Ford Tourneo vs Subaru BRZ

What's the difference?

There’s absolutely no doubt that the van-based people-mover has some distinct advantages over a three-row SUV. The rear seat is bigger, access to it is far better and there’s more luggage space even when all eight seats are occupied. But the Tourneo goes a step or two further with the sliding, swivelling seats that make it one of the most practical and flexible interiors on the market.

True, the driving experience is a bit alien at first, but it’s a case of different, rather than worse. Meantime, the ride is excellent and the performance and economy from the turbo-diesel driveline are both absolutely spot on for this vehicle’s intended purpose.

And perhaps that’s the metaphor for the whole thing: By not trying to be something it’s not, and concentrating on what it needs to do, the Tourneo emerges as a bit of a quiet achiever.

As we said earlier, this type of vehicle concept is never a sure-fire proposition. Parcel vans converted to passenger duties haven’t always worked out. This time, though, it’s different.

Just in case you haven’t figured it out, we’re deeply in love with the BRZ tS. It’s a sublime beauty with a tantalising breadth of talent, while still being affordable and practical enough as an everyday run-around.

And, yep, even with the auto, the BRZ tS is its own and very special thing. Do it before coupes die out completely. 

Perhaps the biggest revision of the successful Transit Custom formula needed to make the leap from FedEx to Brady Bunch has been to the rear suspension. Where the Transit uses a leaf-sprung arrangement, the Tourneo has switched to coil rear springs. These technically offer much greater ride comfort at the expense of some load-carrying ability. Which is fine, even if your kids are the bigger variety.

The move to powered sliding side doors is a welcome one, but I found out the hard way that the doors will still open a fraction if you push the button while still travelling at low speed. Not sure why that would be, but at least the buttons in question are up front in Adult-Land, not within reach of you-know-who.

The reality is, too, that the Tourneo is destined to run with the air-con on any time you have bodes in the back. That’s because – like a lot of van conversions – there’s no opening side windows beyond the tiny, hinged windows that open an equally tiny amount. This has more to do with the Transit’s basic structure than any desire to oxygen-deprive the young `uns, but as any parent knows, a supply of fresh air on the move is sometimes the only thing between a happy day out and a clean up in Aisle five.

Compared to the previous model, the latest BRZ has similar proportions but has changed in a few important ways.

For instance, the body is about 50 per cent stiffer than before. The bonnet, front mudguards and roof are now aluminium, and the fuel flap is plastic. This helps bring a 4.0mm drop in the centre of gravity, which benefits handling and ride dynamics.

The BRZ is longer then the first-generation version by 25mm (at 4265mm), has a wheelbase that’s been stretched by 5.0mm (to 2575mm), is 15mm shorter (at 1310mm) and has wider rear tracks (at 1550mm), but overall width (at 1775mm) remains the same.

Being a tS, STI has fitted special badges around the car, different alloys and uprated (Brembo) brakes, amongst other things. And the changes are just as subtle inside.

Here’s where a vehicle like this stands or falls. Because if something like a Tourneo can’t cope with lots of people and their luggage in a single bound, then there’s really not much point to it, is there? I mean you’re not going to buy it for its sporty looks or supercar dynamics, so unless it works brilliantly as family transport, it’s kind of dead in the water. Fortunately Ford seems to have got it right. Mostly, anyway.

That starts up front where the two front seats feel like they’re metres apart. In reality, this huge gap forms a walk-through function for getting access to anything or anyone misbehaving in the second or third row of chairs. But you can’t help wondering what if… What if Ford had ditched the stubby centre console and added a third front-row seat? Wouldn’t a nine-seater be better than eight?

But the seats themselves are comfy and the high-and-mighty driving position gives plenty of vision in every direction. With one exception. And that is when you’re pulling out of a side street on to a main road and need to see what’s coming from the left. Depending on the angle you’re on, the fat frame of the pop-out side window (in the sliding door) becomes a blind spot, especially for taller drivers.

There’s nothing irretrievably wrong with the way the controls are laid out, but they will take some acclimatisation. That goes for the menu system on the touchscreen as well as the column-mounted shifter wand which is about the same size and shape (and in the same place) as a conventional indicator stalk. Tip the lever accidentally and you’ll wind up in neutral, wondering what just happened. The manual-shift mode is also fiddly to use and paddle sifters would be vastly better. Most won’t bother anyway.

