Late last year, Tan Chong International Deputy Chairman and Managing Director Glenn Tan, the parent company of Motor Image confirmed that the distributor is launching six all-new models within 2021.

The first salvo consists of a trio of family-friendly SUVs—the Evoltis, Outback, and refreshed Subaru XV. These are expected to arrive in consecutive months starting in April. In the latter part of the year though, the six-star brand will go all performance, and leading that charge is the all-new 2022 Subaru BRZ.

Motor Image hasn’t given any exact timeframe, but Tan mentioned that the second-generation Subaru BRZ is expected to arrive in the Philippines by the fourth quarter of this year.

Retaining the platform from the first-generation model, it now gains elements learned from the Subaru Global Platform giving it 50 percent increased torsional stiffness. It extensively uses aluminum to help keep its weight down. The Subaru BRZ will use a normally-aspirated 2.4-liter Boxer engine mated to either a 6-speed manual or 6-speed automatic. The automatic will benefit from the Subaru EyeSight driver assist system.

As for pricing, the current Subaru BRZ is priced at P 2.158 million. It’s likely that Motor Image will stay close to this pricing, probably going up to P 2.2 million to P 2.3 million given the added standard features.

Although everything looks set at this point, one big factor may influence the Subaru BRZ’s arrival timeframe. Just today, Subaru Corporation announced that its Gunma Manufacturing Plant has been severely hit by the global semiconductor shortage. Starting April 10 to 27, 2021, Subaru plants will only partially operate with production at the Yajima Plant—the plant that manufactures the Legacy, Outback, Impreza, Forester, and Subaru XV—temporarily suspended.

The 2022 Subaru BRZ will start Japan sales by summer of 2021, while for the US market, it will go on sale in the early fall of 2021.