“We see a lot of brands that go down-market to the entry-level buyer, but we’re smaller and have to be very strategic on where we focus our resources,” Lin said in an interview with Ward's Auto.
“This wasn’t a car (BRZ) that we desperately needed. But it was a great engineering exercise, and we manufacture and build it,” Lin added.
As it stands, Subaru only receives around 10 percent of the rear-wheel drive sports coupes it builds to sell under its BRZ nameplate. As a part of the deal, however, Subaru received access to Toyota’s D4-S direct fuel injection system.
Lin insisted that the deal between Toyota and Subaru is likely a onetime collaboration, though he leaves the door open to another.
Subaru, however, is not without a strong entry-level offering. It updated its current entry-level car, the Impreza, for 2012.
On the Toyota side of things, a redesigned 2014 Corolla is expected to debut at next month’s New York International Auto Show. And if the spy photos we’ve seen are any indication, it could give the new Impreza a run for its money.