The front cabin is home to a shallow lidded bin in the centre console, a deeper bin below that and a couple of charge points. There are also cup-holders in great spots up high in the corner of the dashboard, a shelf across the top of the dashboard and no less than two gloveboxes (the top one is pretty shallow) thanks to moving the passenger’s airbag into the roof lining. Both front doors also feature bins and storage nooks but there’s a fair bit of hard plastic on show, surely a legacy of the Tourneo’s parcel-van DNA.

The Tourneo’s party trick is the way both the second and third rows of seats can be slid to almost any point on a pair of tracks in the floor. The move is simply accomplished via a lever at the front or a rip-cord in the back of the seats, and all three centre-row seats can be moved individually (the third row is split 60:40). The upshot is that you can have all three rows bunched together for a large luggage space, or the rear row pushed right back to form a rear row with huge legroom. Don’t need all eight seats? How about a second row with the two outside chairs in place and the centre one folded forward to expose a work-surface with built-in cupholders.

But it gets even better, because individual seats can be removed to suit the weirdest of loads and the second-row seats even swivel 180-degrees to form a loungeroom on wheels. The kids will be begging you to take them for a drive in this thing.

The seats fold forward, but they don’t tumble. They don’t need to really, and they don’t fold into a bed either. But if you fancy camping in the Tourneo, you can remove both rows of rear seats for a huge flat floor.

The second row is home to storage bins in each sliding door (yes, a door on each side) a pop-put window that opens only about 40mm, temperature controls, air vents and reading lights. The third row, meantime, is not only easily accessed provided the second row isn’t slid all the way back (at which point you wouldn’t be using the third row anyway) but the good news is that the rearmost seat itself is basically three bucket seats with the same comfort levels (high) as the second row. There are also reading lights and a pair of phone pockets and cup-holders in the last row, too. Only the way the track system works and the shape of the seat base means that foot-room is limited to an extent.

With all three rows in place, but pushed as far forward as they can go, there’s a long load area of up to 725mm. But you can also push the second and third rows all the way back and have a cargo area 2622mm long behind the front seats. Maybe the van DNA is a good thing after all.

With all eight seats in place, there’s a minimum of 673 litres of luggage space which can be expanded all the way to a monster 4683 litres with the second and third rows removed.

There’s also a 12-volt power socket and a lighting system in the back, too, although while the side doors are automatic, the tailgate is manual. And you’ll need plenty of real estate to open it, too. Even tall folk will hit the button to open the tailgate, start the strut-assisted opening and then take a step or two back to allow the huge tailgate to rise without clobbering them. An automatic tailgate where you hit the button and run away to a safe distance would be much nicer.

Is there anything more retro than sitting down low in a sports car with just centimetres separating your buttocks from bitumen?

This is the BRZ experience, but once sat snug, ensconced in superbly supportive sports seats, you forget all about the fumbled entry and graceless egress that awaits and instead revel in the moment.

Arms outstretched, hands gripping a perfectly-sized wheel, ahead of crisp electronic instrumentation, with controls so intuitively placed and presented that soon everything’s operated via muscle memory, Subaru has nailed the ergonomics.

Oh, and the joy of a handbrake lever! It's just so naturally and beautifully driver-orientated. 

Okay. Owners of the original (ZD6) generation will already know all this. So what’s changed? Besides nothing conceptually, basically everything executionally.

The dated old dash has been ditched for a dated – but much prettier – new fascia, that’s all horizontal layers and matt black plastic, just like Japanese sporty coupes were in the 1970s and ‘80s. Except for the 8.0-inch touchscreen, of course, which looks a little aftermarket with its low-res TomTom nav, but is easy to figure out and a cinch to use on the go.

The climate control and toggle switches are lovely to use, there’s bottle storage in each door and, as a bonus for going automatic, an extra beverage holder to the pair beneath the centre-console lids exists. This matters if you're regularly transporting thirsty passengers cramped out back. More on that in a moment.

Other than the contortions required to get in and out, the BRZ’s is actually shockingly practical – from the surprisingly good all-round vision afforded by all that glass area as well as thinner pillars and sleeker exterior mirrors than before, ample ventilation and handy storage, to front-seat comfort and a compliant ride.

Plus, you’ll soon learn that the frameless doors provide easier entry and exiting when their windows are down. You wouldn’t think twice about commuting in this baby. Cancel that expensive small SUV order now!

The tS’s extra suede-esque upholstery, baboon’s butt red starter button and STi instrumentation cluster lift the ambience above the cheap sports car vibe of the 2012 original, while the whole ensemble is superbly screwed, clipped and/or glued together.

