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2019 Subaru Forester Long-Term Introduction | Bring us your dogs

A 2019 Subaru Forester is officially entering the Autoblog long-term vehicle fleet. Subaru completely overhauled the Forester for the 2019 model year, so we’ve snagged one to start a year-long test. The new, small Subaru crossover left quite an impression on us when we drove it for the first time. It was much more refined and advanced than before, even if it doesnÂ’t look that different.  For example, the new Forester adopts SubaruÂ’s Global Platform and a new direct-injection 2.5-liter flat-four engine. The interior gets a massive overhaul with a new design, upgraded materials and impressive technology. What does it lose? The turbo. That's right, the 2019 Forester cannot be had with the outgoing model's 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder or any sort of engine upgrade. WeÂ’ll see how much weÂ’re missing the grunt by the time our year is up. What we got Subaru offers the Forester in five different trim levels, and we got the highest of them all: Touring. This means all the tech and luxury goodies are onboard, but it also means a $35,270 base price after the $975 destination charge is tacked on. All-weather floor mats and a rear seatback protector nudged our carÂ’s final price to $35,495. The other tempting trim option was the Sport, but we decided to pass on the slightly ridiculous red-orange accents — our eyes will thank us. Instead, our Subaru exudes class, or at least as much class as a Subaru can, in Horizon Blue Pearl.  As we mentioned, our Forester comes with the naturally aspirated 2.5-liter boxer four-cylinder. It makes a whopping 182 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque. At no point does it feel quick, but itÂ’s not painfully slow either. However, weÂ’re afraid to see what might happen with a full load of people and gear on a weekend getaway. Look out for updates on that one.  As for the extras we get with the Touring trim, there are many. Luxuries include LED headlights and foglights, 18-inch alloy wheels, leather interior trim, a 10-way power driverÂ’s seat, heated front and rear seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, navigation and a Harman Kardon audio system. Coolest of all, is SubaruÂ’s Driver Focus system with the infrared camera mounted on the dashboard, only available on the Touring. It watches your face to make sure youÂ’re alert and watching the road ahead, reminding you to look if it detects your inattention. An added benefit to this is facial recognition, allowing driver profiles to be set.

Jalopnik and Consumer Reports see who can pull off the best snow drift

The weather throughout much of the United States is pretty awful at the moment with some combination of extremely low temperatures, inches of snow and maybe some ice underneath it all. The folks at Jalopnik and Consumer Reports are making the absolute best out of a difficult situation by heading to CR's snow-covered test track and attempting to make the longest drift in a quartet of very different performance vehicles. Jalopnik brought along a Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S Wagon, a Subaru WRX STI, a BMW 228i and a 1973 Volkswagen Baja Bug (heck yeah!) for the challenge. Also, the track was perfect for this group, with a mix of packed snow in places and still a few inches of unsullied powder in spots too. Ostensibly the goal was to get the tail to step out through a particular corner, but in reality this was more about having hilarious fun in the snow with fast cars. The result just looks like the best time humanly possible in this weather.

Subaru SVX to be resurrected with hybrid power?

Salt. Get the salt. A new report out of Australia is claiming that Subaru is working on a new SVX. Yes, seriously.
Now, this is not feasible for a pair of huge reasons. First, the demand for a two-door Subaru, as we've seen with the BRZ, has not been tremendous. Second, the original SVX was a pretty horrible seller. Could the world be ready for a revival, though?
According to an unnamed source that spoke to Motoring.com.au, the reborn SVX will be based on the Viziv 2 Concept that was shown at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, but it will be a considerably more aggressive design, arriving as a low, wide shooting brake. According to the Aussies, the reborn SVX would ride on a new Subaru Global Platform, which will underpin the next-generation Tribeca, because of that platform's support for hybridization.