While the BRZ Sports Coupe has been a described as a bit of an asbo car, I have to say that is an unfair title.

It’s a pretty good car to drive and bags of fun as well, so while it is not in the Porsche category, for £26,000 its certainly good value for money. A colleague described it as lush, that’s the car rather than the driver!

Subaru have just refreshed it and it has been updated from almost top to bottom.

This car is the twin sister of the Toyota GT86, in fact Subaru built the Toyota model for them but ironically the GT86 is more expensive. By a couple of thousand pounds more.

The new BRZ has a new powertrain and suspension and there are extra new safety points but the Coupe shape remains and has been enhanced with a wider, lower stance at the front end.

It is finished off with full-LED headlights which is a Subaru first and there are new design rear lamps and an aerodynamic pedestal spoiler top off the rear of the car. The wheels are now 10 spoke aluminium.

Inside, a 4.2-inch colour LCD multi-information display has been added into the instrument panel. The display features a G force meter, steering angle gauge, brake force gauge, lap timer and torque/power curves for bringing out the sportier side of any driver. The steering wheel has also been redesigned into a smaller package with different leather to increase the driver’s grip for a more engaging experience and is finished off with audio control switches.

Focus has been directed to upgrading the feel of components by using higher quality materials throughout the cabin, including Alcantara and leather seats.

BRZ was built to deliver a linear driving feel, ensuring that the car responds exactly as the driver intended. Keeping this concept in mind, the BRZ’s suspension, engine and drivetrain have been further refined to enhance its poised handling and driving experience.

Inside the Subaru hallmark Boxer engine, the strength of the cylinder blocks has been increased. The valve stems have been buffed and polished, the camshaft is lower friction and the weight of the rocker arms has been reduced. These changes couple together to result in a more responsive, fuel efficient engine. The dampers have been redesigned to reduce body roll, increase precision whilst cornering, as well as damping vibration, therefore delivering improved ride comfort whilst being dynamically focussed.

For sporty drivers, the new TRACK mode enhances the stability of the car and allows for more refined accelerator inputs when driving on race circuits and consolidates the previous 5 VDC modes into 4. 

For urban drivers, there is a new type of hill start assist to help with uphill starts or downhill reversing.

On the safety front, there is also a next-generation advanced airbag system which uses upgraded sensors for a greater level of safety.

The two litre petrol engine is pretty responsive and 0-62mph arrives under eight seconds. Top speed is 140mph and when you are up there you certainly know it. On the German autobahns the world certainly whizzes by.

The vehicle is rear wheel driven with a six gear box and if you drive it reasonably you’ll get almost 40 miles to the gallon.

Its pretty noisy with a grunting exhaust which can be irritating on long journeys and when it rains just be careful on the roundabouts because the BRZ tends to move about a little.

There is only one spec but should you want sat nav you will have to fork out an extra £1,250.

A good fun car at a pretty good price.