Subaru BRZ tS 2024 Review

The 2024 Subaru BRZ tS headlines the local lineup at $48,690 plus on-road costs, or another $1000 if you want an automatic gearbox. This is a $3600 premium over the regular Coupe S, the entry price to which has jumped thanks to the addition of new safety equipment.

If you want a lightweight, rear-wheel drive Japanese sports car the obvious alternative to the BRZ is its GR86 twin, which costs $47,590 (plus on-roads) when optioned with the Performance Package that mimics the tS upgrades.

There’s also the Mazda MX-5 GT RS ($51,640 plus on-roads) which adds the drop-top experience to the mix.

It seems sensible to start with what the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS offers over the standard variants. Of greatest import are the STI-tuned dampers and larger brake discs with Brembo callipers (four-piston front, dual-piston rear).

External cues are minor, just the tS badging, integrated BRZ logo in the headlights and black mirrors and shark fin antenna. Inside there’s Bordeaux and black trim with STI badged seats, an exclusive instrument cluster and a bright red STI starter button.

This is in addition to the gear standard in the Coupe S, like 18-inch wheels, adaptive LED headlights, dual-zone climate control, keyless entry and start and heated seats, though it’s worth noting one feature the tS deletes is the spare wheel, replacing it with an inflation kit.

All six colours – white, red, two blues, silver, grey and black – are no-cost options, the warranty is five years/unlimited kilometres and capped price servicing is $2528.48 over the first five years/75,000km. You can prepay but won’t save any money by doing so, though you will protect against future price rises.

One of the bigger changes to the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS, as with all manual MY24 variants, is the adoption of Subaru’s Eyesight active safety suite, including adaptive cruise control, pre-collision alert and autonomous emergency braking.

Manual variants now match the automatics for safety equipment bar rear emergency braking. Kudos to Subaru for making the investment and including this technology on all variants, however, the pre-collision braking is prone to being spooked and activating regularly without cause.

Perhaps it’s a gross generalisation, but buyers of a lightweight, manual sports car probably won’t be too pleased with the interruption. On the other hand, if it avoids an accident once, it may well be worthwhile.

The 8.0-inch touch-screen infotainment display in the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS works well enough. It’s simple but easy to navigate and has smartphone mirroring, Bluetooth, AM/FM/DAB+ radio, embedded sat-nav and voice control and plays through a six-speaker stereo.

The 7.0-inch LCD instrument display is also fine and its shroud, designed to mimic the boxer engine’s layout, is a neat touch. It can display not only trip and fuel and entertainment information but g force and lap times as well.

Under the bonnet the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS is unchanged, with a 2.4-litre naturally aspirated boxer-four producing 174kW at 7000rpm and 250Nm at 3700rpm. Both the manual and automatic are six speeds, however, the latter has both taller gearing and a taller diff ratio, so it isn’t as quick or as spritely.

That taller gearing does make the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS automatic more fuel efficient, however, with an 8.8L/100km combined claim compared to the manual’s 9.5L/100km. Both variants use a 50-litre fuel tank and require 98 RON fuel exclusively.

There’s really only one reason to really buy the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS – at least from a driving point of view – and that’s if you like to hit the track. The standard BRZ is a fantastic machine and while a back-to-back drive may reveal some differences thanks to the STI-tuned dampers, you don’t drive the standard car and wish for changes.

One area the standard car is deficient, however, is in the braking department. Again, not on the road because you don’t tax overly tax them, but on track a couple of hard laps at most circuits will result in a very long pedal and very compromised braking performance.

With this in mind we headed to Calder Park Raceway to see if the tS’s upgraded stoppers were up to the task and long story short, job done. Multiple consecutive laps, multiple sessions, the BRZ tS rolled out of the track with the brakes feeling exactly the same as when it drove in.

The other thing to mention is that due to scheduling constraints the BRZ tS we drove on track was – shock, horror! – the automatic. Is it as good as the manual? No. Even with the significantly upgraded engine, the BRZ still isn’t the quickest car in the world, so saddling it with longer gearing doesn’t help it in any way.

That said, the fantastic chassis balance and great steering are still evident and you can steer the car on the throttle to your heart’s content. The automatic is reluctant to downshift – MY25 changes will allow for more aggressive downchanges – but even so it doesn’t kill the fun.

On the road the tS isn’t necessarily any better than the standard car but nor is it any worse. What a fantastic driving machine it is.

The bigger engine has eradicated the first generation’s weird torque holes and given the car enough power to work the chassis harder, while the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres are much more appropriate in a performance application than the original’s Eco Primacy rubber without smothering the car in too much grip.

On a day-to-day basis the ride is acceptable but holy moly is the BRZ noisy. The amount of road noise is truly epic and can make long distances on Australia’s coarse-chip highways a real chore.

Fit for purpose is the best way to describe the interior of the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS. It’s not a luxurious cabin, though it’s nicer than the original, but that’s not the point of this car. Of more importance is the excellent driving position that puts you virtually on the floor with the steering and gearshift within easy reach.

There’s actually decent storage in the centre console and while getting kids in and out of the cramped rear quarters certainly isn’t a breeze, it is at least possible thanks to ISOFIX points on either side. You’ll have to have very small friends if you want to transport them in the back, but the option is there in a pinch.

There is more boot space thanks to the deletion of the full-size spare – a worthwhile trade? We’re not sure – and if you fold the rear seats down the BRZ can be genuinely practical.

The driving section pretty much sums up the 2024 Subaru BRZ tS. Unless you’re really in love with the tS interior treatment and like the flex-value of the bigger brakes, if you’re predominantly driving on road the upgrades are of questionable value. The standard car is great, just get that.

If you like to visit the track occasionally then it’s a different matter, as the brake upgrade alone will make your experience much more enjoyable without having to resort to the aftermarket.

Then again, if you’re a hardcore track junkie perhaps it’s best to start with the cheapest possible base and customise it to your heart’s content. Either way, you’ll have a supremely enjoyable sports car that shouldn’t cost the earth to run.

2024 Subaru BRZ tS at a glance:
Price: $48,690-$49,690 (manual-auto plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.4-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 174kW/250Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual/automatic
Fuel: 8.8-9.5L/100km (auto-manual ADR Combined)
CO2: 201-217g/km (auto-manual ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Unrated

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