Gripes? For such a recent model, the lack of a USB-C port anywhere in the BRZ is an oversight. There are no overhead grab handles to help haul yourself out. At speed there's too much road noise. And only the front passenger seat has a single-action slide-and-tilt motion with return for getting through to/from the back, meaning you’re forever grappling with seat levers if you need to enter/exit from the driver’s side.

Now, granted, the rear pair of seats are occasional-only for taller folk, but there’s every chance the '+2' element of the Subaru is the main reason you’d be pondering one of these over, say, the strictly two-seater MX-5.

At 178cm, your tester just about hits the height limit for back-seat accommodation. Actually, the cushion and backrest base are thoughtfully padded and angled, but scalps scrape ceiling and/or glass depending on posture, the front-seat occupants need to slide their chairs forward for knees to fit and there’s barely any space for bigger feet.

But then, this is not the point of a coupe. The fact the BRZ is fine for shorter trips adds another level of practicality, even if there are no grab handles or reading lights to access. And, thoughtfully, the cabin engineers created the centre console lid to remain open for rear-seat access to cupholders, two USB-A ports and a single aux (!) outlet.

That's why the auto's extra cupholder comes in so handy.

Further back, the one-piece backrest folds flat to boost cargo-carrying practicality and versatility, since the boot is a modest 201 litres in capacity. And, it’s now easier to do that thanks to a boot-sited backrest release. It beats having to clamber inside the car every time, as per the earlier generation BRZ.

Keep in mind the tS loses the other BRZ grades’ full-sized spare wheel, presumably in the name of dynamic precision. A tyre-inflation kit is a poor substitution in puncture-prone Australia.

Oh well. At least you’ll be in a pleasant and charming coupe environment whilst you wait for roadside assistance.

With cheap coupes almost extinct nowadays, even at $48,690 (all prices are before-on-road costs), the costliest BRZ still represents exceptional value-for-money.

Here’s a plot twist, though. Our test tS is an auto, but only costs $1000 more, from $49,690. And it is pretty well equipped to boot.

Every BRZ includes four-wheel ventilated disc brakes, a mechanical limited-slip differential, keyless entry/start, adaptive LED headlights, dual-zone automatic climate control, an 8.0-inch touchscreen, a reversing camera, satellite navigation, digital radio, wired Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, heated and power-folding exterior mirrors and 18-inch alloy wheels.

And whether talking about the six-speed manual or auto, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep systems, tyre pressure monitors and other driver-assist safety technologies are now fitted across the range.

Based on the mid-range BRZ S specification, which over the base grade replaces cloth for a perforated suede-like material with leather trim and adds heated front seats, the tS brings STI-tuned suspension, Brembo brakes, darker alloys, blacked-out mirrors and roof antenna, a red/black interior trim combo, a push-button start and an STI-specific instrument cluster. All for a $3600 premium.

However, the laudable full-sized spare wheel in the other grades is turfed for a fiddly puncture repair kit. This is a retrograde step.    

Plus, the factory will not supply a sunroof, smartphone charger or wireless connectivity for your Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, though of course your usual Bluetooth phone connectivity with associated streaming is present.

So, with all these items, the BRZ tS’ sub-$50K retail price is red-hot value against the gorgeous MX-5 RF, since you’ll need to step up to the mid-range GT costing about $5K more than the Subaru for keyless entry and heated seats.

But, while only two people can fit inside, the Mazda has that magnificent acrobatic electric targa roof that no Subaru can match.

Then it’s a substantial jump to $75,800 for the rousing Nissan Z, though that boasts almost double the engine outputs thanks to a ferocious twin-turbo V6 powerplant.

Whichever way you look at it, and whatever coupe you choose, we salute you, Japan Inc.

Because the platform is (mostly) borrowed from the Transit Custom, you get the same driveline. That starts with a 2.0-litre turbo diesel, good for 125kW of power and a useful 390Nm of torque. It drives through a conventional eight-speed automatic transmission and then to the front wheels as a means of keeping the load floor as flat and low as possible.

Ford claims a 2500kg towing capacity with a braked trailer, but on a wet road or damp boat ramp, that’s really going to test the limits of the front wheel’s grip which can be overcome even in the dry if you’re too hasty with the throttle.

The biggest engineering change in the move from Transit Custom to Tourneo has been the switch from leaf springs on the former to coil springs and an independent suspension on the latter. This is all in the name of ride quality and recognises the fact that the Transit will often be called on to cart heavier loads than eight humans.

