White 2009 Subaru Forester X Limited 4-door 2.5l Grey Leather Interior on 2040-cars

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Subaru uses Barkley dogs in new TV spots | Autoblog Minute

Subaru announced it's bringing back the Barkley family. A Dog family of Labradors and Golden Retrievers. A new series of TV spots called "Dog Tested. Dog Approved" has been released by Subaru. Subaru Autoblog Minute Videos Original Video

Seeing the sights with Subaru EyeSight's Touring Assist | Autoblog in Japan

Autoblog recently went to Japan to drive cars, ride trains, and talk to carmakers about automotive history and the future of mobility. This video is part of a larger series of special reports from Japan. TOKYO — The interesting thing about Subaru's EyeSight technology is that — like its name suggests — it relies mostly on the stereoscopic color cameras located behind the rear-view mirror that scan the road ahead of the car. We've had EyeSight available here in the U.S. for years now, controlling features like pre-collision braking and throttle control, and adaptive cruise control. The cameras can detect vehicles, pedestrians and lane markings, and judge their distance. It uses color images to recognize brake lights, which add another piece of important input when making critical life-or-death decisions. New for Japan, though, is an EyeSight upgrade called Touring Assist. Touring Assist builds upon the capabilities of EyeSight with more robust lane tracing, adaptive cruise control and steering assist. Before expending to other markets or other models, Touring Assist is only available on the Subaru Levorg and WRX in Japan. The capabilities of lane tracing have been expanded for use at any speed, rather than just over 37 miles per hour. Additionally, Touring Assist adds automated steering to help keep you in your lane. This uses the cameras not just to read and adhere to the lane markings but, at speeds of up to 37 mph, to also follow the car in front of you. Touring Assist doesn't allow for fully autonomous driving, but its driver assistance features automate certain functions in specific conditions, theoretically making driving safer and easier. It's a step toward fully autonomous driving, a technological foundation upon which self-driving systems can expand. We arrived in Japan in spring, expecting to see streets lined with cherry blossoms. Instead, we were met with a frigid downpour that later turned to snow on our first full day in Tokyo. While not ideal conditions for our first time driving in Tokyo traffic — or driving on the left side of the road in a right-hand-drive car — it allowed us to test out Touring Assist in less-than-perfect conditions. Check out the video above to see how that went. In all, we were pretty impressed with Touring Assist. What would have been a fraught drive in a foreign country on the wrong side of the road in crappy weather and heavy congestion was actually pretty relaxed and enjoyable.

Nine cars we wish were convertibles

The snow has melted, the sun is shining, and the days are getting longer. At the Autoblog Detroit office we feel like our winter hibernation is finally over. And with warmer temperatures come visions of opening up a convertible roof and cruising. You know, just turn up the bass and let the Alpine blast. There are plenty of droptops on sale in the US, and more on the way (like the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata). That said, we always want more. More! More! More! In that spirit, we cooked up a list of nine cars aren't currently sold as convertible, but ought to be. Check out our picks, below. Summer's just around the corner. Subaru BRZ / Scion FR-S In some parallel universe, this car actually happened. Toyota showed us a FT 86 Convertible concept at the Geneva Motor Show in 2013, and we immediately started licking our chops over the thought of a rear-wheel-drive convertible based on the Subaru BRZ and Scion FR-S twins. These days, the MX-5 Miata is our only option for affordable roadster fun. A competitor to the Mazda seems like a no-brainer to us, especially since we have naught but good to say about the BRZ/FR-S as-is. Unfortunately in our present timeline, this car is as likely for production as a BRZ STI. Which is to say, not very. Dang. Lexus RC F Unlike the FR-S, a convertible from Toyota's luxury division might actually see the light of day. The current IS convertible is about to be phased out, and the Lexus LF-C2 concept from the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show is really a thinly veiled look at a possible RC convertible. A droptop RC would be plenty good, but let's reach for the starts. What we really want is to run topless in an RC F, complete with that powerful, loud, 5.0-liter V8 engine. Lexus says the RC F is a true competitor to the BMW M4. If that's true, it only makes sense for Lexus to mimic the Germans and offer its performance coupe in a folding hardtop form. Maybach Landaulet Maybach is bach back, recast as an upper crust trim level for Mercedes-Benz. The Mercedes-Maybach S600 is seriously awesome, and more luxurious than a trip to the spa. But why not go a step into the truly ridiculous levels of extravagence and bring back that open-top Landaulet? We think your local princess will love this idea, and with better S-Class bones underneath, Jeeves will have a pretty enjoyable ship to steer, too. Besides, with that slick new Mercedes design language, a Landaulet redux wouldn't be nearly as hideous as the old model, pictured here.