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2017 Subaru BRZ First Drive

When the Subaru BRZ debuted in 2012, it was heralded as a return to the traditional Japanese sport coupe formula – a compact, lightweight, rear-wheel-drive runabout that hearkened back to greats like the original Toyota Celica, Mazda's RX-3, and the Nissan 240SX. Japan is covered in mountains, and that's where its enthusiasts honed their hooning. Cars that emphasize handling, not horsepower, make the most sense there. Now, five years on, Subaru is using the model's first facelift to further differentiate it from its Toyota cousin. The BRZ is Subaru's ultimate vision of a sophisticated driver's car, more string-backed gloves than flat-brimmed hat. To prove the point, Subaru invited us to drive the refreshed 2017 specimen, along with 2016 models for comparison, at Japan's legendary Fuji Speedway. The BRZ's revised styling makes the distinction painfully clear right off the bat. It now sports a squarer jawline, with a chin described by senior designer Yuki Kumono as aircraft-inspired. LED DRLs are embedded in the new headlamps, moved up from the space they once shared with fog lights. A side note for Subaru fans: The C-shaped DRLs are called "hawkeyes" internally, which is sure to cause confusion among Subarists who have already given that name to the 2006–07 Impreza WRX and STI. Freshened taillights and a reshaped spoiler update the badonk, and the Subie has new fender inserts. Styling is of course a subjective matter, but anyone who says the sea-creature maw of the post-Scion 2017 Toyota 86 is better looking is clearly wrong. Ultimately, though, the question on everybody's minds is, "Does the BRZ have any more danged power?" The answer to that is yes, technically, but only on certain cars. The 2.0-liter boxer four makes five more horsepower and five more pound-feet of torque only on manual-transmission cars. That brings the totals to 205 hp and 156 lb-ft. Cries for a turbocharger have gone stubbornly unanswered. In typical Japanese fashion, it's not the numbers that matter. Subaru has focused instead on the overall driving feel, that elusive metric that can't be expressed on a spec sheet or through the frothing internet comments of armchair racers. Subaru's engineers, some of whom are trained as the company's expert test drivers, have toiled away at a host of improvements for the base Premium trim, the upper Limited grade, and a new Performance Package that's available on top of the latter.

Subaru's latest infotainment update is for birdwatchers (and the rest of us)

Subaru definitely knows its audience, as evidenced by its dog-centric commercials and charitable contributions. So we weren't shocked to learn that its latest infotainment upgrade allows drivers to better track bird sightings from behind the wheel, but we are a bit curious. The eBird integration is one of eight new cloud-based apps being added to the Starlink infotainment system for 2017. Subaru drivers can use the infotainment system to display info from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology through eBird, info on sightings and an interactive coach to help get to where the birds are. (There's a cloud-based joke in there somewhere.) Most of the other new apps involve location tracking or proximity to some degree as well, including Yelp (to find food and business reviews), Glympse (which lets you share your location with friends), Best Parking (to find somewhere to put your car), RightTrack (a product from Liberty Mutual to track drivers for insurance discounts), eventseeker (which steers you toward local happenings), and Magellan NAVI (a cloud-based navigation system). There's also a digital version of the car's owner's manual available in the Quick Guide app. All are free to use, with the exception of the Magellan app, which is included free with the 2017 Impreza for three years. That car's infotainment system comes with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay capability, so unless you really prefer the Magellan interface, it's probably best to stick with whatever's on your phone. The new Starlink apps are available on 2017 Imprezas as well as 2016 and 2017 BRZ models, and they'll show up on other Subaru models soon. The functionality requires an iOS or Android phone running Subaru's Starlink app and paired with the vehicle to provide the data connection. Put it all together and you can find some birds, get a parking spot nearby, let your friends know where you've gone off to, grab a bite to eat nearby (not poultry, of course), attend a local event, then hop back in the car and figure out how to tune the radio and find your way home, all the while lowering your insurance payment. Isn't the connected world wonderful? Related Video:

Subaru getting creative in these two very different WRX STI viral videos

Subaru is getting into viral videos with two new, radically different shorts to promote the 2015 WRX STI; both are pretty entertaining. They are certainly more interesting, from an enthusiast perspective, than the company's dog-oriented advertising campaign and sponsorship of the Puppy Bowl.
The first promotes a new grindhouse-style short film that Subaru is launching, which is cheekily called The Ride of Her Life, and it previews the full deal due on March 13. While It's just a glimpse at the moment, if Subaru really leans into the cheesy, 1970s-style, then the full video could be really enjoyable.
The second video is a new take on an idea we've seen before but is still very cool. There might be some digital trickery going on in some of the "Stick bomb" shots, but the result is still exciting. Plus, the STI's Nürburgring livery is quite attractive. Scroll down to check them both out and tell us which you prefer in Comments.