Subaru Vortex Reviews

...one of the biggest operators on the Gold Coast after purchasing the Zupps new and used car businesses.The listed Automotive Holding Group sold the businesses for $4.5 million but Mr Von Bibra will pay about $15 million for the vehicles that come with them.The Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Subaru and Peugeot dealerships will now come under the Von Bibra Auto Group banner, making it a rival for Gold Coast vehicle heavyweights James Frizelle's Automotive and Sunshine Automotive.Mr Von Bibra, who runs the business with his son, Wade, said yesterday he had been looking around for an investment opportunity for the Von Bibra Auto Group since its Tweed car yard was sold 12 months ago. "We want to grow the group,'' he said. "There is a lot of negativity around at the moment but we think the opportunities on the Gold Coast are excellent.''However Mr Von Bibra acknowledged the poor economic climate, saying it had delivered the car yards to him at the right price. "It is hard times in a lot of places,'' he said. Mr Von Bibra said Wade, 32, was doing a good job of building the business and the acquisition would help him ramp up the operation."It is his baby now and he has been doing an excellent job for the past 18 months,'' he said. The company is in the process of building two new showrooms at Robina and constructing a $6 million service facility nearby, with further expansion possible. AHG managing director Bronte Howson said selling Zupps would allow greater focus on the company's Brisbane dealerships."The sale of these Gold Coast dealerships is part of the restructure of the Queensland operations,'' she said. AHG is a public listed company based in Perth and has about 170 dealerships Australia-wide. John Zupp sold the business to AHG about five years ago but retained the real estate. 

Rarely have we seen such keen anticipation for the arrival of a new car in Australia as we have for the Toyota-Subaru joint venture sports car, the Subaru BRZ / Toyota 86.We were one of a small number of motoring journalists that were given a sneak preview of the BRZ during a trip to Japan last year and, along with many keen Australian drivers, we’ve been counting the days till it arrived here.Well that day has now come...and gone. Because of high global demand, and an 8:1 ratio of supply in favour of Toyota, only 201 models made it here.Of these around 50 were allocated to dealers as demonstrators meaning that demand was always going to heavily outweigh supply and the remaining models were never going to be on the (virtual) showroom floor - all were sold via the internet - for very long. Even allowing for a system crash caused by the unprecedented demand it took just three hours and two minutes for all to be sold.The obvious alternative for those who missed out would normally be to switch over and buy a Toyota 86 – the two cars are virtually identical. However all 1500 of them allocated to Toyota Australia have also been sold with at least another 500 on back order.VALUESubaru opted for national driveaway pricing for the BRZ with the manual selling for $37,150 and the automatic for $39,730. While the entry-level Toyota 86 GT manual is priced at $29,990 that’s before on-road costs and with lower equipment levels than the Subaru so an apples-with-apples comparison brings the two models closer together in price.We suspect that price will not be a major issue for potential buyers as they anxiously await new stock of this outstanding little car to arrive. Standard features are cruise control, leather-wrapped steering wheel and gear lever, push-button start and stop, sports seats, front and rear foglights and power folding side mirrors.TECHNOLOGYBoth the six-speed manual and six-speed automatic transmissions were specifically developed for the BRW. Our test car had the manual, a delightful short-throw unit which is fast and smooth and just asks to be used frequently. The BRZ’s engine is also new, a 2.0-litre boxer with 147 kW of power at 7000 rpm and 205 Nm of torque at 6600 revs.DESIGNWhen the car was unveiled to us in Japan its styling brought universal approval and nothing has changed now that we’ve been able to view it on the open road. The front is dominated by a large, hexagonal grille with sweeping headlights trimmed with daytime running lights while the rear is tall and square with an additional brake light positioned between twin large tail pipes. Everything about it looks the part. Inside the BRZ there are four seats although rear seat legroom is very cramped, indeed it’s non-existent when the front seats are all the way back, but that’s to be expected in a car like this and is not a criticism.Boot space is reasonable although Subaru have gone with a full-size spare wheel which juts through the boot floor meaning that luggage has to sit on top of the wheel. If ever a car needed a space saver wheel this is it.SAFETYStandard safety equipment includes ABS brakes with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution and Brake Assist, seven airbags, Vehicle Stability Control, ring-shaped reinforced passenger cabin, side intrusion bars and retractor brake pedal, and a five-star ANCAP rating.DRIVINGWith so few cars available there wasn’t the usual test drive component at Subaru’s recent BRZ launch in Sydney, however we were fortunate enough to have been one of a handful of journalists who were given a car to drive for a couple of days prior to the launch. And didn’t we make the most of it?You don’t need to wait for the BRZ’s 17-inch alloy wheels to start turning to enjoy this car. The enjoyment begins as soon as you turn on the ignition and hear the delightful throaty burble that’s characteristic of the Subaru ‘boxer’ engine. It’s not so loud as to disturb the neighbours but just enough to whet the appetite of the driving enthusiast.On the road the fun continues. This is a superb car to drive with almost perfect chassis balance thanks to its low centre of gravity and rear-wheel drive (Subaru had to bite the bullet there). The combination of high tensile steel in the body and aluminum bonnet and wheels has kept its weight down to 1256 kg (manual) and 1278 kg (automatic) adding to its agility. Steering is precise and direct with excellent driver feedback.VERDICTToo often in the past we’ve been disappointed when the pre-release hype for a new car fails to match reality. Not so in this case - if anything the BRZ is even better than we expected.Subaru BRZPrice: $37,150 (man) $39,730 (auto) drivewayEngine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol 147kW/205NmTransmission: 6-speed man or auto; RWDSafety: 5 star ANCAPDimensions: 4.2m (l); 1.8 (w); 1.2 (h)Weight: 1216kg (man); 1238 (auto)Thirst: 6.4l/100km 181g/co2 km (man); 5.6l, 164g (auto)Spare: 17-inch

