Comparing the 2022 Toyota GR86 and the 2022 Subaru BRZ: Which One Should You Buy?

As we stand here in my garage, surrounded by the chaos of a messy space, it's easy to get caught up in the details. But today, we're not here to talk about that. We're here to compare two cars that are almost identical, yet have some key differences that make them unique. The 2022 Toyota GR86 and the 2022 Subaru BRZ are two of the best small rear-wheel drive sports cars available in the market right now, and we're going to dive into each aspect of these cars to see which one you should buy.

The Looks: A Tale of Two Cars

Both the GR86 and the BRZ have received a nice styling upgrade for their second generation. The GR86 boasts a more aggressive front end, with a squared-off grille and tighter side vents. On the other hand, the BRZ takes a happier approach to its face, with a wider lower grille that feeds nicely into the fascia side vents. These vents appear slightly more open on the BRZ. When viewed from behind, both cars look similar, with each having a nice ducktail spoiler and a large diffuser section over the dual exhaust outlets. The tail lights are also identical on both models, with a nicely cut vent behind the front wheels that adds to their sporty appeal.

Out of the two, we prefer the GR86's design language, but it's all about personal preference when it comes to aesthetics. One thing is for sure - both cars have looked significantly better than their predecessors. Inside, there's less differentiation between the cabins of these two cars. Thankfully, that doesn't mean they're not great in here. Both offer excellent driving experiences, with large screens at the center responding well to touch and offering up wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The gauge cluster is a digital display that's bright and easy to read, and the steering wheel feels great in your hand.

A Comfortable Driving Position

Another area where these cars excel is in their comfort levels. The seats are comfortable, and the driving position feels excellent. You'll be able to focus on the road ahead without any distractions. It's this combination of comfort and performance that makes both cars enjoyable drives. However, when it comes to power, we're back to square one.

Power: A Wash

Both the GR86 and the BRZ use the same 2.4-liter boxer 4-cylinder engine, which has been bumped up to produce 228 horsepower. This is certainly enough power for a small sports car like these two. What's notable is that this engine no longer suffers from the dreaded torque dip of its predecessor, thanks to some clever tuning. Both cars pull nicely all the way through the rev range, especially in their six-speed manual versions.

While each automaker claims that their version has different chassis engineering, it's clear that these two cars are designed for slightly different purposes. The BRZ is a bit tighter on a road course or canyon road, thanks to its hollow front sway bar being thicker than its GR86 counterpart. On the other hand, the GR86 wants you to go drifting - it's more playful and forgiving when it comes to cornering.

The Bottom Line: A Price War

One area where both cars excel is in their pricing. Any version of these two cars starts at under $30,000, which is an incredibly competitive price for a sports car of this caliber. What you get in return for that money is a limited rear slip differential as standard kit, which adds to the overall driving experience.

