1998 Subaru Impreza L Sedan 4-door 2.2l on 2040-cars

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Comedic Hasselhoff car ad leads to a dream job in Sweden

Last month a guy in Florida posted a homemade ad for his 1996 Nissan Maxima online and Nissan bought it from him. This month a guy in Sweden posted a homemade ad for his 1985 Subaru Justy J10 Trendy online and got a job with Swedish car magazine Auto Motor und Sport. When Nils Jangan relocated to a new city and couldn't get a job, the financial drain eventually demanded he get rid of his car. Looking for a way to convince anyone to purchase a 29-year-old hatchback, he enlisted the help of Mordor, Saruman and, naturally, David Hasselhoff giving the thumbs up.
The picture was accompanied by text describing the "Japanese mountain goat" that was "hand-forged" by "the Saruman of carmakers," and its "54 frighteningly well-hung horses." One of its other advertised features was "I.D.N.R.I.S" seat belts, the "Instant Death No Retardation Impact System" meaning the occupants would never have to worry about long-term care if they were "in any collision at speeds higher than 12 km/hour." He asked 10,000 kroner (about $1,500 US) for the beauty, but he was also willing to trade for a job.
After posting the ad on Blocket, a Swedish craigslist, and having it shared throughout the community, Jangan got a ton of interest in the car and a job offer from Auto Motor und Sport, which he accepted. As for the Subie, it ended up going to a local repair shop for just a few hundred kroner, but we imagine Jangan's gets a decent work-related loaner or two to make up for it.

Subaru WRX S4 STI Sport # is a sharper, limited-edition WRX for Japan only

Depending on your nationality, age, and interests, the first association for the # symbol could be pound — for weight or the telephone, number, plain old hash or hashtag, or sharp for the musically inclined. Subaru Japan intends that last meaning for its new WRX S4 STI Sport #, because this is a sharper version of the mass-produced WRX S4 STI Sport introduced to the top of the range last year. Of note, this vehicle is a standard WRX, not a full-beans WRX STI. The differentiator is the "STI Sport" designation, which has also been applied to the Japan-market Levorg and BRZ, representing a model developed with input from Subaru Tecnica International. Last year's flagship trim picked up STI-tuned Bilstein DTMatic II inverted struts at front, STI-tuned conventional springs and dampers in back, 18-inch black wheels to go with black trim pieces like mirror caps and decklid spoiler, and a special interior with Bordeaux leather and ultra suede. Output from the 2.0-liter four-cylinder Boxer motor was left unchanged from the WRX S4 at 296 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, shifting through the automaker's Sport Lineartonic CVT. The sedan costs 4,093,200 yen ($38,050 U.S.). The limited-edition WRX S4 STI Sport # displays a keener edge thanks to three STI components tested on the division's Nurburgring race cars — a flexible front tower bar, and flexible draw stiffeners for front and rear. All three components have been available on the aftermarket for a while, but their stock fitment is apparently new. The flexible tower bar looks like a typical strut tower reinforcement, but a pillow ball joint in its middle provides vertical elasticity. The bar maintains rigidity across the vehicle, but when the suspension needs a little give to work up and down, the pillow ball joint allows that. The flexible draw stiffeners are adjustable rods that connect a longitudinal frame member to a component on the cross-member, increasing chassis stiffness. STI says the three parts deliver faster steering response, reduced roll speed, and improved wheel tracking in the case of road ruts or crosswinds without compromising suspension suppleness. The Boxer sees some tweaks like a freer-breathing air filter and exhaust that raise torque by up to 10%, and sharpen throttle response. Thicker sound insulation in the floor and extra vibration-damping material in the spare tire well cut road noise for all occupants.

2015 Subaru WRX teased ahead of LA debut

After bringing a seriously hot concept to the New York Auto Show earlier this year, Subaru will finally reveal the production 2015 WRX at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this month. And while we've seen spy shots of the hotter Impreza (including the winged STI variant), Subaru has now released this teaser image, showing the bulging, scooped 'Rex that's nearly ready for its world debut.
What we can see is a car that's clearly been toned down from the conceptual version - we aren't surprised, really. But it appears that the added aggressiveness over the standard Impreza will make for a pretty hot-looking little sedan. Of course, WRX models have never exactly been pretty cars, and we don't expect this one to be, either. No matter - assuming this car follows in the footsteps of WRXes past, it should still be plenty good.
Subaru hasn't released any details about the WRX as of this writing, but again, we don't expect it to stray too much from the formula we know. Expect a turbocharged boxer engine underhood, all-wheel drive, and - hopefully - a manual transmission. Rumor has it the WRX and STI will lose their hatchback variants and go sedan-only for the 2015 model year, but we'll have to wait until the official LA debut to know that for certain. Stay tuned.