Safety upgrade coming for manual 2024 Subaru BRZ – and WRX

Subaru Australia has announced that manual versions the 2024 Subaru BRZ will join automatic versions by shipping as standard with the brand’s proprietary EyeSight safety suite, making the compact rear-drive coupe eligible for a five-star ANCAP safety rating and ensuring its future Down Under beyond next year.

The adoption of the stereo camera-based technology means the three-pedal BRZs will finally be equipped with autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning and adaptative cruise control.

These features are already standard in automatic BRZs, in addition to blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, and the AEB system includes vehicle, pedestrian, cyclist and motorcyclist detection.

“This announcement confirms Subaru Australia's ongoing commitment to providing driving enthusiasts manual transmission options now combined with advanced safety features of Eyesight,” said Subaru Australia managing director Blair Read.

“The preventive safety technology combined with adaptive cruise ensure a relaxed performance drive, giving owners the best of both worlds.”

No other details of the 2024 BRZ have been revealed at this stage but the inclusion of the safety tech in manual variants will likely affect their retail prices beyond the expected model year increases.

Depending on exactly which other EyeSight features are included in the package, the manual BRZs could soon cost as much as their automatic counterparts, which would mean a circa-$3800 price hike.

Subaru said lead vehicle start alert, which warns distracted drivers of vehicles moving off ahead of them in stop-start traffic, was also set to be included globally, all but guaranteeing a price increase.

There’s been no word yet as to if or when the technology will be applied to manual versions of the Subaru WRX – or the BRZ’s sister model, the Toyota GR 86.

However, Read has previously stated the brand was “committed to manual buyers” and in May confirmed that Subaru Australia would make AEB standard in manual versions of both the BRZ and WRX – which account for about a third of sales – by the end of this year.

“We are committed to bringing AEB to Subaru performance cars with a manual transmission to our market, and customers in Australia will see that commitment play out very soon,” he said last month.

“We expect to make an announcement on this within the next six months.”

AEB was mandated for all newly-introduced passenger vehicles sold in Australia from March 2023 (the current WRX was released in January 2022 and the BRZ in April 2022), and will become mandatory for all new passenger vehicles sold from March 2025.

Lane-keeping systems will also become mandatory for all new passenger vehicles as of March 2026, but there’s so far no sign of that safety technology for either the WRX or BRZ – just lane departure warning.

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