle to maintain a nice tight line.
The lift-off or steady-state throttle application was not required in the BRZ, which was more business-like in terms of race-car type of secure handling. It was the uphill run that confirmed for me that the BRZ’s greater chassis balance could cope with more power to spice things up a bit ... perhaps an issue for those harder-core types looking to upgrade the power figures of these twins ... the Subaru’s chassis tune would more easily handling any power upgrade, whereas the Toyota FT86 would require a visit to the TRD parts bin to tie things down a little more. The BRZ was so effective at dispatching the corners, although with less adjustability, that, like a DCC equipped Golf GTI, it does not require a lot of driver thought in comparison with the Toyota FT86. Trying to unsettle the BRZ rear end requires a lot more effort than that of the FT86.
Which one wins this comparison. There are not winners or losers when it comes to the twins. The Subaru, surprisingly, even with a slight increase in front end stiffness in spring & damping rates, really transformed the BRZ into a more direct, capable, racy, less comfortable, sharper instrument, but with less adjustability and fun factor. The Toyota offers greater ride comfort, greater amount of adjustability in terms of lift off oversteer, less overall balance, a wandering front end on power out of corners, but ultimately less front to rear grip levels and corner balance. The Subaru is the easier vehicle to driver faster & harder and may well be the less taxing on the driver on a day long drive around the mountains, despite the terser ride comfort. The Toyota FT86 offers greater sensual appeal at any speed and requires much more effort of the driver for greater thrills out on public roadways. The softer front of the Toyota is a definite advantage on day long mountain drives with added ride comfort, but the wafting & wayward front end may be taxing on longer drives when the drivers just wants to get from point A to point B with the minimum of fuss.
I think a decision would come down to price and availability when it comes to choosing between the twins. As stated in the beginning of this BRZ –v FT86 review. Going from the Toyota FT86 to the BRZ is like going from a Golf GTI with standard springs to a Golf GTI with genuine aftermarket 10% stiffer Volkswagen Driver Gear Sport springs, offering greater control & secure handling, but reducing chassis adjustability, driver effort and fun factor.
Cheers
WJ
BRZ –v- FT86
Had the opportunity to test drive the Subaru BRZ several days after driving the Toyota FT86 GTS. The same Boat Shed – Royal National Park route was driven by both vehicles, with a bit of around Sutherland town and freeway thrown in for good measure. The test drive was a reasonably short, but offering a variety of roadway types and texture.
I immediately felt the firmer damping esp. in the front of the BRZ. The first 1km showed that the BRZ offer terser damping and high spring rate with greater control and vertical movement at slow speed around town. This does detract from ride comfort in the BRZ –v- FT86, with the FT86 offering front end ride comfort comparative to a standard Camry or Aurion around town. The difference in ride comfort and control between the BRZ and FT86 is like going from standard Golf GTI spring to aftermarket genuine Volkswagen Driver Gear Sport springs on my Golf GTI (DG Sport are about 10% stiffer & 10mm lower than stock GTI springs).
In addition to the taunt and terse ride of the BRZ over the FT86, the BRZ offered addition front end control out on the Princes Freeway just south of Sutherland – Cronulla. The BRZ steering felt a tad heavier, appeared to have less on centre slack relative to chassis movement, but did not telegraph as much information as the lighter steering in the Toyota FT86. The BRZ filters out that bit more roadway steering feel, trading it for a smoothness and a touch more directness. The BRZ steering wanted to self centre to a greater extent with the stiffer front suspension inducing a touch more added understeer at freeway speeds.
In contrast, the FT86 front end on the freeway felt more wayward and wondering like a boat at sea. The front of the FT86 wafted over the vertical compression and vertical control was sluggish compared to the BRZ, which offers damping/spring rate combination that brings the handling/ride control about half-way toward the stiffer aftermarket Koni/Bilstein/Tein damping/control range. The softer front end of the FT86 does inhibit driver confidence at higher speeds or when leaning on the FT86 a with some vigour.
Once into the Royal National Park (RNP) entry roadway, the BRZ definitely rode with less comfort, but greater vertical control than the FT86 Toyota. The FT86 dispatched with the peaks, troughs, pot-holes and scarred sections of the RNP B-grade roadway with tangibly greater ride comfort than is almost like standard Camry level of comfort/control. The FT86 floatiness seemed a bit odd when keeping in mind the purpose of this Sport Coupe. The BRZ offered shorter & faster body movement quickly dispensing with roadway irregularities. The BRZ is about half way between the Toyota FT86 and my DCC equipped DG Sport sprung Golf GTI for ride comfort ... although the BRZ kills the Golf for bump control. The FT86 is the pick for ride comfort. The BRZ for outright chassis control.
