2021 Subaru BRZ launch date confirmed

Subaru has silenced skeptics that the BRZ sports car will be put out to pasture with an 'all-new' 2021 Subaru BRZ confirmed by the brand’s US arm, beating the coupe's Toyota 86 sister to the punch.

Now, a teaser on Subaru's global site has firmed up a launch date for the 2+2 two-door coupe, hinting that 18 November would be an interesting day to mark in the calendar.

A photo of an undisguised front end was also released (below), showing off what the headlights, bonnet and side mirrors will look like.

The front end certainly looks stronger than the current car's softer, more stylised lines. We'd also suggest it may end up being fractionally larger than the outgoing car.

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Compared to the current car (below), the design is more bluff and squared off, with strong feature lines under the smaller, DRL-equipped headlight clusters.

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2019 Subaru BRZ Premium reviewed here

The initial announcement via a Subaru USA Instagram post revealed little detail, but the heavily camouflaged body appears to have gained a new vent aft of the front arches and rolls on familiar wheels.

“The all-new 2022 Subaru BRZ - world premiere coming this Fall,” the post’s caption reads.

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Instagram: @subarudwayne

Aside from the American tendency to give cars a model name up to a year in advance, this implies the global reveal is imminent, and a northern hemisphere autumn translates to spring in Australia.

Our contact at Subaru Australia suggests that the new Subaru BRZ will arrive in Australia in the third quarter of 2021, but couldn't offer much more.

Thankfully, a couple of cheeky attendees to a Subiefest event in California have also provided another look at the car via photos taken at a rather silhouetted reveal of the full camouflaged car.

Some Lexus-style design elements, namely the taillights, are a reminder of Toyota’s involvement, though the running gear is still expected to be Subaru, while natural aspiration is thought to be another carry over from the current generation.

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Instagram: @stinicktuned

The word from those who were present, such as Instagram user stinicktuned, is that the next BRZ (and therefore more than likely 86) will use a 2.4-litre NA boxer four (likely FA) with a small power bump over the original.

Quoted figures are 162kW and 240Nm, though we’ll wait to hear the details directly from the Japanese manufacturer before we call that confirmed.

WhichCar contacted Toyota Australia to find out if a similar announcement might be imminent for the BRZ’s twin, but no official statement was offered. Toyota has, however, recently revealed via MOTOR Magazine, that the next 86 is under development.

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