The Japanese coupe beat the Toyota 86 to a coveted five-star ANCAP score, thanks to an early test in Japan as part of Subaru's long-term commitment to Australia's crash-test rating program. Subaru was the first to trumpet a five-star ANCAP result, at a time when other makers shunned the system, and it is happy to have beaten the Toyota 86 as the two coupes shape up around the world. "Five stars are central to our safety story and commitment. The testing was done in Japan, but it is a five star ANCAP rating," says Nick Senior, managing director of Subaru Australia. Toyota admits it has been trumped this time but expects a similar five-star tick for the 86. "The car will be tested in the fullness of time and we're confident it will be five stars," says Mike Breen, spokesman for Toyota Australia. The BRZ's success comes as the Holden Colorado ute and the new Hyundai i30 hatchback also pick up a five-star rating. The Colorado joins the Ford Ranger-Mazda BT50 twins, which were the first utes in the world to rate five stars, while the i30 continues Hyundai's recent crash-test successes and repeats the five-star score of the previous i30. "It's satisfying to see manufacturers lifting the safety of light-commercial vehicles. Manufacturers have been incorporating greater levels of safety into passenger vehicles for some time now, yet the safety of LCVs has trailed," says ANCAP chairman, Lauchlan McIntosh. “Pressure not only from ANCAP, but now big business, is encouraging manufacturers to elevate safety as a priority in the design and construction of new LCVs, and consumers are the winners." For Subaru, the ANCAP result is part of a push that has created a six-month waiting list for the BRZ. The company is also taking a new approach to selling with the BRZ, trialing an online selling system for the hot coupe. "We don't see this is as fundamentally changing the nature of automative retailing overnight but it is a learning experience for us and we'll trial it for six months while we have this very,very low stock," says Senior. “Our online initiative offers a fantastic level of transparency for BRZ customers. They will know exactly what the price is going to be and vehicle availability. They can choose their delivering dealership and can even arrange a trade-in valuation. “We knew that we wouldn’t have sufficient BRZs to supply our entire network immediately following the launch.The online approach allows us to place demonstrator BRZs with selected dealerships, from which customers can arrange test drives via subaru.com.au and also select their preferred delivering dealer." But Senior still cannot predict the Australian arrival of Subaru's next performance headliner, the all-new WRX. "That's still about a couple of years away before we see an all-new WRX and STi," he admits. "There's the halo effect of BRZ but WRX is still selling about 150 a month. We have about two months back-orders on WRX since the wide-body shape came in just on two years ago." But one thing is certain, the WRX and STi will not follow the BRZ down the rear-wheel drive path. "BRZ is a unique departure. There is nothing in the product planning charts for another rear-wheel drive, or a front-wheel drive car. This is a one-off for us and I don't expect to see another," Senior says.  

