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2017 Toyota 86 Drivers' Notes | Fun, even with an automatic

The Toyota 86 is a car that enthusiasts begged Toyota to build for decades. It's small, lightweight and rear-wheel drive. Thanks to a partnership with Subaru that resulted in the BRZ, this stylish coupe hit the streets in 2012. In the U.S., the car was originally known as the Scion FR-S but was rebadged as a Toyota after Scion was axed last year. Along with a new name, the 86 received updated styling both inside and out as well as a revised suspension and a slight bump in power, at least for the manual models. This Hot Lava-colored car doesn't feature Toyota's slick six-speed manual. Instead it rocks a six-speed automatic with paddle shifters. While some enthusiasts may look down at that, automatics make up more than half of 86 sales. Still, the bones are there, and some people don't think the automatic is all that bad. Either way, we can't encourage enough people to buy these cars, as we want Toyota and Subaru to keep building them. Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder: When I first slid behind the wheel of the 86, I was surprised to see the gear selector and paddles. It's one of those cars that you don't think of as having anything but a manual transmission. Also, in an interior where all the controls and displays are underwhelming, a set of paddle shifters stands out as one of the few tactile objects in the cabin. I ended up using the paddles quite a bit, and found that I actually enjoyed using them, so much so that I'd actually consider opting for the automatic transmission were I to buy an 86. Despite shifts that aren't as razor sharp as they could be, the car's high-revving engine means that it still feels great to use. Riding an engine like this up to its redline, filling the cabin with noise, is the sort of thing that'll give you goosebumps. Being able to keep both hands on the wheel while shifting is a good thing for engagement in this car, based on my time with it. Plus, when I got stuck in traffic, I didn't have to wear out my left leg. The other brilliant thing about the Toyota 86 is its sense of balance. I loved the way it communicated its load distribution when cornering, whether on or off the throttle or brake. The fact that the nose of this car snaps right to where you want it when you start dialing in steering angle is satisfying. And its low stance and good view out the windshield make it really easy to place on the road.

Cosworth teases upgrades for Subaru BRZ

Subaru may or may not produce an STI version of the BRZ. Things seem to go back and forth on the subject. But Subaru Tecnica International isn't the only company with a history of tuning Subies. So does Cosworth, and now the British racing firm appears to be turning its attention to the BRZ and its Toyota- and Scion-badged siblings.
For those unacquainted, Cosworth is more than your average tuning company. It's a racing firm first and foremost, having made F1 engines under its own name as well as Ford's (chief among them the all-conquering DFV 3.0-liter V8 of 1960s and 70s fame), not to mention engines for Indy, rally and even high-performance, road-going versions of the Ford Sierra, Chevy Vega and Mercedes 190E. The list goes on and on, but you get the point.
Now withdrawing from Formula One, Cosworth is focusing its attention on tuning road cars again with the launch of the Cosworth Power Package line, the first of which will focus on the Toyota GT86 (aka Scion FR-S) and Subaru BRZ. We don't know just yet what will be included in the packaged dubbed FA-20, but from the video teaser below, it seems there'll be upgrades to the exhaust, suspension, aero and - if we're lucky - maybe a super- or turbocharger for the 2.0-liter flat-four engine. We'll have to wait and see, but we get the feeling that with Cosworth on the job, it'll be worth the wait. Check out the minute-long video below in the meantime.

2015 Subaru WRX

Every time I drive a Subaru WRX, I wish one of my parents had taken some weird, top-secret spy job that would have forced us to relocate to Finland when I was a kid. I could have learned the art of rally-style car control as a young lad, and in my adult life, sought out a dangerous/rewarding/awesome career as a professional WRC driver.
Never was that more clear than on the launch program for the new 2015 WRX, where Subaru pointed us down a long, somewhat treacherous stretch of road in the tree-lined mountains of northern California. Quick elevation changes were met with blind turns and washed-out shoulders, not to mention rogue bits of snow, ice and gravel that lined the apexes of nearly every turn. Here, I couldn't stop grinning, my co-driver and I switching between second and third gears, with precise steering inputs and judicious braking keeping us safely on the road and not plummeting nose-first into the trees. And the WRX simply devoured each inch of pavement with a ferocious poise that made me remember why I have loved this car so darn much.
But this sort of 100 Acre Wood perfection isn't the only way to experience Subaru's darling WRX. After a long stint of driving back down the California coast on Highway 1, I realized that Subaru's line about this being the best-driving WRX yet wasn't just a bunch of PR mumbo-jumbo. Of course, it isn't without a few compromises...