The beauty of rear-wheel drive hits one of France's most beautiful highways.
This is a story of unlikely scenarios. The first concerns the Subaru BRZ, a rear-wheel-drive sports car from the company famous for making all-wheel-drive station wagons pretending to be SUVs. It’s equally unlikely that this Japanese car finds itself on southern France’s Route Napoléon, one of Europe’s best driving roads and the main link between swanky Cannes and the base of the French Alps in Grenoble.We’re here because this is a road of reclamation. Deposed French emperor Napoléon Bonaparte followed it in 1815 to take back his throne. We want to see if the Japanese can reclaim theirs as kings of the simple, affordable, well-built, great-handling sports coupe. We plan to drive the BRZ hard over the route in pursuit of its bona fides. Hopefully, it won’t end as badly for us as it did for the little guy.
The BRZ (and its Scion FR-S twin) would not exist without Toyota’s cash and additional sales volume. But, by all accounts, every mechanical part—the heart and soul of the car—is Subaru’s work. As we drive the grand old sea-hugging boulevards of Cannes at the outset of our trip, gawking pedestrians holler, “Est-ce une Subaru?” and, “Que bonne!” This confirms either that the styling—which Toyota drew—has hit its mark or that the French love design restraint.
Read More: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2013-subaru-brz-limited-road-test-review