Traversing the Boat Shed bends down into the valley had the FT86 offering sharper initial chassis movement on turn into corners. This required less initial steering effort, but slight corrections once the FT86 Toyota changes direction as the front end initially leans lower and deeper, but bounces back slower without truly settling for long periods of time. This in combination with slightly lighter steering weight, required greater effort and attention by the driver to control the weight movement of the FT86 chassis and corner balance for a smooth arc around the tight twisties.
Negotiating a corner in the FT86 requires a series of small adjustments that keeps the FT86 driver on their toes right way through the corner, heightening the driver feedback sensations and putting greater emphasis on being graceful with the steering and throttle controls. The FT86 conjures up a dance between the front and rear ends in terms of grip & slip keeping the driver on their toes at public roadway speeds. The FT86 is the more challenging for the driver and the difference is akin to a DCC equipped Golf GTI –v- Standard Sprung (non-DCC) Golf GTI.
The BRZ in contrast dished up a greater amount of understeer on corner entry due to the less adjustability of the stiffer front end. Corner entries required a heavier hand to steer the BRZ into a tight bend. The driver has to be more aggressive to tip the Subaru BRZ’s weight onto the outside front tyre. The BRZ was less adjustable mid corner on both the steering and throttle control, but offered a greater chassis balance with less driver effort from initial turn-in onwards around the whole trajectory of a corner.
The Subaru BRZ offer a sharper more go-kart handling response, which makes it much easier to put around the tight twisties. The FT86 requires a lot more from the driver to achieve the same result when negotiating a hill climb with chassis responses being a lot more regard compared to the secure race car like BRZ that is set up closer to what you average AWD Subaru (Golf R Awd) would expect.
The FT86 chassis tune felt like it did not need any additional power as the chassis is set-up to provide less balance than the BRZ. The BRZ, offering greater balance and secure handling, felt like it was underpowered and could do well with added power. The FT86 Toyota had the rear limited slip diff (LSD) feeling a little too tight, despite the rear diff being a torsen, rather than mechanical diff. The BRZ was the opposite in that the stiffer front aids in the improvement in rear end grip, suggesting that the torsen LSD could be a little tighter (esp. for track). You could dive into a corner harder and get on the power earlier and harder in the BRZ with the BRZ still feeling like it was the slower car of the FT86/BRZ pair due to the greater chassis balance and control over the FT86 Toyota.
The stiffer BRZ is definitely leaning the rear end harder, utilising the rear end grip to a greater degree, pushing the Michelin Primacy tyres harder into the roadway. The FT86 Toyota rotates around its central axis faster, but the BRZ felt that it could corner harder and faster when pressing on. The Toyota FT86 gains time in initial turn-in into bends, the Subaru makes up time at corner apex and on corner exit.
On the uphill drive, I found the softer front end of the Toyota FT86 to be annoying at times. When on the power out of corners, the softer front of the FT86 would lift, pushing the trajectory of the FT86 wide, causing the driver to lift off or maintain a steady-state throttle to maintain a nice tight line.
The lift-off or steady-state throttle application was not required in the BRZ, which was more business-like in terms of race-car type of secure handling. It was the uphill run that confirmed for me that the BRZ’s greater chassis balance could cope with more power to spice things up a bit ... perhaps an issue for those harder-core types looking to upgrade the power figures of these twins ... the Subaru’s chassis tune would more easily handling any power upgrade, whereas the Toyota FT86 would require a visit to the TRD parts bin to tie things down a little more. The BRZ was so effective at dispatching the corners, although with less adjustability, that, like a DCC equipped Golf GTI, it does not require a lot of driver thought in comparison with the Toyota FT86. Trying to unsettle the BRZ rear end requires a lot more effort than that of the FT86.
Which one wins this comparison. There are not winners or losers when it comes to the twins. The Subaru, surprisingly, even with a slight increase in front end stiffness in spring & damping rates, really transformed the BRZ into a more direct, capable, racy, less comfortable, sharper instrument, but with less adjustability and fun factor. The Toyota offers greater ride comfort, greater amount of adjustability in terms of lift off oversteer, less overall balance, a wandering front end on power out of corners, but ultimately less front to rear grip levels and corner balance. The Subaru is the easier vehicle to driver faster & harder and may well be the less taxing on the driver on a day long drive around the mountains, despite the terser ride comfort. The Toyota FT86 offers greater sensual appeal at any speed and requires much more effort of the driver for greater thrills out on public roadways. The softer front of the Toyota is a definite advantage on day long mountain drives with added ride comfort, but the wafting & wayward front end may be taxing on longer drives when the drivers just wants to get from point A to point B with the minimum of fuss.
I think a decision would come down to price and availability when it comes to choosing between the twins. As stated in the beginning of this BRZ –v FT86 review. Going from the Toyota FT86 to the BRZ is like going from a Golf GTI with standard springs to a Golf GTI with genuine aftermarket 10% stiffer Volkswagen Driver Gear Sport springs, offering greater control & secure handling, but reducing chassis adjustability, driver effort and fun factor.
Cheers
WJ
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