Under the BRZ’s bonnet is the same 2.4-litre horizontally-opposed ‘boxer’ four-cylinder petrol engine, with double overhead cams and direct-injection.

Power is rated at 174kW at a heady 7000rpm while the 250Nm torque maximum kicks in at 3700rpm. Tipping the scales at about 1310kg, the power-to-weight ratio is an impressive 133kW/tonne.

The boxer engine drives the rear wheels only via a six-speed manual or, in this case, an Aisin-supplied six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission with paddle shifts.

Ford quotes an official combined fuel consumption figure of 7.4 litres for the Tourneo. Over a few days of running in a pretty broad mix of urban and country work, we saw an average of 8.6 litres per 100km which is still pretty good for a vehicle of this size.

With the standard 70-litre fuel tank, that gives the Tourneo a theoretical combined range of around 900km between fills, but the real-world number says closer to 800km is more realistic.

Don’t forget, either, that running costs will be a little higher than some diesels, as the Tourneo requires AdBlue at regular intervals, in line with its Euro 6 emissions levels.

The BRZ is not tuned to save money at the petrol bowser.

What did we manage? Air-con on always and driven hard often with fuel-sapping performance testing included, our not-fully-run-in tS returned a commendable 10.2L/100km, while the car’s trip computer read out was 9.7L/100km.

Subaru says owners of the automatic model should expect to average 8.8L/100km on the combined cycle. Choosing to go manual bumps that up to 9.5L/100km.

As a result, the carbon-dioxide emissions rating is 201g/km (auto) and 217g/km (manual).

Note that filling the BRZ auto’s 50-litre fuel tank with the required 98 RON premium unleaded petrol should eek out nearly 570km between refills using the combined cycle figure.

If you haven’t driven a one-box van for a decade or more, you’re in for a treat. Just like the Transit Custom on which this car is based, the Tourneo represents a different experience to that of a conventional car or SUV, but one that is not without merit.

For a start, you sit very high which means a great view out across the traffic. And while the driving position is a little less laid-back than a modern car, once you get used to the almost square steering wheel, neither is it the dreaded sit-up-and-beg of older van designs.

The four-cylinder engine doesn’t make the Tourneo a fast vehicle, but it does give it lots of flexibility thanks to all that turbo-torque being available from just off idle. The eight-speed transmission helps, too, but the real surprise is just how quiet the Tourneo is when on a cruising setting. In fact, it’s almost uncanny how such a big, empty metal box could be so silent, but beyond a little tyre noise on coarse surfaces, the Ford pulls it off. As a result, it’s very relaxed and effortless feeling at freeway speeds.

The other surprise is how good the ride quality is. By swapping the cargo van’s leaf rear springs for coils, the Tourneo suddenly displays a very good match between the front and rear axles in terms of how they work to absorb bumps. You do still get some of the front-seat sensation that you’re sitting over the front axle, but it’s not terrible and the reality is that you simply sitting closer to the axle, not right over it.

For many drivers perhaps the over-riding impression will be of the vehicle’s external size. And, yes, it’s a long and wide piece of equipment, but at least the boxy shape means the corners are easy to place and the huge glass area and driver aids like parking sensors and blind-spot warnings help a lot in the daily cut and thrust.

Things are also improved by the fabulously small turning circle of 10.9m kerb-to-kerb (courtesy of the Transit’s role as an inner-city delivery van) that gives an agility the looks don’t suggest. But there’s a sense that the Tourneo is a little wider in the rear track than the front, as you’ll sometimes find the inside rear tyre finding the lips of roundabouts and suburban gutters.

The brilliant thing about the BRZ/GR86 twins is they’re just so great to drive regardless of transmission.

And, after a week behind the wheel of the BRZ tS auto, there are even unique benefits to make a very strong case in its favour over the admittedly incredibly satisfying manual.

The numbers tell a compelling story.

With an impressive 133kW/tonne (or thereabouts) thanks to a larger engine (with 18 per cent more power and 20 per cent more torque than before) and a tight-ratio six-speed auto, the BRZ springs off the line with an almost frenetic liveliness, providing snarly, punchy performance right to its lofty 7500rpm red line.

Select manual mode and the auto will also hold bounce off the rev limiter.

Okay. It’s still not sports car fast, per se, with relatively modest outputs and a 0-100km/h time in the mid-six second bracket, but what there is works hard to make you feel like you’re going very quickly. That said, the BRZ will bowl along at quite a cracking pace.

