RETURN of the BRZ sports car to the market has been fulfilled by Subaru, though arrival of 10 customer units first spoken of last December has brought one twist: A name change.

Cars that had been expected to bear the tS designation - which signals that they are in the factory’s highest specification - are instead here with a new name, ‘Tsubasa’. The name is a Japanese kanji script word that translates to ‘wings.’

Why upgrade from the original tS designation to a more fancy name? It’s not been explained, but the May 16 media release citing that 10 Tsubasa cars were in country seems to have confused at least one major publication, which came to conclusion this was a new consignment, over and above that announced at end of last year. A Subaru dealer spoken to MotoringNZ.com says that’s not the case; it’s just a rename of what were originally tS cars.

What possibly adds to confusion is that there’s an 11th car here, which was offered to media for test drives. It’s extramural to the customer supply, being a sample product. It might be that the publication became confused because, having driven that car, it imagined all the customer examples were here as well. But they weren’t. Subaru NZ made clear in December it’s tS-now-Tsubasa cars would be built in the first quarter of this year and delivered to NZ from Japan in April. They were a bit late, finally touching NZ soil last week.

Anyway … don’t ask about availability. All have flown; having been spoken for via an on-line process.

But wait, there could well be more … 

Last December, Subaru New Zealand said the reason why it was initially only bringing in 10 examples of this twin to the Toyota GR86 was “due to both the size of the market and our desire to keep the BRZ as a special vehicle for our performance vehicle enthusiasts.” But it said that didn’t mean it couldn’t get more, if demand warranted that.

Today, it repeated that statement, offering that disappointment for those who missed out on the first shipment may only be short-lived. 

“Subaru of New Zealand are already working on obtaining another special edition BRZ, which would arrive late this year.”

Question: Is that going to be a Tsubasa or something much the same, but by another name?

 The reason for asking that is valid. Special names allow Subaru NZ to keep on with a ‘limited edition’ pitch that it has previously used with the WRX. The AKA, Tatsu and Todoroki cars were all called that. To promote that ideal, owners get an ‘exclusive’ numbered presentation key box and especially engraved key ring.

Those trinkets are nice-to-haves, and would be worth citing for when the cars might be on-sold, but how exclusive are the cars in reality? A quick internet check in respect to the BRZ suggests the factory is set up to provision as many examples of its 2.0-litre sports car in any specific format as a market might demand.

Subaru NZ itself is confident its $59,990 issue will achieve special status, highlighting that it delivers in highest specification with a six-speed manual transmission and in WR (for World Rally) Blue - the hue that coated those works rally cars back in the (increasingly) old days that Subaru appears to have in endless supply.

As things stand, the new generation BRZ will be almost as exclusive in NZ-new format as the first generation model, which was only briefly sold here, with just 12 consigned after launch in 2012.

One reason back then was that Subaru NZ felt it couldn’t compete with Toyota NZ in marketing the car, and was also unable to match the market leader’s aggressive pricing.

This time the Subaru is exactly the same price as the GR 86, which also avails in automatic for no premium.

TNZ’s GR86 in-country count is already almost five times that of the BRZ, but as with the original GT 86 that is because it uses the model for a one-make national racing series.

The Tsubasa features STI-tuned front and rear suspension dampers and Brembo brakes with gold-painted four-piston front calipers and two-piston rear calipers. It takes 18-inch dark gray metallic alloy wheels with Michelin Pilot 4 tires.

The interior features a red and black ultrasuede and leather-accented interior with STI-embossed front seats. 

The cabin also features an STI red push-start button and an instrument cluster that bears the STI logo and red  highlights. 

The BRZ now has EyeSight Driver Assist technology suite including adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, lane sway warning, lead vehicle start alert, pre-collision braking, pre-collision brake assist, and brake light recognition.

Kym Mellow, general manager of Inchcape, the distributor of Subaru here, says: “The BRZ’s reputation as a driver's car, courtesy of its superb engineering has preceded it.”