Subaru launches new Forester and all-new BRZ

MOTOR IMAGE Pilipinas, the exclusive distributor of Subaru vehicles in the country, has launched Thursday the new 2022 Forester and the 2022 Subaru BRZ at the Manila International Auto Show (MIAS 2022) which shall run until April 10.

The extraordinary SUV Forester is now equipped with EyeSight 4.0, Driver Monitoring System, and improved X-MODE with Hill Descent Control, while the second generation of the true-blue Japanese sports coupe BRZ is even sportier, even sleeker, and even more enjoyable for petrol heads who love thrills behind the wheel.

Glenn Tan, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director, of the Tan Chong International Limited, said: “The 2022 Forester comes equipped with EyeSight 4.0, so owners of this new Forester can live larger and go on larger adventures with their families, thanks to its largest improvements to date.” 

“We are also excited to introduce the all-new BRZ which levels up the driving game with greater power and performance than its predecessor. Driving enthusiasts can experience pure driving pleasure in this second-generation Japanese sports coupe, with safety and style,” he added. 

Subaru’s award-winning preventive safety system, EyeSight, is now more intuitive than ever. Boasting innovative stereo cameras, EyeSight gets an upgrade with new features.  

EyeSight 4.0’s Pre-Collision Braking now covers even more traffic scenarios at intersections, thanks to its improved stereo cameras with coverage that has almost doubled laterally (from left to right) as well as vertically.  

It is now able to help the driver look left and right, to detect obstacles and help prevent potential collisions, not only at its own lane, but at neighboring lanes as well (e.g., vehicles travelling in the opposite direction and pedestrians crossing the road at left- or right-turn junctions). 

EyeSight 4.0 now includes nine features, of which three are new - the Autonomous Emergency Steering, Lane Centering Function and Lane Departure Prevention - while Pre-Collision Braking and Adaptive Cruise Control have been improved.

The all-new Subaru BRZ (Boxer, Rear-wheel drive, Zenith) delivers a fun drive in the spirit of the first-generation model, but with more power, greater performance, sportier handling, a sleeker design, and extra peace of mind on the road with Subaru EyeSight Driver Assist Technology (for new BRZ automatic variant). The second-generation sports coupe has been crowned by Edmunds as the Top Rated Sports Car for 2022 and it is also a podium finalist in the Japan Car of the Year 2021 competition. In addition, the all-new BRZ is in the top 10 list for 2022 World Car of the Year.

The all-new BRZ is a classic front-engine, rear-drive sports coupe with a smooth, naturally aspirated 4-cylinder horizontally-opposed boxer engine, producing 237 PS of power at 7,000 rpm and 250 Nm of torque at 3,700 rpm. 

The 6-speed automatic transmission is quicker than before and has an improved Sport mode for a more exciting drive. In addition, the electronic throttle has been tuned to make the engine respond to the accelerator more progressively at high rpm levels, making it easier for the driver to control the flow of power when exiting a corner, for instance.

The two-door body is only slightly heavier than before (+10 kg), so the BRZ boxer’s bigger output dramatically improves the coupe’s power-to-weight ratio for much punchier acceleration. The new 6-speed manual BRZ is able to accelerate from a standstill to 100 km/h in just 6.3 seconds, while the 6-speed automatic BRZ can do it in 6.8 seconds. 

The new BRZ also achieves a shorter braking distance from 100 km/h to a complete stop, even sharper handling through slalom, even less body roll while cornering and superior traction when exiting a corner promptly. (Richard Ebona)