Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ: From the EU to sports cars

Toyota GR86 (see video) and Subaru BRZ (see photo gallery) have many fans around the world. This also applies in EU member states and Germany, even if the registration numbers of small coupés are at a manageable level across Europe. However, the two Japanese are appreciated in our part of the world as the last two affordable sports cars. However, it is now time to say goodbye to the GR86 and BRZ. The Boxer twins will be phased out of both manufacturers’ new car ranges in the European Union by summer 2024.

Spokespeople for the Japanese automaker confirmed this when asked. “The BRZ only sells stock cars,” says Subaru. From the middle of the year, new cars will no longer be available. “The GR86 will be phased out in the EU over the course of a year,” says Toyota. So the manufacturer sticks to its original plan to only release the series on EU markets for two years. The Toyota GR86 came to us in the summer of 2022, the BRZ followed in early 2023. Considering that the typical life cycle of a car lasts about seven years, both models would have a few years left.

Stricter safety rules

By the way, the reason for the early end is not a lack of success – at least not only. Both manufacturers cite the EU’s strict safety regulations as part of the “General Safety Regulation” (GSR), which is becoming increasingly strict in a four-tier system, as the main reason. Since summer 2022, Level B has been mandatory for all new car models; From mid-2024 it will apply to all new cars produced in the EU. This is exactly when the Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ will be discontinued. Standards C and D follow with a two-year delay – except that GSR D becomes mandatory at the beginning of each year, but this standard will not apply to all first registrations until 2029.

On the one hand, this is about passive safety: in the future, cars and light commercial vehicles will have to have fronts with larger mirrors, which reduce the risk of injury to pedestrians and cyclists and motorcyclists. Mandatory improvements in assistance systems such as emergency braking, lane keeping, speed and sleep aids are also aimed at these road users. For these systems to comply with EU regulations, appropriate camera technology must be installed. Toyota sources say that the GR86’s roof section should have been designed differently; efforts that manufacturers of similar sports cars inevitably avoid.

Cybersecurity and emissions regulations

But that is not enough. There must now be an interface for alcohol testing devices in car models. The topic of cyber security also plays a more important role; It even recently discontinued high-end, high-performance cars like the Porsche Macan and VW Up. On top of that, the Damocles sword of high fines for not complying with the Euro 7 emission regulations of their fleet hangs over car manufacturers. This situation means that niche models such as the Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ can no longer be offered profitably in the EU.

But fans of small Japanese sports cars may not have to wait long for a successor to the GR86. According to rumors from Japan, this could come as early as the 2025 model year and also be released in Europe. Then possibly with a three-cylinder turbo petrol engine combined to comply with emissions regulations, and of course with important safety technologies. However, nothing is currently known about a Subaru similar to this model.