The car will not be replaced, Subaru Australia says, until 2014. And to prove the point there is another in the long line of limited-edition Club Spec versions. This time around there are only 300 cars, priced at $41,490, which pick up leather trim, black 17-inch alloys, an STi spoiler, black mirrors and special badging. There are only two colour choices: tangerine with orange interior stitching and black with red interior stitching. The cars land in August and Subaru says STi fans can also add a front lip 'under spoiler', a short-shift gear change and a strut tower bar.  

The new Subaru BRZ sports car -- a highly sought after version of the same Toyota 86 sports car -- goes on sale this Monday at noon. With supply of just 201 cars available until 2013, Subaru expect their version of the car to sell out almost immediately. The waiting list for the Toyota version already stretches into the new year. "We believe this is a world first," Subaru spokesman David Rowley said. "Essentially it is being sold online because supply is so limited at the present time that we do not have enough cars to give even one to all of our dealers. By going online buyers will be able to specify colour and equipments levels, and take care of insurance." The BRZ has a national drive-away price of $37,150 for the manual and $39,730 for the automatic. It comes with free servicing for three years or 60,000km. The jointly-developed Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ has been hailed as the best affordable sports car since 1989's original Mazda MX-5. Toyota planning chief Yoshi Sasaki has called it an antidote for "boring modern sports cars that do everything for the driver". Even with Toyota limiting supply of its version of the car to 250 a month and sales beginning only last month, the 86/BRZ is expected to become Australia's best selling sports car in 2012. In the UK the first year’s allocation of 4000 is understood to be almost sold out. Though not as fast as some hatchbacks - it takes more than seven seconds for the manual version the 86/BRZ to reach 100kmh from standing - it is winning acclaim for exciting dynamics.  