When it comes down to it, the choice between the GR86 and the BRZ comes down to how you want to take on a corner - what badges do you want on the outside, and what's your style? For my money, I'd go with the BRZ because I love getting into world rally blue pearl. But if you really want to mess with people and have them jealous of your car, buy the GR86 and have it wrapped in a Subaru color - that's definitely going to turn heads!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhello and welcome to my garage that is very messy we're not here to talk about that we're here to compare two cars and today we're looking at two good ones to see which one you should buy it's wonderful that we still live in a world where you can buy a small rear-wheel drive sports car that comes with a manual gearbox interestingly enough two of the best choices out there at the moment are basically the same car the redesigned 2022 toyota gr86 and the 2022 subaru brz which one should you buy though it almost comes down strictly to brand loyalty and opinions on styling on this one and here's why first up the looks both of these cars have received a nice styling upgrade for the second generation with the gr86 you get a front end that's a bit more aggressive the grille is more squared off and the fascia side vents are tighter as well on the brz there's a happier approach to the face the lower grille is a bit wider and feeds nicely into the fascia side vents which appear a bit more open as well out back and in a rear three quarter shot though both cars basically look the same each has a nice ducktail spoiler a large diffuser section that sits over the dual exhaust outlets and the same tail lights on the sides you have a nicely cut vent behind the front wheels and both cars in fact look like a nice upgrade over the past versions inside both cars have improved as well and there's far less differentiation in the cabins thankfully the cabins are great though a large screen in the center responds well to touch and offers up wireless apple carplay and android auto the gauge cluster is a digital display that's bright and easy to read the steering wheel feels great in your hand and we appreciate the hvac controls not being hidden in any menus the seats are comfortable and the driving position feels excellent as for power it's again a wash both cars use the same 2.4 liter boxer 4-cylinder engine power is bumped up to 228 horsepower and torque is 180 pound-feet most notable though is that the dreaded torque dip on the last version is gone these cars pull nicely all the way through the rev range especially on the versions delivered with a six-speed manual gearbox a 6-speed auto is available on both models as well each automaker says the tuning is different though with respect to the chassis engineering these cars should feel slightly different when pushed with the brz subaru uses a hollow front sway bar that's thicker than the front bar on the gr86 out back though the gr86 gets a thicker sway bar than the brz toyota also employs a lower front spring rate and higher rear spring rate on the gr86 while subaru opts for aluminum front knuckles and stiffer rear trailing link bushings what that all means is the brz is a bit tighter on a road course or canyon road while the gr86 is potentially more playful the gr86 wants you to go drifting well the brz wants you to set clean fast lap times both of these are fun goals just different ways to get around a course the best bit though is that each one starts under thirty thousand dollars and any version comes with a limited rear slip differential as standard kit you're paying right at 30 000 for nicer wheels on each one if that's what you want and very few minor interior upgrades so it really comes down to how you want to take on a corner what badges you want on the outside and what you think about the styling up front for my money i'd go brz so i can get it in world rally blue pearl but if you really want to mess with people buy the gr86 and have it wrapped in a subaru color no matter which one you pick you've made the right choice here and that's great news for car enthusiasts youhello and welcome to my garage that is very messy we're not here to talk about that we're here to compare two cars and today we're looking at two good ones to see which one you should buy it's wonderful that we still live in a world where you can buy a small rear-wheel drive sports car that comes with a manual gearbox interestingly enough two of the best choices out there at the moment are basically the same car the redesigned 2022 toyota gr86 and the 2022 subaru brz which one should you buy though it almost comes down strictly to brand loyalty and opinions on styling on this one and here's why first up the looks both of these cars have received a nice styling upgrade for the second generation with the gr86 you get a front end that's a bit more aggressive the grille is more squared off and the fascia side vents are tighter as well on the brz there's a happier approach to the face the lower grille is a bit wider and feeds nicely into the fascia side vents which appear a bit more open as well out back and in a rear three quarter shot though both cars basically look the same each has a nice ducktail spoiler a large diffuser section that sits over the dual exhaust outlets and the same tail lights on the sides you have a nicely cut vent behind the front wheels and both cars in fact look like a nice upgrade over the past versions inside both cars have improved as well and there's far less differentiation in the cabins thankfully the cabins are great though a large screen in the center responds well to touch and offers up wireless apple carplay and android auto the gauge cluster is a digital display that's bright and easy to read the steering wheel feels great in your hand and we appreciate the hvac controls not being hidden in any menus the seats are comfortable and the driving position feels excellent as for power it's again a wash both cars use the same 2.4 liter boxer 4-cylinder engine power is bumped up to 228 horsepower and torque is 180 pound-feet most notable though is that the dreaded torque dip on the last version is gone these cars pull nicely all the way through the rev range especially on the versions delivered with a six-speed manual gearbox a 6-speed auto is available on both models as well each automaker says the tuning is different though with respect to the chassis engineering these cars should feel slightly different when pushed with the brz subaru uses a hollow front sway bar that's thicker than the front bar on the gr86 out back though the gr86 gets a thicker sway bar than the brz toyota also employs a lower front spring rate and higher rear spring rate on the gr86 while subaru opts for aluminum front knuckles and stiffer rear trailing link bushings what that all means is the brz is a bit tighter on a road course or canyon road while the gr86 is potentially more playful the gr86 wants you to go drifting well the brz wants you to set clean fast lap times both of these are fun goals just different ways to get around a course the best bit though is that each one starts under thirty thousand dollars and any version comes with a limited rear slip differential as standard kit you're paying right at 30 000 for nicer wheels on each one if that's what you want and very few minor interior upgrades so it really comes down to how you want to take on a corner what badges you want on the outside and what you think about the styling up front for my money i'd go brz so i can get it in world rally blue pearl but if you really want to mess with people buy the gr86 and have it wrapped in a subaru color no matter which one you pick you've made the right choice here and that's great news for car enthusiasts you\n"