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Subaru Forester, Legacy and Outback earn IIHS Top Safety Pick+ ratings

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced its more rigorous standards for the Top Safety Pick+ crash test rating back in September, and has recently called out some new models that have attained this highest rating. Last year, the TSP+ category was created for vehicles passing the then-new small overlap crash test; this year the top award has been amended to include crash prevention technology.
Thanks to its EyeSight technology, the Subaru Legacy, Outback and Forester are among just 22 vehicles to have been named a 2014 TSP+ by the IIHS. Without this technology, all three vehicles - and the Impreza and XV Crosstrek - were still named a Top Safety Pick (without the +).
To test the crash prevention technology, the IIHS uses two tests (one at 12 miles per hour and one at 25 mph) to see how well the systems do to lessen the severity of an impact. or prevent an impact altogether. Vehicles are then given a rating from Superior (best), Advanced or Basic, and cars that do not offer forward collision warning or auto braking are not given a rating in this category. To be named a TSP+, a car must achieve at least a Basic score for crash prevention, but all three Subaru models earned a perfect score to receive a Superior rating. Scroll down for Subaru's press release.

Subaru to stop building Camry for Toyota in the US

It was back in 2007 that Subaru of Indiana Automotive, under contract from Subaru minority shareholder Toyota, built the first Toyota Camry at its plant in Lafayette, Indiana. Rumblings of the end of that contract work have been around for a while, as Subaru talked of expanding capacity to build more units and add a line for the Impreza, and Toyota talked of moving Camry production to its Georgetown, KY plant. The news was official internally last November when SIA Executive Vice President Tom Easterday told the Louisville Courier-Journal that Camry production would end. Now, Automotive News reports that both automakers have admitted publicly that the end will come in 2016.
SIA currently has a 170,000-unit capacity devoted to the home-brand Legacy and Outback models, while a $400-million expansion increases that to 300,000 units to prepare the facility for Impreza production in two years. Freeing up the 100,000 units of production devoted to the Camry means a 400,000-unit capability, which is far more than Subaru needs at the moment, but the Toyota exit will allow it to expand any way it sees fit. Subaru has said it will absorb the workers on the Camry line and no jobs will be lost, the mayor of Lafayette saying the development could change the timetable for the expansion.

Subaru Levorg STI Sport prototype revealed with barely more aggressive looks

The Subaru Levorg STI Sport prototype has been revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon. We were expecting something that added some extra ferocity to the regular Levorg concept shown a few months ago at the Tokyo Motor Show. Instead, we have a wagon that's just barely different at all. The body itself appears unchanged with the sole exception of new fog lights in the lower front fascia. There are STI details sprinkled about, such as the trademark pink badges in the grille and on the hatch. The exhaust also features the logo stamped in the tips. And of course it gets unique wheels from the original prototype. The good news is that the Levorg was already handsome and sporty, but we would have liked to see a little more. Subaru remains mum on mechanical details. We know it will come standard with a new turbocharged 1.8-liter flat-four engine and of course all-wheel drive. We expect it will also have a version of the FA20 2.0-liter turbo engine from the WRX as an option. And speaking of the WRX, the current Levorg shares most of its bodywork with the sports sedan, so when the new generation launches it should look like this wagon. Related Video: