A BRZ With A 6.0 Corvette V8? Hell Yeah, We Want That

When the Toyota FT-86 concept appeared at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2009, the motoring world held its collective breath in anticipation of what turned out to be the best driver's car in years. Its sweet handling and driver focused ideology resonated with petrolheads fed up with bloated econo-boxes.

It took approximately half a mile of driving from the factory gates however, before people began yearning for MOAR POWWEERRR!!!!. With 197bhp the BRZ's far from slow, but in an age where you can get 500bhp from a family car, 197bhp just isn't deemed enough.

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Toyota and Subaru had anticipated this, though, and inspired by the tuning culture attached to the legendary AE86, they made the cars easy to modify. Weapons Grade Performance, based in Connecticut, clearly decided the standard engine was just too puny, so decided a little American muscle was in order.

Step up the brilliantly named BRZO6, a Subaru BRZ with a 500bhp+ Corvette LS2 motor from a ZO6. The guys at WGP went for the swap after realising the 6.0 V8 in the ZO6 looked dimensionally smaller than the 2.0-litre Boxer engine in the Subaru. A few measurements confirmed their suspicions, and the team set to work swapping the engines.

The engine turned out to be so much smaller that they easily had enough space to fit the other custom parts as well as an upgraded radiator. The transmission swap wasn't so easy, with the tunnel needing to be customised to fit the new gearbox.

On top of all this a new exhaust was fitted (helping to make that epic V8 rumble all the more evident), and upgraded KW suspension installed to improve handling.

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Weapons Grade Performance offers these upgrades to all its customers, and considering the fact that R&D is factored into the price, they're relatively good value. The basic kit includes engine and transmission mounts, custom oil pan and driveshaft for $3200. The 'complete kit' will set you back $9100, but for your money you get all of the above plus custom engine wiring and exhausts, and upgraded cooling. On top of all that you can option in upgrades on the rear end, brakes and wheels among other things.

We could sit and listen to that V8 rev all day. Yes, it's fair to say that the BRZO6 is a serious CT want.