2014 Subaru Legacy 2.5i Premium on 2040-cars

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2021 BMW M3/M4 and Volkswagen ID.4 revealed | Autoblog Podcast #646

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by West Coast Editor James Riswick. Together, they tackle a week's worth of big news, including the reveals of the BMW M3 and M4 and Volkswagen ID.4, as well as Tesla's Battery Day. Greg's been driving the long-term Subaru Forester, and gives us an update on that, while James discusses the current state and direction of Cadillac after driving the CT5. Then, the two dads talk about child seat safety, as well as random things they've learned from having children of their own. Autoblog Podcast #646 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown 2021 BMW M3 and M4 revealed with a standard manual and up to 503 horsepower 2021 Volkswagen ID.4 breaks cover with 250-mile range Why the Volkswagen ID.4 is a Very Big Deal Elon Musk promises $25,000 car, EV battery cell that costs half — but not soon 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid coming with three motors and more than 1,100 horsepower Cars we're driving: Long-term 2019 Subaru Forester 2020 Cadillac CT5 A conversation on child car seats Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Green Podcasts BMW Cadillac Subaru Tesla Volkswagen Safety Coupe Crossover Electric Luxury Performance Sedan

Subaru WRX STI EJ20 Final Edition a Japan-only goodbye

Just before Subaru stopped selling the WRX STI in the UK and Continental Europe, the automaker released 150 examples of a WRX STI Final Edition for the UK. Now that the Japanese-market WRX STI is about to give up its 2.0-liter EJ20 flat-four engine, the company's repeated the gesture. Subaru will produce 555 of the WRX STI EJ20 Final Edition for buyers in Japan, celebrating the motor that's served for 30 years in turbo and non-turbo forms in a bag of Subie models ever since it found a home in the 1989 JDM Legacy sedan. We'll guess the production figure recalls Subaru's blue and yellow World Rally Championship livery when State Express cigarette brand 555 sponsored the multiple-championship-winning team from 1993 to 2004.  This take on the turbocharged EJ20 rocks 304 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of torque. Those aren't output numbers to make a statement, seeing as they're less than the 325 horses and 318 lb-ft in the special edition WRX STI S208 from two years ago, and the 320 hp and 320 lb-ft in the S207 from four years ago, both with the same EJ20 engine. The Final Edition does get engine tweaks like mass-balanced pistons, upgraded clutch and flywheel, and a plaque reading "EJ20 Final Edition." Power's sent through a six-speed manual to four 19-inch, gold BBS wheels held back by Brembo brakes. As the automaker did with the S208, the EJ20 Final Edition will only be available through via a lottery application on a local Subaru site between Oct. 24 and Nov. 11, priced at JPY4,521,000 ($41,620 U.S.). After that, orders for other versions of the WRX and STI with the 2.0-liter will only be taken until Dec. 23, 2019. As the WRX STI endgame continues, we're left to wonder what's headed this way in the next-generation model. The EJ25 2.5-liter boxer-four specific to our market will bow out, but competing narratives suspect larger and smaller engines could replace it. At least one report thinks the Levorg wagon's 1.8-liter turbo might power the next WRX — our WRX currently uses the FA20 2.0-liter with 268 horses, and a report from August predicts the next WRX STI to get a more powerful FA20 with 315 horsepower. The new-gen sedan is expected to bow next year before launch in 2021.    

Is your new-car warranty good at the race track?

We've all heard the horror stories. Your buddy knows a girl that was dating a guy whose best friend's brother once broke his brand-new, recently purchased performance car while making runs at a drag strip or laps at a track day, and the manufacturer wouldn't cover the repair under warranty. True story? Urban legend? Complete crap? Yes, no, maybe. One thing's for sure: Automotive warranties have always come with caveats. In 1908, an ad in the Trenton Evening Times clearly stated: "All Ford Cars Guaranteed for One Year." Although it changed over time, by 1925 the Ford New Car Guarantee only covered 90 days on material and 30 days on labor, and it clearly stated that that there was "No guarantee whatever on Fan Belts, Glass, Bulbs, Wiring, Transmission, Bands, Hose Connections, Commutator Shells, Rollers, Spark Plugs or Gaskets." Whether or not Ol' Henry would pay to fix your Model T if you broke it shaving a tenth off your lap time at the local board track seems to be lost to history. We're guessing no. But what about today? Do new-car warranties in 2017 cover cars when they are driven on race tracks? We researched the warranties of 14 auto brands to find out, and the answer is yes, no, maybe, depending on the brand, in some cases the model, and whether or not your car is modified from stock. Acura has been out of the high-performance car game for a number of years, but jumps back into the party in 2017 with its hybrid-powered $173,000 NSX supercar. And Acura's warranty, as well as Honda's, clearly states that it does not cover "the use of the vehicle in competition or racing events." View 33 Photos So we asked Sage Marie, Senior Manager of Public Relations for Honda and Acura. "If the car is stock, the warranty covers it on a track just as it does on the street. No question," he told us. "However, if the car is modified, say with slick tires or other components that would put higher stresses on the vehicle's parts and systems, then we would have to investigate the circumstances further." Marie went on to say the same would be true for any Acura model or Honda vehicle, including the new 2017 Honda Civic Si. This became a common theme. Chevrolet actually started this practice with the fifth-generation Camaro on the high-performance ZL1 and Z/28 models.