2024 Subaru Forester Wilderness on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2015 Subaru XV Crosstrek gets more infotainment, safety tech

A couple of months ago, Subaru rolled out a series of minor enhancements for the Impreza, and now it's performed a similar upgrade to its more rugged counterpart, the XV Crosstrek. For 2015, the XV benefits from available EyeSight driver assistance suite, steering-responsive fog lights and a new 6.2-inch touchscreen infotainment system (with a seven-inch version on higher-spec models).
Otherwise the 2015 Subaru XV Crosstrek and XV Crosstrek Hybrid are essentially the same as the 2014 models they replace. The requisite 2.0-liter boxer four drives to all four wheels as always, with or without hybrid assist, through either a five-speed manual or continuously variable transmission. Look for the updated model to reach dealers this December, and in the meantime, feel free to peruse the press release below.

New Subaru Legacy may be getting smaller six-cylinder and sport models

Subaru gave the next-generation, 2015 Legacy a brand new, more sophisticated platform and improved interior at the Chicago Auto Show, but the engines were carried over barely changed from the previous gen. However, if a rumor from Car and Driver turns out to be true, then the power trains may be getting upgraded as well.
A source within Subaru indicates that the aging 3.6-liter flat-six might finally be getting a replacement in favor of a smaller, more powerful six-cylinder engine, and the four-cylinder may get direct injection. Both of them would be ready for the new Legacy's mid-cycle refresh in about three years, and they would likely be shared by new Outback too.
The turbocharged, GT trim has been absent from the US-market Legacy for the last few model years, but the insider hinted that it might make a return in the coming years. The new version would use the 2.0-liter turbocharged flat-four found in the Forester and the WRX. Though like the Forester, a turbocharged Legacy would likely only be available with the CVT.

Junkyard Gem: 1994 Subaru SVX

Before Subaru became best-known in North America for outdoorsy all-wheel-drive machinery (but after it was best-known for extreme cheapness), we got some wild-looking Subarus with strong overtones of science fiction over here. First, the wedge-shaped XT, XT Turbo, and XT6 arrived during the mid-1980s through early 1990s, with their video-game-style digital instrument panels and fighter-jet-joystick gearshifts. Starting in the 1992 model year, we saw the XT's replacement: the joyously weird SVX. The SVX cost plenty, especially when viewed against the backdrop of the super-cheap Subarus of the past, and not many were sold. Still, Coloradans love old Subarus, and I manage to find discarded SVXs here every now and then. Here's a screaming red '96, found in a self-service yard about 50 miles from Cheyenne. This was the first six-cylinder engine design put into production by Subaru and was essentially the Legacy's boxer four-banger with two extra cylinders. With 230 horsepower, the SVX was reasonably quick for its day. Unfortunately, Subaru didn't have a manual transmission that could handle the six's power, so all SVXs came with four-speed automatics. And, as it turned out, even that transmission didn't fare so well; transmission failures doom more of these cars than any other cause. You can swap in the manual out of a WRX if you have patience and money, and that's what some SVX owners have done in recent years. This one nearly reached 200,000 miles and the interior looks nice, so it was cared for during its life. Now this looks futuristic.  List price for this car started at $29,995, or about $49,800 today. The cheapest Mitsubishi 3000GT cost $30,690 in 1996, and it had just 218 horsepower and front-wheel-drive, so the cooler-looking and quicker SVX seemed like the better deal. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. In its homeland, it was known as the Alcyone SVX. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. If you jump to 5:10 in this dealer-promotional video for the SVX, you'll see the street corner in Los Angeles where the irradiated corpse of J. Frank Parnell got incinerated in the film Repo Man. Featured Gallery Junked 1994 Subaru SVX View 15 Photos Auto News Subaru Automotive History Coupe subaru svx