Select 'Sport' mode, and there’s even more urgency, with the sweetly-calibrated auto hanging on to its ratios a little longer. Here’s where the Tiptronic-style lever/paddle shifters come into play, allowing for that extra level of interactivity.

Even with out test car's odo well under 1000km, this boxer engine has a very deep set of lungs and a lot of bandwidth to explore.

The generational change that saw the swapping out of the old 2.0-litre for this torquier 2.4L seems to be for the benefit of the auto.

And that’s not even the best bit.

The BRZ skates along with an Olympian’s confidence and control, providing an agility and grace reserved for Porsches, Lotuses and the like.

And it’s not just the wonderfully tactile steering at work either, because this possesses that rare seat-of-the-pants connection that makes the driver feel like part to the car.

Suspension is by MacPherson struts up front and a double-wishbone arrangement. Subaru reckons weight distribution is a close-to-ideal 53:47 front/rear.

Like all second-gen BRZ/GR86 models, the architecture underneath is loosely based on Subaru’s small-car platform that dates back decades, though it has been significantly updated and improved along the way.

If you love the sort of driving where you long to sense the road, corner with the throttle and swing out the rear of the car using just your hips, then the tS is your sort of sports car.

From the brilliant brakes to the nuanced tune of the traction control systems, balanced precision is the name of the game here. It tingles senses like an ASMR sensation. The fact this is as an auto does not change anything.

And, you know what? The uprated STI dampers even seem to benefit ride quality, because while the tS is obviously a taut and muscular drift-ready machine, the suspension is never too stiff or hard, allowing this BRZ to be more than capable as a commuting machine.

Yep, even over craggy inner-urban pot-holed and tram-lined roads, the Subaru’s comparative comfort and sophistication only endeared us to it even more.

So, surely there are downsizes, right? Well, the Michelin Pilot 4 215/40R18 tyres sure love to amplify road noise inside. This is not a quiet car over some of our coarser bitumen surfaces, and it can quickly become tiresome.

And… that’s it for criticism from a driving point of view. The BRZ tS can put a smile on your face just like MX-5s and Caymans can. Even/especially the auto if you will seek to schlepp around in one every single day with a minimum of fuss.

And all for around $52K drive-away. Bargain. Where do we sign up?

Unlike the previous BRZ, the second-gen version does not have an ANCAP rating.

Subaru says it has taken the old platform and applied elements of its newer architecture to improve front lateral flexing rigidity by almost 60 per cent and body torsional rigidity by approximately 50 per cent.

The body sees beefier body-welding techniques, reinforced (yet slimmer for improved driver vision out) A- and B-pillars, and an increase in hot-pressed materials, high-tensile steels and aluminium in impact areas make for better occupant safety.

Seven airbags are fitted (dual front, front side, curtain and driver’s knee), along with Subaru’s 'EyeSight' preventative safety system featuring AEB with 'Pre-Collision Brake Assist', blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, 'Reverse Automatic Braking', lane change assist, 'Lane Departure Warning' (LDW), 'Lane Sway Warning', 'Lead Vehicle Start Alert', 'High Beam Assist' and adaptive cruise control (with full-stop functionality).

All manual as well as automatic BRZs now have the full driver-assist tech suite included as standard.

Also present are tyre pressure monitors, Brembo ventilated four-wheel disc brakes, a mechanical limited-slip differential, electronic stability control, anti-lock brakes with 'Electronic Brakeforce Distribution' and 'Brake Assist', traction control, 'Brake Limited Slip Device', a 'Brake Override System' and a reversing camera.

There is no data on the AEB speed/operation parameters at the time of publishing, but the LDW activates from 50km/h.

Finally, three child-seat tether points and two ISOFIX anchor points are fitted in the rear.

Ford offers its standard five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty on the Tourneo. Five years is fair enough, but can’t match the seven years or even more that some of the competition offer. It‘s worth noting, however, that the warranty does match many of the makes and models that will be the Ford’s natural enemies.

Service intervals are 12 months or a very long 30,000km, but it’s unlikely many families will clock up 30,000km in a 12-month period, anyway. There’s no word on capped-price servicing yet, but the mechanically similar Transit Custom has a service plan that limits the cost of each of the first four services to around $500.

The biggest additional running cost for the Tourneo will be the AdBlue additive to control emissions. How frequently you need to top up will be determined by what type of driving you do.

All Subaru BRZs come with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty, as well as one year’s free roadside assistance. Service intervals are at 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first.

There is five years/75,000km of capped-price servicing available, with the first starting from around $365, then stretching to $586, $460, $825 and $380 for an average of $523.