When Subaru's BRZ goes on sale Monday by novel online only means, it'll be tempting to say that you can now have the car of 2012 with its rightful badge.The auto parlor game of the year is arguing what bits belong to which  car maker. In either guise - Toyota 86 or Subaru BRZ - the sum remains the same: that's two thirds Subaru technical know how plus Toyota design (and an engine tweak) equals the best affordable sports cars in decades and currently the best under $100,000.Suffice that while Subaru supplied the heart and limbs, Toyota's provided the soul, the will and the financial way.  So let's call it a draw and crack on in the far smaller brand's version.VALUEJaws are even now being scraped off the floor at Toyota's stunning introductory pricing - $29,990 for the base model; $35,490 for the top spec GTS, plus $2500 on both for the why-on-earth-would-you optional automatic.Subaru, nettled by Toyota stealing the march on sales and supply (250 cars a month to Subaru's 201 for the rest of this year), has sharpened their pricing pencils to the point of pricking blood. Apart from the remarkable initiative of selling  these 201 online only, the price point thereby arrived at sits the Soob neatly between the entry and top spec 86. The BRZ is $37,150 for the manual, $39,730 for the auto.But these are driveway prices, plus a free three years or 60,000km free servicing deal to trump Toyota's capped plan. This for a car that anyone with the merest milligram of petrol in their veins would cheerfully pay double and think themselves possessed of a bargain. The only option is a $1500 leather/alcantara upholstery deal with heated front seats. Clearly a long stride over the base 86, it lacks the GTS's sat nav. But what matters this when the only direction in which you'll head is an open road with many, many curves?TECHNOLOGYThe heart is, as we say, pure Soob - a flat four 2.0-litre Boxer four, though enhanced by Toyota dual injection. Its modest outputs make for unremarkable 0-100km/h sprints (a fair 7.6 seconds in the manual, a cardigan wearing 8.2 in the auto) but this car is about speed off the mark in the same way as a Porsche 911 is about family transport.Revving raspingly but oh so cleanly to 7400rpm, maximum torque arrives barely  beforehand, but there's almost always enough  to prevent rowing - though this is no chore with that lovely short throw, close ratio Lexus IS-derived gear shifter.So far, so similar to the 86. In so far as there is substantive difference between the GTS and BRZ - which both wear low profile 17-inch shoes - it's in Soob's suspension settings. The cars share to the same struts at the front and double wishbones at the back with Torsen limited slip differential.The BRZ's stiffer springs make for what's claimed to be a quicker rear grip response (though you'd want a track to test that) and, more tangibly, even more fulsome steering. The bantam curb weight is anchored by a centre of gravity that's drawn comparisons with Ferrari's 458. And yes, it is the only two-wheel-drive Soob.DESIGNWell, it looks like a Toyota 86 GTS with a slightly changed air intake, a different badge and ... that's about it. It's the most photographed car of 2012 so you probably already get that the rear seats are for parcels not persons and that the cabin ambience isn't going to frighten Audi's TT - though in every other respect it renders that car embarrassingly obsolete. As it does any number of dearer devices, front-, rear- and all-wheel-drives alike.SAFETYThat there is an odd and not an even number of BRZs for sale is down to ANCAP crashing one. Maximum five stars duly won.DRIVINGWe drove the BRZ immediately after a top spec 86 auto, an entry manual and before the near perfect Porsche 911. The BRZ has the best electric steering set up to be had, ever so slightly meatier than the Toyota's and perceptibly more connected just off centre than the $230,000 Carrera. A bit special then.The BRZ is brilliant, addictive and deeply depressing. You need to drop six figures to find something comparable or better - Mazda's able but aging MX-5 is finally surpassed, but then so for sheer driving pleasure are cars with badges like BMW and Mercedes-Benz.Embracing an old formula - light weight, small and willing atmo engine, manual trans and rear wheel drive - it feels fresh and invigorating against a field of ever more sophisticated and heinously expensive sports cars, devices  that are technical tours de force but which can be emotionally bereft. No track day intro for the BRZ, so no lurid power sliding. But during a nocturnal fang on one of the nation's  best bits of sinuous blacktop, the Soob more than fulfills it's part of the two-brand partnership.Swarm into a tight bend, the note of that chuntering four rises to a wail,  the merest throttle input shifts to impetus from nose the tail.  Yet there's acres of space and ample signals between control and untidiness. The BRZ is highly sensitive and entirely intuitive.VERDICTPlease don't drive this car. You won't be able to get one till at least next year and you'll really want it yesterday.Subaru BRZPrice: $37,150 (man) $39,730 (auto) drivewayEngine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol 147kW/205NmTransmission: 6-speed man or auto; RWDSafety: 5 star ANCAPDimensions: 4.2m (l); 1.8 (w); 1.2 (h)Weight: 1216kg (man); 1238 (auto)Thirst: 6.4l/100km 181g/co2 km (man); 5.6l, 164g (auto)Spare: 17-inch

Few mainstream cars have the same visual cut-through on the street as the Subaru BRZ. Other drivers see it and the rubber necking starts, or the chasing, or the phone camera comes out. It wears thin after a day or two.It's Subaru's version of the joint venture sports car developed with Toyota that was designed to cater for a specific market at a sharp price. Such is the appeal of this new, compact rear drive sports coupe that you will have to put your name on an order list before actually getting behind the wheel.THE PRICEToyota's near identical 86 starts at an incredible $29,990 plus on roads for the GT, rising $5500 for the better equipped GTS.Subaru's BRZ is available in one spec' only at $37,150 drive-away with a six-speed auto adding $2600. It will only be sold online and is specified to a similar standard as Toyota's GTS.Subaru offers the BRZ with three years free servicing along with the three year unlimited km warranty. It has a five star crash rating and plenty to make you feel good about your choice including auto on/off bi-xenon headlights, a full size alloy spare, alloy pedals, dual zone aircon, keyless start, Bluetooth, Datadots and power operated ancillaries.THE LOOKThe only external difference we could see between the two cars side by side is a small faux bumper at the front of the BRZ with attendant grille changes. Everything else looks the same except for minor body hardware and badges.Which one looks the best? Toss a coin. The same applies to the way the two drive — close your eyes and you couldn't pick it, open them...ditto.We really like the look of the BRZ (and the 86) inside and out. The Sooby has some minor interior differences and some additional metal look fascia finishes. But the instrumentation is relatively simple and uncluttered and other aspects of the package are impressive. Satnav and leather are optional.THE TECHNOLOGYLike the 86, the BRZ runs a horizontally opposed, naturally aspirated, four-cylinder with twin cams per bank and variable valve timing.The Atkinson cycle (delayed valve closing) engine is quite highly specified in component terms and spins to about 7300rpm. It passes Euro 5 emissions regulations with help from port and direct fuel injection —  yes, a dual, sequential fuel system.Power output is a handy 147kW with 205Nm of torque — both delivered at the upper rev limits. But it's good enough to propel the 1256kg BRZ from 0-100kmh in a reasonable 7.6 seconds.The six-speed manual version we drove offers short, sharp shifts with close intermediate ratios to keep you where the power is, adding a sporty feel at the same time. here's a clever engine pipe feeding a raspy note into the cabin for aural appreciation. But you'll need to feed it 98 octane only, due to the high 12.5:1 compression ratio.The rear suspension is a lift from Subaru's WRX STi as is the tail shaft design and other bits and pieces. Extra traction is provided by a Torsen diff' and there are two modes for the stability control system.THE DRIVEDynamics are firm and sporty aided by electric steering, stiff springs and dampers and the rigid chassis. Wheels are 17-inch with sporty rubber.On the road the BRZ delivers reasonable performance and sounds pretty good as long as you are prepared to rev it.Adequate torque is available in the mid-range for everyday driving. As suggested by the power and torque curves, everything happens above 6000rpm — great for sporty driving. The five mode stability control isn't too intrusive and all dynamic functions are calibrated to be sporty.THE VERDICTImpressive car. It is a viable everyday driver with seats for four at a pinch and a reasonable load space -- expandable with the rear seat back folded (flat). But where's the turbo?Subaru BRZPrice: $37,150 (man) $39,730 (auto) drivewayEngine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol 147kW/205NmTransmission: 6-speed man or auto; RWDSafety: 5 star ANCAPDimensions: 4.2m (l); 1.8 (w); 1.2 (h)Weight: 1216kg (man); 1238 (auto)Thirst: 6.4l/100km 181g/co2 km (man); 5.6l, 164g (auto)Spare: 17-inch

Either that or these grease monkeys have had a lot of coffee. But if that’s what it takes to strip and re-build a Subaru Impreza WRX STI in three minutes, then why not.And when the car is set to be driven by daredevil Travis Pastrana you’d want a speedy mechanic team. Pastrana’s had more smashes, spills and misshapes than a crash test dummy on a bad day – so hasty repair jobs are in regular demand.Maybe the techno overlay has something behind this swift strip and build? That track alone has got us twitching in our seats.Whatever the catalyst, we wouldn’t mind some in the Carsguide office. 

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