Howdy Scotty (love your videos!),
I'm going to buy my first car sometime between now and August. I'm most interested in a manual Subaru BRZ ('13-'16). I'm wondering what you think: is this a good first car? I drive about 7K miles per year (short city commute and a few long trips). Winters are long, tough and cold here, but I'll have winter tires. I'm a university student so I need reasonable reliability without losing all the fun. I want something that I can work on myself (oil change, tires, lights-- the basics), and I am hoping for it to last for approximately nine more years (depending on rust...). Would love a "sporty" car like this but I don't want to make a stupid choice either.
I appreciate your comments and love your raw advice. Let me know what you think. Thanks!
What’s your budget?
About 15K canadian
Great choice, but get one that hasn’t been modded or tuned. They are very easy to service and repair yourself, and parts are cheap. (The only tough job is changing the plugs, which is every 50-60k.
you will hear complaints that it’s slow. It isn’t (except for the infamous torque dip) - the power is appropriate for the weight of the car. They could have turbo’d it, but that would have added weight, cost and complexity. The BRZ is just right for what it is, and not trying to be what it isn’t. Plus, the handling/tossability factor is through the roof.
the biggest concern in your case is driving a RWD sports car in the snow. Even with snow tires, be aware of the limits. (There are some good long-term snow reviews on YouTube if you want to find them)
(BTW, I have a 2018 WRX, but actually preferred the BRZ and the only reason I didn’t get it is that my wife couldn’t get comfortable in the seats. You know what they say....)
Remind me, how long does the AVCS system last? How much is it to reprogram the ECM when vibrations do start? And what’s their policy on fixing engine internal parts?
The Subaru BRZ is a good solid reliable car. Some people complain that they don't have enough power but that is subjective. Some people find that it has enough power for them. Plus another advantage to the BRZ is the fact that it is naturally aspirated, so that will increase the longevity. If you have severe winters you might find that RWD is a challenge in the snow. That would be the only reservation that I would have. Otherwise go right ahead.
Hey moose, I was looking at the FR-S myself for awhile. After some deeper research I decided it would not be worthwhile. The horsepower just isn't there for the engine configuration it has. The boxer RWD helps for driving handling but the get up and go is disappointing. If you do find a 13-16' it will likely have gotten the heck beat out of it, (many burnouts in vacant parking lots). A mazda 3 manual trans might get you a similar feel at a reasonable price. I may still go for an FR-S one day but it will be for a junky one that I fix up myself and LS swap.
If you're looking for long term reliability, I wouldn't buy the BRZ. Most have had hard lives and even the ones that haven't are not likely to go another decade without serious repairs.
I'd look for an older Civic Type R, or even an Si. Fun to drive and very reliable.
Well, look that’s a Subaru.
I love Subaru’s, everything. form the LEVORG to the B9. but they’re not great when it comes to reliability.
The FA20 engine is not the most reliable engine out there.
They had bad engine components including bushing and bearings from the factory,
they had software issues that caused them to vibrate,
never m fill up at a shady gas station cause it (bad fuel) does make that engine act weird,
and use only the correct oil type (Subaru licensed only) and quantity is super important on this engine - you don’t want to mess with the VVT system on those, it was super weak.
I would not recommend working on that car alone, go to someone who’s familiar with Subaru. they are frankly just weird cars, that need to be serviced properly.
Even doing usual maintenance like replacing the spark plugs is a gigantic headache.
also watch out, a lot of them on the used market, were used unreasonably. That’s a slightly de-tuned (down to ~200hp) engine from a 2013 Forester 2.0XP (250~300hp), it ain’t no Miata engine - for reliability you must drive moderately.
TLDR: It’s a good car, if you do not expect it to last over 140-150k miles. If you don’t beat it up, don’t overheat it, and service it regularly and properly.
I’m also a uni student commuting to uni, and I also got a low to the ground coupe (Volvo C30) to do it.
Standing in traffic jams, going the exact speed limit and driving on poorly paved roads made me realize buying a family CUV/SUV would be a better idea - but this does really depend on your preferences and what your commute looks like.
I agree to look out for bad tuning and mods. But otherwise, the FA20 is a solid motor. And in NA form, as in the BRZ/FRS/86 , it is simple and cheap to maintain and repair. Hard to think of too many contemporary sports cars that are as reliable (or as cheap to fix if something does break).
Dan, are you referring to the FA20D (naturally aspirated) engine or the FA20F (turbocharged) engine? Which model
cars and which model years had those issues?
@DayWalker ,
What I talked about here is the FA20D from the Sicon FR-S, Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ
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In general on Subaru the last decade: There are little to no Modern Subarus with much over 200,000 miles. They’re just sadly not really well engineered as of recently.
I remember the FB engine was the very needy when it came to issues with even a slightly drop in oil level would destroy the engine completely. And their CVTs needing frequent maintenance… yeh…
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Personally, I couldn’t find a reliable practical sports car. It really seems like it all went really down hill during the early 2010’s.